Only Connect Series 11: Round 1: Match 7: Road Trippers vs Athenians

Time for some catching up then. Playing in last Monday's Only Connect were the Road Trippers, Chris Pendleton, his son Ned and Nick Patterson, and the Athenians, Jon Stitcher, Amber Marshall and Ben Holmes. Weaver's Week inform us that Mr Stitcher and Ned P. are both Countdown alumni.

Round 1. The Road Trippers went first, and chose Water: 'Andy Dufresne', then 'Ross Geller', then 'Obelix the Gaul' and finally 'Makka Pakka'. They offered 'paleontologists', which, slightly reworded, was accepted; they are all rock collectors. The Athenians chose Twisted Flax, and got the picture round: we saw Ellen Degenerus, then some chap I didn't recognise, then Lee Mack and Tim Vine was the giveaway clue: they all play characters with the same name as themselves in sitcoms. They took the final clue, which was Terry and June, which gave it to them. The chap I didn't recognise was Tracy Morgan from 30 Rock, a show I am only familiar with through its Frasier parody. The Trippers chose Two Reeds, and got the music question: I only recognised one of the pieces, 'Unforgettable', but didn't know the artist. Neither side got it: they were all semi-posthumous duets, sung by singers alongside another singer who had passed away prior to recording. The Athenians chose Lion next: 'Elizabeth and James', then 'Menace II Society', then 'Harvard Connection' and finally 'I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)'. They didn't know it, nor did their opponents. They were all created by twins, the final clue being a big giveaway none of us spotted. The Trippers chose Eye of Horus next: 'Fliffus', then 'Oliver!', then 'The Sixth Sense' and to finish 'Mobius Strip'. This was very clever, but neither side spotted it: they are all associated with twists. Excellent. The Athenians were left with the Horned Viper, and saw '35 Out of money', then '33 Illogical interchange', then '16 Outside zone' and finally '09 Ticket damaged'. They spotted that they are error messages from gates on the London Underground, and promptly earned themselves a point. At the end of a tough first round, the Athenians led 2-1.

On to Round 2. The Trippers kicked off with Lion: 'Marty', then 'The Apartment' and then 'Schindler's List'; they offered 'The Artist', which was correct for two points, the sequence being black-and-white winners of the Best Picture Oscar. The Athenians chose Water, and got the picture set: we saw a cat and an arrow pointing at a dog, then a bird an arrow pointing at a cat; they spotted quite quickly it to be the rhyme 'There was an old lady who swallowed a fly', so a fly and an arrow pointing at a spider would finish the set. Good question, and a nice rendition from Ned P! For their own question, the Trippers chose 'Horn-ed' Viper: 'France...', then '...armee...', and then '...tete d'armee...'. I can only echo Dave C's comments on LAM about this being too obscure: '...Josephine!' completes the set, as they are the concerns of Napoleon on his deathbed. The Athenians chose Two Reeds next: 'Kelly', then 'Kelly' again, and then 'Kennedy'. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents. They are the surnames of panelists of the old TV favourite Game for a Laugh, so 'Beadle', as in the late great Jeremy Beadle, completes the set. For their final choice, the Trippers chose Eye of Horus: '20: Brodick', then '10: Glamis' and then '5: Culzean'. They didn't get it, their opponents offered '1: Edinburgh', and picked up a bonus. They are Scottish castles that appear on RBS banknotes. I actually have a £1 note at my parents' house somewhere, gathering dust. Left with Twisted Flax, the Athenians saw 'Ageing', then 'Aluminium', then 'Foetus'. This was a good one: they are words which, in the States, have consecutive vowels omitted, so a word which have a U in British English, but not in American English would complete the set. The Trippers picked up a bonus. At the end of the second round, the Athenians led 6-4.

On to the Walls. The Athenians chose the Lion wall to tackle. They spotted some links, and tried to link them together. Eventually, they isolated 'Dutch', 'Cabbage Patch', 'Voodoo' and 'Matryoshka', which are dolls, and 'Pash', 'Drongo', 'Barbie' and 'Shonky', which are Australian slang words. The final groups slotted in quite nicely afterwards: 'Hi-hat', 'Crash', 'Splash' and 'Sizzle' are types of cymbal, while 'Backdraft', 'Cocoon', Apollo 13' and 'Rush' are films directed by Ron Howard. Well worked out, for ten points.

The Trippers were left with the Water wall. Again, some connections stood out, and they spent some time trying to sort relevant groups out. Eventually, 'Pitt', 'Mac', 'Clooney' and 'Cheadle' slotted in, which are actors in the 'Ocean's' films. A second group, 'Regent's', 'Richmond', 'Green' and 'Bushy', which are parks in London, followed. They quickly worked out the rest: 'Hyde', 'Salford', 'Eccles' and 'Sale' are areas of Greater Manchester, while 'Madeira', 'Angel', 'Marble' and 'Dundee' are all cakes. Another full ten meant, going into the final round, the Athenians led 16-14.

So, once again, Missing Vowels would decide the match. 'Phrases said by Del Boy' was split 2-each. 'Books titles with the colour changed', such as 'ANNE OF PINK GABLES', went to the Athenians 4-0. 'Fictional TV chat show hosts' was another 2-all split. 'British wrestlers' only managed one clue, which went to the Athenians. At the end of the show, the Athenians won 25-18.

Another good match between two well matched teams. Unlucky Trippers, well done Athenians, I look forward to seeing you both in your next rounds.

Monday's match: Scientists vs Builders

I'll get on to that either tomorrow or Thursday.