OK, so on with the third Only Connect quarter-final. And, as pointed out in last week's comment section, a fixture which means we'll be getting a seemingly avoidable rematch next week. TPTB seem to like those; we've had one every series since the show moved to BBC2. That's then though, this is now: winners take the third place in what's already a very strong SF line-up.
Playing were the Brews, Andy Christley, James Buchanan and captain Daniel Foskett, who lost to the Forrests and the Birdwatchers, got reprieved when their first opponents withdrew, then lost to the Dicers and finally beat the Hotpots to secure a QF berth, and the Ancient Alumni, Lindsay McBryan, Ailsa Watson and captain Dave McBryan, who took a much simpler route, beating the Three Peaks and the Westenders.
Round 1. The Brews opened the show with Horned Viper: 'Richard and Natalie Gillespie', then 'Zeus and Hera' (I suggested 'parents of sons called Hercules' at this point!), then 'Nat and Georgia Simpson' (which gave me the correct answer), and finally 'Jaime and Cersei Lannister'. The last one gave it to them: they are brothers and sisters who committed incest. (Nat and Georgia famously being the siblings from Brookside whose incest storyline was the beginning of the show's end) The Alumni started their show with Two Reeds, and the music set: we heard Blue with 'One Love', then Samanatha Womack (nee Janus) with 'A Message to Your Heart', then David Essex with 'Gonna Make Your a Star'; that gave it to them, their singers later appeared in EastEnders (Lee Ryan being the blue connection there) (I'd probably have put Samantha Womack third in the set if I'd set that question) The Brews chose Lion next, and got the picture set: we saw some Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau and Woodrow Wilson, then the golfer Ernie Els; they spotted them to be 'The Big Three' and 'The Big Easy', and immediately offered the link for the three points. The Alumni chose Water next: 'Park Guen-hye 2013-17' (in blue)', then 'William Morris 1860-65' (in red), then 'Van Gogh & Gauguin 1888' (in yellow), and finally 'Barack & Michelle Obama 2009-17' (in white). That gave it to them: they lived in houses known by those colours in those years. The Brews chose Twisted Flax next: '3,1416... 1.6180...', then '3 2.71828...', then '1,000,000 1,000,000,000'; they suggested them to be known by the same names in the UK and US, not right. Their opponents saw '7 11', and they offered them to be rhyming numbers for the bonus. Left with Eye of Horus for their own question, the Alumni saw 'Interrupting', then 'Landscaping', then 'Bikini', and finally 'Explaining'. Again, the last one gave it to them: you can replace the initial letters with 'Man' (Mankini, Mansplaining, etc) At the end of the first round, the Alumni led 5-4.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Brews started with Horned Viper again: 'Mathematical', then 'Quadratical' (I had it here), and finally 'Lot o'news'; they correctly saw it to be the Modern Major General's song from the Pirates of Penzance, and offered 'Hypotenuse' for the points. (Cue a sing-along!) The Alumni chose Two Reeds next: 'I: William II', then 'II: Henry I'; they saw them to be successors of King Williams, and so offered 'IV: Victoria' for the three points. The Brews chose Lion next: 'Corner 8', then 'Street 11', and then 'Split 17'. Neither they, nor their opponents, got this: they are roulette bets, so 'Straight 35' would be fourth. The Alumni chose Eye of Horus next: 'Austria (and 2 others)', then 'Cyprus (and 9 others)'; they saw them to be joinees of the EU, and offered 'Croatia (and no others)' for another three points. For their final choice, the Brews chose Twisted Flax, and got the picture set: we saw a still from the Japanese Mango show Bonobono, then a bonobo ape, and then Bono from U2; they spotted the sequence, and offered 'Bo Derek' for the two points. Left with Water, the Alumni saw 'Mr Brownlow: 1', then 'Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman: 2'; they saw them to be increasing numbers of adopted children, and so eventually suggested 'Madonna: 4' for the three points. At the end of the second round, the Alumni led 14-8.
On to the Walls. The Alumni went first, and chose the Lion wall. They immediately isolated 'Summer', 'Liberty', 'Joaquin' and 'Rain', which are forenames of the Phoenix siblings. They then spotted a couple of links, and isolated 'Pitt', 'Trudeau', 'Bush' and 'Kim', which are surnames of pairs of father-son world leaders. The final clues easily fell into line after that: 'Governors', 'U Thant', 'Roosevelt' and 'Ellis' are islands of New York, while 'World', 'Food', 'Sperm' and 'River' can all precede 'bank'. A full ten there.
The Brews thus set to work on the Water wall needing to match that to stay in realistic reach. They too isolated a set straight away: 'Hot Spot', 'VAR', 'Hawk-Eye' and 'Cyclops' are sport decision making computers. A second set, 'Caption', 'Motto', 'Rubric' and 'Colophon', which are explanatory words, followed soon after. After taking their time with the remaining clues, they had it on their third try: 'Minotaur', 'Locke', 'Legend' and 'Dunkirk' are films starring Tom Hardy, which they didn't get, while 'Chimera', 'Typhon', 'Hydra' and 'Cerberus' are creatures from Greek myth, which they did get. Seven there, which meant the Alumni led 24-15 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels to finish with. 'Educational establishments that don't exist', such as 'THE UNIVERSITY OF LIFE', went to the Alumni 3-0. 'Keepers and what kind of keeper they are', such as 'JONNY BAIRSTOW AND WICKETKEEPER' and 'DAVID SEAMAN AND GOALKEEPER', went to the Brews 3-0. 'Films in which a lead character is called Tommy' was split 1-1, and that was time. The Alumni won 28-19.
Another good contest, plenty of good quizzing and good questions, well done both teams. Unlucky Brews, but a very decent (and most unusual) series of performances, thanks very much for playing. Well done Alumni though, and very best of luck in the semis.
Next week's match: the last quarter-final, the Dicers vs the Birdwatchers
Wednesday, 27 March 2019
Monday, 25 March 2019
University Challenge 2018-19: Play-Off Quarter-Final 1: Edinburgh vs Bristol
Evening all. So, we're into the last five matches of this year's contest, and then we can all have a much needed rest before the quizzing resumes in the summer. Now, 364 days ago, these two institutions met each other in the first play-off QF of the last series, and it was a rather one sided contest. Would things align the same way tonight, with the two sides now on opposite rows?
Edinburgh have very quietly amassed a third impressive run in a row, with wins over Sidney Sussex of Cambridge and U.C.L. in the first two rounds, and Manchester in the prelims, but they lost their qualifier match to Durham. Hoping lightning would strike twice after last year and they'd reach their third semis in a row were:
Matt Booth, from Bristol, studying Maths
Marco Malusa, from Italy, studying Economics and Politics
Captain: Max Fitz-James, from Burgundy, studying Cell Biology
Robbie Campbell Hewson, from Edinburgh, studying Maths
Bristol reached the group stage via wins over Queen's of Belfast in the first round, and Warwick in the second, before winning their prelim against Darwin on a tie-breaker, but their qualifier against St Edmund Hall saw them narrowly defeated late on. Hoping to rewrite history after last year and reach their first semis of the Paxo era (correct me if I'm wrong) were:
George Sumner, from South London, studying Physics
Owen Iredale, from Hadleigh in Suffolk, studying Biology
Captain: Anne Le Maistre, from Adelaide, studying History
Pushan Basu, from Newcastle, studying English Literature
Off we set again then, and Mr Fitz-James opened the scoring with a quick buzz of 'Alexander Pope'; the premiere bonuses, on the life and work of Sir John Everett Millais, gave them two correct answers to start with. A slip-up allowed Bristol to follow them off the mark though, and one bonus was sufficient to put them level. Mr Sumner then gave the Avonsiders the lead, but, again, just the one bonus accompanied it. Back came Edinburgh via their captain again, giving them a very complicated bonus set on powers of ten and standard model particles, of which they took an impressive full set. The first picture round, on royal seats of Anglo Saxon kingdoms, went to Bristol, who took just the one bonus again, but it was enough to give them back the lead, 45-40.
Mr Campbell Hewson duly reclaimed it for Edinburgh though, and pushed the advantage further with a full bonus set on the work of historian Cecil Woodham-Smith. A rare buzzless starter followed (thought those got cut nowadays), before Mr Fitz-James gave his side more room to breath with 'Herodotus'; a classic UC bonus set on Canadian province abbreviations and UK postcode areas followed, of which they took just the one. Mr Iredale duly brought his side back into the game, but none of the resulting bonuses went with it; at this stage, the bonuses were proving the difference between the sides.
The music round, on classical work dedicated to Winnaretta Singer, went to Bristol, who took two correct this time, which reduced the gap to 80-75. That gap disappeared when Edinburgh slipped up on the next starter, but Bristol couldn't take the opportunity. Mr Campbell Hewson did take his opportunity to put Edinburgh in front again, and bonuses on Ancient Athens gave the Scots side two correct bonuses. Mr Iredale (and I) knew George Canning to be the foreign secretary who was briefly PM in 1827; bonuses on astronomy gave the Avonsiders one correct starter to pull them back with five. And when Edinburgh lost a further five on the next starter, and Ms Le Maistre picked up the drop, Bristol took the lead; bonuses on UN official languages gave them just the one bonus again.
The second picture round, on direct carving sculptures, went to Edinburgh, who took a full house, and retook the lead, 115-105. Still either side's game heading into the home straight, and Mr Booth made it advantage Edinburgh with 'Klimt'; bonuses on film directors didn't provide any further points though, meaning Bristol still had a chance to catch them.
Mr Iredale kept them in the contest, and Paxo encouraged them not to be so despairing, as there was still time left to catch up! Once again, just a single bonus went with it. A wonderful starter then asked which novel's title equates to the number of days in October times the number of squares on a chess board; Mr Campbell Hewson appeared to be quissing with '1984', but was right, and put his side within sight of victory. Two correct bonuses put one collective foot over the line. Bristol needed the next starter, but neither they not their opponents got it. You fancied that was game over, and Mr Campbell Hewson confirmed it back taking the game's final starter. At the gong, Edinburgh won 155-120.
A solid contest, despite the low scores, that could've gone either way until the very final stages. Unlucky Bristol, but a fine performance capping off a fine series of performances, thanks very much indeed for taking part! Very well done Edinburgh though, and best of luck in the semis!
The stats: Messrs Fitz-James, Campbell Hewson and Iredale were all the joint best buzzers of the night, with four each for their respective teams; Mr Iredale ends the series Bristol's best buzzer, with 24 over five games. On the bonuses, Edinburgh converted 16 out of 25 (with three penalties), while Bristol managed just 8 out of 27; that's where the game was won and lost.
Next week's match: Manchester vs Darwin, for the last place in the semi-finals.
Only Connect is nearly done for the series as well, with its final, I believe, due on the same day as UC's; review of tonight's show on Wednesday night I hope.
Edinburgh have very quietly amassed a third impressive run in a row, with wins over Sidney Sussex of Cambridge and U.C.L. in the first two rounds, and Manchester in the prelims, but they lost their qualifier match to Durham. Hoping lightning would strike twice after last year and they'd reach their third semis in a row were:
Matt Booth, from Bristol, studying Maths
Marco Malusa, from Italy, studying Economics and Politics
Captain: Max Fitz-James, from Burgundy, studying Cell Biology
Robbie Campbell Hewson, from Edinburgh, studying Maths
Bristol reached the group stage via wins over Queen's of Belfast in the first round, and Warwick in the second, before winning their prelim against Darwin on a tie-breaker, but their qualifier against St Edmund Hall saw them narrowly defeated late on. Hoping to rewrite history after last year and reach their first semis of the Paxo era (correct me if I'm wrong) were:
George Sumner, from South London, studying Physics
Owen Iredale, from Hadleigh in Suffolk, studying Biology
Captain: Anne Le Maistre, from Adelaide, studying History
Pushan Basu, from Newcastle, studying English Literature
Off we set again then, and Mr Fitz-James opened the scoring with a quick buzz of 'Alexander Pope'; the premiere bonuses, on the life and work of Sir John Everett Millais, gave them two correct answers to start with. A slip-up allowed Bristol to follow them off the mark though, and one bonus was sufficient to put them level. Mr Sumner then gave the Avonsiders the lead, but, again, just the one bonus accompanied it. Back came Edinburgh via their captain again, giving them a very complicated bonus set on powers of ten and standard model particles, of which they took an impressive full set. The first picture round, on royal seats of Anglo Saxon kingdoms, went to Bristol, who took just the one bonus again, but it was enough to give them back the lead, 45-40.
Mr Campbell Hewson duly reclaimed it for Edinburgh though, and pushed the advantage further with a full bonus set on the work of historian Cecil Woodham-Smith. A rare buzzless starter followed (thought those got cut nowadays), before Mr Fitz-James gave his side more room to breath with 'Herodotus'; a classic UC bonus set on Canadian province abbreviations and UK postcode areas followed, of which they took just the one. Mr Iredale duly brought his side back into the game, but none of the resulting bonuses went with it; at this stage, the bonuses were proving the difference between the sides.
The music round, on classical work dedicated to Winnaretta Singer, went to Bristol, who took two correct this time, which reduced the gap to 80-75. That gap disappeared when Edinburgh slipped up on the next starter, but Bristol couldn't take the opportunity. Mr Campbell Hewson did take his opportunity to put Edinburgh in front again, and bonuses on Ancient Athens gave the Scots side two correct bonuses. Mr Iredale (and I) knew George Canning to be the foreign secretary who was briefly PM in 1827; bonuses on astronomy gave the Avonsiders one correct starter to pull them back with five. And when Edinburgh lost a further five on the next starter, and Ms Le Maistre picked up the drop, Bristol took the lead; bonuses on UN official languages gave them just the one bonus again.
The second picture round, on direct carving sculptures, went to Edinburgh, who took a full house, and retook the lead, 115-105. Still either side's game heading into the home straight, and Mr Booth made it advantage Edinburgh with 'Klimt'; bonuses on film directors didn't provide any further points though, meaning Bristol still had a chance to catch them.
Mr Iredale kept them in the contest, and Paxo encouraged them not to be so despairing, as there was still time left to catch up! Once again, just a single bonus went with it. A wonderful starter then asked which novel's title equates to the number of days in October times the number of squares on a chess board; Mr Campbell Hewson appeared to be quissing with '1984', but was right, and put his side within sight of victory. Two correct bonuses put one collective foot over the line. Bristol needed the next starter, but neither they not their opponents got it. You fancied that was game over, and Mr Campbell Hewson confirmed it back taking the game's final starter. At the gong, Edinburgh won 155-120.
A solid contest, despite the low scores, that could've gone either way until the very final stages. Unlucky Bristol, but a fine performance capping off a fine series of performances, thanks very much indeed for taking part! Very well done Edinburgh though, and best of luck in the semis!
The stats: Messrs Fitz-James, Campbell Hewson and Iredale were all the joint best buzzers of the night, with four each for their respective teams; Mr Iredale ends the series Bristol's best buzzer, with 24 over five games. On the bonuses, Edinburgh converted 16 out of 25 (with three penalties), while Bristol managed just 8 out of 27; that's where the game was won and lost.
Next week's match: Manchester vs Darwin, for the last place in the semi-finals.
Only Connect is nearly done for the series as well, with its final, I believe, due on the same day as UC's; review of tonight's show on Wednesday night I hope.
Thursday, 21 March 2019
Only Connect Series 14: Quarter-Final 2: Durhamites vs Poptimists
OK, on with this week's Only Connect. I've pretty much decided now that this is the last series I'm doing full reviews of on here; from next series, I'll be moving to short summaries like Weaver's Week, only less detailed than their's. It's been a good series to go out on though, really can't call a winner from any of the teams left in, though I do have my favourites.
Anyway, playing on Monday were the Durhamites, Adam Robertson, James France and captain George Twigg, who lost their first match to the LARPers but recovered with wins over the Hotpots and the Pyromaniacs, and the Poptimists, Oliver Levy, Bob De Caux and captain Matt Loxham, who came straight through via wins over the Hotpots and the LARPers. (Quite possibly the first OC panel to contain five UC alumni)
Round 1. The Durhamites opened the show with Water, and the music set: we heard 'Vissi d'arte' from Tosca, then 'God! Show Me Magic' by the Super Furry Animals, then 'Bring Him Home' from Les Mis, and finally 'Mercedes Benz' by Janis Joplin. Recognising only the last, they tried their guess of 'songs about cars' from the earlier match again, but were not correct this time; their opponents offered them all to be songs sung directly to God, and collected the bonus. For their own first question, the Poptimists chose Eye of Horus: 'Andy and Peter', then 'Dave and Ken', then 'Rosemary & Laura'; they saw them to be the first names of TV detective duos, and collected two points. The Durhamites chose 'Horn-ed' Viper next: 'Banknote (____) Check', then 'Waistcoat (____) Undershirt', then 'Condom (____) Eraser'; they suggested 'shared slang terms for the same items', which wasn't quite there for the points. Their opponents saw 'Crisps (____) French fries', and offered that the blank is what the first words mean in the US, and the second words are what the blanks mean here, if that makes sense. For their own question, the Poptimists chose Two Reeds, and got the picture set: we saw two pairs of eyes, one open, one shut, then the number sequence '3, 5, 26, 28, 30, 31, 32, 35, 88, 101' (with the first two and last two bold and underlined), then a depiction of David slaying Goliath, and finally the quiz show Tipping Point. They saw them to be clues to the titles of books by Malcolm Gladwell, and collected the point (the number referring to 'Outliers'). The Durhamites chose Lion next; 'Reginald McKenna (1911)', then 'Philip Snowden (1924)', then 'Neville Chamberlain (1940)', and finally 'Elizabeth Fry (2016)'. Neither side spotted this one: they were all succeeded by Winston Churchill in those years. Left with Twisted Flax, the Poptimists saw 'From 'angry'', then 'From 'charcoal kiln'', then 'From 'in the style of a prostitute''; they identified them as the derivations of the names of Italian sauces, and collected another two points. At the end of the first round, the Poptimists led 7-0.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Durhamites started the round with Water: 'Roquefort', then 'Woody Guthrie', and then 'Mange Tout'. They didn't spot it, their opponents did: they end in homophones of 'four', 'three' and 'two', so 'Black Swan' would be an acceptable homophone of 'one' for the bonus. For their own question, the Poptimists chose Eye of Horus: '1 x £20', then '1 x £50', and then '4 x £100'. They saw them to be how many of those notes you start with Monopoly, so '2 x £500' for the points. The Durhamites chose Two Reeds next: '61, 52', then '63, 94', and then '46, 81'. Neither team saw this very tough sequence: they are square numbers with their digits reversed, so '001, 121' would be fourth. The Poptimists chose 'Horn-ed' Viper next: 'The Enigma of Arrival', then 'The Caretaker', and then 'The Golden Notebook'. They saw them to be something to do with British winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature, but didn't get an acceptable answer; their opponents offered 'A Pale View of Hills', and collected their first point of the game. For their own final choice, the Durhamites chose Lion, and got the picture set: we saw the gender symbols, then some tubs of pills; they saw them to represent 'Sex' and 'Drugs', so deduced that 'Rock' would be third and offered 'a swiss roll' for the three points. Left with Twisted Flax, the Poptimists saw 'Richard III (1485)', then 'Elizabeth I (1603)'; they saw them to be the final monarchs of successive royal houses, but their offer of 'William IV (1837)' was not correct. Their opponents saw 'Anne (1714', but their guess of 'Edward VII (1910)' was wrong too. 'Victoria (1901)' completes the set. At the end of the second round, the Poptimists led 10-4.
On to the Walls. The Poptimists went first, and chose the Water wall. They isolated two sets pretty quickly; 'Bhaji', 'Pakora', 'Roti' and 'Poppadom' are items of Indian food, while 'Pouille', 'Cilic', 'Sock' and 'Thiem' are surnames of male tennis players. They spotted the final connections, and had the clues in line in short order: 'Tsonga', 'Osman', 'Scuba' and 'Samosa' are countries with an 'S' added to their names, while 'Shadow', 'String', 'Rod' and 'Finger' are types of puppet. A full ten there.
The Durhamites thus had to match that on the Lion wall to stay in realistic reach. They had a first set sorted reasonably quickly: 'Rosa', 'Azul', 'Amarillo' and 'Verde' are colours in Spanish. A second set, 'Auror', 'Els', 'Tian' and 'Moan', are Disney princesses with the 'A' on the end missing, followed shortly afterwards. They carefully studied what was left, and had everything sorted on their third try: 'Schwartzel', 'Player', 'Frost' and 'Goosen' are surnames of South African golfers, while 'Blanco', 'Pop', 'Del Boy' and 'Granville' are characters played by David Jason. Another full ten, so as you were, the Poptimists led 20-14 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels to finish with, with the Durhamites needing a good round to stand a chance. 'EU capitals and a university found there' was split 2-each. 'Fishy famous people', such as 'NICOLA STURGEON' and 'ROSAMUND PIKE' went to the Poptimists 3-1. 'Things that are the deepest', such as 'DEATH VALLEY' and 'LAKE BAIKAL' was a clean sweep to the Poptimists, 4-0. 'Books by Paul McKenna' was split 1-each, and that was time. The Poptimists won 30-18.
Another good game, some tough questions there, well done both teams in the circumstances. Unlucky Durhamites, but a fine series of performances, thanks very much for playing. Well done Poptimists though, and best of luck in the semi-finals!
Next week's match: the Brews vs the Ancient Alumni
Anyway, playing on Monday were the Durhamites, Adam Robertson, James France and captain George Twigg, who lost their first match to the LARPers but recovered with wins over the Hotpots and the Pyromaniacs, and the Poptimists, Oliver Levy, Bob De Caux and captain Matt Loxham, who came straight through via wins over the Hotpots and the LARPers. (Quite possibly the first OC panel to contain five UC alumni)
Round 1. The Durhamites opened the show with Water, and the music set: we heard 'Vissi d'arte' from Tosca, then 'God! Show Me Magic' by the Super Furry Animals, then 'Bring Him Home' from Les Mis, and finally 'Mercedes Benz' by Janis Joplin. Recognising only the last, they tried their guess of 'songs about cars' from the earlier match again, but were not correct this time; their opponents offered them all to be songs sung directly to God, and collected the bonus. For their own first question, the Poptimists chose Eye of Horus: 'Andy and Peter', then 'Dave and Ken', then 'Rosemary & Laura'; they saw them to be the first names of TV detective duos, and collected two points. The Durhamites chose 'Horn-ed' Viper next: 'Banknote (____) Check', then 'Waistcoat (____) Undershirt', then 'Condom (____) Eraser'; they suggested 'shared slang terms for the same items', which wasn't quite there for the points. Their opponents saw 'Crisps (____) French fries', and offered that the blank is what the first words mean in the US, and the second words are what the blanks mean here, if that makes sense. For their own question, the Poptimists chose Two Reeds, and got the picture set: we saw two pairs of eyes, one open, one shut, then the number sequence '3, 5, 26, 28, 30, 31, 32, 35, 88, 101' (with the first two and last two bold and underlined), then a depiction of David slaying Goliath, and finally the quiz show Tipping Point. They saw them to be clues to the titles of books by Malcolm Gladwell, and collected the point (the number referring to 'Outliers'). The Durhamites chose Lion next; 'Reginald McKenna (1911)', then 'Philip Snowden (1924)', then 'Neville Chamberlain (1940)', and finally 'Elizabeth Fry (2016)'. Neither side spotted this one: they were all succeeded by Winston Churchill in those years. Left with Twisted Flax, the Poptimists saw 'From 'angry'', then 'From 'charcoal kiln'', then 'From 'in the style of a prostitute''; they identified them as the derivations of the names of Italian sauces, and collected another two points. At the end of the first round, the Poptimists led 7-0.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Durhamites started the round with Water: 'Roquefort', then 'Woody Guthrie', and then 'Mange Tout'. They didn't spot it, their opponents did: they end in homophones of 'four', 'three' and 'two', so 'Black Swan' would be an acceptable homophone of 'one' for the bonus. For their own question, the Poptimists chose Eye of Horus: '1 x £20', then '1 x £50', and then '4 x £100'. They saw them to be how many of those notes you start with Monopoly, so '2 x £500' for the points. The Durhamites chose Two Reeds next: '61, 52', then '63, 94', and then '46, 81'. Neither team saw this very tough sequence: they are square numbers with their digits reversed, so '001, 121' would be fourth. The Poptimists chose 'Horn-ed' Viper next: 'The Enigma of Arrival', then 'The Caretaker', and then 'The Golden Notebook'. They saw them to be something to do with British winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature, but didn't get an acceptable answer; their opponents offered 'A Pale View of Hills', and collected their first point of the game. For their own final choice, the Durhamites chose Lion, and got the picture set: we saw the gender symbols, then some tubs of pills; they saw them to represent 'Sex' and 'Drugs', so deduced that 'Rock' would be third and offered 'a swiss roll' for the three points. Left with Twisted Flax, the Poptimists saw 'Richard III (1485)', then 'Elizabeth I (1603)'; they saw them to be the final monarchs of successive royal houses, but their offer of 'William IV (1837)' was not correct. Their opponents saw 'Anne (1714', but their guess of 'Edward VII (1910)' was wrong too. 'Victoria (1901)' completes the set. At the end of the second round, the Poptimists led 10-4.
On to the Walls. The Poptimists went first, and chose the Water wall. They isolated two sets pretty quickly; 'Bhaji', 'Pakora', 'Roti' and 'Poppadom' are items of Indian food, while 'Pouille', 'Cilic', 'Sock' and 'Thiem' are surnames of male tennis players. They spotted the final connections, and had the clues in line in short order: 'Tsonga', 'Osman', 'Scuba' and 'Samosa' are countries with an 'S' added to their names, while 'Shadow', 'String', 'Rod' and 'Finger' are types of puppet. A full ten there.
The Durhamites thus had to match that on the Lion wall to stay in realistic reach. They had a first set sorted reasonably quickly: 'Rosa', 'Azul', 'Amarillo' and 'Verde' are colours in Spanish. A second set, 'Auror', 'Els', 'Tian' and 'Moan', are Disney princesses with the 'A' on the end missing, followed shortly afterwards. They carefully studied what was left, and had everything sorted on their third try: 'Schwartzel', 'Player', 'Frost' and 'Goosen' are surnames of South African golfers, while 'Blanco', 'Pop', 'Del Boy' and 'Granville' are characters played by David Jason. Another full ten, so as you were, the Poptimists led 20-14 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels to finish with, with the Durhamites needing a good round to stand a chance. 'EU capitals and a university found there' was split 2-each. 'Fishy famous people', such as 'NICOLA STURGEON' and 'ROSAMUND PIKE' went to the Poptimists 3-1. 'Things that are the deepest', such as 'DEATH VALLEY' and 'LAKE BAIKAL' was a clean sweep to the Poptimists, 4-0. 'Books by Paul McKenna' was split 1-each, and that was time. The Poptimists won 30-18.
Another good game, some tough questions there, well done both teams in the circumstances. Unlucky Durhamites, but a fine series of performances, thanks very much for playing. Well done Poptimists though, and best of luck in the semi-finals!
Next week's match: the Brews vs the Ancient Alumni
Monday, 18 March 2019
University Challenge 2018-19: Elimination Quarter-Final 2: Darwin vs Emmanuel
Evening all. On we travel into the unknown with the second elimination quarter-final, and a Cambridge derby, between two teams I, in my infinite wisdom, both picked as semi-finalists; one still could be, the other couldn't as they'd be out. Apologies for any typos, as I cut my right index finger on a broken supermarket trolley last night and it's hurting a fair bit when I bend it.
Darwin College Cambridge rocketed through the knockout rounds, beating SOAS of London and Downing of Cambridge in the first and second rounds, but slipped up in their preliminary against Bristol, a low scoring affair which they lost on a tie-breaker. Hoping to make up for that and recover their earlier form were the unchanged foursome of:
Stuart MacPherson, from Bothwell in South Lanarkshire, studying Physics
Chris Davis, from London (originally California), studying Plant Sciences
Captain: Jason Golfinos, from New York City, studying Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Guy Mulley, from Loughton in Essex, studying Law
Emmanuel College Cambridge narrowly lost their first match to fellow QFers Glasgow, but recovered via wins over King's of London and St Peter's of Oxford, before coming unstuck again against St Edmund Hall in the preliminaries. Hoping to bounce back again and not fall at the same stage they did a year ago tomorrow were the also unchanged foursome of:
Connor MacDonald, from New Brunswick, Canada, studying Politics
Vedanth Nair, from Kings Lynn, studying Economics
Captain: Dani Cugini, from Warwick, studying English
Ben Harris, from Bath, studying Geology
Off we set again then, and a prompt buzz from Mr MacDonald with 'Gladstone' opened the scoring for the night; bonuses on double numbered years saw Emmanuel take one bonus and unluckily miss another. Mr MacPherson duly sent Darwin off in quick pursuit, and bonuses on the critique of writer Kate Millett gave them two correct answers, and the lead. Which increased when Mr Golfinos, their top player in the earlier rounds, took his first starter of the night, unlocking a classic UC bonus set on pairs of names where the last letters of the first and the first of the second are the same, of which they took another two. The first picture round, on cities that have won the EU's Access City Award, went to Emmanuel, who also took two bonuses, cutting their gap to 40-35.
Darwin duly increased it again though, with Mr MacPherson identifying the opening words of Trainspotting (the novel), and another pair of bonuses followed with it. Mr Golfinos, with the bit in his teeth, was then very quick to identify Spain and Portugal as the signatories of the Treaty of Tordesillas, and almost singlehandedly banged out a full bonus set on Matilda of Tuscany. A second quick starter in a row went to the Darwin captain, which gave them another great UC bonus set asking to identify chemical elements from clues to a scientist whose initials are their chemical element; they took one of these. Mr Harris broke Emmanuel back into the game on the next starter; two bonuses followed, before Ms Cugini gave her side a second starter in a row, with the subsequent bonuses, on astronomy, bringing them within 25.
The music round, on singers often called 'the Godfather/mother of' their genre, went to Darwin, who took a full house of bonuses, increasing their lead to 125-75. Asked for a political figure born in Dublin in 1769, Mr Nair zigged with Nelson, Mr Golfinos zagged with Wellington, and Darwin took full advantage with a second successive full set. A quick buzz from Mr MacDonald brought Emmanuel back into the game though, and a full set of their own took them into three figures. Mr Golfinos wasn't to be stopped though, another quick starter, and yet another full set set his side on their way again.
The second picture round, on stills from non-US road movies, went to Emmanuel, who failed to add to their score, leaving the deficit at 175-110. Mr Harris did the right thing in going in quickly for the next starter, but dropped five, and Mr Golfinos picked up the drop; one bonus followed.
And when Mr Golfinos took the next starter, that was game over; two bonuses on cameos by Alfred Hitchcock went with it. Emmanuel went out fighting though, Mr Nair offering 'Einstein-Bose condensate', which Paxo decided was close enough for the points, and a full set of bonuses was taken in short order. Mr Mulley took the last starter of the game, and the one bonus there was time to answer they got right. At the gong, Darwin won 225-130.
A good high quality contest, well played both teams, shame this is an elimination match. Unlucky Emmanuel, but a fine series of performances, and an entertaining team to watch, thanks very much for playing! Well done Darwin though, another strong win over good opposition, and best of luck in the play-offs!
The stats: Mr Golfinos was, once again, the best buzzer of the night with eight, taking his running total to 36, one more than Mr Leo thus far, while Mr Harris was best for Emmanuel with three, though Messrs MacDonald and Nair were joint best for the series overall with 13 each. On the bonuses, Darwin converted a very good 23 out of 31, while Emmanuel managed an also decent 13 out of 21, with the night's one penalty.
Next week's match: the first play-off, which, unless I've been misinformed, will see Edinburgh vs Bristol, followed by Manchester vs Darwin.
Only Connect was awash with UC alumni tonight, with five out of six on the teams. Review coming up on Thursday I hope.
Darwin College Cambridge rocketed through the knockout rounds, beating SOAS of London and Downing of Cambridge in the first and second rounds, but slipped up in their preliminary against Bristol, a low scoring affair which they lost on a tie-breaker. Hoping to make up for that and recover their earlier form were the unchanged foursome of:
Stuart MacPherson, from Bothwell in South Lanarkshire, studying Physics
Chris Davis, from London (originally California), studying Plant Sciences
Captain: Jason Golfinos, from New York City, studying Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Guy Mulley, from Loughton in Essex, studying Law
Emmanuel College Cambridge narrowly lost their first match to fellow QFers Glasgow, but recovered via wins over King's of London and St Peter's of Oxford, before coming unstuck again against St Edmund Hall in the preliminaries. Hoping to bounce back again and not fall at the same stage they did a year ago tomorrow were the also unchanged foursome of:
Connor MacDonald, from New Brunswick, Canada, studying Politics
Vedanth Nair, from Kings Lynn, studying Economics
Captain: Dani Cugini, from Warwick, studying English
Ben Harris, from Bath, studying Geology
Off we set again then, and a prompt buzz from Mr MacDonald with 'Gladstone' opened the scoring for the night; bonuses on double numbered years saw Emmanuel take one bonus and unluckily miss another. Mr MacPherson duly sent Darwin off in quick pursuit, and bonuses on the critique of writer Kate Millett gave them two correct answers, and the lead. Which increased when Mr Golfinos, their top player in the earlier rounds, took his first starter of the night, unlocking a classic UC bonus set on pairs of names where the last letters of the first and the first of the second are the same, of which they took another two. The first picture round, on cities that have won the EU's Access City Award, went to Emmanuel, who also took two bonuses, cutting their gap to 40-35.
Darwin duly increased it again though, with Mr MacPherson identifying the opening words of Trainspotting (the novel), and another pair of bonuses followed with it. Mr Golfinos, with the bit in his teeth, was then very quick to identify Spain and Portugal as the signatories of the Treaty of Tordesillas, and almost singlehandedly banged out a full bonus set on Matilda of Tuscany. A second quick starter in a row went to the Darwin captain, which gave them another great UC bonus set asking to identify chemical elements from clues to a scientist whose initials are their chemical element; they took one of these. Mr Harris broke Emmanuel back into the game on the next starter; two bonuses followed, before Ms Cugini gave her side a second starter in a row, with the subsequent bonuses, on astronomy, bringing them within 25.
The music round, on singers often called 'the Godfather/mother of' their genre, went to Darwin, who took a full house of bonuses, increasing their lead to 125-75. Asked for a political figure born in Dublin in 1769, Mr Nair zigged with Nelson, Mr Golfinos zagged with Wellington, and Darwin took full advantage with a second successive full set. A quick buzz from Mr MacDonald brought Emmanuel back into the game though, and a full set of their own took them into three figures. Mr Golfinos wasn't to be stopped though, another quick starter, and yet another full set set his side on their way again.
The second picture round, on stills from non-US road movies, went to Emmanuel, who failed to add to their score, leaving the deficit at 175-110. Mr Harris did the right thing in going in quickly for the next starter, but dropped five, and Mr Golfinos picked up the drop; one bonus followed.
And when Mr Golfinos took the next starter, that was game over; two bonuses on cameos by Alfred Hitchcock went with it. Emmanuel went out fighting though, Mr Nair offering 'Einstein-Bose condensate', which Paxo decided was close enough for the points, and a full set of bonuses was taken in short order. Mr Mulley took the last starter of the game, and the one bonus there was time to answer they got right. At the gong, Darwin won 225-130.
A good high quality contest, well played both teams, shame this is an elimination match. Unlucky Emmanuel, but a fine series of performances, and an entertaining team to watch, thanks very much for playing! Well done Darwin though, another strong win over good opposition, and best of luck in the play-offs!
The stats: Mr Golfinos was, once again, the best buzzer of the night with eight, taking his running total to 36, one more than Mr Leo thus far, while Mr Harris was best for Emmanuel with three, though Messrs MacDonald and Nair were joint best for the series overall with 13 each. On the bonuses, Darwin converted a very good 23 out of 31, while Emmanuel managed an also decent 13 out of 21, with the night's one penalty.
Next week's match: the first play-off, which, unless I've been misinformed, will see Edinburgh vs Bristol, followed by Manchester vs Darwin.
Only Connect was awash with UC alumni tonight, with five out of six on the teams. Review coming up on Thursday I hope.
Wednesday, 13 March 2019
Only Connect Series 14: Quarter-Final 1: Time Ladies vs LARPers
OK, here we are at the first quarter-final of what I've pretty much decided will be the last series of Only Connect I cover in this much depth on this blog. These blogs are becoming increasingly harder to write, and with my new blog requiring attention too, I need to prioritise. Don't worry, I will still cover it on here, just not a full review.
Anyway, playing the first quarter-final on Monday were the Time Ladies, Charlotte Jackson, Emma Harris and captain Rebecca Shaw, who came straight through with victories over the Motorheads and the Pyromaniacs, and the LARPers, Martel Reynolds, Kiwi Tokoeka and captain Ronny Jackson, who defeated the Durhamites and, also, the Motorheads en route, but were also beaten by the Poptimists.
Round 1. The Time Ladies opened the show with Eye of Horus, and the music question: we heard Tom Waits with 'Grapefruit Moon', then Prokofiev's 'The Love for Three Oranges', then 'Lemon Tree', and finally 'Oh! My Darling Clementine'. They saw the link from the last two, and collected a point. The LARPers started their show with Lion, and the pictures: we saw an Indycar motor race, then a Madison cycle race, then a girl playing badminton, and finally a rugby union match. They didn't get it, their opponents did: they are sports named after places. For their own question, the Ladies chose Water: 'Outlook', then 'Workhouse', then 'Hangover', and finally 'Overhand'. They didn't quite work it out, their opponents did: they are portmanteau words which form other portmanteau words when the components are switched ('Lookout', 'Housework', 'Overhang' and 'Handover') For their own question, the LARPers chose 'Horn-ed' Viper: 'Germany (1888)', then 'USA (1841)', then 'Vatican City (1978)', and finally 'UK (1936)'. Again, they didn't get it, and their opponents didn't quite get there either: they are years where those states had three rulers. The Ladies chose Two Reeds next: 'Kings Cross', then 'Patpong'; they came in here and tried 'suburbs of Sydney', not correct. Their opponents saw 'De Wallen' and 'Reeperbahn', and correctly offered that they are red light districts of their cities for a bonus. Left with Twisted Flax for their own question, the LARPers saw 'Chinese beer', then '"Northern bastard"', then ''Informer' performer', and finally 'Visual static'. They saw the link to be 'snow', and collected the point. At the end of the first round, the 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Ladies started the round with Twisted Flax: '4: Russia and Rwanda', then '3: Armenia and Albania', and then '2: Slovenia and Slovakia'. They tried '1: Austria and Australia', not correct. Their opponents knew it to be countries whose names differ by 4, 3 and 2 letters, and, despite not being able to think of an example, were allowed the bonus. '1: Iraq and Iran' was the model answer. For their own question, the LARPers chose Water: '1751: 282', then '1752: 355', and then '1753: 365'. They knew it to be something to do with increasing numbers of days in years, but their offer of '1754: 366' was not correct. Their opponents tried '1756: 366', reasoning it to be years with increasing numbers of days. This wasn't quite what TPTB had in mind, the model answer being simply '1754: 365' and the sequence 'sequential years and how many days in them', but Victoria deemed their answer an acceptable alternate sequence, so bonus given. For their own question, the Ladies chose Eye of Horus: '"a lucky one"', then '12:43'; they saw them to be '18 to 1' and '17 to 1', and so offered 'Quiz show hosted by Sandi Toksvig', or '15 to 1', for the three points (the first clue being a reference to Fairytale of New York). The LARPers chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw an army tank, then a bluebottle, and then Bruce Springsteen. They didn't get it, their opponents did: they are the lyrics to 'Dub Be Good To Me', 'tank fly boss walk', so offered 'someone going for a stroll' for the bonus. For their own final choice, the Ladies chose Lion: 'Devanagari', then 'Arabic', and then 'Chinese'. Both teams saw it to be something to do with languages, but neither quite got there: they are writing systems and the number of users, so 'Latin' would be fourth. Left with Horned Viper, the LARPers saw 'Cecil', then 'HSBC office guards', and then 'UK No. 1 in June 1996 & 1998'. They didn't see it, their opponents did: they are increasing numbers of lions, so 'Comedy about UK terrorists' would be an acceptable answer. At the end of the second round, the Ladies led 8-4.
On to the Walls. The LARPers went first, and chose the Lion wall. After careful study of the clues, they isolated two sets in reasonably quick succession: 'Chief', 'Bibbit', 'Martini' and 'McMurphy' are characters in 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', while 'Don't pass', 'Big 8', 'Hardway' and 'Field' are bets in craps. They worked out the remaining connections, but couldn't untangle the sets in their three goes, so had to try for bonuses: 'James', 'Hawkins', 'Phillips' and 'Gunnell' are surnames of famous women called Sally, while 'Robertson', 'Flat head', 'Torque' and 'Ratchet' are types of screwdriver. Six points there.
The Ladies chose thus put daylight between themselves if they could get a clean sweep of the Water wall. Again, they took their time analysing the clues, and eventually had a set in the bag: 'Ansel', 'Patch', 'Oleta' and 'Nicola' are forenames of famous people with the surname Adams. They got a bit stuck after that though, and couldn't get anything else, so had to also go for bonuses: 'Peg out', 'Hoop', 'Bisque' and 'Peel' are croquet terms, which they didn't get, 'Brown Windsor', 'Tom yum', 'Gumbo' and 'Shchi' are soups, which they did get, while 'Onchan', 'Ramsey', 'Douglas' and 'Castletown' are places on the Isle of Man. Four points there, which reduced their lead to 12-10 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide the first semi-finalists. 'Exhibits in the British Museum' went to the LARPers 2-1. 'Things with tiers', such as 'WEDDING CAKE' and 'ENGLISH FOOTBALL' was another 2-1 to the LARPers. 'Things that have been famously vandalised', such as 'STATUE OF WINSTON CHURCHILL' and 'ROME' was a 2-2 split. And that was time: a 16-16 tie!
A tie-breaker question thus required again: 'LKB FY YLP'. Ms Shaw was in first: 'LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP'; riiiiiiiiiight!
Another absorbing contest between two very well matched teams, well played both. Unlucky LARPers, but a respectable series of performances, thanks very much for playing. Well done Time Ladies though, and best of luck in the semi finals!
Next week's match: the Durhamites vs the Poptimists
Anyway, playing the first quarter-final on Monday were the Time Ladies, Charlotte Jackson, Emma Harris and captain Rebecca Shaw, who came straight through with victories over the Motorheads and the Pyromaniacs, and the LARPers, Martel Reynolds, Kiwi Tokoeka and captain Ronny Jackson, who defeated the Durhamites and, also, the Motorheads en route, but were also beaten by the Poptimists.
Round 1. The Time Ladies opened the show with Eye of Horus, and the music question: we heard Tom Waits with 'Grapefruit Moon', then Prokofiev's 'The Love for Three Oranges', then 'Lemon Tree', and finally 'Oh! My Darling Clementine'. They saw the link from the last two, and collected a point. The LARPers started their show with Lion, and the pictures: we saw an Indycar motor race, then a Madison cycle race, then a girl playing badminton, and finally a rugby union match. They didn't get it, their opponents did: they are sports named after places. For their own question, the Ladies chose Water: 'Outlook', then 'Workhouse', then 'Hangover', and finally 'Overhand'. They didn't quite work it out, their opponents did: they are portmanteau words which form other portmanteau words when the components are switched ('Lookout', 'Housework', 'Overhang' and 'Handover') For their own question, the LARPers chose 'Horn-ed' Viper: 'Germany (1888)', then 'USA (1841)', then 'Vatican City (1978)', and finally 'UK (1936)'. Again, they didn't get it, and their opponents didn't quite get there either: they are years where those states had three rulers. The Ladies chose Two Reeds next: 'Kings Cross', then 'Patpong'; they came in here and tried 'suburbs of Sydney', not correct. Their opponents saw 'De Wallen' and 'Reeperbahn', and correctly offered that they are red light districts of their cities for a bonus. Left with Twisted Flax for their own question, the LARPers saw 'Chinese beer', then '"Northern bastard"', then ''Informer' performer', and finally 'Visual static'. They saw the link to be 'snow', and collected the point. At the end of the first round, the 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Ladies started the round with Twisted Flax: '4: Russia and Rwanda', then '3: Armenia and Albania', and then '2: Slovenia and Slovakia'. They tried '1: Austria and Australia', not correct. Their opponents knew it to be countries whose names differ by 4, 3 and 2 letters, and, despite not being able to think of an example, were allowed the bonus. '1: Iraq and Iran' was the model answer. For their own question, the LARPers chose Water: '1751: 282', then '1752: 355', and then '1753: 365'. They knew it to be something to do with increasing numbers of days in years, but their offer of '1754: 366' was not correct. Their opponents tried '1756: 366', reasoning it to be years with increasing numbers of days. This wasn't quite what TPTB had in mind, the model answer being simply '1754: 365' and the sequence 'sequential years and how many days in them', but Victoria deemed their answer an acceptable alternate sequence, so bonus given. For their own question, the Ladies chose Eye of Horus: '"a lucky one"', then '12:43'; they saw them to be '18 to 1' and '17 to 1', and so offered 'Quiz show hosted by Sandi Toksvig', or '15 to 1', for the three points (the first clue being a reference to Fairytale of New York). The LARPers chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw an army tank, then a bluebottle, and then Bruce Springsteen. They didn't get it, their opponents did: they are the lyrics to 'Dub Be Good To Me', 'tank fly boss walk', so offered 'someone going for a stroll' for the bonus. For their own final choice, the Ladies chose Lion: 'Devanagari', then 'Arabic', and then 'Chinese'. Both teams saw it to be something to do with languages, but neither quite got there: they are writing systems and the number of users, so 'Latin' would be fourth. Left with Horned Viper, the LARPers saw 'Cecil', then 'HSBC office guards', and then 'UK No. 1 in June 1996 & 1998'. They didn't see it, their opponents did: they are increasing numbers of lions, so 'Comedy about UK terrorists' would be an acceptable answer. At the end of the second round, the Ladies led 8-4.
On to the Walls. The LARPers went first, and chose the Lion wall. After careful study of the clues, they isolated two sets in reasonably quick succession: 'Chief', 'Bibbit', 'Martini' and 'McMurphy' are characters in 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', while 'Don't pass', 'Big 8', 'Hardway' and 'Field' are bets in craps. They worked out the remaining connections, but couldn't untangle the sets in their three goes, so had to try for bonuses: 'James', 'Hawkins', 'Phillips' and 'Gunnell' are surnames of famous women called Sally, while 'Robertson', 'Flat head', 'Torque' and 'Ratchet' are types of screwdriver. Six points there.
The Ladies chose thus put daylight between themselves if they could get a clean sweep of the Water wall. Again, they took their time analysing the clues, and eventually had a set in the bag: 'Ansel', 'Patch', 'Oleta' and 'Nicola' are forenames of famous people with the surname Adams. They got a bit stuck after that though, and couldn't get anything else, so had to also go for bonuses: 'Peg out', 'Hoop', 'Bisque' and 'Peel' are croquet terms, which they didn't get, 'Brown Windsor', 'Tom yum', 'Gumbo' and 'Shchi' are soups, which they did get, while 'Onchan', 'Ramsey', 'Douglas' and 'Castletown' are places on the Isle of Man. Four points there, which reduced their lead to 12-10 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide the first semi-finalists. 'Exhibits in the British Museum' went to the LARPers 2-1. 'Things with tiers', such as 'WEDDING CAKE' and 'ENGLISH FOOTBALL' was another 2-1 to the LARPers. 'Things that have been famously vandalised', such as 'STATUE OF WINSTON CHURCHILL' and 'ROME' was a 2-2 split. And that was time: a 16-16 tie!
A tie-breaker question thus required again: 'LKB FY YLP'. Ms Shaw was in first: 'LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP'; riiiiiiiiiight!
Another absorbing contest between two very well matched teams, well played both. Unlucky LARPers, but a respectable series of performances, thanks very much for playing. Well done Time Ladies though, and best of luck in the semi finals!
Next week's match: the Durhamites vs the Poptimists
Monday, 11 March 2019
University Challenge 2018-19: Qualification Quarter-Final 2: Bristol vs St Edmund Hall
Evening all. Hope most of you weren't thrown by the change of time tonight. Most inconvenient for me, as I had to miss the Simpsons so I could take my shower before the quiz hour started! Never mind it was one I've seen many times before, it doesn't feel right having to miss it! Never mind, we'll be used to it next week I suppose. Anyway, on with the show, and the second qualifier quarter-final.
Bristol won a low scoring first round contest against Queen's of Belfast, then had a higher scoring win over Warwick in the second round, and in their first quarter-final, pulled off a minor upset against Darwin, winning on a 105-each tie-break. Hoping to continue this resurgence were the unchanged foursome of:
George Sumner, from South London, studying Physics
Owen Iredale, from Hadleigh in Suffolk, studying Biology
Captain: Anne Le Maistre, from Adelaide, studying History
Pushan Basu, from Newcastle, studying English Literature
St Edmund Hall Oxford reached this stage with three comfortable wins, over York in the first round, Clare of Cambridge in the second, and Emmanuel in the preliminaries, with their captain dominating the show all three times. Hoping to continue in the same vein tonight were the also unchanged foursome of:
Agastya Pisharody, from India and Basel, studying Material Science
Marceline Bresson, from the Netherlands, studying Economics and Management
Captain: Freddie Leo, from Berlin, studying History
Lizzie Fry, from Worcestershire, studying Geography
Off we set again then, and Mr Iredale set the ball rolling for the night with 'China'; the Avonsiders hit the ground running on all fours with a full bonus set on poet Elizabeth Bishop. Mr Iredale won the buzzer race again on the next starter, asking for the shortest and longest named elements, 'Tin and Rutherfordium', a nice chestnut worth knowing that. Two bonuses followed this time. Mr Leo, the joint best buzzer of the series thus far heading into this contest, attempted to get his side going on the next starter, but his answer of 'Sculpture' was not acceptable for 'Architecture', losing them five. Bristol didn't pick up, but did take the next starter, and one bonus, unfortunately missing another after Ms Le Maistre misheard her colleague; harsh, yes, but consistent with similar adjudications before. The first picture round, on cities that lie on the confluences of rivers, went to Bristol, who took a full set, giving them a lead of 85-(-5).
And up it went again, as Mr Sumner took the next starter, and one bonus took the Avonsiders into three figures. St Edmund Hall had a chance to get going with the next starter after Mr Basu slipped up, but Ms Bresson shot wide of the mark offering 'Spring' instead of 'Autumn', with Paxo harshly rubbing it in somewhat harshly. Finally, Mr Leo got them going in the right direction again, and a pair of bonuses accompanied it. Having seemingly found his range, Mr Leo took a second starter in a row, but no bonuses followed this time.
The music round, on pop songs featuring Carol Kaye on bass, went to St Edmund Hall, who, again, managed just the one bonus, reducing the deficit to 95-40. And they were getting closer by the minute (metaphorically), as Mr Leo took the next starter; one bonus on works based on Shakespeare plays followed, with a nice bit of logical deduction providing them with the answer. Mr Iredale reawoke his side on the next starter, taking them back into three figures, and two bonuses on astronomy went with it. Ms Bresson moved St Edmund Hall closer again on the next starter though, and a timely full bonus set meant it was still either team's game heading into the final quarter.
The second picture round, on people who have delivered the Jefferson Lecture, went to St Edmund Hall, who took two bonuses, taking them into triple figures, and reducing the gap to 115-100. Next starter asked for a regnal number, Ms Le Maistre buzzed first, but was wrong; Mr Leo buzzed, and let out a considerable pause before correctly answering. Lenient, yes, but I have seen him allow answers after similar length pauses before (including one by Alex Guttenplan many years ago). One bonus put the sides on level pegging.
With not much time left, Mr Leo swooped in on the next starter to give his side the lead, and a timely full set of bonuses was banged out in no time. Mr Iredale kept his side in the game with a good buzz to identify three South American countries south of the Equator; a full set of their own would take them level, but they could only manage the one. And when Mr Leo took the next starter, that was game over. Indeed, no time for bonuses; at the gong, St Edmund Hall won 150-130.
An absorbing contest, well played by both sides. Unlucky Bristol, unfortunate to lose after that flying start, but still a fine performance, and best of luck in the play-offs. Very well done St Edmund Hall though, and very best of luck in the semi-finals!
The stats: Mr Leo was, once again, the best buzzer of the night, albeit only just this time, with seven to Mr Iredale's six. On the bonuses, Bristol converted 13 out of 21, while St Edmund Hall managed 13 out of 24, with both sides incurring one penalty, so it was a game narrowly won on the buzzer.
Next week's match: Darwin vs Emmanuel, with the winner playing Manchester in the play-offs, where Bristol will play Edinburgh
Only Connect began its quarter-finals tonight, also with a close game; blog coming up on Wednesday I hope.
Bristol won a low scoring first round contest against Queen's of Belfast, then had a higher scoring win over Warwick in the second round, and in their first quarter-final, pulled off a minor upset against Darwin, winning on a 105-each tie-break. Hoping to continue this resurgence were the unchanged foursome of:
George Sumner, from South London, studying Physics
Owen Iredale, from Hadleigh in Suffolk, studying Biology
Captain: Anne Le Maistre, from Adelaide, studying History
Pushan Basu, from Newcastle, studying English Literature
St Edmund Hall Oxford reached this stage with three comfortable wins, over York in the first round, Clare of Cambridge in the second, and Emmanuel in the preliminaries, with their captain dominating the show all three times. Hoping to continue in the same vein tonight were the also unchanged foursome of:
Agastya Pisharody, from India and Basel, studying Material Science
Marceline Bresson, from the Netherlands, studying Economics and Management
Captain: Freddie Leo, from Berlin, studying History
Lizzie Fry, from Worcestershire, studying Geography
Off we set again then, and Mr Iredale set the ball rolling for the night with 'China'; the Avonsiders hit the ground running on all fours with a full bonus set on poet Elizabeth Bishop. Mr Iredale won the buzzer race again on the next starter, asking for the shortest and longest named elements, 'Tin and Rutherfordium', a nice chestnut worth knowing that. Two bonuses followed this time. Mr Leo, the joint best buzzer of the series thus far heading into this contest, attempted to get his side going on the next starter, but his answer of 'Sculpture' was not acceptable for 'Architecture', losing them five. Bristol didn't pick up, but did take the next starter, and one bonus, unfortunately missing another after Ms Le Maistre misheard her colleague; harsh, yes, but consistent with similar adjudications before. The first picture round, on cities that lie on the confluences of rivers, went to Bristol, who took a full set, giving them a lead of 85-(-5).
And up it went again, as Mr Sumner took the next starter, and one bonus took the Avonsiders into three figures. St Edmund Hall had a chance to get going with the next starter after Mr Basu slipped up, but Ms Bresson shot wide of the mark offering 'Spring' instead of 'Autumn', with Paxo harshly rubbing it in somewhat harshly. Finally, Mr Leo got them going in the right direction again, and a pair of bonuses accompanied it. Having seemingly found his range, Mr Leo took a second starter in a row, but no bonuses followed this time.
The music round, on pop songs featuring Carol Kaye on bass, went to St Edmund Hall, who, again, managed just the one bonus, reducing the deficit to 95-40. And they were getting closer by the minute (metaphorically), as Mr Leo took the next starter; one bonus on works based on Shakespeare plays followed, with a nice bit of logical deduction providing them with the answer. Mr Iredale reawoke his side on the next starter, taking them back into three figures, and two bonuses on astronomy went with it. Ms Bresson moved St Edmund Hall closer again on the next starter though, and a timely full bonus set meant it was still either team's game heading into the final quarter.
The second picture round, on people who have delivered the Jefferson Lecture, went to St Edmund Hall, who took two bonuses, taking them into triple figures, and reducing the gap to 115-100. Next starter asked for a regnal number, Ms Le Maistre buzzed first, but was wrong; Mr Leo buzzed, and let out a considerable pause before correctly answering. Lenient, yes, but I have seen him allow answers after similar length pauses before (including one by Alex Guttenplan many years ago). One bonus put the sides on level pegging.
With not much time left, Mr Leo swooped in on the next starter to give his side the lead, and a timely full set of bonuses was banged out in no time. Mr Iredale kept his side in the game with a good buzz to identify three South American countries south of the Equator; a full set of their own would take them level, but they could only manage the one. And when Mr Leo took the next starter, that was game over. Indeed, no time for bonuses; at the gong, St Edmund Hall won 150-130.
An absorbing contest, well played by both sides. Unlucky Bristol, unfortunate to lose after that flying start, but still a fine performance, and best of luck in the play-offs. Very well done St Edmund Hall though, and very best of luck in the semi-finals!
The stats: Mr Leo was, once again, the best buzzer of the night, albeit only just this time, with seven to Mr Iredale's six. On the bonuses, Bristol converted 13 out of 21, while St Edmund Hall managed 13 out of 24, with both sides incurring one penalty, so it was a game narrowly won on the buzzer.
Next week's match: Darwin vs Emmanuel, with the winner playing Manchester in the play-offs, where Bristol will play Edinburgh
Only Connect began its quarter-finals tonight, also with a close game; blog coming up on Wednesday I hope.
Wednesday, 6 March 2019
Only Connect Series 14: Play-Off 4: Birdwatchers vs Westenders
OK, so I've made a preliminary decision: this will be the last series of Only Connect I cover on here in as much detail. These reviews have been easier to write this series what with the return to the old format, but require a lot of time and effort that I am increasingly running out of. Plus, what with my new blog recently started too, I will need to make time to deal with that too. I'll finish this series before I decide for sure though.
Anyway, playing on Monday night were the Birdwatchers, Chris Grandison, Keli Richards and captain Lauren Hamer, who lost to the Dicers then beat the Brews on a tie-break, and the Westenders, Tom Chisholm, Abbas Panjwani and captain Megan Stodel, who defeated the Dragons but were beaten by the Ancient Alumni.
Round 1. The Westenders kicked the show off with Water, and the picture set: we saw a young lady wearing a hat, then an older lady wearing sunglasses, then another young lady staring off to one side, and finally a baby with a pacifier in its mouth. Neither side got this: they are illegalities in UK passport photos. The Birdwatchers started their show with Twisted Flax: 'Palomo', then 'Copenhagen', then 'Marengo'; they saw them to be the horses of military leaders, and picked up the first points of the game. The Westenders chose Eye of Horus next: 'Hindi slap', then 'German farting demon', then 'French wand', and finally 'Italian slipper'. They correctly identified them as translations of the names of breads (chapati, pumpernickel, baguette and ciabata), and collected their first point of the night. The Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds next, and got the music set: we heard Scottish band Camera Obscura with 'Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken', then Whitney Houston with 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go?', then Elvis with 'Heartbreak Hotel', and finally Elton John and Kiki D with 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'. They spotted the link from the last two, and picked up the point. The Westenders chose Horned Viper next: 'Thin and bright', then 'Heavy and dark'; they came in here and suggested them to be translations of the names of the four Renaissance Painting Modes, but were not correct. Their opponents saw 'Soft and simple' and 'Diluted and untidy', and saw them to be words with shared opposites, for the bonus point. Left with Lion for their own question, the Birdwatchers saw 'Johnny Depp', then 'Hannibal', then 'Sammy Davis Jr', and finally 'Gordon Brown'. They suggested them to all be blind in one eye, and were correct (an interesting little known fact about Mr Depp there). At the end of the first round, the Birdwatchers led 5-1.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Westenders started with Twisted Flax: '1. Iowa', then '2. Hawaii'; they saw them to be US states with increasing numbers of 'I's, so offered '4. Mississippi' for the three points. The Birdwatchers chose Eye of Horus next: 'Area', then 'Wind', and then 'Precipitation'. They didn't spot this, nor did their opponents: it's the information given in the first third of the Shipping Forecast, so 'Visibility' would be fourth. The Westenders chose Water next, and got a music question: we heard 'The Reluctant Dragon' from Disney's film of the same name, then Dukas' 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice', and then 'When You Wish Upon a Star'. They knew it to be something to do with Disney, but didn't get a correct answer. Their opponents suggested it to be the first four Disney feature films going backwards, and correctly offered a song from Snow White for the points. (Cue a reluctant rendition of 'Heigh-Ho'!) For their own question, the Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds: 'Pohn', then 'Gaul', and then 'Reorge'; they saw them to be the forenames of the Beatles with the first letters switched a bit, so 'Jingo' would complete the set! For their final choice, the Westenders chose Lion, and got the picture set: we saw a Macaque monkey, then a cheque about to be written, and then a work by Rene Lalique. They didn't see it, their opponents did, and offered a chef's toque for the bonus. Left with Horned Viper for their own final question, the Birdwatchers saw 'German (terrorism)', then 'Nuclear (prolonged cold and darkness)', and then 'Arab (revolution)'. They saw them to be phrases with seasons missing, so suggested 'Indian (really hot weather)' for the two points. At the end of the second round, the Birdwatchers led 11-4.
On to the Walls. The Birdwatchers went first, and chose the Lion wall. They quickly isolated a first set, 'Haiku', 'Sonnet', 'Sestina' and 'Ballad', which are forms of verse, but got rather stuck after that. Eventually timed out, they had to go for bonus points: 'Samurai', 'Tycoon', 'Emperor' and 'Seduction' can all follow 'The Last' to give film titles, which they didn't get, 'Bonsai', 'Honcho', 'Sake' and 'Emoji' are words borrowed from Japanese, which they did get, while 'Manga', 'Peace', 'Apply' and 'Grape' are the names of fruits with the final letter changed, which they also spotted. Four points there.
The Westenders could thus make up lost ground with a good result on the Water wall. They too, were somewhat stuck initially, but then clicked two groups in quick succession: 'Alien', 'Sunshine', 'Passengers' and 'Gravity' are films set in space, while 'Friction', 'Electromagnetic', 'Strong Nuclear' and 'Elastic' are forces. They tried the final sets, but couldn't work it out in their three tries, so had to also got for bonuses: 'Spanker', 'Lateen', 'Moonraker' and 'Spinnaker' are types of sail, which they got, while 'Lumbers', 'Jib', 'Rush' and 'Judged' are books of the Old Testament with one letter changed, which they didn't see. Five points there, which meant the Birdwatchers led 15-9 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide the last place in the knockouts, with the Westenders needing the sweep the round to stand a chance. 'People known for wearing red' was split 2-each. 'African UNESCO World Heritage sites' went to the Westenders 3-0. 'Idioms containing two animals', such as 'IT'S RAINING CATS AND DOGS' and 'A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING', was another 2-all split, and that was time. The Birdwatchers won 19-16.
Another good show, well done both teams, well quizzed. Unlucky Westenders, but a good series of performances on the whole, thanks very much for playing! Well done Birdwatchers though, and best of luck in the knockouts!
Next week's match: the first quarter-final, the Time Ladies vs the LARPers
Anyway, playing on Monday night were the Birdwatchers, Chris Grandison, Keli Richards and captain Lauren Hamer, who lost to the Dicers then beat the Brews on a tie-break, and the Westenders, Tom Chisholm, Abbas Panjwani and captain Megan Stodel, who defeated the Dragons but were beaten by the Ancient Alumni.
Round 1. The Westenders kicked the show off with Water, and the picture set: we saw a young lady wearing a hat, then an older lady wearing sunglasses, then another young lady staring off to one side, and finally a baby with a pacifier in its mouth. Neither side got this: they are illegalities in UK passport photos. The Birdwatchers started their show with Twisted Flax: 'Palomo', then 'Copenhagen', then 'Marengo'; they saw them to be the horses of military leaders, and picked up the first points of the game. The Westenders chose Eye of Horus next: 'Hindi slap', then 'German farting demon', then 'French wand', and finally 'Italian slipper'. They correctly identified them as translations of the names of breads (chapati, pumpernickel, baguette and ciabata), and collected their first point of the night. The Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds next, and got the music set: we heard Scottish band Camera Obscura with 'Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken', then Whitney Houston with 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go?', then Elvis with 'Heartbreak Hotel', and finally Elton John and Kiki D with 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'. They spotted the link from the last two, and picked up the point. The Westenders chose Horned Viper next: 'Thin and bright', then 'Heavy and dark'; they came in here and suggested them to be translations of the names of the four Renaissance Painting Modes, but were not correct. Their opponents saw 'Soft and simple' and 'Diluted and untidy', and saw them to be words with shared opposites, for the bonus point. Left with Lion for their own question, the Birdwatchers saw 'Johnny Depp', then 'Hannibal', then 'Sammy Davis Jr', and finally 'Gordon Brown'. They suggested them to all be blind in one eye, and were correct (an interesting little known fact about Mr Depp there). At the end of the first round, the Birdwatchers led 5-1.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Westenders started with Twisted Flax: '1. Iowa', then '2. Hawaii'; they saw them to be US states with increasing numbers of 'I's, so offered '4. Mississippi' for the three points. The Birdwatchers chose Eye of Horus next: 'Area', then 'Wind', and then 'Precipitation'. They didn't spot this, nor did their opponents: it's the information given in the first third of the Shipping Forecast, so 'Visibility' would be fourth. The Westenders chose Water next, and got a music question: we heard 'The Reluctant Dragon' from Disney's film of the same name, then Dukas' 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice', and then 'When You Wish Upon a Star'. They knew it to be something to do with Disney, but didn't get a correct answer. Their opponents suggested it to be the first four Disney feature films going backwards, and correctly offered a song from Snow White for the points. (Cue a reluctant rendition of 'Heigh-Ho'!) For their own question, the Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds: 'Pohn', then 'Gaul', and then 'Reorge'; they saw them to be the forenames of the Beatles with the first letters switched a bit, so 'Jingo' would complete the set! For their final choice, the Westenders chose Lion, and got the picture set: we saw a Macaque monkey, then a cheque about to be written, and then a work by Rene Lalique. They didn't see it, their opponents did, and offered a chef's toque for the bonus. Left with Horned Viper for their own final question, the Birdwatchers saw 'German (terrorism)', then 'Nuclear (prolonged cold and darkness)', and then 'Arab (revolution)'. They saw them to be phrases with seasons missing, so suggested 'Indian (really hot weather)' for the two points. At the end of the second round, the Birdwatchers led 11-4.
On to the Walls. The Birdwatchers went first, and chose the Lion wall. They quickly isolated a first set, 'Haiku', 'Sonnet', 'Sestina' and 'Ballad', which are forms of verse, but got rather stuck after that. Eventually timed out, they had to go for bonus points: 'Samurai', 'Tycoon', 'Emperor' and 'Seduction' can all follow 'The Last' to give film titles, which they didn't get, 'Bonsai', 'Honcho', 'Sake' and 'Emoji' are words borrowed from Japanese, which they did get, while 'Manga', 'Peace', 'Apply' and 'Grape' are the names of fruits with the final letter changed, which they also spotted. Four points there.
The Westenders could thus make up lost ground with a good result on the Water wall. They too, were somewhat stuck initially, but then clicked two groups in quick succession: 'Alien', 'Sunshine', 'Passengers' and 'Gravity' are films set in space, while 'Friction', 'Electromagnetic', 'Strong Nuclear' and 'Elastic' are forces. They tried the final sets, but couldn't work it out in their three tries, so had to also got for bonuses: 'Spanker', 'Lateen', 'Moonraker' and 'Spinnaker' are types of sail, which they got, while 'Lumbers', 'Jib', 'Rush' and 'Judged' are books of the Old Testament with one letter changed, which they didn't see. Five points there, which meant the Birdwatchers led 15-9 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide the last place in the knockouts, with the Westenders needing the sweep the round to stand a chance. 'People known for wearing red' was split 2-each. 'African UNESCO World Heritage sites' went to the Westenders 3-0. 'Idioms containing two animals', such as 'IT'S RAINING CATS AND DOGS' and 'A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING', was another 2-all split, and that was time. The Birdwatchers won 19-16.
Another good show, well done both teams, well quizzed. Unlucky Westenders, but a good series of performances on the whole, thanks very much for playing! Well done Birdwatchers though, and best of luck in the knockouts!
Next week's match: the first quarter-final, the Time Ladies vs the LARPers
Monday, 4 March 2019
University Challenge 2018-19: Elimination Quarter-Final 1: Glasgow vs Manchester
Evening all. If you follow me on Twitter, you may have noticed that I have just started a second blog, Jack's Other Blog, where I hope to be talking about non-quiz things, mainly my experiences and thoughts of football. And, to borrow a football metaphor, tonight's match pitted the footballing capital of Scotland against the footballing capital of England (arguably); the winners would survive to the play-offs, the runners-up would bow out.
Glasgow defeated fellow quarter-finalists Emmanuel in their first match, then snuck a win against Goldsmiths of London in the second round, but their first quarter-final saw them fall to Durham 170-110. Hoping to recover and keep the prospect of two Scots teams in the semis alive were the unchanged foursome of:
Lewis Barn, from Airdrie, studying Professional Legal Practice
Freya Whiteford, from Bonybridge near Falkirk, studying Physics with Astrophysics
Captain: James Hampson, from Helsby in Cheshire, studying Medicine
Cam Herbert, from Burley-in-Wharfedale in West Yorkshire, studying Sociology with Quantatitive Methods
Manchester defeated East London narrowly in their first match, and then more comfortably beat Hertford of Oxford in their second, but their first quarter-final, the one shown on the Tuesday, saw them lose 170-130 to Edinburgh. (In fact, were it not for the new BBC Scotland channel, tonight's match would probably also have been delayed until tomorrow here) Also hoping to bounce back from that were the also unchanged foursome of:
Alexander Antao, from Chingford in London, studying Mathematical Logic
Georgia Lynott, from Burnley, studying Applied Maths
Captain: James Ross, from Coventry, studying Classics and Ancient History
Joe Hanson, from Gravesend, studying Data Intensive Science
Off we set again then, and Ms Lynott opened the scoring for the night with 'Pascal'; the side took a single bonus from their first set on post-modernism. Mr Herbert opened Glasgow's scoring with 'A Tale of Two Cities', and they took two of their first set, and with them the lead. Mr Hampson increased that lead with 'La Boheme', giving his side a bonus set on cell biology, of which just the one was taken. The first picture round, on island groups highlighted on maps, went to Manchester, who got a reaction from Paxo for claiming the Faroe Islands to be between Sweden and Finland! They took the other two bonuses though, leveling the game at 35-each.
A classic UC starter followed, asking, if France is FP and Germany GB, which two European countries would be SB? Mr Barn knew them to be Serbia and Slovakia, the link being the initials of the countries and their capitals. The Scots side took another pair of bonuses on film critics, including an amusing definition of Rotten Tomatoes! Mr Ross halved the lead by taking the next starter, but they got nothing from the resulting bonuses. Ms Whiteford then made sure all four Glasgow players had answered a starter right, and they took another pair of bonuses on the work of Ted Hughes.
The music starter saw Mr Hanson identify Philip Glass' Einstein on the Beach; the bonuses, on pop songs about scientists, provided Manchester with a single correct bonus, which reduced their arrears to 75-60. It decreased further when Mr Antao took the next starter, which meant all eight players had a starter to their name, but no bonuses on cities purpose built as capitals followed. Another starter from Mr Antao took Manchester into the lead, but, again, they got nothing from the bonuses, a very tricky set on classical mechanics. A third starter in a row went to Manchester's left winger, and this time, a single bonus went with it.
The second picture round, on works by professors at the Royal Academy, went to Manchester, who took two bonuses, which took their lead to 115-75. Still all to play for entering the home straight, but when Mr Hanson identified the geologist James Hutton (as I'm sure my geologist Dad would've too were he not watching the football instead!), and another duo of bonuses accompanied it, Glasgow now really needed to go for it on the buzzer.
A chance came when Mr Antao slipped up on the next starter, and Mr Barn did the right thing in having a guess, but only managed to get a second exasperated reaction of the night from the host! And when Mr Antao made up for his error by taking the next starter, that was game over; a single bonus followed, but those points were then lost to a technical interruption. Glasgow couldn't capitalise, and then dropped five of their own with an unfortunate early buzz; Mr Hanson took the points, and there was time for two bonuses, of which one was taken. At the gong, Manchester won 155-70.
A good enjoyable and entertaining contest, well done both teams, and kudos for clapping each other at the start and end of it too. Unlucky Glasgow, outplayed on the buzzer in the second half, but a decent and entertaining series of performances, thanks for playing! Well done Manchester though, and best of luck in the play-offs!
The stats: Messrs Antao and Hanson were joint best of the night with four each, while all four Glasgow players ended the night with a starter each, Mr Hampson ending their run their best player, with sixteen starters over four games. On the bonuses Glasgow converted 7 out of 12 (with one penalty), while Manchester managed 11 out of 33 (with two penalties).
Next week's match: Bristol vs St Edmund Hall, back at the old time of 8, with Only Connect at 7:30.
Only Connect finally ended its group stage tonight and completed its knockout stage line-up. Review of that on Wednesday I hope.
Glasgow defeated fellow quarter-finalists Emmanuel in their first match, then snuck a win against Goldsmiths of London in the second round, but their first quarter-final saw them fall to Durham 170-110. Hoping to recover and keep the prospect of two Scots teams in the semis alive were the unchanged foursome of:
Lewis Barn, from Airdrie, studying Professional Legal Practice
Freya Whiteford, from Bonybridge near Falkirk, studying Physics with Astrophysics
Captain: James Hampson, from Helsby in Cheshire, studying Medicine
Cam Herbert, from Burley-in-Wharfedale in West Yorkshire, studying Sociology with Quantatitive Methods
Manchester defeated East London narrowly in their first match, and then more comfortably beat Hertford of Oxford in their second, but their first quarter-final, the one shown on the Tuesday, saw them lose 170-130 to Edinburgh. (In fact, were it not for the new BBC Scotland channel, tonight's match would probably also have been delayed until tomorrow here) Also hoping to bounce back from that were the also unchanged foursome of:
Alexander Antao, from Chingford in London, studying Mathematical Logic
Georgia Lynott, from Burnley, studying Applied Maths
Captain: James Ross, from Coventry, studying Classics and Ancient History
Joe Hanson, from Gravesend, studying Data Intensive Science
Off we set again then, and Ms Lynott opened the scoring for the night with 'Pascal'; the side took a single bonus from their first set on post-modernism. Mr Herbert opened Glasgow's scoring with 'A Tale of Two Cities', and they took two of their first set, and with them the lead. Mr Hampson increased that lead with 'La Boheme', giving his side a bonus set on cell biology, of which just the one was taken. The first picture round, on island groups highlighted on maps, went to Manchester, who got a reaction from Paxo for claiming the Faroe Islands to be between Sweden and Finland! They took the other two bonuses though, leveling the game at 35-each.
A classic UC starter followed, asking, if France is FP and Germany GB, which two European countries would be SB? Mr Barn knew them to be Serbia and Slovakia, the link being the initials of the countries and their capitals. The Scots side took another pair of bonuses on film critics, including an amusing definition of Rotten Tomatoes! Mr Ross halved the lead by taking the next starter, but they got nothing from the resulting bonuses. Ms Whiteford then made sure all four Glasgow players had answered a starter right, and they took another pair of bonuses on the work of Ted Hughes.
The music starter saw Mr Hanson identify Philip Glass' Einstein on the Beach; the bonuses, on pop songs about scientists, provided Manchester with a single correct bonus, which reduced their arrears to 75-60. It decreased further when Mr Antao took the next starter, which meant all eight players had a starter to their name, but no bonuses on cities purpose built as capitals followed. Another starter from Mr Antao took Manchester into the lead, but, again, they got nothing from the bonuses, a very tricky set on classical mechanics. A third starter in a row went to Manchester's left winger, and this time, a single bonus went with it.
The second picture round, on works by professors at the Royal Academy, went to Manchester, who took two bonuses, which took their lead to 115-75. Still all to play for entering the home straight, but when Mr Hanson identified the geologist James Hutton (as I'm sure my geologist Dad would've too were he not watching the football instead!), and another duo of bonuses accompanied it, Glasgow now really needed to go for it on the buzzer.
A chance came when Mr Antao slipped up on the next starter, and Mr Barn did the right thing in having a guess, but only managed to get a second exasperated reaction of the night from the host! And when Mr Antao made up for his error by taking the next starter, that was game over; a single bonus followed, but those points were then lost to a technical interruption. Glasgow couldn't capitalise, and then dropped five of their own with an unfortunate early buzz; Mr Hanson took the points, and there was time for two bonuses, of which one was taken. At the gong, Manchester won 155-70.
A good enjoyable and entertaining contest, well done both teams, and kudos for clapping each other at the start and end of it too. Unlucky Glasgow, outplayed on the buzzer in the second half, but a decent and entertaining series of performances, thanks for playing! Well done Manchester though, and best of luck in the play-offs!
The stats: Messrs Antao and Hanson were joint best of the night with four each, while all four Glasgow players ended the night with a starter each, Mr Hampson ending their run their best player, with sixteen starters over four games. On the bonuses Glasgow converted 7 out of 12 (with one penalty), while Manchester managed 11 out of 33 (with two penalties).
Next week's match: Bristol vs St Edmund Hall, back at the old time of 8, with Only Connect at 7:30.
Only Connect finally ended its group stage tonight and completed its knockout stage line-up. Review of that on Wednesday I hope.
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