Episode 4 University Challenge

APPLAUSE

Christmas University Challenge!

Asking the questions, Jeremy Paxman.

Hello. Angels may fear to tread anywhere near this competition,

but thank heavens for two more teams of grown-ups

confidently expecting to sparkle like baubles on the tree

in the face of the kind of questions we usually throw at the UK's brightest students.

They're among 14 teams who've accepted our invitation

to play on behalf of the university which educated them

or where they teach.

The four top-scoring winning teams will progress to the next stage.

Anything tonight in excess of a mere 240 will guarantee a place in the semi-finals.

Now playing on behalf of the original red brick,

the University of Liverpool are a science journalist and broadcaster,

a man famous to anyone who follows cricket

for his contribution to the formula for re-staging interrupted one-day matches.

Their captain is a critic, columnist, curator and prolific author.

They're joined by a former teacher, campaigner and Labour councillor

before she took up her present job.

Let's find out some more from them.

I'm Lawrence McGinty. I studied zoology and graduated in 1969.

I'm now medical and science editor of ITV News.

I'm Frank Duckworth.

I graduated in Physics in 1961

-and I'm now a consultant statistician.

-And their captain.

Hi. I'm Stephen Bayley. I astonished myself and surprised the university

by getting a Masters degree in Architecture in 1974.

I'm sometimes called a design guru. This I have accepted with self-deprecating irony.

I'm Frances Crook.

I took a degree in medieval and modern history

and I'm currently the chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform.

APPLAUSE

The team from the University of Cardiff

includes three graduates and one member of staff.

First is a composer whose music has been performed all over the world.

He's joined by a former teacher turned politician and MEP.

Their captain is a presenter and broadcast journalist

who says he's reported from more than 30 countries during his career, including Wales,

and they're joined by another news veteran,

a former director of Global News at the BBC.

But let's ask them to introduce themselves in the traditional manner.

Hello. I'm Phillip Cashian. I graduated in Music in 1984

and I'm now a composer and head of composition at the Royal Academy of Music.

Hello. I'm Jean Lambert. I graduated from Cardiff in 1971.

I'm now a Green Party Member of the European Parliament for London.

-And their captain.

-I'm Bill Turnbull. I took a post-graduate diploma in Journalism Studies

in 1978. I now present a programme called Breakfast on BBC1.

I'm Richard Sambrook, Professor of Journalism at Cardiff University.

APPLAUSE

OK. I guess you all know the rules.

Starter questions are solo efforts you answer on the buzzer.

They're worth ten points. Bonuses are team efforts

so you can confer, and they're worth 15 points.

If you interrupt a starter question incorrectly, there's a five-point penalty.

Fingers on buzzers. Here's your first starter for 10.

A plaque in Medford, Massachusetts,

marks the site of the composition in the 1850s

of which pervasive seasonal song by James Lord Pierpont...

-Jingle Bells.

-Yes!

What an odd thing to know!

Here are your bonuses. They're on pound coins, Cardiff.

The Millennium Bridge of which northern English town

appears on the reverse of the 2007 pound coin?

-Newcastle.

-No, it's Gateshead. I asked for the town. It's the Gateshead Millennium Bridge,

although it does link with Newcastle.

Cultivated both for its fibre and its seed,

what plant appears on the reverse of the 1991 pound coin,

representing Northern Ireland?

-Flax.

-Yes, from the traditional linen industry.

Finally, on pound coins issued in 1987 and 1992,

which emblem representing England was depicted encircled by the royal diadem?

-Rose.

-No, it was an oak tree. 10 points for this.

Which German state was ruled by the Wittelsbach dynasty

from the 12th century until its last king, Ludwig III...

-Munich.

-No...

Or Bavaria.

Munich is the capital of Bavaria. Come on!

Munich is the capital of Bavaria, but I'm going to fine you five points

because the question goes on to ask,

"It became a parliamentary state in the Weimar Republic

"and now comprises the entire south-eastern portion of Germany."

So Bavaria is the correct answer, but you didn't give it when you buzzed. You gave Munich.

I'm not going to give you the question, obviously, because I've given the answer, dim-wits!

No, excuse me! We had the answer!

Then you should have buzzed in, shouldn't you?

-I had the correct answer on the tip of my tongue.

-On mine, as well.

Sorry, I can't be responsible for the malfunctioning of your tongue!

No, my tongue was in perfect working order,

it's just that...

Right. We'll take another starter question.

Is that clear to everybody?

Well, actually, no!

I prefer the students. They're much more docile!

Another starter question. 10 points for this.

Based on a late 16th-century English ballad,

which pantomime tells of children abandoned by their wicked uncle?

In later versions, they're rescued by Robin Hood.

-Babes in the Wood.

-Correct.

These bonuses are on Christmas carols, Liverpool.

Four landscape features are mentioned in the third line of the carol We Three Kings of Orient Are.

The first is field. What are the other three?

Mountain.

-And?

-Moor.

-Yes?

-Field and fountain.

-Field and fountain.

-I said field, but you've got it.

-Fountain, moor and mountain, correct.

-Thank you very much.

Which carol's second verse begins, "Shepherds in the fields abiding

"Watching o'er your flocks by night."

Angels from the Realms of Glory.

-Angels from the Realms of Glory.

-Correct.

Finally, according to the five-word second line of the well-known carol,

what came upon the midnight clear?

-It.

-It.

No, it was "That glorious song of old."

10 points for this.

What five letters begin words meaning

"an alphabetical list of terms relating to a specific subject,"

"the phenomenon of apparently speaking in an unknown language",

and "an inflammation of the tongue"?

-Gloss.

-Gloss is correct, yes.

Your bonuses, this time, are on the diaries of Alan Clark.

"So engaging, such good company.

"Like me, he despises the Liberals.

"I told him he must, and will be, prime minister."

These words of Alan Clark refer to which figure, then Labour foreign secretary."

-Callaghan.

-No, it was David Owen.

"Chunk of old heavy metal."

These words refer to which Labour MP and future speaker,

whom Clark encounters in a committee meeting alongside "two bright boys, called Brown and Blair."

Martin. Somebody Martin.

I need the full name. It's Michael Martin.

Finally, first elected MP for Rushcliffe in 1970,

which future Conservative Home Secretary and Chancellor

does Clark refer to as "a butterball" and "a podgy life insurance risk"?

Sorry, we're as bad at politics as we are at carols.

No, it's Kenneth Clarke, who Frances there was always bending the ear off!

Right. 10 points now for this picture starter.

For your picture round, you'll see a map

of the historical region known as The Holy Land.

10 points if you identify the Biblical town marked.

-Nazareth.

-It is Nazareth, yes.

Good guess!

According to the Bible, that was the childhood home of Jesus.

For your picture bonuses, you'll see a map

marked with three more towns visited by Jesus in his lifetime.

In each case, simply name the town.

Firstly, for five, where is A?

His time there is referenced in Luke Chapter 18, Verse 35.

-Galilee?

-No. Galilee is a region.

No, that is Jericho.

Secondly, B. His time there is referenced in John II, I.

-No.

-That's Cana, where the wedding took place. And finally,

C. His time there is referenced in Matthew, Chapter 2, Verse 1.

Total lack of Biblical knowledge. Sorry.

Or, indeed, geographical knowledge! It's Bethlehem.

Right. 10 points for this.

"The Machineries of Joy" and "The Illustrated Man"

are among the short story collections of which US author who died...

-Ray Bradbury.

-Yes.

You'll be pleased to hear your bonuses are on geometry!

Firstly for five, the name of which Biblical figure

is sometimes given to the geometric figure of infinite surface area

and finite volume, which is formed by rotating the graph of y=1/x

for x greater or equal to one about the x axis?

Any chance you could repeat the question?

I'll take that as a no, then!

Secondly for five points...

Hang on, we haven't conferred. No, it's all right. We may have the answer.

-If you wouldn't mind?

-No, I'd be delighted to hear your conferring!

-Thank you.

OK, we'll take a stab. Methuselah.

Methuselah. No, it's the Archangel Gabriel.

But never mind. Gabriel's trumpet is also known by the name

of which 17th-century Italian physicist and mathematician who first studied its properties?

He's often credited with the invention of the barometer.

Sorry. Oh, Leonardo, we're trying.

No, it's Evangelista Torricelli. And finally,

"To understand an object such as Gabriel's horn

"it's not required that a man be a geometer or logician but that he should be mad."

This is an assertion of which political philosopher born in Wiltshire in 1588?

Shall I take a guess?

Mill.

Mill? In 1588?!

I'm just guessing, here. Help me, I'm guessing!

No, it's Thomas Hobbs. Ten points for this.

Give the dictionary spelling of the Italian Christmas bread known as panettone?

-P-A-N-E-T-T-O-N-E.

-Correct!

These bonuses are on British plays that have won Tony Awards in the US.

For five points. Adapted from a novel by Michael Morpugo,

which British play won five prizes at the 2011 Tony Awards

including best play?

-War Horse.

-Correct. Which nine-hour trilogy by Tom Stoppard

set a new record when it won seven awards at the 2007 Tonys?

-Sorry, no.

-The Coast of Utopia.

Finally, set in a Sheffield grammar school in 1983,

-which play by Alan Bennett...

-History Boys.

-History Boys is correct.

Another starter question. Listen carefully and give both answers promptly.

Words meaning genus of trees that includes holly,

wild mountain goat

and list of books deemed contrary to Catholic faith or morals,

have in common what first and what final letter?

-I, X.

-Correct.

These bonuses are on explorers, Liverpool.

Born 1394, Prince Henry, the son of John I of Portugal

is usually known by what nickname because of the number of sea expeditions he financed?

-The Navigator.

-Correct. Until it was renamed Maputo in 1976,

the capital of Mozambique was named after which Portuguese explorer

who visited the city in the 16th century?

-No.

-That's Lourenco Marques.

And finally, which Portuguese explorer was killed

in the region of The Philippines after landing there

in his flagship The Trinidad in 1521?

-Magellan?

-Correct!

We're going to take a music round now.

For your music starter, you'll hear a piece of popular music.

For 10 points, I want you to give me the name of the band performing.

# Long time ago in Bethlehem

# So the Holy Bible... #

-Boney M?

-Yes!

So following on from Mary's Boy Child by Boney M,

music bonuses - three more pieces of popular music.

Each has lyrics which refer to figures or objects

which also appear in the Nativity story.

Five points for each artist or band you can identify. Firstly:

# Must be talking to an angel

# Must be talking to an angel

# Must be talking to an angel

# Must be talking to an angel

# Must be talking to an angel... #

-Eurythmics.

-It is The Eurythmics, yes.

Secondly.

# Really sorry now for what they've done

# They were three wise men, just trying to have some fun

# Look who's alone now

# It's not me, it's not me

# Those three wise men they got a semi by the sea

# Gotta ask yourself a question... #

-David Gray?

-No, it's James Blunt.

And finally, somewhat loosely...

# I was born

# Under a wand'rin star... #

-Lee Marvin.

-It was Lee Marvin, yes.

Right. 10 points for this.

Thought to date to around 1500 BCE,

the earliest form of which Indo-European language is known as Vedic

and its most common register as classical?

It's one of 22 scheduled languages in the constitution of India.

-It must be Sanskrit.

-It is Sanskrit, yes.

Right. Your bonuses are on "reviewese", Liverpool.

In other words, euphemistic terminology used in book reviews

according to the Times columnist, Ben Macintyre.

Firstly for five, according to Macintyre, what short word

when used by reviewers, means "I'm not sure if this is funny"?

By a different etymology it denotes curved symmetrical structures

that feature prominently in euro bank notes.

-Arch.

-Correct. Secondly,

Macintyre quotes a poem by Clive James in his definition of which German word,

often used in "reviewese", saying, "The book of mine enemy hath been remaindered, but I am glad."

-Schadenfreude.

-Indeed.

Finally, also used of the orbits of astronomical bodies and the cranks of steam engines,

which "reviewese" adjective, according to Macintyre,

translates into everyday English as,

"The author should be sectioned immediately."

Crank.

-No, it's eccentric.

-Oh!

10 points for this. What is the common name of the grass Secale cereale?

Widely grown in eastern and northern Europe,

its flour has a lower gluten content than wheat

and is used to make bread, pumpernickel and crispbreads.

-Rye.

-Rye is correct, yes.

These bonuses, Cardiff, are on French art museums.

Raphael's Three Graces is part of the collection of the Musee Conde in which town near Paris,

also associated with horse racing and lace.

-Chantilly.

-Correct. Born in Aragon in 1746,

which artist gives his name to a museum of Spanish painting

in Castres, east of Toulouse?

-Sorry, no.

-Goya. Finally, the painting Bonjour Monsieur Courbet

is part of the collections of the Musee Fabre in which city to the west of Marseille?

-Montpellier.

-Montpellier is correct, yes.

10 points for this. July 31st 1970

became known as Black Tot Day, following the abolition of what tradition?

-The withdrawal of the rum ration in the Navy.

-Correct.

These bonuses are on shorter words, Cardiff,

that can be made using any of the eight letters of the word Yuletide.

In each case, give the word from the definition.

Firstly, to omit a sound or syllable when speaking. For example,

"Can't" for "cannot", or "Febry" for "February".

I want the verb here, not the noun.

-Elide.

-Correct.

From the Latin for "day", the English term for the legislature of Japan.

The Diet, D-I-E-T.

Correct. Finally,

in addition to the ego and the super-ego,

the third agency of the human personality defined by Freud.

-Id.

-Correct.

Time for another picture round. For your starter, you'll see a picture of a Shakespearian character.

Ten points if you can name the character.

-Malvolio.

-Indeed, yes. Cross-gartered there.

So you get the picture bonuses, Cardiff.

They're distinguished actors who have played Malvolio from Twelfth Night.

Five points for each actor you can name. Firstly, this one.

-Richard Wilson.

-It is Richard Wilson.

Secondly.

-Alan Rickman.

-No, it's Nigel Hawthorne.

And finally.

-Richard Briers.

-Correct.

10 points for this starter question.

"Marriage has many pains, but celibacy has no pleasures."

These are the words of which literary figure in the 1759 work

"Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia"?

-Samuel Johnson.

-Correct.

Your bonuses are on winter warfare.

During the siege of Leningrad from 1941 to '44,

winter supplies were brought into the city from the north-east

across which large frozen lake near the Finnish border?

-Don't know.

-Lake Ladoga.

A turning point in the American Revolutionary War came on Christmas night in 1776

when, in freezing conditions, George Washington led his troops across which river?

-Potomac?

-No, it was the Delaware River.

Finally, the Winter War is the subtitle of a book by Patrick Bishop and John Witherow

about which late 20th-century conflict?

-No. Pass.

-The Falklands War. Less than ten minutes to go. Ten points for this.

In mechanics, which English scientist's name

is given to the modulus of elasticity

defined as the ratio of the tensile...

-Young's.

-Young's Modulus is correct. Thomas Young.

Liverpool, these are on a theatre, these bonuses.

Founded in 1963, which theatre's directors have included

Laurence Olivier, Peter Hall and Richard Eyre?

-The National.

-Correct. The National Theatre.

Which other London theatre was the temporary home of the National Theatre Company

from its inception until its move in 1976 to a permanent home on the South Bank?

-Pass.

-The Old Vic.

The National Theatre contains three main auditoria.

The largest is the Olivier and the smallest is the Cottesloe. What's the other?

-Lyttelton.

-Correct.

Five minutes to go. 10 points for this.

Standing at the end of the Royal Mile against the backdrop of Arthur's Seat,

which Edinburgh palace is the official residence...

-Holyrood.

-Holyrood House, it's formally called,

but it's often abbreviated to Holyrood. I accept that.

Your bonuses now are on chemical tests, Liverpool.

What test for simple sugars takes its name from the blue solution

that is added to the substance to be tested?

-Litmus.

-No, it's the Benedict's test.

What test for proteins involves adding sodium hydroxide and a small amount of copper sulphate

to the test substance?

-Pass.

-That's the Biuret Test.

And finally, the development of a blue-black colour when iodine is added to a substance

indicates the presence of what?

-Acid.

-No, it's starch. Four minutes to go. 10 points for this.

Orion, Falcon, Antares, Intrepid and Eagle

were the names of what precise type of spacecraft

employed by NASA between 1969 and '72?

Moon landing craft.

Moon landing modules. Yes, lunar modules.

I'll accept that.

Your bonuses this time are on literary characters.

"Gabriel Varden: The Locksmith of London"

was an early provisional title of which historical novel by Charles Dickens?

-Little Dorrit.

-No, it's Barnaby Rudge.

Gabriel Conroy is the protagonist of "The Dead",

the final short story in which collection of 1914 by James Joyce?

-The Dubliners.

-Correct.

Gabriel Oak is "the young man of sound judgement"

described by Thomas Hardy in the opening of which novel of 1874?

-"Far From the Madding Crowd."

-Correct. 10 points for this.

Which sport was first recognised by the International Olympic Committee in 1994

and made its winter games debut four years later with the giant slalom and the half-pike events?

-Snowboarding.

-Correct.

These bonuses - that's given you the lead, by the way -

these bonuses for a possible 15 are on words that begin with the same four letters.

In each case, give the word or name from the definition.

From a French past participle, a word used deprecatingly

of someone from a lowly background who's risen suddenly to wealth or influence.

-Parvenu.

-Correct.

In Hindu mythology, the wife of Shiva and mother of Ganesh and Skanda.

-No.

-That's Parvati.

And finally, a class of viruses that affects vertebrate animals

one of which produces the condition known as slapped cheek in humans.

Come on.

Don't know.

Parvovirus. 10 points for this.

Meaning a dangerous or unstable situation, or a key turning point,

which six-letter word derives ultimately from the Greek verb "to decide"?

You may not confer. One of you may buzz. You're not going to buzz...

-Crisis.

-Crisis is correct, yes.

These bonuses could give you the lead again. They're on opera.

Name the operas that match the following descriptions and give the composer in each case.

Firstly, a work performed in 1816

in which Count Almaviva pursues Rosina.

-The Barber of Seville.

-The Barber of Seville.

-By?

-By Rossini.

-Correct.

Nemorino attempts to win Adina, a wealthy farm owner,

by means of a substance in the opera's title.

It was first performed in Milan in 1832.

It's Verdi.

Come on, let's have it, please.

It's Donizetti's The Elixir of Love.

Finally, an opera first performed in Vienna in 1791

in which the lovers Tamino and Pamina must endure trials in order to be united.

-The Magic Flute.

-By?

-Mozart.

-Correct.

10 points for this. Some people might not know that.

-I presumed you did!

-You obviously did. I did, but not all the audience necessarily do!

10 points for this. Which historian presented the BBC's annual Reith lectures in 2012?

Born in Scotland, his works include "The Ascent of Money" and "Civilisation: The West..."

-Noel McGregor.

-No. Anyone...

-And there was a five-point penalty there.

-Niall Ferguson.

Niall Ferguson is correct, yes.

These bonuses are on the British army.

What term is used for a private in the Royal Artillery?

-Sapper.

-No, it's gunner.

Craftsman is the equivalent rank to private in which corps of the royal army denoted by the abbreviation...

-GONG

-At the gong, Cardiff University have 140,

Liverpool University have 165.

APPLAUSE

Bad luck. You didn't go out... I mean, you knew Jingle Bells!

Liverpool, we look forward to seeing you again, I would imagine, on 165.

It's only the four highest-winning scores that go through to the semi-finals,

but 165 is very good.

Thank you very much for joining us.

I hope you can join us next time for another Christmas match.

-Until then, it's goodbye from Cardiff University...

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye from the team from Liverpool University...

-Bye.

And it's goodbye from me. Goodbye.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd