Episode 43 Pointless

Thank you very much indeed.

Hello, I'm Alexander Armstrong and welcome to Pointless,

the quiz show that puts obscure knowledge to the test.

Let's meet today's players.

Welcome, Sherri and Tony, you are our first pair on the show today.

-How do you two know each other?

-We met on a train.

Yeah, we were on, actually,

on the way to work sitting on the train and he started talking to me.

As you do.

He hadn't been following you for years, had he?

No, but it is something that I've actually suspected.

Very good indeed. Whose idea was it to come on Pointless?

It was actually Tony's.

-It was Tony's. Did you take a lot of persuading, Sherri?

-No, not at all.

Not at all.

No, generally, when we meet up, cos I live in Suffolk

and Tony lives down in Essex,

so he comes, you know, he pops up to see me from time to time.

-We generally do a quiz.

-And we quiz.

-Oh, I see, you quiz.

Tony, what are you hoping is going to come up this afternoon?

History, perhaps.

-Sport, politics.

-Politics. Sherri, how about you? What would be...?

Anything that Tony knows, I'll be happy with.

-Best of luck to the pair of you.

-Thank you.

-Great to have you here.

Next, we welcome Annie and Nicki. Now, how do you two know each other?

We met at university about ten years ago

and we've been friends ever since.

-Well, actually, I tripped over the guide dog first.

-Oh, right.

You tripped over Nicki's guide dog?

Yeah, I thought she was, for some reason,

leading around a little woollen rug, for some reason.

-What do you do, Annie?

-I'm a reporter.

-A reporter, whereabouts?

At a magazine for disabled people.

I write about a lot of features, about the various things

happening at the moment.

Excellent. And, Nicki, how about you?

I am a guide dog awareness trainer.

I go around schools and other community groups,

giving talks about supporting guide dog owners, helping guide dogs

and just, generally, guide doggy-type things.

Presumably, teaching people like Annie not to trip over them as well.

-Exactly.

-Yes, yes. Annie didn't come to that lesson, though.

-No, my bad.

What are you hoping will come up this afternoon, Nicki?

I'd like a bit of horse racing and something to do with nature because

I presented a show on my local radio station for two years about nature.

-So, I like to think of myself as quite a...

-Quite a naturalist.

-Yes.

Very good, indeed. I think I said that right, didn't I?

Cos naturalist, I have to tread very carefully on that one.

Well, great to have you both on the show. Very best of luck to you.

And next, we welcome back Fraser and Sara.

You were on the show last time.

Everyone gets two chances to reach the Pointless final.

And this is your last chance. Remind us how you did.

We got to the head-to-head and we lost two-one in the semi-final.

-We got mixed up over Beatles songs.

-Yeah.

-That's right.

Ain't She Fine, instead of Ain't She Sweet.

And that would've been pointless. You would have gone through to the final.

We took a 0-answer and a 2-answer,

added them up and came up with 100.

Oh, dear. But the good news is, we get to see you twice.

-Fantastic.

-So, there we are.

What are you hoping is going to see you through to the final, Sara?

Just general trivia that I know.

Fair enough. How about you, Fraser?

What would be a good category for you?

Well, I heard horse racing and I like sport,

and horse racing's one of the sports that I follow.

-That would be good.

-Great to have you back on the show.

Finally, we've got Graham and Richard. How do you two know each other?

Well, I have the absolute pleasure of being born three years

after Graham, which makes him my brother.

I've been suffering ever since for it.

He loves me so much that when I went travelling last year, he was

standing in the pub, in the middle of the day, crying,

when I was leaving.

Tears of joy.

Graham, to be honest though, I've seen you standing

in the middle of the pub in tears many, many times.

-Many a time.

-Yeah. And what do you do, Richard?

I'm a digital content creator, which involves writing content

and entering data for websites for a web consultancy in Liverpool.

Graham, what about you? What do you do?

Self-employed plumber and builder.

-How long have you been doing that?

-Just over three years now.

Very good. Plumbers, the most popular people around, aren't they?

-Supposedly.

-Yeah. Very, very best of luck to the pair of you.

We'll find out more about all of you throughout the show.

There's only one person left for me to introduce.

He has climbed the mountain of knowledge

and planted a flag of obscurity at its very peak.

-He is my Pointless friend, he is Richard.

-Hiya. Hiya.

-Afternoon.

-Good afternoon, Richard.

-How are you, are you well?

-I'm very well, thank you.

-Excellent.

We've only got one returning pair today. That's Fraser and Sara.

They were very, very strong last time.

So, it should be quite a tricky show for the rest of you, I suspect.

Good news for Tony, though. Round One is Politics. Good news for Sara.

Round Two is general trivia that Sara knows.

Very good indeed. Thanks very much, Richard.

We put all our questions to 100 people before the show,

but this is Pointless,

so we are after the obscure answers they didn't get.

To stay in the game, with a chance to win our jackpot,

all our players need to do is score as few points as they can.

What everyone's trying to do is find a pointless answer,

that's an answer that none of our 100 people gave.

And each time that happens, we will add £250 to the jackpot.

Nobody won the jackpot last time. So, we add another £1,000 to that.

So, today's jackpot starts off at £4,250.

Right, let's play Pointless.

Now, in the first round, each of you must give me one answer

and you cannot confer with your partner.

Whichever team has the highest score at the end of the round

will be eliminated. If anyone gives me an incorrect answer,

they will score the maximum of 100 points.

Try and avoid those if you can.

OK, our first category this afternoon is...

Can you all decide in your pairs who's going to go first,

who's going to go second?

And whoever's going first, please step up to the podium.

OK. Let's find out what that first question is.

We gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many UK Cabinet posts

as they could.

UK Cabinet posts, Richard.

We're looking for any Cabinet position in the UK government,

according to the UK Parliamentary website.

There are certain ministers, such as whips or members of

the Cabinet office who are invited to Cabinet.

We won't accept them.

When one post has more than one remit,

we'll accept just one answer, but any Cabinet position

in the UK government as of May 2011, please.

OK, thank you very much, Richard.

Right, Sherri and Tony, you all drew lots before the show

and this afternoon, you get to go first.

Sherri?

I will go for Foreign Secretary.

You're hoping to score as few points as possible.

Let's see if Foreign Secretary is right.

And if it is, let's how many people said it.

APPLAUSE

44.

44 for Foreign Secretary, not many.

Full title is Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.

Also in charge of the government's wine cellars.

It's got £2 million worth of wine down there.

-Wow.

-Not bad, is it?

-Not bad at all. OK. Annie?

I'm going to go with... Nicki, it was nice to know you, by the way,

I apologise.

I'm going to go with, is this going to be a mistake?

I'm going to go with Defence Secretary.

Defence Secretary, says Annie.

You're hoping, as always, to score as few points as possible.

Let's see if Defence Secretary is right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said it.

It's right.

APPLAUSE

Very, very well done, Annie. 22, exactly half

of the previous score.

Well played. Very good answer. Secretary of State for Defence.

Now then, Sara, we are looking for Cabinet positions.

-US Secretary.

-US Secretary, says Sara.

You're hoping to score as few points as possible.

Let's see if US Secretary is right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said it.

Bad luck, Sara.

I'm afraid that's an incorrect answer, which means

you score the maximum of 100 points.

-Sorry, Richard.

-Yeah, sorry, Sara.

I think they tend to leave the Foreign Secretary to deal with

that sort of thing. The US.

Now then, Richard.

-Richard.

-Yes.

-We've heard some Cabinet posts so far.

There are plenty more.

I'm going to try, because it's the only one I think I've heard of,

Home Secretary.

Home Secretary, you say with a degree of uncertainty, there.

Anything to do with politics is uncertain. It's as certain as I'm going to be in this.

OK, Home Secretary. Well, let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said Home Secretary.

Yep, it's right.

APPLAUSE

-36. 36, for Home Secretary.

-I know, it's extraordinary, isn't it?

You'd think it was one of the great offices of state.

The Secretary of State for the Home Department.

OK, well, we're halfway through the round,

so let's take a look at the scores as they stand.

Annie and Nicki, way ahead of the field there, on 22.

Lovely low score.

Then, up to 36 for Richard and Graham.

Then, up to 44 for Sherri and Tony.

And then, I'm afraid, right at the front, by quite a long way,

Sara and Fraser.

Fraser, you're going to have to find a really obscure

Cabinet post to make sure you stay with us beyond the end of this round.

OK. We're going to come back down the line.

Can the second players please take their places at the podium?

OK, so we are looking for Cabinet positions

in the UK government as of May 2011.

Now then, Graham, how confident are you feeling?

Not very, with Politics.

Have you had a few answers that other people have said?

No, the one I'm thinking of, nobody's said so far.

-So, fingers crossed.

-That bodes either very well or very badly.

-Secretary of Transport.

-Transport Secretary, says Graham.

There is your red line,

if you can get below that red line, you are through to the next round.

Let's see if it's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said Transport Secretary.

Yes, it's right.

Well done, you're through.

APPLAUSE

Very well done. 19 takes your total up to 55.

You're through to the next round.

-Richard.

-Well played, safely through.

Founded in 1919, it's the Ministry of Transport, which is, of course,

where we get MOT from.

Thank you very much.

Now, Fraser, you're the high-scorer, you and Sara.

You're on 100, which means you have to score as low as you possibly can.

It's not a good topic for us. This is a Cher moment from last time.

But Minister for Agriculture.

Minister of Agriculture, you are saying.

No red line for you, obviously, Fraser, cos you're the high-scorers.

Let's see if Minister of Agriculture is right. And if it is,

let's see how many people said it.

Bad luck.

Unfortunately, that's an incorrect answer, which means you score

the maximum of 100 points, taking your total up

to an impressive 200 points. Richard.

Yeah, sorry, Fraser, I'll explain at the end of the round, just in case

anyone else wants to have a go at that post.

-OK, now, Nicki, we come to you.

-Oh, dear.

We are looking for Cabinet positions in the UK government.

You are through to the next round, whatever happens.

-Minister for Department of Work and Pensions.

-Work and Pensions.

Let's see if that's right.

There's no red line for you, as you are through to the next round, whatever happens.

Let's see how many people said Minister for the Department of Work and Pensions.

Very well done, it's right.

-Oh, a spectacular answer.

-APPLAUSE

6, Nicki. A brilliant answer.

6 takes your total up to 28. The lowest score on the board. Richard.

Well played, best answer so far.

It's actually the biggest of all government departments.

Thank you very much, Richard. And, Tony.

I had three in mind and two have just gone.

Well, the good news is you're through, whatever happens.

-Right, I'm going to go for Environment.

-OK.

-Secretary of State for the Environment.

-Yes.

-Says Tony.

Let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said it.

It's right.

Very well done.

APPLAUSE

4, takes your total up to 48.

Richard.

It's actually the Secretary of State for Environment,

Food and Rural Affairs, which is what the Minister of Agriculture now is.

Should be worth pointing out, Fraser and Sara, that,

given you're Scottish and Welsh,

if you'd said Secretary of State for Scotland and Secretary of State for Wales,

you would have sailed through this round, by an absolute mile.

Which I'm sure you don't want to hear, but happens to be true.

There are some pointless answers up here. There are a few pointless

Cabinet ministers, believe it or not. Let's take a look at some of them.

International Development Secretary.

Clare Short was the first person to hold that post.

Leader of the House of Lords is a Cabinet post.

The Communities & Local Government Secretary.

Let's take a look at the most popular answers.

These are the ones you'd imagine that most people would say.

But shockingly low scores for all of them.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, 42.

-Prime Minister, there you go. 44.

-Wow.

And the Foreign Secretary as well, 44.

We see bigger scores than that when we do, you know,

the hits of Chas and Dave, don't we?

To be fair.

Honestly, 56 out of 100 people don't know that those people

are in the Cabinet.

Perhaps we should rethink the way we vote, I don't know.

Do you think? Cos I think we shouldn't.

I believe in universal suffrage,

but I know you're a great deal posher so, maybe, you think that...

What... What... What do you mean, coming at me with a brand like that?

You liked it in the old days when only landowners could vote, didn't you?

LAUGHTER

You had a bit more say.

So, Secretary of State of Scotland would have scored 4 points.

Secretary of State for Wales would have scored 2 points.

Would have been the best two answers we had in the whole round.

-Thanks very much, Richard.

-Pleasure.

So, at the end of Round One, the losing pair with the highest score,

Fraser and Sara.

With that ringing in your ears, oh! Dear, oh, dear.

-It was another Cher moment.

-Yes.

-It was.

-Oh, no.

-We go home in shame.

I'll tell you what,

you join the August ranks of the Pointless 200 club.

-Welcome aboard, it's good to have you here.

-Do we get a trophy?

You may do. Perhaps we could make you one.

Well, I'm afraid we have to say goodbye.

It's a great shame, our loss. Sara and Fraser, thank you so much.

APPLAUSE

But for the remaining three pairs, it's time for Round Two.

Now, obviously, there's only room for two pairs in the head-to-head.

So, one of the pairs in front of me will be

leaving us at the end of this round.

OK, our category for Round Two is...

OK, can you all decide in your pairs who's going to go first, who's going to go second?

And whoever's going first, please, step up to the podium.

OK, so our question concerns...

Rhyming answers, Richard.

Yeah, we're going to give you six clues on each pass.

Each of which will lead to a two-word answer where both words rhyme.

So, if I was to say actor and School Of Rock,

the answer would be Jack Black.

We gave all of these clues to 100 people.

If you give us an obscure answer, you're going to score fewer points.

If you give us an incorrect answer, you're going to score 100 points.

There's going to be 12 clues in all, 12 rhyming answers,

see how well you get on at home.

Thank you very much.

So we are looking for rhyming two-word answers,

suggested by these clues. And we have got...

I'm going to read those all again, one more time.

Now, Nicki, I've got a Braille card for you with those on.

-There you are.

-Thank you, Alexander.

OK, so, remember, we are looking for the rhyming two-word answers,

suggested by those clues. Sherri, what are you thinking?

I'm thinking, don't like that very much at all,

but I do know a couple of them.

But I'm going to go with Daredevil Cyclist.

Evel Knievel.

Evel Knievel, says Sherri. Let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people knew that answer. Evel Knievel.

It's right.

APPLAUSE

44, for Evel Knievel, Richard.

Same start as Round One, isn't it? 44 points.

His real name, Robert Craig Knievel.

Claims to have broken every single bone in his body.

Nicki, we are looking for rhyming two-word answers,

described by those clues.

There's one that I'm half sure about and there's one

that I am sure about.

So, I'm going to be playing safe. French President from 1995-2007.

And I hope that it is Jacques Chirac.

Jacques Chirac, says Nicki.

French President 1995-2007, Jacques Chirac.

Let's if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people knew that answer.

It's right, very well done.

-Down it goes, 28.

-Yay!

APPLAUSE

Very well done.

-28 for Jacques Chirac.

-Yeah, well played, Nicki.

Also former Mayor of Paris and former Prime Minister.

Jacques Chirac, accused of corruption after his term ended.

Now then, Graham.

So, remember, we are looking for the rhyming two-words

that these clues suggest.

You're the last person to have this board, so you can fill in

all the blanks for us and then pick a nice, low-scoring answer.

I think I'm going to have to play it safe on this one,

cos I'm not too sure.

So, I'll go for the Stage Name of Jamiroquai Lead Singer, Jay Kay.

Jay Kay, you are saying. Jay Kay, let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people knew that answer.

Very well done, it's right.

APPLAUSE

61. More people knew Jay Kay was the lead singer of Jamiroquai

than knew the Prime Minister was in the Cabinet.

-Yeah, I know, it's amazing, isn't it?

-It's good, that, isn't it?

-Not bad, is it?

-Yeah.

-Not bad. He was born Jason Cheetham.

Let's go through the rest of the board, shall we?

Now, egg-shaped nursery rhyme character.

-Do you want to hazard a guess at that?

-Humpty Dumpty.

It's a fairly massive 83 points.

-The duo who sang, Girl I'm Gonna Miss You.

-Now, that, I don't know.

I'll give you a clue.

They had a Grammy taken away from them.

-Scritti Politti.

-Not Scritti Politti.

-Oh, no. Oh, no...

-Milli Vanilli.

-Milli Vanilli, exactly right.

Very well done if you said that. Would have scored you 6 points.

-And the Libyan Defector.

-My favourite. Moussa Koussa.

Moussa Koussa, from 2011, would have scored you 7 points.

Well done if you got either of those last two at home.

Thank you very much, Richard. OK. Let's take a look at the scores.

We're halfway through the round. The lowest score there, 28.

Nicki and Annie, looking very strong indeed.

Then we go up to 44 for Sherri and Tony.

Then up to 61 for Graham and Richard.

So, Richard, you have your work cut out on this next part.

Very best of luck with that.

We're going to come back down the line.

Can the second players please take their places at the podium?

OK.

Remember, we are looking for the rhyming two-word answers

suggested by these clues.

We're going to put six more clues on the board. Here they are.

I'll read those all one more time.

So, yes, we are looking for the rhyming two-word answers

described by those clues. And, as ever,

you're trying to find the one that the fewest of our 100 people knew. Now, Richard?

I studied journalism when I was at university.

So, I should really know the London road associated with newspapers.

So, I'm going to for that one. I'm going to say Fleet Street.

Fleet Street. OK. That's what you're saying.

There's no red line for you because you are the high-scorers.

You just have to hope it goes down as far as possible.

Fleet Street, says Richard. Is it right? How many people said it?

It's right.

APPLAUSE

47 takes your total up to 108.

-Richard.

-Yeah, there were newspapers printed there from 1702.

-The Daily Courant was the first ever one.

-Thank you very much, indeed.

OK, so remember, we are looking for the rhyming two-word answers

suggested by these clues.

Now then, Annie.

You and Nicki are on 28, the high-scorers are now

Richard and Graham, on 108.

Which means, if you can score 79 or less with your answer,

you are through to the head-to-head.

I don't really know any of them.

Well, OK, I know one, and I think I'm just going to play safe.

I'm going to say May Day, which, hopefully, won't be too high.

OK, you're saying May Day for the British Bank Holiday in the spring.

As I say, you want to score 79 or less, there's the red line.

If you can get below that red line,

you are through to the next round. Good luck.

Let's see if May Day is right.

If it is, let's see how many people knew that answer.

Well done, you're through.

77, that scored.

APPLAUSE

I'm going to cry.

Well done, that takes your total up to 105.

-Richard.

-Yeah, that is cutting it pretty fine, 3 points, there.

May Day, the first Monday in May. They are talking about moving it.

There we go. So, Tony, this is the moment of truth.

The high-scorers, on 108, are Richard and Graham.

You're on 44, which means,

63 or less is enough to see you through to the head-to-head.

-Right, I don't know the bottom one.

-OK.

And I'm very embarrassed, I don't know Looby Loo either.

I know Griffith-Joyner. I think I know the Howard Hughes aeroplane.

-Right.

-I think the Howard Hughes aeroplane is going to be a lot lower

than Flo-Jo.

-OK.

-So, I'm going for the Howard Hughes aeroplane. Spruce Goose.

The Spruce Goose. Very well said. Here is your red line coming in.

If Spruce Goose can get you below that, you are in the head-to-head.

Very, very best of luck.

Let's see if Spruce Goose is right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said it.

Well done, Tony, it's right.

And you are through to

the head-to-head, very well done.

Down it goes, look, 8 points.

APPLAUSE

Very good indeed. Takes your total up to 52.

-Richard.

-That's a great answer, Tony. Very well done.

Best answer so far.

Yeah, it's designed to carry 750 passengers, but only flew once.

Howard Hughes flew it himself, flew one mile, never flew again.

Let's take a look through the rest of the board.

You're quite right, Tony.

Flo-Jo is the nickname of Miss Griffith-Joyner, the sprinter.

Would've scored you 10 points.

The Friend of Looby Loo is Andy Pandy.

Would have scored 34. And alternative

name of film director Duncan Jones.

-Zo-e Bow-ie or Zowie Bowie.

-You're absolutely right,

David Bowie's son is the director of Source Code and Moon.

That would have scored you 4 points.

So, very well done if you said that home.

OK, thank you very much, Richard.

So, at the end of Round Two, the losing pair

with the highest score, I'm sorry to say, it's Graham and Richard.

Bad luck, there.

You were right on both answers, they were just

very, very high-scoring ones, that's the trouble.

It's been great having you on the show.

I'm sorry we have to say goodbye to you so soon,

but we will see you next time, look forward to that very much.

Excellent contestants, thank you, Richard and Graham.

APPLAUSE

But for the remaining two pairs, things are about to get

even more exciting now, as we enter the head-to-head.

So, well done, Sherri and Tony, Annie and Nicki,

you've made it through to the head-to-head.

Only one pair can make it through

to today's final and play for the jackpot,

which currently stands at £4,250.

Now, for each question, each pair needs to give me just one answer.

But you are now allowed to confer. That's the good news.

You have to come up with an answer that scores

less than the other pair and you'll win that question.

The first pair to win two questions will be

playing for today's jackpot.

Let's play Pointless.

OK, here is your first question.

We gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many boxing weight

categories for the 2012 London Olympics as they could.

-Richard.

-We're looking for any

of the weight categories, male or female,

that will be competed in at the London 2012 Olympics, please.

There are ten different weight categories.

OK, thank you, Richard.

Now, Sherri and Tony, cos you played best throughout the show so far,

you get to go first.

Boxing weight categories to be used for the London Olympics 2012.

-OK.

-We have an answer.

-Yes. Super heavyweight.

Super heavyweight, say Sherri and Tony. Now, Annie and Nicki?

I know, in normal boxing language, they have

things like bantamweight, flyweight, featherweight.

Let's go with your... I don't have a clue.

-What do you like? Shall we go for...?

-What sounds nice?

-Bantamweight?

-Oh, yeah, I like the word, yeah.

-OK. You've arrived at an answer?

-Yes.

-And your answer is?

-Bantamweight.

-Bantamweight.

So, we have super heavyweight, we have bantamweight.

Sherri and Tony, you went first with super heavyweight.

Let's see if it's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said super heavyweight.

Super heavyweight is right.

Down it goes.

-Oh, 6.

-Woo!

6 for super heavyweight.

That's what you've got to beat, Annie and Nicki, with bantamweight.

Let's see if bantamweight is right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said that.

Absolutely right.

Down it goes.

-16.

-Oh.

At least it was right.

So, 16 for bantamweight, I'm afraid, beaten by 6 for super heavyweight.

So, after one question, Sherri and Tony are up one-nil. Richard.

Good answers from both teams.

There's a couple of weights that would've beaten super heavyweight.

Let's take a look at all of them.

There is a pointless answer here as well, which is light welterweight.

Very well done if you said that.

Light flyweight, that's the lightest,

that's under 48 kilogrammes

for the men, 1 point.

Super heavyweight, that's above 91 kilogrammes, scored you 6 points.

Light heavyweight, 6 points. Welterweight, 15.

There's bantamweight, on 16.

These next three are all being fought for by women as well.

Flyweight, on 17. Middleweight, 23.

Lightweight, 30. And heavyweight,

up the top there, on 47.

Well done if you got all of those.

OK, thank you very much. Here is your second question.

Annie and Nicki, you have to win this question to stay in the game.

Here it comes.

We gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many

chemical elements beginning with P,

as they could. Chemical elements beginning with P.

Nicki very pleased with that. Richard.

Yeah, we're looking for any chemical element whose common English name

begins with a P, as verified by the IUPAC as of May 2011, please.

Any chemical element beginning with P.

OK, Annie and Nicki, you go first this time.

I don't think there is one called promethium. I thought there might be,

but I don't think there is.

-Oh, OK, we're just going to go for really obvious.

-Platinum.

Yes, thank you, we'll go with that.

-Platinum.

-It'll be the highest one.

Better than what our one was going to be. We're going to go with that.

OK. Platinum,

-you are going to say. Sherri and Tony?

-(Plutonium.)

-Yeah, that's a good one.

-OK, we're going to go with plutonium.

Plutonium. OK, we have platinum and we have plutonium.

Now then, Annie and Nicki, you have to win this one to stay in the game.

Platinum, you said. Let's see if it's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said platinum.

It's right.

It's right, down, 70s, 60s,

50s, 40s, 30s.

APPLAUSE

29. Now, plutonium, say Sherri and Tony.

Is that going to beat platinum on 29, I wonder?

Plutonium, is it right? How many people said it?

Yes, it's right. 80s, 70s, 60s,

50s, 40s.

APPLAUSE

Very well done, Annie and Nicki. Platinum wins it for you.

So, after two questions, it is one-all. Richard.

Great head-to-head so far.

Well done, Annie and Nicki. Nicki, during your deliberations,

-you gave an even better answer, which was promethium.

-Oh, no.

Which would've scored you 2 points.

-Oh, my goodness.

-Shall we edit, undo that bit and do it again?

Let's take a look at all the Ps.

There's a pointless answer here as well.

Protactinium was a pointless answer.

Very well done if you said that.

Praseodymium would have scored you 1 point.

There's promethium, 2 points, very good answer

if you'd gone for that. Polonium, nine.

Palladium, 13. There's platinum, 29.

Phosphorus would have scored you 35.

Plutonium, 39. And potassium, 56.

I'm sure some people at home will have got all of those.

Very well done if you did.

OK, thank you very much. Here is your third question.

This is the question that will decide who goes through to the final

and plays for that jackpot. Here it comes.

We gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many

countries larger than India as they could. Richard.

Yeah, we're looking for any of the countries of the world

which are larger than India in terms of land area. As always, by country,

we mean a sovereign state that is a member of the UN.

OK, thank you very much, Richard.

Sherri and Tony, you go first this time.

-OK, we have an answer?

-Yes, Brazil.

-Brazil, say Tony and Sherri.

Annie and Nicki, you can confer out loud.

-Mongolia is absolutely huge, and so is Canada.

-I was thinking Canada.

But I think your Mongolia one sounds...

But I'm not totally convinced of it.

I'm more convinced of Canada.

Mongolia, I read a book about these people that went across Mongolia

and it took over six chapters for them to get from beginning to end.

Then it's got to be long.

-I'm just...

-Are you feeling dangerous, Nicki?

That's the question.

No, I can't risk it. I can't risk not going through to the final

because we're not sure.

If you want to go with Canada, let's go with Canada.

-Yeah.

-Shall we? We're going to go with Canada.

-OK, you're going to say Canada.

-Yeah.

So, we have Brazil and we have Canada.

Sherri and Tony said Brazil. Let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said Brazil.

It's right.

Down it goes. 50s, 40s,

30s, 20s.

APPLAUSE

22.

That's a good, low score. Is it low enough, do you think?

Now, Annie and Nicki, you have said Canada. Let's see if that's right.

And if it is, let's see how many people said it. Canada.

It's right. Down it goes.

60s, 50s, 40s.

Oh, no.

APPLAUSE

So, Brazil beats Canada there.

So, after three questions,

Sherri and Tony are through to the final, two-one.

-Richard.

-Yeah, again, great head-to-head.

Those are actually the best two answers on the board.

Mongolia is the 19th largest country in the world by terms of land area.

It took six chapters to get from one end to the other.

Let's take a look at all the answers. You'll see, you've given us the best.

Brazil, 22, that's the fifth largest.

Canada, 43, that's the second

largest country in the world

for land area.

China, 51. Australia, 61,

that's the sixth largest.

Russia, 69, the largest of all.

And the United States on 79,

the third largest.

OK, thank you very much.

So, the losing pair, at the end of the head-to-head,

it's Annie and Nicki. Bad luck.

As Richard said, a fantastically well played head-to-head.

What will you be taking away?

-What will be your tactics when you come back next time?

-Cheating.

-Yes.

-That's how I'd do it.

-Um, tactics?

I don't know. Write 50 lines of, must try harder.

I think that would be the best way.

I think it would be hard to try harder, you did incredibly well.

I would go with cheating, I think that sounds a lot easier, doesn't it?

Absolutely fail-safe.

The good news for us is we will see you again next time.

But, meanwhile, thank you very much for playing.

Annie and Nicki, wonderful contestants.

But for Sherri and Tony, it's now time for our Pointless final

and the chance to win our jackpot of £4,250.

Congratulations, Sherri and Tony.

You have fought off all the competition and won

our coveted Pointless trophy. Very well done.

You now have a chance to win our Pointless jackpot.

At the end of today's show, the jackpot stands at £4,250.

Now, the rules are very simple.

To win that money, all you have to do is find a pointless answer.

That's an answer that none of our 100 people could think of.

We haven't had any pointless answers on the show today.

You only have to find one now and you will go home with that money.

First, you've got to choose a category.

And you can choose from these three options. They are...

-Well, Classical Music, out. Out.

-Celebrities, could be anything.

Celebrities could be anything. Do you know much about snooker?

You need to know a lot about snooker.

I'm, um, I'm quite good at snooker, but it could be...

Well, same with celebrities. Or do you fancy celebrities more?

What do you think? You know a lot about snooker.

-Go on.

-We'll go with Snooker.

-You're going to go with Snooker.

-Yes.

-Oh, dear.

Tony, what, if you could choose your question, what would it be?

What would be a category for you that would be...?

I suppose, perhaps, World Champions.

But it won't be that, World Champions. That would be...

It's probably vaguer than that. I'm sure it's vaguer than that.

OK, well, let's find out what it is.

We gave 100 people 100 seconds to name as many

snooker players with a maximum break as they could.

Snooker players with a maximum break, Richard.

Yeah, we're looking for any snooker player who's recorded a maximum

break in a professional competition.

That's according to worldsnooker.com.

OK, you now have up to one minute to come up with three answers.

All you need to win that £4,250 is for just one of those answers

to be pointless.

Your 60 seconds start now.

Well, you've all the obvious ones, but we'll forget the obvious.

-Well, the first person was Cliff Thorburn.

-Yes.

And Kirk Stevens has done it as well.

And then, after that, I'm sort of struggling.

Well, you know, O'Sullivan, he's done it. Mostly, they...

But you've got to, you're looking at a player that's...

-What about Ebbo, what's his name? Something Bo?

-Fu.

-Fu.

OK, Ebdon.

Probably Peter Ebdon probably has, yes.

-I think you're looking at players from a long time ago.

-OK.

-If Thorburn was the first, that's...

-OK, we'll go with him.

-Early '80s.

-Just think of some more.

-Kirk Stevens. That's two.

Thorburn, Stevens, and one more.

I'm just trying to think, just say someone obscure.

Graeme Dott might have done.

Graeme Dott, yeah, but he's not that obscure, is he?

-No.

-Can you think of any others? What's the chap who died? Paul?

-What? Werbenuik? No, it wouldn't be him.

-Five seconds left.

OK, that's your minute up.

-We were looking for snooker players with a maximum break.

-Yes.

-And I now need your three answers.

-Peter Ebdon.

-Peter Ebdon.

-Cliff Thorburn.

-Cliff Thorburn.

-And Kirk Stevens.

-And Kirk Stevens.

Are you happy with those, Sherri?

Not really, but I can't improve on it, I'm afraid.

-Of those three, which do you think is your best shot at a pointless answer?

-Kirk Stevens.

-Probably Kirk Stevens.

-Kirk Stevens, we'll put third.

-What about your least likely?

-Probably Peter Ebdon, I would think.

Peter Ebdon, and Cliff Thorburn in the middle.

OK, we'll put them up on the board in that order.

There they are.

OK, we were looking for snooker players with a maximum break.

You said this was your least confident answer.

You only have to find one pointless answer, remember,

to win that jackpot of £4,250.

Let's see, Peter Ebdon, there he is.

Is it right? And if it is, how many people said Peter Ebdon? Good luck.

It's right.

It's right. That's the first thing it had to be.

Now it just has to go down to 0

and you leave here with £4,250.

It's still going down. Single figures.

Look at that, down it goes, wow!

APPLAUSE

Peter Ebdon.

APPLAUSE DROWNS SPEECH

OK, unfortunately, that's not a pointless answer,

but you knew it wasn't. You put him first.

You only have two more chances to win today's jackpot.

-What would you do with £4,250?

-Go on holiday.

-Not together, but we would go on holiday.

-We would go on holiday.

Where would you go?

I actually want to climb Machu Picchu

before I get too old to be able to get up there.

-Very good. So, off to South America with you.

-Yes.

-Tony, what about you?

-Cruise, I think. Baltic cruise.

Very good. Well, very best of luck.

Let's hope Cliff Thorburn can get you there.

He won't.

Cliff Thorburn, it has to be correct and it has be pointless.

If it's both of those things, you leave here with £4,250.

Let's see. Is it right?

And if so, how many people said Cliff Thorburn?

It's right.

It's right.

Now, if this can go all the way down to 0, you leave here with £4,250.

Peter Ebdon got you down to 2.

Oh, 12.

APPLAUSE

Everything is now hinging on Kirk Stevens.

You said this was the answer you were most confident in.

This has to be pointless, if you're going to win that jackpot

of £4,250. Let's see.

Kirk Stevens. Is it right? How many people said it?

Good luck. Kirk Stevens.

OK, there we are, it's right.

Went up from 2, up to 12.

Now we have to come down to 0.

Down it comes.

This is your last chance to win

the jackpot of £4,250.

Bad luck.

APPLAUSE

7.

Unfortunately, you didn't manage to find

that all-important pointless answer.

So, I'm afraid you don't win today's jackpot of £4,250,

which will roll over on to the next show.

But you have been brilliant contestants

-and you do, of course, get to take home our Pointless trophy.

-Thank you.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

That was tough luck. There's lots of names on the list, actually.

The most popular answers were

Steve Davis, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Jimmy White, as you'd expect.

Marco Fu, who you mentioned, would've scored you 2 points.

Graeme Dott, you also mentioned, would've scored you 2.

Let's take a look at the pointless answers.

There are some very big names at the end of this list.

There's couple of World Champions on this list.

The Canadian Alain Robidoux.

Andrew Higginson and David McDonnell all scored professional 147s.

James Wattana, the Thai player, scored three maximums.

Jason Prince and Marcus Campbell.

This is the page you don't want to look at, though.

Neil Robertson, the 2010 World Champion, he scored a 147

against Peter Ebdon.

Shaun Murphy, also a World Champion. Stephen Maguire.

All of those pointless answers.

Well done if you said those.

One name, also, that could have been on the list is Jamie Burnett,

who scored the highest break in professional snooker.

-He scored 148.

-Oh, wow.

-148, never been bettered.

-Well, you knew some of those, didn't you?

-Yes, those three.

-Oh, dear.

Never easy to see names you know on that board.

Well, unfortunately, we have to say goodbye to you, Sherri and Tony.

But it's been brilliant having you on the show.

Thank you so much for playing.

-Thank you.

-Great contestants, thank you.

Nobody's won our jackpot today, so it rolls over, which means

on the next show, we will be playing for £5,250.

Join us next time to see if someone can win it.

-Meanwhile, it's goodbye from Richard.

-Goodbye.

And it's goodbye from me. Goodbye.

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