University Challenge 2012-13 Revisited: Part 4: Matches 12 to 14

So, off we go again then, with the final first round matches of the series, beginning with the only regular UC I've covered on this blog that I didn't do so on the same night.

Match 12: U.C.L. vs Exeter (15th October 2012)

The reason my write-up of this match came the next day rather than on the day was because my recording didn’t work for some reason, and my top-up dongle that I used for Internet at the time wasn’t appropriate for iPlayer, so I had to wait until I could go home and do it at my parents’ house the next day. Shame, as this was a definite highlight of the first round.

 

Anyway, U.C.L. were represented by Adam Papaphilippopoulos, Tom Tyszczuk Smith, Simon Dennis (who has since appeared on Mastermind and Brain of Britain) and Tom Parton, while Exeter were James Bellamy, William O’Rourke, Rob Bental and John Ault. It was a close match at first, with the teams sharing the starters, but Exeter slightly ahead thanks to a better bonus showing. The early highlight came when the teams, clearly neither of whom had heard of Inigo Jones, suggested him to have collaborated with first Tom Stoppard (“Good Lord, no!”), and then Harold Pinter (“You’re out by about 300 years or so!”)!

 

After the first picture round, however, U.C.L. ran away on the buzzer, with Mr Dennis especially impressive, as he would be again many times over the subsequent rounds. The music round was one that would definitely go viral if it happened nowadays, as the starter saw the teams get rick rolled! U.C.L. got none of the bonuses, but it mattered not, as they just kept adding to their lead. Exeter did get a couple of starters late on to reach respectability, but they were second best quite clearly; shame, as they were a pretty good team who’d have easily won a more favourable match. U.C.L.’s final winning score was 260-85; a favourite had finally been found….

 

Match 13: New College Oxford vs Homerton Cambridge (22nd October 2012)

No difficulties for this game; no more until the semis of the following series in fact. The penultimate first round match pitted New College Oxford, who were Remi Beecroft, India Lenon, Andy Hood and Tom Cappleman (blog reader and subsequent winner of both Countdown and Only Connect), against Homerton of Cambridge, represented by Jack Hooper, Michael Angland, Luke Fitzgerald and Drew Miley.

 

New College got off to the better start, racing into a 55 point lead before Homerton finally got off the mark, and got a full bonus set to boot. The Cambridge side did manage to close the gap to five points at one stage, but Tom C reopened New College’s lead with the next starter and they never looked back, opening up a 90 point lead after the second picture round. Homerton did rally late on, with Mr Angland getting the chance of correctly offer his subject of study, Arabic, as an answer(!), and ran up a score that deservedly earned them a repechage place. New College won the game 230-145, and having beaten a pretty solid team, were also rightly considered a team to watch…

 

Match 14: Warwick vs Aberdeen (29th October 2012)

And so to the final first round game of the series, which pitted Warwick, represented by Sean Quinn, Sarah-Jane Bodell (who went on to appear on Fifteen-to-One), Andrew Shaw (futurely of Only Connect) and James Wheatley (who had previously been part of the first student winning team on Radio 4’s The 3^rd Degree), against Aberdeen, who were Thomas Ainge, Sean McMahon, James King and Ross Vaughan Collier. Warwick got off to the better start, and were generally the stronger team on the buzzer, but a somewhat hit and miss bonus record meant Aberdeen were able to stay in touch during the first half.

 

Warwick then managed to pull away in the second half however and ultimately won the game comfortably, though Aberdeen gave a fair account of themselves and deservedly broke 100 with a late rally. Mr Wheatley provided probably the most amusing answer of the night when he suggested Margaret Thatcher to have been PM when then PM David Cameron was born! Mr Ainge was also not penalised for a wrong buzz just as the question was literally just finishing, thus showing this to be a new rule that was implemented after this series. Warwick won the game 175-100 to take the final automatic place in the second round.

 

So, that's this week's installment; another next week, as we move on to the repechage play-offs and the first second round match. See you then then...