University Challenge (also featuring Only Connect and other BBC quiz shows)

The Professionals

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctwo/listings/programme.shtml?day=today&service_id=4224&filename=20080331/20080331_2000_4224_9918_30

They're Back

Tonight

they should ban postgrads from the regular show. it's not on.

should they ban graduates from THE PROFESSIONALS?

... no.

they should ban postgrads from the normal show because it's a general knowledge quiz, and you acquire more general knowledge as you get older... and then start to lose it all, but the postgrads in their late 20s and 30s have a clear advantage over the undergrads.

Ban Open University as well then?

God I'm so glad it's back this is my show forever.

Ban mid-30s undergrads too?

harder to call.

I've often thought the same thing myself tho. Maybe they should stick an age limit, say 25, on the regular show. But then you'd get old people doing post-divorce first degrees getting all butthurt.

Or have a "1 oldster per team" limit.

Ban presentable looking people as well, the show really should be competed in by only the pastiest, specciest, greasiest-haired shut-ins, none of yr indie doofuses or New Hall broads.

they should ban postgrads from the normal show because it's a general knowledge quiz, and you acquire more general knowledge as you get older... and then start to lose it all, but the postgrads in their late 20s and 30s have a clear advantage over the undergrads.

Yes, let's solely have a bunch of 20-something idiots on it, why don't we

... it makes me feel really clever!

or New Hall broads

Dom I gotta have something to knock one out to while they're asking the impossible Maths question.

I enjoy how the quiz setter has given up trying to do varied Classical music questions and now they're all just "Who wrote this then?"

Or have a "1 oldster per team" limit.

-- Noodle Vague, Monday, March 31, 2008 2:17 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

yeah this would be fair. sometimes it's a bit much.

The ramp up in question difficulty from the rounds to the final is crazy.

Still the hardest quiz on TV tho, Mastermind is not in the same league.

answers including

Psyche

Echo & Narcissus

1982: year Trivial Pursuit was launched

The Waste Land

Waiting for Godot

and it's back ... tomorrow!!

My uncle was on the professionals once, as part of the Association of Historical Crime Writers. Beat that.

I was on University Challenge a couple of years ago for Glasgow University. I was the token "oldster" on the team (i.e. postgraduate student). We sadly lost to Edinburgh (of all people), but it was a reasonable match. I was happy anyway, because I got some starter questions, so got to hear my name called in the famous UC style.

Now!

was on early

Uh? Just finished, here. Well, I did unusually well - hit 200 (answering all questions, bien sur) to the winners' 195. Exeter University thought that a string piece was 'Yesterday' rather than 'Paranoid Android' by their alumnus. I was surprised to get the meaning of Indian 'Maha' (great) correct.

was on early in scotland for some reason missed it will be on iplayer later

It is always on early in Scotland so that we can watch a dude trying to repopulate the Highlands with wild boar and moose and stuff.

I remain baffled as to how they didn't know Paranoid Android, yet recognised Queens of the Stone Age and Muse quite easily. One of the contestants also thought Carl Barat was in Babyshambles, and none of them even guessed at Dirty Pretty Things, making me wonder exactly what students are doing with themselves these days. Studying, presumably, instead of listening to pish indie like I did when I was a student.

I got 220! Perhaps they are dumbing down. There did seem to be quite a few exceedingly easy questions. And some painfully stupid answers.

There are always painfully stupid answers. They often, in my mind, do not coincide with what Paxman claims to be stupid.

the lady who knew too much

like, seriously, i kinda wanna give up *life* right now

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=51660053364&topic=7572

^^^77 invites for these guys

good christ

this ain't no unrequited telly-crush thing that's weighing on my mind, it's purely and simply a furious and uncontrollable envy that someone can know so much stuff

mind you, i'm well acquainted with (and sometimes meet) the winning captain from last year's series, and it'll at least be good to point out to him that he is no longer british studenthood's #1 repository of knowledge

basically, the year I was in the Peterhouse team, we narrowly failed to qualify

still hurts, man

My failure to qualify for University Challenge, now somewhat over ten years ago, still niggles at me too.

I felt sorry for Manchester last night - they seemed to have hit on a fairly good anti-Corpus Christi strategy and it worked for most of the match.

rah rah rah

Beeb pretty much gave away the result by having the brainy girl on the evening news

Bitches I like 'em brainless
Guns I like 'em stainless

... that Jeremy Paxman goes too far at times

they should ban postgrads from the regular show. it's not on.

― banriquit, Monday, March 31, 2008 3:01 PM (10 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^ still how i basically break it down. one of the teams last week was ALL phd candidates, which is bullshit. that or i should get on next season's show, ccoz tbh id rock the shit.

Of course, the DailyMail has it "how come brainy girl gets villified, and Jade, um, you know"

(See, they can't even bring themselves to criticise Jade at the moment)

.. because The Sun asked Brainygirl 10 question of the "Who won celeb Big brother/Name of the lad who fathered/Chelsea's manager" and 7 others, and she got none right...

In the interests of fairneess, should really have asked Jade 10 questions from UnivChallenge, see how she got on

Jade in "that's the freezing point of Liquid Nitrogen, innit?" Slumdog Millionaire follow-up!

Did a double-take when I saw the 'Trimble turns down Nuts magazine' headline in the Guardian this morning before I realised what it was about.

.. because The Sun asked Brainygirl 10 question of the "Who won celeb Big brother/Name of the lad who fathered/Chelsea's manager" and 7 others, and she got none right...

Sometimes I wish I didn't know any of these things too.

Name of the lad who fathered Chelsea's manager

Don't know this one

You could probably have a guess.

lol call me tuomas but idk who won celeb big brother.

Ulrika.

Yes, what now, Archimedes?

i thought/hoped i didn't before i realised i actually did.

but i also got the one question they played from last night's final on the radio this morning.

so colour me... y'know, something.