Eggheads Contestant Call

 As I mentioned earlier in the Week, Eggheads is back! and coming to Channel 5 soon. The contestant call is now open and can be found on the following link HERE. It looks like you need teams of 5 to play (1 of whom is a standby). I appeared a few years ago and we had a great time recording. Good luck if you apply!

QVQL Set - Part 2

 As promised Rounds 5-8 and the Spare questions from our QVQL set recently

Round 5

1a	In a 2018 charity expedition with Ben Fogle, which British cyclist failed to reach the summit of Everest? She is a double Olympic champion and a 9-times World Champion in track cycling.	Victoria Pendleton
1b	While assisting her brother, which German astronomer discovered eight comets between 1786 and 1797, three of which were considered "rediscoveries".  She is also believed to be the first woman to be a paid scientist?	Caroline Herschel
2a	What numerically titled movie was the top grossing movie at the UK Box Office in 2020?	1917
2b	Named after a European city, which type of biscuit is a mixture of nuts and sugar melted together with butter and honey, coated on the bottom with chocolate?	Florentine
3a	Which is both the smallest and the most densely populated of South Africa's nine provinces?	Gauteng
3b	Knighted in 1993, which British composer, as well as writing a vast array of works including 9 Symphonies and several ballets, is perhaps best known for his film scores including his Oscar winning score for ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’?	Malcolm Arnold
4a	Chilean-American actor Pedro Pascal portrays Din Djarin, the title character in which sci-fi/adventure TV series? It debuted on Disney+ in 2019.	The Mandalorian
4b	One of only 4 people to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once, and the most recent, which author is best known for his works “The Underground Railroad” and “The Nickel Boys”?	Colson Whitehead

 

Round 6

1a	In series 2 & 3 of the sitcom The Royle Family, who played Emma Kavanagh, Anthony Royle’s first girlfriend, and later his fiancée and mother to their son Lewis?	Sheridan Smith
1b	Who was on the UK throne when Edward Jenner invented the world’s first vaccine, designed to counteract Smallpox?	George III (1798)
2a	Which conflict that too place in the Caribbean between 1739 and 1748 is known as La Guerra del Asiento in Spanish?	War of Jenkins Ear
2b	Jaipur (an IPA) and Tzara (a Kölsch) are amongst the most popular beers made by which English brewery, based near Bakewell in Derbyshire?	Thornbridge
3a	One of the five Platonic solids, the icosahedron is composed of 20 identical faces of which regular polygon?	Triangle
3b	Which American teen drama that premiered in 1994, centres on the Salinger siblings, who become orphans after their parents are killed in a car accident? The show received positive reviews from television critics, won the 1996 Golden Globe for Best television drama and included breakout roles for Neve Campbell and Matthew Fox	Party of Five
4a	Blantyre is the second-largest city in which African country?	Malawi
4b	Which American football quarterback, who has won 1 Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers, appeared in the 1998 film “There’s Something About Mary” as a former love interest of Cameron Diaz’s character?	Brett Favre

 

Round 7

1a	Which Scottish astronomer, one of the first female members of the Royal Astronomical Society, has an Oxbridge college named after her.  Her obituary in the Morning Post in 1872 described her as "the queen of science"?	Mary Somerville
1b	In the sitcom The Royle Family, who played the part of Twiggy –longtime family friend of and regular visitor to the Royle household.	Geoffrey Hughes
2a	Named after a European city, which type of doughnut is made from a yeast dough fried in oil, with a jam or marmalade filling?	Berliner
2b	The Guerra del Golfo is an event involving which sport.  It takes place annually in Naucalpan in Mexico?	Wrestling (Accepted Cage Fighting)
3a	Knighted in 1966, which English composers best known works include the oratorio ‘A Child of Our Time’ and the opera ‘The Midsummer Marriage’?
3b	Which of South Africa's nine provinces is the only one to share a border with Namibia?	Northern Cape
4a	One of only 4 people to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once, which author is perhaps best known for the works “The Magnificent Amber sons” and “Alice Adams”?	Booth Tarkington
4b	British actor Henry Cavill portrays Geralt of Rivia, the title character in which fantasy/adventure TV series? It debuted on Netflix in 2019	The Witcher

 

Round 8

1a	Who was on the UK throne when Sir Isaac Newton invented the world’s first working reflecting telescope?	Charles II (1668)
1b	Which English actor with a thirst for adventure has failed to reach the summit of Everest on three separate occasions? He is the oldest man to reach the Magnetic North Pole on foot and has also summited Aconcagua and Kilimanjaro.	Brian Blessed
2a	Old Tom (a strong ale) and Trooper (a premium bitter) are amongst the most popular beers made by which English brewery, based in Stockport in Lancashire?	Robinsons
2b	Numerically numbered as Episode 9, what is the subtitle of the Star Wars movie that was the second highest grossing movie at UK cinemas in 2020?	Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
3a	Which American teen drama that premiered in 1994, follows the emotional struggles of several teenagers in the social circle of main character Angela Chase? The show received several major award nominations, was critically praised for its portrayal of adolescence and included breakout roles for Claire Danes and Jared Leto.	My So Called Life
3b	One of the five Platonic solids, the dodecahedron is composed of 12 identical faces of which regular polygon?	Pentagon
4a	Which American football quarterback, who has won 4 Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers, appeared in the 2006 film “Failure to Launch” as the father of Matthew McConaughey’s character?	Terry Bradshaw
4b	Bulawayo is the second-largest city in which African country?	Zimbabwe

 

 

Spares

 

1	“Offshore” and “Moon Tiger” were both Booker Prize winning novels written by women with what first name?	Penelope
2	Celebrating his 80th Birthday in 2017, which seminal British artist was the subject of Jack Hazan’s 1974 Biopic film “A Bigger Splash”?	David Hockney
3	With the chemical formula C6 H6, which important chemical compound  was first isolated and identified by Michael Faraday in 1825 and is a natural constituent of Crude Oil?	Benzene
4	Which Russian Composer born in 1906 is the subject of Julian Barnes 2016 novel “The Noise of Time”?	Dmitri Shostakovich

 

OQVL - Set

 It was our teams turn to set in the QVQL recently and we produced what we thought was a fun set that seemed to go down well. I will share it with you all here in two parts. Rounds 1-4 today and Rounds 5-8 tomorrow. Hope you enjoy it.

If you are free on Tuesday and wish to play in the QVQL please drop me a message and Ill put you in touch with the guys who run it.

Correct as of 17/2/2021

Round 1

1a	Actors Tom Baker, Jason Isaacs and Alison Steadman were all born in which northern English city?	Liverpool
1b	Which prolific author created the characters Precious Ramotswe, Isabel Dalhousie and Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld?	Alexander McCall Smith
2a	Who is the current host of ‘Counterpoint’ on BBC Radio 4? He also hosts a popular retro-chart music show on BBC Radio 2.	Paul Gambaccini
2b	In which Track and Field discipline is Inessa Kravets the World and European record holder with a distance of 15.50m and Francoise Mbango Etone the Olympic record holder with a distance of 15.39m?	Triple Jump
3a	What name is given to the technique used in Japanese cuisine in which foods are broiled or grilled with a glaze of soy sauce, mirin, and sugar.	Teriyaki
3b	In a recent survey of BBC Radio 2 listeners, deigned to find out the greatest ever song from a musical, several shows ended up with more than one song from their soundtrack in the top 20. From which musical, which had two songs included, does the song “Bring Him Home” come?	Les Miserables
4a	Which chart act had their first [of 6] UK #1s in 1996 with the song “Words” and their last with “You Needed Me” in 1999?	Boyzone
4b	In the title Sue Grafton’s famous Alphabet series of crime novels, if “A” is for Alibi and “B” is for Burglar….what is “C” for?	Corpse

 

 

 

 

Round 2

1a	The ruins of Urquhart Castle stand near the northernmost tip of which body of water?	Loch Ness
1b	The first Olympics of the modern era to have an Olympic flame took place in which year?  The flame burned in the Marathon Tower, known to the locals as KLM's ashtray?	1928 (Amsterdam)
2a	Having previously served as the position of deputy in this role under Barack Obama, who did Joe Biden appoint as Secretary of State in January 2021?	Anthony Blinken
2b	Also known for his roles in a popular Sitcom and soap opera, who hosts his own “House Party” on Radio 2 featuring a variety of soul and funk tracks?	Craig Charles
3a	In a recent survey of BBC Radio 2 listeners, deigned to find out the greatest ever song from a musical, several shows ended up with more than one song from their soundtrack in the top 20. From which musical, which had two songs included, does the song “Somewhere” come?	West Side Story
3b	Mistakenly used as a unit of time by Han Solo in A New Hope, what is the name given to the unit of length approximately equal to around 3.26 light years.	Parsec
4a	In the title Sue Grafton’s famous Alphabet series of crime novels, if “C “ is for Corpse and “D” is for Deadbeat….what is “E” for?	Evidence
4b	If you travelled directly south from any point on the Greek Island of Rhodes, which would be the first country you would hit?	Egypt

 

 

Round 3

1a	Which prolific author created the characters Alex Cross, Michael Bennett and Lindsay Boxer?	James Patterson
1b	Loch Leven in Perth and Kinross has seven islands, one of which has a castle which in 1567, became the jail of which prominent person?  She escaped the following year with the help of her gaoler's family.	Mary Queen of Scots
2a	In which Track and Field discipline is Gabriele Reinsch the World and European record holder with a distance of 76.80m and Martina Hellman the Olympic record holder with a a distance of 72.30m?	Womens Discuss
2b	Although not the capital, which port city is the largest settlement in Tanzania	Dar Es Salaam
3a	Equal to around 150 million km, what is the name given to the unit of length that is roughly the average distance between the Earth and the Sun?	AU or Astronomical Unit
3b	The cover art for Blur’s seventh studio album Think Tank was designed by which presumably English street artist? It depicts an embracing couple wearing diving helmets  and was released in 2003	Banksy
4a	The River Danube passes through four capital cities - Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade and which other?	Bratislava
4b	Which chart act had their first [of 4] UK #1s in 1998 with the song “C’est la Vie” and their last with “Blame it on the Weatherman” in1999?	Bewitched

 

 

Round 4

1a	In which year did a hurdler called Norma Enriqueta Basilio de Sotelo become the first woman to light the Olympic flame at an opening ceremony?	1968 (Mexico)
1b	Actors Liz Dawn, Malcolm McDowell and Felicity Montagu were all born in which northern English city?	Leeds
2a	Although not the capital, which port city is the largest settlement in Nigeria?	Lagos
2b	The first African American to do so, who did Joe Biden appoint as US Defence Secretary in January 2021?	Lloyd Austin
3a	The cover art for Velvet Underground’s debut album (Velvet Underground and Nico) was designed by which artist? It depicts a large yellow banana	Andy Warhol
3b	In Chinese cuisine, what name is given to a meal of small dishes, usually served with tea, and comprising of a collection of savoury and sweet tastes from a variety of steamed and fried buns, dumplings and rolls?	Dim Sun
4a	If you travelled directly south from any point on the island of Majorca, which would be the first country you would hit?	Algeria
4b	Name either of the Asian Capital cities that the River Mekong flows through	Vientiane [Laos] or  Phnom Penh [Cambodia]