Evening all. So, the penultimate match of the series, with two teams who've both pulled off some great performances to get this far, and who'd both be deserved finalists, as they play St John's next week. Whichever team won would give us an interesting match up: one team had lost to them already, albeit narrowly, the other we'd been anticipating against St John's since the first round. So, which way would it go?
Merton College Oxford have made it this far undefeated, and been very consistent too, scoring over 200 on each occasion as they saw of King's of London, Oxford Brookes, Fitzwilliam of Cambridge and fellow semi-finalists Edinburgh in the quarter-final. Hoping to keep alive their hopes of a second UC title (having beaten Stephen Fry's Queens' Cambridge team to the title in 1980) were the unchanged foursome of:
Edward Thomas, from Kent, studying Ancient and Modern History
Alexander Peplow, from Amersham in Buckinghamshire, studying Medieval Studies
Captain: Leonie Woodland, from Cambridge, studying Physics
Akira Wiberg, from Sweden and Japan, studying Molecular and Cellular Medicine
Newcastle got off to a slow start with a low scoring win over Sheffield Hallam, then hit top gear with good wins over Southampton and Bristol, only just falling short against St John's, and then also beating Fitzwilliam comfortably in the play-offs. Hoping to kill off a fifth Oxbridge final in a row were the also unchanged quartet of:
Jack Reynard, from Leeds, studying Medicine
Molly Nielsen, from London, studying Medicine
Captain: Jonathan Noble, from Newcastle, studying for a PGCE
Adam Lowery, from Sunderland, studying Chemistry
Off we set again then, and Mr Peplow opened the night's scoring with 'Figaro', and his side set the ball rolling with two bonuses. Neither side took the next starter, though they did sort of get the right answer between the two of them. Mr Peplow then took a second starter, and a full bonus set on that old quiz staple, the Nobel Physics Prize, gave them a full house. Mr Noble set Newcastle off the mark, and they proved they weren't going to lay over as they took two bonuses. The first picture round, on emblems of US presidents alma maters, including Mr D. Trump, went to Merton, who took another two correct answers, giving them a lead of 65-20.
Merton then very harshly lost five after Mr Peplow offered 'church visiting' instead of 'church going', and it was close enough to be considered an interruption too, even though it wasn't really. Newcastle then lost five for, what was definitely this time, an interruption, and Merton did pick up, but got nothing from the resultant bonuses. Mr Peplow took a second starter in a row though, and they made up somewhat with a full bonus set on Greek myth. Another five were then lost though, and Newcastle took possession back, and they too took a full set of bonuses, keeping them in contention when the match looked to have been getting away from them.
The music round, on classical music of the 1930s, 40s and 50s, went to Newcastle, who took a second full set in a row, which reduced the gap to 90-65. A third starter in a row then went the Tynesiders' way, but a tough bonus set requiring words to be spelt saw them take just one bonus. Ms Nielsen then had something of a rush of blood to the head as she buzzed then failed to answer, losing five; Merton took the points, and two of the resultant bonuses. Two more starters were then dropped, including an unfortunate repeat incident from Ms Nielsen which Paxo seemed to feel sorry for her over. Mr Wiberg then added another ten to Merton's score, putting them in poll position heading into the home straight.
The second picture round, on French realist paintings, went to Newcastle, who took the full set they needed to keep them in the game, the gap now stood at 130-95. Mr Wiberg then took yet another starter though, and a full set of bonuses might just have been enough to put the game out of reach.
And when Ms Woodland took the next starter, that was game over. Two bonuses followed. Ms Nielsen deservedly took Newcastle into triple figures, and her side took two of the resultant bonuses. That was as far as they could go though, as Ms Woodland took another starter, and almost single handedly banged out a full set of bonuses. There was time for Mr Wiberg to take the final starter, and for all the resultant bonuses, with one of them taken. At the gong, Merton won 215-110.
Another good match, with both sides playing very well considering the difficulty at this stage, and bravo for applauding each other at the end. Unlucky Newcastle, but nothing to be ashamed of getting this far, a fine series of performances, thanks very much for giving us them. Very well done Merton though, and very very best of luck in the final next week!
The stats: Mr Wiberg was the best buzzer of the night, with six starters under his belt, while Ms Nielsen was Newcastle's best with three, though Mr Noble finishes their campaign their best buzzer, with 22 in total. On the bonuses, Merton converted a good 23 out of 33 (with two penalties), while Newcastle managed a very good 14 out of 18 (with a not so very good four penalties), so it was a game won on the buzzer.
Next week: the final! St John's vs Merton, and, on paper, it promises to be a cracker; best of luck both teams! A preview coming up later this week, I hope.
As will, hopefully, be my review of tonight's first Only Connect semi-final. Right, now off for a much needed rest!
Monday, 16 April 2018
Tuesday, 10 April 2018
Only Connect Series 13: Play-Off Quarter-Final 2: Eco-Warriors vs Escapologists
OK, so we seem to be having at least one rematch every series of OC, even when it's avoidable, so we have one as this year's as the final quarter-final fixture, with two teams who met in the first round remeeting here. Winners would take the final place in the semis.
Playing were the Eco-Warriors, Jonathan Kershaw, Peter Barlow and captain Brett Bostock, who went on to beat the Snake Charmers and the Wanderers, but lose to the Inquisitors, and the Escapologists, Frank Paul, Tom Rowell and captain Lydia Mizon, who subsequently beat the Cricketers, the Dandies and the Detectives, but were narrowly beaten by the Belgophiles. They were also beaten by the Warriors in that first round encounter, surviving as one of two highest scoring runners-up.
Round 1. The Warriors kicked the rematch off with Twisted Flax: ''Oh! Calcutta!'', then 'Mayday!', then 'Love in tennis', and finally 'Dandelion'. They saw them to be corruptions of original French words, and collected the first point of the night. The Escapologists chose to open their show with Eye of Horus: 'Pregnancy', then 'Political beliefs (in Northern Ireland)', then 'Joining (or not joining) a trade union', and finally 'Whistleblowing'. They didn't quite get it, nor did their opponents: they are grounds for unfair dismissal. The Warriors chose Horned Viper next: 'Evil!', then 'Kick the ball into the back of the net!', then 'Leap!', and finally 'Jump onto a horse!'. Again, neither team saw this: they are synonyms of Jilly Cooper novels. The Escapologists chose Lion next, and got the music set: we heard Dr Bartolo singing in The Marriage of Figaro, then Dr Jekyll singing 'This is the Moment' from Jekyll & Hide, then 'Sweet Transvestite' from the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and finally 'If I Could Talk to the Animals' from Doctor Doolittle. They saw the link, and collected the point. The Warriors chose Two Reeds next: 'Mack and Mabel', then 'Barnum', then 'Let's Face the Music and Dance'; they identified them as songs danced by Torvill & Dean, though Mr Bostock needed quite a bit of prompting to try and get their names(!), and collected two points. Left with Water, and the picture set, the Escapologists saw a kangaroo, then the Supremes, then a cricketer appealing to the umpire, and finally the crown jewels. They noticed just in time that their names can all precede 'court', and collected a point. At the end of the first round, the Warriors led 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Warriors kicked off with Two Reeds: 'Margaret Bondfield (Labour)', then 'Ellen Wilkinson (Labour)', and then 'Florence Horsbrugh (Conservative)'. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents: they are the first female cabinet ministers, so 'Barbara Castle (Labour)' would be next. The Escapologists chose Twisted Flax next, and got a music question: we heard Freddie North with 'You and Me Together Forever', then 'Play That Sax' by Fleur East; they saw the sequence and offered something by Kanye West for the three points. (They refused to sing an example!) The Warriors chose Lion next: '(e.g.) Sarah Montague', then '(e.g.) Clemency Burton-Hill', and then 'Chris Evans'. They saw it to be noted presenters on Radios 4, 3 and 2, so offered up 'Nick Grimshaw' as an acceptable Radio 1 presenter for the points. The Escapologists chose Horned Viper next, and got the picture set: we saw Ruth Davidson MSP alongside an 8, then a group of judges alongside a 7; they came in here, and suggested 'numbers alongside a 5', not right. Their opponents saw Anthony Joshua alongside a 6, but were none the wiser. It is, as they both knew, books of the Old Testament going backwards, so something for 'Deuteronomy' alongside a 5 would complete the set. For their final choice, the Wariors chose Water: 'Benfica', then 'Uniao de Leiria', and then 'Porto'. They tried 'Sporting Lisbon', not right. Their opponents offered 'Chelsea', correct, the sequence being the first four teams managed by Mr J. Mourinho of Manchester. Left with Eye of Horus for their own final question, the Escapologists saw '3: A (FCG)', then '2: D (FC)', and then '1: G (F)'. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents quite. They are the number of sharps in the major key signatures, so '0: C' would be fourth. At the end of the second round, the Escapologists led 6-5.
On to the Walls. The Escapologists went first, and chose to tackle the Lion wall. After some early difficulties, they eventually isolated 'Whitlock', 'Part', 'Wade' and 'Painter', which are surnames of darts players. A second set, 'Change', 'Tyre', 'Rib' and 'Room', which can all follow 'Spare', followed with not much time left. They couldn't untangle what was left in their three tries, so had to go for bonuses: 'Myra', 'Perge', 'Ephesus' and 'Nemrut' are ancient sites in Turkey, which they didn't get, while 'Troy', 'Chad', 'Gabriella' and 'Taylor' are, of all things, characters in High School Musical, which, much to their embarrassment, they did get! Five points there.
The Warriors thus set to work on the Water wall knowing bettering that would be enough to draw/retake the lead. They saw some possible links, but isolating sets proved more difficult. Alas, time ran out and they could not get anything into place. So, bonuses to be salvaged again: 'Barnacles', 'Peso', 'Kwazii' and 'Inkling' are characters in 'The Octonauts', which they didn't get, 'Tweak', 'Charlie', 'Acid' and 'Weed' are slang words for drugs, which they did get, 'Speed', 'Gravity', 'Crash' and 'Premonition' are films starring Sandra Bullock, which they got in the nick of time, while 'Hunch', 'Intuition', 'Qualm' and 'Notion' are words meaning 'feeling', which they also got. Three there, which meant they trailed 11-8 going into the final round.
So, still all to play for in Missing Vowels. 'Hot things made cold', such as 'COLD CROSS BUN' and 'COLD AIR BALLOON', went to the Escapologists 3-0. 'Late', such as 'OFF THE PACE' and 'OUTSTANDING', went to the Escapologists 2-1. 'Common New Year's resolutions' went to the Escapologists 3-1. 'Types of mushroom' had time for two, one the Warriors took, the other timed out.The Escapologists won 19-11.
Another good show, with some very tough questions, good quizzing considering. Unlucky Warriors, but nothing to be ashamed of in your performances this series, thanks for playing! Well done Escapologists though, and very best of luck in the semis!
Next week's match: the first semi-final! The fixture seem to be under embargo, but the Belgophiles vs the Vikings and the Inquisitors vs the Escapologists is my best guess.
Playing were the Eco-Warriors, Jonathan Kershaw, Peter Barlow and captain Brett Bostock, who went on to beat the Snake Charmers and the Wanderers, but lose to the Inquisitors, and the Escapologists, Frank Paul, Tom Rowell and captain Lydia Mizon, who subsequently beat the Cricketers, the Dandies and the Detectives, but were narrowly beaten by the Belgophiles. They were also beaten by the Warriors in that first round encounter, surviving as one of two highest scoring runners-up.
Round 1. The Warriors kicked the rematch off with Twisted Flax: ''Oh! Calcutta!'', then 'Mayday!', then 'Love in tennis', and finally 'Dandelion'. They saw them to be corruptions of original French words, and collected the first point of the night. The Escapologists chose to open their show with Eye of Horus: 'Pregnancy', then 'Political beliefs (in Northern Ireland)', then 'Joining (or not joining) a trade union', and finally 'Whistleblowing'. They didn't quite get it, nor did their opponents: they are grounds for unfair dismissal. The Warriors chose Horned Viper next: 'Evil!', then 'Kick the ball into the back of the net!', then 'Leap!', and finally 'Jump onto a horse!'. Again, neither team saw this: they are synonyms of Jilly Cooper novels. The Escapologists chose Lion next, and got the music set: we heard Dr Bartolo singing in The Marriage of Figaro, then Dr Jekyll singing 'This is the Moment' from Jekyll & Hide, then 'Sweet Transvestite' from the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and finally 'If I Could Talk to the Animals' from Doctor Doolittle. They saw the link, and collected the point. The Warriors chose Two Reeds next: 'Mack and Mabel', then 'Barnum', then 'Let's Face the Music and Dance'; they identified them as songs danced by Torvill & Dean, though Mr Bostock needed quite a bit of prompting to try and get their names(!), and collected two points. Left with Water, and the picture set, the Escapologists saw a kangaroo, then the Supremes, then a cricketer appealing to the umpire, and finally the crown jewels. They noticed just in time that their names can all precede 'court', and collected a point. At the end of the first round, the Warriors led 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Warriors kicked off with Two Reeds: 'Margaret Bondfield (Labour)', then 'Ellen Wilkinson (Labour)', and then 'Florence Horsbrugh (Conservative)'. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents: they are the first female cabinet ministers, so 'Barbara Castle (Labour)' would be next. The Escapologists chose Twisted Flax next, and got a music question: we heard Freddie North with 'You and Me Together Forever', then 'Play That Sax' by Fleur East; they saw the sequence and offered something by Kanye West for the three points. (They refused to sing an example!) The Warriors chose Lion next: '(e.g.) Sarah Montague', then '(e.g.) Clemency Burton-Hill', and then 'Chris Evans'. They saw it to be noted presenters on Radios 4, 3 and 2, so offered up 'Nick Grimshaw' as an acceptable Radio 1 presenter for the points. The Escapologists chose Horned Viper next, and got the picture set: we saw Ruth Davidson MSP alongside an 8, then a group of judges alongside a 7; they came in here, and suggested 'numbers alongside a 5', not right. Their opponents saw Anthony Joshua alongside a 6, but were none the wiser. It is, as they both knew, books of the Old Testament going backwards, so something for 'Deuteronomy' alongside a 5 would complete the set. For their final choice, the Wariors chose Water: 'Benfica', then 'Uniao de Leiria', and then 'Porto'. They tried 'Sporting Lisbon', not right. Their opponents offered 'Chelsea', correct, the sequence being the first four teams managed by Mr J. Mourinho of Manchester. Left with Eye of Horus for their own final question, the Escapologists saw '3: A (FCG)', then '2: D (FC)', and then '1: G (F)'. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents quite. They are the number of sharps in the major key signatures, so '0: C' would be fourth. At the end of the second round, the Escapologists led 6-5.
On to the Walls. The Escapologists went first, and chose to tackle the Lion wall. After some early difficulties, they eventually isolated 'Whitlock', 'Part', 'Wade' and 'Painter', which are surnames of darts players. A second set, 'Change', 'Tyre', 'Rib' and 'Room', which can all follow 'Spare', followed with not much time left. They couldn't untangle what was left in their three tries, so had to go for bonuses: 'Myra', 'Perge', 'Ephesus' and 'Nemrut' are ancient sites in Turkey, which they didn't get, while 'Troy', 'Chad', 'Gabriella' and 'Taylor' are, of all things, characters in High School Musical, which, much to their embarrassment, they did get! Five points there.
The Warriors thus set to work on the Water wall knowing bettering that would be enough to draw/retake the lead. They saw some possible links, but isolating sets proved more difficult. Alas, time ran out and they could not get anything into place. So, bonuses to be salvaged again: 'Barnacles', 'Peso', 'Kwazii' and 'Inkling' are characters in 'The Octonauts', which they didn't get, 'Tweak', 'Charlie', 'Acid' and 'Weed' are slang words for drugs, which they did get, 'Speed', 'Gravity', 'Crash' and 'Premonition' are films starring Sandra Bullock, which they got in the nick of time, while 'Hunch', 'Intuition', 'Qualm' and 'Notion' are words meaning 'feeling', which they also got. Three there, which meant they trailed 11-8 going into the final round.
So, still all to play for in Missing Vowels. 'Hot things made cold', such as 'COLD CROSS BUN' and 'COLD AIR BALLOON', went to the Escapologists 3-0. 'Late', such as 'OFF THE PACE' and 'OUTSTANDING', went to the Escapologists 2-1. 'Common New Year's resolutions' went to the Escapologists 3-1. 'Types of mushroom' had time for two, one the Warriors took, the other timed out.The Escapologists won 19-11.
Another good show, with some very tough questions, good quizzing considering. Unlucky Warriors, but nothing to be ashamed of in your performances this series, thanks for playing! Well done Escapologists though, and very best of luck in the semis!
Next week's match: the first semi-final! The fixture seem to be under embargo, but the Belgophiles vs the Vikings and the Inquisitors vs the Escapologists is my best guess.
Monday, 9 April 2018
University Challenge 2017-18: Semi-Final 1: St John's vs Edinburgh
Evening all. So we've made it to the semi-finalists of, what has become after a somewhat slow start, a most fascinating and very absorbing series of University Challenge. Two worthy semi-finalist teams, who'd had somewhat different journeys to this stage, but either would be more than deserving of a grand final place, so let's do this.
St John's College Cambridge breezed through the knockout rounds with strong wins over St Andrews and Corpus Christi of Cambridge, then survived a late fightback to beat Ulster in the preliminaries, and then won a gripping qualifier against fellow semi-finalists Newcastle to be here tonight. Playing for a first grand final placing (under Paxo at least) were the unchanged foursome of:
John-Clark Levin, from Los Angeles, studying Politics and International Studies
Rosie McKeown, from Kingston-upon-Thames, studying French and German
Captain: James Devine-Stoneman, from Southall in London, studying Superconducting Spintronics
Matt Hazell, from Ringwood in Hampshire, studying Veterinary Medicine
Edinburgh also beat our old friends Ulster, in the first round, and then U.C.L. in the second, both by just five points; they then just overcame Emmanuel of Cambridge, were roundly beaten by fellow semi-finalists Merton and then pulled off a strong win over the strong Bristol team in their play-off. Also going for a first ever grand final appearance were the also unchanged quartet of:
John Heaton-Armstrong, from Edinburgh, studying Russian and History
Stanley Wang, from Edinburgh, studying Speech and Language Processing
Captain: Innis Carson, from Glasgow, studying Chemistry
Philippa Stone, from Oxford, studying Biology
Off we set again then, and Ms McKeown got the ball rolling for the night with 'Gulliver', and St John's set their stall out with a full set of bonuses. Mr Levin then rolled the ball further out, but his side only took one bonus from a tricky set on Swiss mathematicians. Their next bonus set, on pineapple producing countries and how well they did in the last World Cup, proved more to the Cambridge side's liking, with another full set. The first picture round, on alphabets and their unique writing scripts, went to St John's, who took a further two bonuses, which meant they led 85-0 after the first phase of play.
And that lead was only getting bigger as Mr Hazell took the next starter, but the side failed to take the one bonus they needed to take a three figure lead. The next starter was dropped, before Mr Carson finally opened Edinburgh's account with 'Cosi fan tutte'; the Scots side took one bonus on words who second, third and fourth letters are URM. (It looked like they were going to say 'Turmoil' to all of them, only for it to be right on the second!) Mr Heaton-Armstrong took a second Edinburgh starter in a row, and they did well to take two bonuses from a tough set on constellations whose three letter abbreviations correspond to the given definitions. (They used to be quite fond of those, but this is the first I can recall seeing for a while)
Mr Devine-Stoneman identified Schoenberg for the music starter; the bonuses, on works by three of his students, gave St John's a full bonus set, and a lead of 120-35. Mr Carson pulled another back for Edinburgh, and bonuses on Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey gave them one correct answer. Ms McKeown bit back for St John's though, and they also took just the one bonus. Mr Wang did the right thing and took an early punt on the next starter, but was too early, losing five; had he waited, he'd have heard the giveaway clue, as Ms McKeown did to take the points. And when the Cambridge side took all three bonuses, you suspected any chances Edinburgh had of catching up had gone now.
The second picture round, on regular visitors to Gertrude Stein's salon, went to St John's, who took a second successive full set, taking their lead to 185-45. Mr Levin looked like he was taking an educated guess on the next starter, but was correct, and a third full bonus house in a row only served to put salt in Edinburgh's collective wounds.
Ms Stone did take another starter for the Scots side though, and they took one of the bonuses that came with it. A very good buzz from Mr Devine-Stoneman added further to the Cambridge side's win, and they took one bonus on Kings of Scotland. (I got two right) The St John's captain took a second starter in a row, with two bonuses eking them further towards a 200+ win. Another starter, taken by Mr Levin, and one of the bonuses that went with it did the trick. There was time for one final St John's starter, but not for any of the bonuses. At the gong, St John's won 270-60.
Another great match, even if yet another very one sided match. Unlucky Edinburgh, who Paxo rightly said are capable of much better things, and have nothing to be ashamed of in getting this far; thanks very much indeed for a worthy series of performances! Very well done St John's though; one of their best performances yet, puts them in great stead for the final; very very best of luck to them for it!
The stats: Ms McKeown was, just, the best buzzer of the night, with five, taking her series total to 25, while Mr Carson was Edinburgh's best with two, ending his side's campaign their best buzzer, with 19. On the bonuses, St John's converted a magnificent 26 out of 39, while Edinburgh managed 5 out of 12 (with the night's one penalty).
Next week's match: Merton vs Newcastle, for the right to fight St Johns.
Only Connect is nearly done for another series too, its last quarter-final tonight will hopefully be covered on here in the coming days.
St John's College Cambridge breezed through the knockout rounds with strong wins over St Andrews and Corpus Christi of Cambridge, then survived a late fightback to beat Ulster in the preliminaries, and then won a gripping qualifier against fellow semi-finalists Newcastle to be here tonight. Playing for a first grand final placing (under Paxo at least) were the unchanged foursome of:
John-Clark Levin, from Los Angeles, studying Politics and International Studies
Rosie McKeown, from Kingston-upon-Thames, studying French and German
Captain: James Devine-Stoneman, from Southall in London, studying Superconducting Spintronics
Matt Hazell, from Ringwood in Hampshire, studying Veterinary Medicine
Edinburgh also beat our old friends Ulster, in the first round, and then U.C.L. in the second, both by just five points; they then just overcame Emmanuel of Cambridge, were roundly beaten by fellow semi-finalists Merton and then pulled off a strong win over the strong Bristol team in their play-off. Also going for a first ever grand final appearance were the also unchanged quartet of:
John Heaton-Armstrong, from Edinburgh, studying Russian and History
Stanley Wang, from Edinburgh, studying Speech and Language Processing
Captain: Innis Carson, from Glasgow, studying Chemistry
Philippa Stone, from Oxford, studying Biology
Off we set again then, and Ms McKeown got the ball rolling for the night with 'Gulliver', and St John's set their stall out with a full set of bonuses. Mr Levin then rolled the ball further out, but his side only took one bonus from a tricky set on Swiss mathematicians. Their next bonus set, on pineapple producing countries and how well they did in the last World Cup, proved more to the Cambridge side's liking, with another full set. The first picture round, on alphabets and their unique writing scripts, went to St John's, who took a further two bonuses, which meant they led 85-0 after the first phase of play.
And that lead was only getting bigger as Mr Hazell took the next starter, but the side failed to take the one bonus they needed to take a three figure lead. The next starter was dropped, before Mr Carson finally opened Edinburgh's account with 'Cosi fan tutte'; the Scots side took one bonus on words who second, third and fourth letters are URM. (It looked like they were going to say 'Turmoil' to all of them, only for it to be right on the second!) Mr Heaton-Armstrong took a second Edinburgh starter in a row, and they did well to take two bonuses from a tough set on constellations whose three letter abbreviations correspond to the given definitions. (They used to be quite fond of those, but this is the first I can recall seeing for a while)
Mr Devine-Stoneman identified Schoenberg for the music starter; the bonuses, on works by three of his students, gave St John's a full bonus set, and a lead of 120-35. Mr Carson pulled another back for Edinburgh, and bonuses on Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey gave them one correct answer. Ms McKeown bit back for St John's though, and they also took just the one bonus. Mr Wang did the right thing and took an early punt on the next starter, but was too early, losing five; had he waited, he'd have heard the giveaway clue, as Ms McKeown did to take the points. And when the Cambridge side took all three bonuses, you suspected any chances Edinburgh had of catching up had gone now.
The second picture round, on regular visitors to Gertrude Stein's salon, went to St John's, who took a second successive full set, taking their lead to 185-45. Mr Levin looked like he was taking an educated guess on the next starter, but was correct, and a third full bonus house in a row only served to put salt in Edinburgh's collective wounds.
Ms Stone did take another starter for the Scots side though, and they took one of the bonuses that came with it. A very good buzz from Mr Devine-Stoneman added further to the Cambridge side's win, and they took one bonus on Kings of Scotland. (I got two right) The St John's captain took a second starter in a row, with two bonuses eking them further towards a 200+ win. Another starter, taken by Mr Levin, and one of the bonuses that went with it did the trick. There was time for one final St John's starter, but not for any of the bonuses. At the gong, St John's won 270-60.
Another great match, even if yet another very one sided match. Unlucky Edinburgh, who Paxo rightly said are capable of much better things, and have nothing to be ashamed of in getting this far; thanks very much indeed for a worthy series of performances! Very well done St John's though; one of their best performances yet, puts them in great stead for the final; very very best of luck to them for it!
The stats: Ms McKeown was, just, the best buzzer of the night, with five, taking her series total to 25, while Mr Carson was Edinburgh's best with two, ending his side's campaign their best buzzer, with 19. On the bonuses, St John's converted a magnificent 26 out of 39, while Edinburgh managed 5 out of 12 (with the night's one penalty).
Next week's match: Merton vs Newcastle, for the right to fight St Johns.
Only Connect is nearly done for another series too, its last quarter-final tonight will hopefully be covered on here in the coming days.
Wednesday, 4 April 2018
University Challenge 2017-18: Semi-Finals Preview, plus announcement about future of reviews
Well, after a somewhat slow start in the first round, this year's UC has really come to life in the knockout round, and the momentum has carried on into the group stage, and hasn't totally run out yet in spite of some rather one sided matches.
And as a result, we have a pretty well balanced semi-finals roster:
Well, the draw for the semi-finals has kept the two straight-through-comers apart, and kept teams that have already played apart, giving us a line-up of: St John's vs Edinburgh and Merton vs Newcastle. Going into the group stage knowing that would be the semi-final line-up, you'd have been daft to bet against a fifth Oxbridge final in a row, and that would probably still be the most likely outcome, but I'm not so sure. Let's take a look at both fixtures in greater detail look shall we?
Well, St John's simply ran riot throughout the knockout rounds, but seemed to not be as imperious in the semi-finals, doing most of the work against Ulster in the first half, and then only just overcoming a resurgent Newcastle. Edinburgh, meanwhile, seemed to have saved their best performances thus far for their last two games, looking respectable in the Merton defeat and then pulling their best showing out of the hat against Bristol. If they can continue that form, they could well spring a giant killing (and thus become the first Scots side to reach the final since 1984!). Mind you, St John's do have the stats in their favour, having accumulated more over four than Edinburgh have over five, and will have had an extra day off to rest before the semis.
Meanwhile, Merton have been imperious in all four matches thus far, and are, as I say, the only team to break four figures thus far, and have the most prolific starter answerer of the series thus far in Mr Peplow. However, they have drawn perhaps the form team of the group stage in Newcastle, who seem to have been steadily improving across the series and certainly seem to have the momentum. Plus, the Oxonians' win over Edinburgh was their lowest scoring thus far. Certainly, it would be the upset of the series if Newcastle manage to pull off a victory here, but you'd still be daft to bet against a Merton side who have, again, accumulated more over fewer games.
What I'm saying is, anti-Oxbridgers shouldn't get too excited about the prospect of an Edinburgh-Newcastle final, but nor should they dread a St John's-Merton final too much. Neither of these matches are as big foregone conclusions as some might believe, and we have had big upsets in the semi-finals of a series using the round robin format before. Plus, Edinburgh and Newcastle have both won matches you'd have called them the underdogs in before, they could quite easily do it again.
Whatever happens, I can only hope that the momentum the series has steadily built up since the first round doesn't run out, and we get an excellent trio of matches to end what could well be the final series I blog in this much depth.
Yep, I might as well tell you now: my preliminary decision for next series is to merge by UC and OC reviews into one shorter less detailed blog on Monday evening. The reviews have, as you may have been able to tell, become a lot harder for me to do as of late for a variety of reasons, so this change may well resurrect the standard of my writing. It would also allow me to move on from the various stock phrases I've fallen into the habit of using over the past few years.
As I say, it's just a preliminary decision, nothing set in stone yet. I may well come back from the Spring recess feeling a lot fresher after a couple of months off and want to write a lot again. We shall see. I shall reserve making a final call until these current series are over.
Anyway, best of retrospective luck to the four UC semi-finalists, all of whom would be worthy series winners; here's to three excellent matches to finish the series!
And as a result, we have a pretty well balanced semi-finals roster:
- St John's College Cambridge (John-Clark Levin, Rosie McKeown, James Devine-Stoneman and Matt Hazell) Eased through the knockout rounds with comfortable victories over St Andrews and Corpus Christi of Cambridge; have slackened a bit in the group stage, but have still seen off strong challenges from Ulster and fellow semi-finalists Newcastle. Quite well balanced on the buzzer early on, Ms McKeown seems to have answered most of their starter in the QFs, but their bonus rate has been strong throughout.
- Merton College Oxford (Edward Thomas, Alex Peplow, Leonie Woodland and Akira Wiberg) Stormed through all of their matches with ease thus far, with victories over King's of London, Oxford Brookes, Fitzwilliam of Cambridge and fellow semi-finalists Edinburgh. Well rounded on the buzzer, not overly reliant on any one player, and strong on the bonuses too, plus the only team to get into four figures thus far, they would appear to be the team to beat.
- Edinburgh (John Heaton-Armstrong, Stanley Wang, Innis Carson and Phillipa Stone) Won their first two matches against Ulster and U.C.L. by just five points, and their first QF against Emmanuel of Cambridge by just fifteen; were then comfortably beaten by Merton, but recovered by a steady victory over Bristol. Again, have no real stand out buzzer, all contributing well, and their bonus rate has been steady too.
- Newcastle (Jack Reynard, Molly Nielsen, Jonathan Noble and Adam Lowery) Started slowly against Sheffield Hallam, then hit their stride in the second round against Southampton and the prelims against Bristol; were then narrowly taken over by St John's, but recovered with a strong win over Fitzwilliam to secure a first BBC era semi-final place. Again, the team generally share the starters evenly, and their bonus work has been steadily decent as well.
Well, the draw for the semi-finals has kept the two straight-through-comers apart, and kept teams that have already played apart, giving us a line-up of: St John's vs Edinburgh and Merton vs Newcastle. Going into the group stage knowing that would be the semi-final line-up, you'd have been daft to bet against a fifth Oxbridge final in a row, and that would probably still be the most likely outcome, but I'm not so sure. Let's take a look at both fixtures in greater detail look shall we?
Well, St John's simply ran riot throughout the knockout rounds, but seemed to not be as imperious in the semi-finals, doing most of the work against Ulster in the first half, and then only just overcoming a resurgent Newcastle. Edinburgh, meanwhile, seemed to have saved their best performances thus far for their last two games, looking respectable in the Merton defeat and then pulling their best showing out of the hat against Bristol. If they can continue that form, they could well spring a giant killing (and thus become the first Scots side to reach the final since 1984!). Mind you, St John's do have the stats in their favour, having accumulated more over four than Edinburgh have over five, and will have had an extra day off to rest before the semis.
Meanwhile, Merton have been imperious in all four matches thus far, and are, as I say, the only team to break four figures thus far, and have the most prolific starter answerer of the series thus far in Mr Peplow. However, they have drawn perhaps the form team of the group stage in Newcastle, who seem to have been steadily improving across the series and certainly seem to have the momentum. Plus, the Oxonians' win over Edinburgh was their lowest scoring thus far. Certainly, it would be the upset of the series if Newcastle manage to pull off a victory here, but you'd still be daft to bet against a Merton side who have, again, accumulated more over fewer games.
What I'm saying is, anti-Oxbridgers shouldn't get too excited about the prospect of an Edinburgh-Newcastle final, but nor should they dread a St John's-Merton final too much. Neither of these matches are as big foregone conclusions as some might believe, and we have had big upsets in the semi-finals of a series using the round robin format before. Plus, Edinburgh and Newcastle have both won matches you'd have called them the underdogs in before, they could quite easily do it again.
Whatever happens, I can only hope that the momentum the series has steadily built up since the first round doesn't run out, and we get an excellent trio of matches to end what could well be the final series I blog in this much depth.
Yep, I might as well tell you now: my preliminary decision for next series is to merge by UC and OC reviews into one shorter less detailed blog on Monday evening. The reviews have, as you may have been able to tell, become a lot harder for me to do as of late for a variety of reasons, so this change may well resurrect the standard of my writing. It would also allow me to move on from the various stock phrases I've fallen into the habit of using over the past few years.
As I say, it's just a preliminary decision, nothing set in stone yet. I may well come back from the Spring recess feeling a lot fresher after a couple of months off and want to write a lot again. We shall see. I shall reserve making a final call until these current series are over.
Anyway, best of retrospective luck to the four UC semi-finalists, all of whom would be worthy series winners; here's to three excellent matches to finish the series!
Tuesday, 3 April 2018
Only Connect Series 13: Play-Off Quarter-Final 1: Detectives vs Vikings
OK, with OC being a week behind UC, and doing its QF process in a different order, I've been finding it hard to keep track of where we are with OC. But now I know exactly where we are: four left after tonight, and we finish up one week later than UC does.
Playing last night were the Detectives, Ian King, Tim Harrison and captain Tim Hall, who have beaten the Theatricals, the Arrowheads and the Beaks on a tie break, but have also been beaten by the Escapologists, and the Vikings, Mark Oxley, John Wilson and captain Mick Lee, whose victories thus far have been over the Geocachers, the Parishioners and the Vikings, but a defeat to the Inquisitors is in there too.
Round 1. The Detectives kicked the match off with Twisted Flax: '12.5 mile stretch of A52, 2005', then 'Phoenix Way, Coventry, 2017'; they came in here and suggested that the roads were all renamed after football stadiums in those years, not correct. Their opponents saw 'Portman's Walk, Ipswich, 1999' and 'Warwick Road North, Manchester, 1993', and correctly said they were named after football managers for a bonus. For their own first question, the Vikings chose Lion: 'Collide and work together', then 'Joist and complete for superiority'; they suggested here that changing the I in the first word to a U gives a word meaning the latter, and collected three good points there. The Detectives chose Horned Viper next: 'Railway', then 'Lonely', then 'Little wheel', and finally 'Twenty-one'. They picked up their first point, identifying them as the translations of the French names of card games. The Vikings chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw a djembe drum, then a map with Djibouti highlighted, then Jamie Foxx as the title character in Django Unchained; they were timed out here before they could offer anything. Their opponents saw Novak Djokovic as the final clue, and spotted the link for a bonus. For their own question, the Detectives chose Eye of Horus: 'Vic Wild', then 'Roy Jones Jr', then 'Steven Seagal'; they saw that they were all granted Russian citizenship, and collected two points. Left with Water, and the music question, the Vikings heard Debussy's 'Poissons D'or', then 'Too Many Fish in the Sea' by the Marvelettes, then an excerpt from Bizet's 'The Pearl Fishers'; they suggested them to all be by 'The Three [something]', not right. Their opponents heard Bing Crosby singing 'Gone Fishin'', but couldn't see the connection for a bonus. At the end of the first round, the teams were tied on 4-each.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Detectives opened with Lion: 'Lord Northcliffe', then 'The Astor family', and then 'Roy Thompson'. They suggested 'News International', which was correct, though they didn't get the right reason: they are the owners of The Times newspaper. The Vikings chose Water next: '4: New Zealand', then '3: Burundi', and then '2: Panama'. They didn't get there, their opponents did: they are countries with that number of stars on their flag, so '1: Morocco', as offered by them, would be acceptable. For their own question, the Detectives chose Two Reeds: '9th September 1981', then '1st January 2001', and then '2nd February 2004'. They saw it to be '3rd March 2009' for the points, the sequence being days which when written as 'DD/MM/YY', would spell out a square root sum. The Vikings chose Eye of Horus next, and got the picture set: we saw writer Aaron Sorkin, then Abraham Lincoln, and then Acker Bilk. They identified their first names as beginning Aa, Ab and Ac, so offered 'Adele' as an acceptable answer for the two points. For their final choice, the Detectives chose Twisted Flax: 'Boston', then 'Ter-Ovanesyan =', and then 'Beamon'. They saw them to be holder of the men's world long jump record, so offered 'Powell' for the points. ('Lewis' would have been acceptable, provided 'world record' wasn't mentioned, his having been chalked off as wind assisted) Left with Horned Viper, the Vikings saw 'Adult', then 'Horrific', and then 'X'. They saw it to be BBFC certificate ratings, but their offer of '18' was wrong. So was their opponents' of 'R'. 'R18' would complete the set! At the end of the second round, the Detectives led 11-6.
On to the Walls. The Vikings went first here, and chose to tackle the Water wall. After spotting some potential links, isolating sets proved somewhat difficult at first. Eventually, they isolated 'Xebec', 'Clipper', 'Hoy' and 'Ketch', which are sailing boats, followed in short order by 'Rock', 'Jericho', 'Pine' and 'Evert', which are surnames of famous people called Chris. After that, everything fell into place on their first go: 'Junk', 'Chain', 'Fan' and 'Royal' can all precede 'mail', while 'Bachelor', 'Caravel', 'Chandelier' and 'Verdict' all have the names of composers hidden in them. A well worked full ten there.
The Detectives thus set to work on the Lion wall requiring similar to maintain a similar lead. Their first set came slightly quicker: 'Perfect', 'Irrational', 'Real' and 'Complex' are types of number. But that was all they could figure out, so they had to try for connection bonuses: 'Cardinal', 'Bishop', 'Loon' and 'Booby' are birds, which they knew, 'Abbot', 'Prior', 'Oblate' and 'Primate' are religious occupations, which they got close enough to, while 'Long', 'French', 'Brand' and 'Porter' are surnames of female comedians. Four points there, which meant they now trailed 16-15 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide who took the penultimate semi-final place. 'Trios' was split 2-each. 'Events and their months', which saw 'GROUNDHOG DAY AND FEBRUARY' come up twice(!), was also split 2-each. 'Works by Michaelangelo' went to the Detectives 3-1. 'Non-cricketing fielding positions' went to the Vikings 2-0 with the two clues there was time for. The Vikings had snuck home 23-22!
Another fine match, very well done both teams on some fine quizzing. Unlucky Detectives, but a fine series of showings, thanks very much for playing. Well done Vikings though, and best of luck in the semi-finals!
Next week's match: a rematch between the Eco-Warriors and the Escapologists.
Playing last night were the Detectives, Ian King, Tim Harrison and captain Tim Hall, who have beaten the Theatricals, the Arrowheads and the Beaks on a tie break, but have also been beaten by the Escapologists, and the Vikings, Mark Oxley, John Wilson and captain Mick Lee, whose victories thus far have been over the Geocachers, the Parishioners and the Vikings, but a defeat to the Inquisitors is in there too.
Round 1. The Detectives kicked the match off with Twisted Flax: '12.5 mile stretch of A52, 2005', then 'Phoenix Way, Coventry, 2017'; they came in here and suggested that the roads were all renamed after football stadiums in those years, not correct. Their opponents saw 'Portman's Walk, Ipswich, 1999' and 'Warwick Road North, Manchester, 1993', and correctly said they were named after football managers for a bonus. For their own first question, the Vikings chose Lion: 'Collide and work together', then 'Joist and complete for superiority'; they suggested here that changing the I in the first word to a U gives a word meaning the latter, and collected three good points there. The Detectives chose Horned Viper next: 'Railway', then 'Lonely', then 'Little wheel', and finally 'Twenty-one'. They picked up their first point, identifying them as the translations of the French names of card games. The Vikings chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw a djembe drum, then a map with Djibouti highlighted, then Jamie Foxx as the title character in Django Unchained; they were timed out here before they could offer anything. Their opponents saw Novak Djokovic as the final clue, and spotted the link for a bonus. For their own question, the Detectives chose Eye of Horus: 'Vic Wild', then 'Roy Jones Jr', then 'Steven Seagal'; they saw that they were all granted Russian citizenship, and collected two points. Left with Water, and the music question, the Vikings heard Debussy's 'Poissons D'or', then 'Too Many Fish in the Sea' by the Marvelettes, then an excerpt from Bizet's 'The Pearl Fishers'; they suggested them to all be by 'The Three [something]', not right. Their opponents heard Bing Crosby singing 'Gone Fishin'', but couldn't see the connection for a bonus. At the end of the first round, the teams were tied on 4-each.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Detectives opened with Lion: 'Lord Northcliffe', then 'The Astor family', and then 'Roy Thompson'. They suggested 'News International', which was correct, though they didn't get the right reason: they are the owners of The Times newspaper. The Vikings chose Water next: '4: New Zealand', then '3: Burundi', and then '2: Panama'. They didn't get there, their opponents did: they are countries with that number of stars on their flag, so '1: Morocco', as offered by them, would be acceptable. For their own question, the Detectives chose Two Reeds: '9th September 1981', then '1st January 2001', and then '2nd February 2004'. They saw it to be '3rd March 2009' for the points, the sequence being days which when written as 'DD/MM/YY', would spell out a square root sum. The Vikings chose Eye of Horus next, and got the picture set: we saw writer Aaron Sorkin, then Abraham Lincoln, and then Acker Bilk. They identified their first names as beginning Aa, Ab and Ac, so offered 'Adele' as an acceptable answer for the two points. For their final choice, the Detectives chose Twisted Flax: 'Boston', then 'Ter-Ovanesyan =', and then 'Beamon'. They saw them to be holder of the men's world long jump record, so offered 'Powell' for the points. ('Lewis' would have been acceptable, provided 'world record' wasn't mentioned, his having been chalked off as wind assisted) Left with Horned Viper, the Vikings saw 'Adult', then 'Horrific', and then 'X'. They saw it to be BBFC certificate ratings, but their offer of '18' was wrong. So was their opponents' of 'R'. 'R18' would complete the set! At the end of the second round, the Detectives led 11-6.
On to the Walls. The Vikings went first here, and chose to tackle the Water wall. After spotting some potential links, isolating sets proved somewhat difficult at first. Eventually, they isolated 'Xebec', 'Clipper', 'Hoy' and 'Ketch', which are sailing boats, followed in short order by 'Rock', 'Jericho', 'Pine' and 'Evert', which are surnames of famous people called Chris. After that, everything fell into place on their first go: 'Junk', 'Chain', 'Fan' and 'Royal' can all precede 'mail', while 'Bachelor', 'Caravel', 'Chandelier' and 'Verdict' all have the names of composers hidden in them. A well worked full ten there.
The Detectives thus set to work on the Lion wall requiring similar to maintain a similar lead. Their first set came slightly quicker: 'Perfect', 'Irrational', 'Real' and 'Complex' are types of number. But that was all they could figure out, so they had to try for connection bonuses: 'Cardinal', 'Bishop', 'Loon' and 'Booby' are birds, which they knew, 'Abbot', 'Prior', 'Oblate' and 'Primate' are religious occupations, which they got close enough to, while 'Long', 'French', 'Brand' and 'Porter' are surnames of female comedians. Four points there, which meant they now trailed 16-15 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide who took the penultimate semi-final place. 'Trios' was split 2-each. 'Events and their months', which saw 'GROUNDHOG DAY AND FEBRUARY' come up twice(!), was also split 2-each. 'Works by Michaelangelo' went to the Detectives 3-1. 'Non-cricketing fielding positions' went to the Vikings 2-0 with the two clues there was time for. The Vikings had snuck home 23-22!
Another fine match, very well done both teams on some fine quizzing. Unlucky Detectives, but a fine series of showings, thanks very much for playing. Well done Vikings though, and best of luck in the semi-finals!
Next week's match: a rematch between the Eco-Warriors and the Escapologists.
Monday, 2 April 2018
University Challenge 2017-18: Play-Off Quarter-Final 2: Newcastle vs Fitzwilliam
Evening all. In a week when I've made a preliminary decision about the future of this blog, which I will hold back on revealing until a later date as it's not set in stone yet. I would, however, like an apology from the continuity lady for mistakenly announcing another program at the start, leaving me panickingly checking to make sure the show was actually on! It was, and whoever won would take the final place in the semi-finals.
Newcastle started slowly against Sheffield Hallam in the first round, but then comfortably defeated Southampton in the second and Bristol in the preliminaries, only to narrowly lose out to St John's in the qualifiers. Playing for a first semi-final placing under Paxo at least were the unchanged foursome of:
Jack Reynard, from Leeds, studying Medicine
Molly Nielsen, from London, studying Medicine
Captain: Jonathan Noble, from Newcastle, studying for a PGCE
Adam Lowery, from Sunderland, studying Chemistry
Fitzwilliam College Cambridge scored 200 in their first two matches against Leicester and Magdalen of Oxford, then were undone by Merton in the preliminaries, recovering nicely with a close win over Emmanuel in the eliminators. Also vying for a first semi-final placing of the BBC era were the also unchanged quartet of:
Theo Tindall, from Backwell near Bristol, studying Russian and Arabic
Theo Howe, from Forest Hill in Oxfordshire, studying Japanese Studies
Captain: Hugh Oxlade, from South Woodford in London, studying History
Jack Maloney, from Harpenden in Hertfordshire, studying Medicine
Off we set again then, and Mr Noble set the ball rolling for the night identifying Paxo's description of various golfing terms; bonuses on chairs gave the Tynesiders two correct answers to start with. An unfortunate penalty saw Fitzwilliam lose five, but Newcastle failed to pick it up. Another starter was dropped, before Mr Reynard took a second for his side, and a full bonus set on early Tory prime ministers, including the old chestnut of the only assassinated PM Spencer Percival, went their way too. Five of those points were then lost to a penalty, allowing Mr Tindall to move Fitzwilliam back into positive integers, and they too took two bonuses, on mathematical curves. The first picture round, on electrocardiograph traces, went to Newcastle, with one of their resident medics Ms Nielsen doing the honours, but only one of the bonuses could go with it. Nonetheless, they still led healthily 55-15.
That lead was lessened somewhat by another slip-up, but Fitzwilliam were unable to take advantage. A good shout from Mr Noble recouped the losses though, and poetry about battles gave them two correct answers. Mr Maloney pulled one back for Fitzwilliam with a good prompt piece of arithmetic, and his side took a full bonus set, a good old school UC set on pairs of place names where the final letters of the first begin the second. Ms Nielsen then killed off any momentum they may have gained from it by taking 'vestigial' as the next starter, but nothing came from the bonuses.
The music round, on recordings by Dame Myra Hess, went to Newcastle, who took two correct answers this time, which increased their lead to 100-40. That lead increased when Ms Nielsen appeared to take an educated guess of 'Renoir' on the next starter; bonuses on dinosaur fossils followed, giving them just the one correct answer. The points for it were then lost to a slip-up, allowing Fitzwilliam to take possession; their reward was a tricky bonus set requiring any year a given Chinese emperor was in power, of which they did well to take one. Back came Newcastle with Mr Noble providing 'Jung', and a pair of bonuses went with it, putting them in command heading into the final third.
The second picture round, on portraits of assassins, went to Fitzwilliam, who took two correct answers, including a second mention of Spencer Percival, reducing their arrears to 130-75. But when the Cambridge side lost five on the next starter, and Mr Noble took it for Newcastle, and two bonuses went with it, that was most likely game over.
As if to make sure, Mr Noble provided 'Richard III' for the next starter, and another good bonus set, on words that begin and end with the same letters, gave the Tynesiders ten further points. Their lead was now 100 points, and getting bigger as Ms Nielsen won the buzzer race to say 'antibiotics' for the next starter; just one bonus followed, but it didn't really matter by now, just a question of how much both sides could score. Mr Maloney did the right thing and took a flyer on the next starter, but was beaten by a swerve, losing five, and handing Mr Lowery the honours; two bonuses, including a frankly brilliant arithmetical shout that was deservedly applauded, took them past 200. No time for the next starter to be answered; at the gong, Newcastle won 205-65.
Another good match despite, again, being one-sided, but as Dave C. said recently, even the weaker UC matches are better than average episodes of other quizzes. Unlucky Fitzwilliam, who were simply outbuzzed tonight, but no shame in going out here after a fine series of performances, thanks for giving us them! Very well done to Newcastle though, and very very best of luck in the semis!
The stats: Mr Noble was the best buzzer of the night with six to his name, while Mr Maloney was best for Fitzwilliam with two, ending their run their best buzzer with 18 overall. On the bonuses, Newcastle converted a respectable 20 out of 36, while Fitzwilliam managed an also decent 8 out of 12, with both sides incurred three penalties.
Next week's match: the first semi-final! Between St John's vs Edinburgh, followed by Merton vs Newcastle. A preview coming up in the coming days.
As, hopefully, is my review of tonight's Only Connect, the first play-off QF. And watch out for Paxo hosting HIGNFY on Friday night! Yep, he's finally agreed to do it it would seem!
Newcastle started slowly against Sheffield Hallam in the first round, but then comfortably defeated Southampton in the second and Bristol in the preliminaries, only to narrowly lose out to St John's in the qualifiers. Playing for a first semi-final placing under Paxo at least were the unchanged foursome of:
Jack Reynard, from Leeds, studying Medicine
Molly Nielsen, from London, studying Medicine
Captain: Jonathan Noble, from Newcastle, studying for a PGCE
Adam Lowery, from Sunderland, studying Chemistry
Fitzwilliam College Cambridge scored 200 in their first two matches against Leicester and Magdalen of Oxford, then were undone by Merton in the preliminaries, recovering nicely with a close win over Emmanuel in the eliminators. Also vying for a first semi-final placing of the BBC era were the also unchanged quartet of:
Theo Tindall, from Backwell near Bristol, studying Russian and Arabic
Theo Howe, from Forest Hill in Oxfordshire, studying Japanese Studies
Captain: Hugh Oxlade, from South Woodford in London, studying History
Jack Maloney, from Harpenden in Hertfordshire, studying Medicine
Off we set again then, and Mr Noble set the ball rolling for the night identifying Paxo's description of various golfing terms; bonuses on chairs gave the Tynesiders two correct answers to start with. An unfortunate penalty saw Fitzwilliam lose five, but Newcastle failed to pick it up. Another starter was dropped, before Mr Reynard took a second for his side, and a full bonus set on early Tory prime ministers, including the old chestnut of the only assassinated PM Spencer Percival, went their way too. Five of those points were then lost to a penalty, allowing Mr Tindall to move Fitzwilliam back into positive integers, and they too took two bonuses, on mathematical curves. The first picture round, on electrocardiograph traces, went to Newcastle, with one of their resident medics Ms Nielsen doing the honours, but only one of the bonuses could go with it. Nonetheless, they still led healthily 55-15.
That lead was lessened somewhat by another slip-up, but Fitzwilliam were unable to take advantage. A good shout from Mr Noble recouped the losses though, and poetry about battles gave them two correct answers. Mr Maloney pulled one back for Fitzwilliam with a good prompt piece of arithmetic, and his side took a full bonus set, a good old school UC set on pairs of place names where the final letters of the first begin the second. Ms Nielsen then killed off any momentum they may have gained from it by taking 'vestigial' as the next starter, but nothing came from the bonuses.
The music round, on recordings by Dame Myra Hess, went to Newcastle, who took two correct answers this time, which increased their lead to 100-40. That lead increased when Ms Nielsen appeared to take an educated guess of 'Renoir' on the next starter; bonuses on dinosaur fossils followed, giving them just the one correct answer. The points for it were then lost to a slip-up, allowing Fitzwilliam to take possession; their reward was a tricky bonus set requiring any year a given Chinese emperor was in power, of which they did well to take one. Back came Newcastle with Mr Noble providing 'Jung', and a pair of bonuses went with it, putting them in command heading into the final third.
The second picture round, on portraits of assassins, went to Fitzwilliam, who took two correct answers, including a second mention of Spencer Percival, reducing their arrears to 130-75. But when the Cambridge side lost five on the next starter, and Mr Noble took it for Newcastle, and two bonuses went with it, that was most likely game over.
As if to make sure, Mr Noble provided 'Richard III' for the next starter, and another good bonus set, on words that begin and end with the same letters, gave the Tynesiders ten further points. Their lead was now 100 points, and getting bigger as Ms Nielsen won the buzzer race to say 'antibiotics' for the next starter; just one bonus followed, but it didn't really matter by now, just a question of how much both sides could score. Mr Maloney did the right thing and took a flyer on the next starter, but was beaten by a swerve, losing five, and handing Mr Lowery the honours; two bonuses, including a frankly brilliant arithmetical shout that was deservedly applauded, took them past 200. No time for the next starter to be answered; at the gong, Newcastle won 205-65.
Another good match despite, again, being one-sided, but as Dave C. said recently, even the weaker UC matches are better than average episodes of other quizzes. Unlucky Fitzwilliam, who were simply outbuzzed tonight, but no shame in going out here after a fine series of performances, thanks for giving us them! Very well done to Newcastle though, and very very best of luck in the semis!
The stats: Mr Noble was the best buzzer of the night with six to his name, while Mr Maloney was best for Fitzwilliam with two, ending their run their best buzzer with 18 overall. On the bonuses, Newcastle converted a respectable 20 out of 36, while Fitzwilliam managed an also decent 8 out of 12, with both sides incurred three penalties.
Next week's match: the first semi-final! Between St John's vs Edinburgh, followed by Merton vs Newcastle. A preview coming up in the coming days.
As, hopefully, is my review of tonight's Only Connect, the first play-off QF. And watch out for Paxo hosting HIGNFY on Friday night! Yep, he's finally agreed to do it it would seem!
Tuesday, 27 March 2018
Only Connect Series 13: Qualification Quarter-Final 2: Belgophiles vs Escapologists
OK, so on to the second Only Connect qualification quarter-final. It's been an interesting series to be honest; I honestly think any of the teams still in the contest could ultimately win the series. BTW I'm keeping one eye on the Scotland game at the same time as I'm writing this, so sorry for any errors.
Playing last night were the Belgophiles, Helen Fasham, Phil Small and captain Ben Fasham, who have got here unbeaten via victories over the Lapsed Physicists, the Meeples and the Beaks, and the Escapologists, who lost to the Eco-Warriors in the first round, but have recovered well since with wins over the Cricketers, the Dandies and the Detectives.
Round 1. The Belgophiles kicked the show off with Eye of Horus, and the music question: we heard The Shins with 'New Slang', then 'Ooh La La' by Faces, then Heart with 'Alone', and finally Elbow's classic 'One Day Like This'. They didn't get it, their opponents did for a bonus. For their own first questions, the Escapologists chose Water, and got the picture set: we saw Alexandra Burke, then Sir Stanley Matthews, then Forest Whitaker, and finally Christina Ricci as Wednesday Addams. They saw that there forenames are all shared with British football teams, and picked up another point. The Belgophiles chose Lion next: 'Claude Shannon', then 'Ludwig Ritter von Kochel', then 'Kevin Bacon', and finally 'Amedeo Avogadro'. That gave it to them: they all have numbers named after them. The Escapologists chose Twisted Flax next: 'Sir George Stubbs and Italian Tourist in 'Dead Man's Folly'', then 'The White Stripes', then 'Tom and Gerry Jeffers in 'The Palm Beach Story'', and finally 'The Krankies'. They offering 'pretending to be siblings', not right; their opponents tried 'married couples', not precise enough: they are married couples who pretend they aren't. The Belgophiles chose Two Reeds: 'Ethel', then 'Yogh', then 'Thorn', and finally 'Long S'. They suggested them to be English letters that have fallen out of use, and picked up another point. Left with Horned Viper, the Escapologists saw 'Yttrobetafite', then 'Pyroxferroite', then 'Armalcolite', and finally 'Tranquillityite'. They suggested 'rocks found on the Moon', and were close enough for the points, 'minerals discovered on the Moon' being the precise link. At the end of the first round, the Escapologists led 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Belgophiles opened the round with Eye of Horus: 'Owner, 'Jurassic Park'', then 'Jeffrey, 'On the Wings of Love'', and then 'Wendy, 'Peter Pan''. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents: they are people who share their surnames with Chancellors of the Exchequer, so someone called Brown, such as 'John, Abolitionist' as the show offered, would come fourth. The Escapologists chose Lion: 'Big Ben', then 'Great George', and then 'Great Paul'. Both teams saw it to be something to do with bells, neither knew precisely what: they are the four heaviest bells in Britain, so the 'Olympic Bell' would be fourth. The Belgophiles chose Water next: 'Kings Cross St Pancras Underground station', then 'A 'knock knock' joke'; they saw them to have six and five lines, so offered 'The Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn and The Equator' as three lines, and picked up three points. The Escapologists chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw a Gurdwara, then a Mandir, and then a Mosque. They didn't see it, their opponents just about did: they are the houses of worship in the four most practiced religions in the UK, so a Church would be fourth. For their own final choice, the Belgophiles chose Twisted Flax, and got a music sequence: we heard 'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desire' by Bach, then Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, and then the Toreador song from Carmen. They didn't offer an acceptable answer, their opponents did: they are composed by Bach, Beethoven and Bizet, so something by Borodin would complete the set. (Victoria allowed the enforced sing-along to be Bob Marley instead due to no-one knowing any Borodin!) Left with Horned Viper again for their own question, the Escapologsts saw 'January 10th-25th', then 'February 6th-25th', and then 'March 13th-8th'. They got it at the same time I did: they are the letters that begin and end their names, so 'April 1st-12th' would be fourth. At the end of a good second round, the teams were tied on 6-each.
On to the Walls. The Escapologists took their turn to go first, and chose to tackle the Lion wall. A first set, 'Swanson', 'Gish', 'Pickford' and 'Bow', which are the surnames of silent movie actresses, was followed in short order by 'Hull', 'Stern', 'Cathead' and 'Tiller', which are parts of a boat. The final clues came in nicely after that, but they didn't know either connection: 'Irvine', 'Washington', 'Harlow' and 'Stevenage' are new towns, while 'Squiz', 'Garbo', 'Ocker' and 'Sanger' are Australian slang words. Six there then.
The Belgophiles could thus take the lead if they could better that on the Water wall. They also took a first set reasonably promptly: 'Nightingale', 'Houblon', 'Elgar' and 'Fry' are figures who have appeared on UK bank notes. A second set, 'Clare', 'Darwin', 'Jesus' and 'Emmanuel', which, as UC regular viewers will know, are Cambridge colleges, followed suite eventually. They couldn't unscramble what was left though, so had to collect bonuses: 'Matilda', 'Churchill', 'Little Willie' and 'Valentine' are tanks, which they got, while 'Sophie', 'Humpy-Rumpy', 'Willy Wonka' and 'Boggis' are Roald Dahl characters, which they also got. Another six there, which left the score at 12-each going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide who went through where. 'Things named after two people', such as 'THE DUCKWORTH-LEWIS METHOD', went to the Belgophiles 2-1. 'Films with the number doubled', such as 'FOURTEEN SAMARI', was split 2-each. 'Things noted for being green' was split 1-each, and that was time. The Belgophiles had snuck home 17-16!
A very good close match, some good quizzing the hard questions. Unlucky Escapologists, best of luck in the play-offs, well done Belgophiles, very best of luck in the semis!
Next week's match: the Detectives vs the Vikings
Playing last night were the Belgophiles, Helen Fasham, Phil Small and captain Ben Fasham, who have got here unbeaten via victories over the Lapsed Physicists, the Meeples and the Beaks, and the Escapologists, who lost to the Eco-Warriors in the first round, but have recovered well since with wins over the Cricketers, the Dandies and the Detectives.
Round 1. The Belgophiles kicked the show off with Eye of Horus, and the music question: we heard The Shins with 'New Slang', then 'Ooh La La' by Faces, then Heart with 'Alone', and finally Elbow's classic 'One Day Like This'. They didn't get it, their opponents did for a bonus. For their own first questions, the Escapologists chose Water, and got the picture set: we saw Alexandra Burke, then Sir Stanley Matthews, then Forest Whitaker, and finally Christina Ricci as Wednesday Addams. They saw that there forenames are all shared with British football teams, and picked up another point. The Belgophiles chose Lion next: 'Claude Shannon', then 'Ludwig Ritter von Kochel', then 'Kevin Bacon', and finally 'Amedeo Avogadro'. That gave it to them: they all have numbers named after them. The Escapologists chose Twisted Flax next: 'Sir George Stubbs and Italian Tourist in 'Dead Man's Folly'', then 'The White Stripes', then 'Tom and Gerry Jeffers in 'The Palm Beach Story'', and finally 'The Krankies'. They offering 'pretending to be siblings', not right; their opponents tried 'married couples', not precise enough: they are married couples who pretend they aren't. The Belgophiles chose Two Reeds: 'Ethel', then 'Yogh', then 'Thorn', and finally 'Long S'. They suggested them to be English letters that have fallen out of use, and picked up another point. Left with Horned Viper, the Escapologists saw 'Yttrobetafite', then 'Pyroxferroite', then 'Armalcolite', and finally 'Tranquillityite'. They suggested 'rocks found on the Moon', and were close enough for the points, 'minerals discovered on the Moon' being the precise link. At the end of the first round, the Escapologists led 3-2.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Belgophiles opened the round with Eye of Horus: 'Owner, 'Jurassic Park'', then 'Jeffrey, 'On the Wings of Love'', and then 'Wendy, 'Peter Pan''. They didn't get it, nor did their opponents: they are people who share their surnames with Chancellors of the Exchequer, so someone called Brown, such as 'John, Abolitionist' as the show offered, would come fourth. The Escapologists chose Lion: 'Big Ben', then 'Great George', and then 'Great Paul'. Both teams saw it to be something to do with bells, neither knew precisely what: they are the four heaviest bells in Britain, so the 'Olympic Bell' would be fourth. The Belgophiles chose Water next: 'Kings Cross St Pancras Underground station', then 'A 'knock knock' joke'; they saw them to have six and five lines, so offered 'The Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn and The Equator' as three lines, and picked up three points. The Escapologists chose Two Reeds next, and got the picture set: we saw a Gurdwara, then a Mandir, and then a Mosque. They didn't see it, their opponents just about did: they are the houses of worship in the four most practiced religions in the UK, so a Church would be fourth. For their own final choice, the Belgophiles chose Twisted Flax, and got a music sequence: we heard 'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desire' by Bach, then Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, and then the Toreador song from Carmen. They didn't offer an acceptable answer, their opponents did: they are composed by Bach, Beethoven and Bizet, so something by Borodin would complete the set. (Victoria allowed the enforced sing-along to be Bob Marley instead due to no-one knowing any Borodin!) Left with Horned Viper again for their own question, the Escapologsts saw 'January 10th-25th', then 'February 6th-25th', and then 'March 13th-8th'. They got it at the same time I did: they are the letters that begin and end their names, so 'April 1st-12th' would be fourth. At the end of a good second round, the teams were tied on 6-each.
On to the Walls. The Escapologists took their turn to go first, and chose to tackle the Lion wall. A first set, 'Swanson', 'Gish', 'Pickford' and 'Bow', which are the surnames of silent movie actresses, was followed in short order by 'Hull', 'Stern', 'Cathead' and 'Tiller', which are parts of a boat. The final clues came in nicely after that, but they didn't know either connection: 'Irvine', 'Washington', 'Harlow' and 'Stevenage' are new towns, while 'Squiz', 'Garbo', 'Ocker' and 'Sanger' are Australian slang words. Six there then.
The Belgophiles could thus take the lead if they could better that on the Water wall. They also took a first set reasonably promptly: 'Nightingale', 'Houblon', 'Elgar' and 'Fry' are figures who have appeared on UK bank notes. A second set, 'Clare', 'Darwin', 'Jesus' and 'Emmanuel', which, as UC regular viewers will know, are Cambridge colleges, followed suite eventually. They couldn't unscramble what was left though, so had to collect bonuses: 'Matilda', 'Churchill', 'Little Willie' and 'Valentine' are tanks, which they got, while 'Sophie', 'Humpy-Rumpy', 'Willy Wonka' and 'Boggis' are Roald Dahl characters, which they also got. Another six there, which left the score at 12-each going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide who went through where. 'Things named after two people', such as 'THE DUCKWORTH-LEWIS METHOD', went to the Belgophiles 2-1. 'Films with the number doubled', such as 'FOURTEEN SAMARI', was split 2-each. 'Things noted for being green' was split 1-each, and that was time. The Belgophiles had snuck home 17-16!
A very good close match, some good quizzing the hard questions. Unlucky Escapologists, best of luck in the play-offs, well done Belgophiles, very best of luck in the semis!
Next week's match: the Detectives vs the Vikings
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