Withington Pub Quiz League - Quizbiz 08/12/21

Clean sweep for the home teams leaving the Prods at the top at the halfway point - closely followed by KFD and Albert

Opsimaths beat Charabancs

Albert beat History Men

Bards beat Electric Pigs

KFD beat Ethel Rodin

Opsimaths beat Charabancs

Victory for the topsy-turvy Opsis

Mike reports from the Club...

A welcome victory means the Opsimaths reach the season's halfway mark with 4 wins and 4 losses sitting imperiously in the middle of the table with as much above as below.

It was a really topsy-turvy match with the lead alternating to alarming extents throughout the evening. Such a comfortable win for the home team seemed unbelievable after Round 5. In the end I think going first was an advantage - though I have to say we lost the toss and Damian chose to put us in first!

The whole occasion was conducted in a cheerful fashion with Brian this week acting as a very clear and authoritative QM. Father Megson had sent his apologies - he was in the midst of virus checks having only just returned from ministering to his co-religionists in Erin's green valleys. So the line-ups were Damian, Roisin, Graham and John against the home team of Nick, Howell, Hilary and myself.

Football was being aired in the front lounge but to a remarkably quiet gaggle of Reds. I was half expecting one of them to break into our quiz and tell Brian to keep his voice down. My God! Whatever has happened to United?

and Chara skipper Damian's view...

After last week's triumph, it was down to earth with a bump again as the Charas did what seems to be becoming distressingly familiar for us these days, i.e. finishing in second place. It may be getting all too familiar territory for us but we have not yet got accustomed to it and nor should we. We have at least proved that, in the right circumstances and especially with the right paper, we can win just as well as anybody. Just wish those circumstances and papers would come round a bit more frequently than they do!

Last night's paper from the Prodigals was another one of their usually well-executed and nicely varied productions but had the irritating quality (is that the correct word?) of leading us down the dangerous path of False Hope. We seemed to be going great guns at first and kept pace with our learned Opsi opponents for the first six rounds with the lead changing hands on several occasions but only by one or two points. We thought for a brief, glorious moment we could carry over last week's momentum into this week and finish the first half of the season with back-to-back victories but, as so often happens, it was not to be. Round 7 struck and effectively killed off our chances with us scoring just one point whilst the Opsis forged ahead with 9 including 3 steals. Although we won the the final round by one point, we had no hope of closing the gap. Dunno if opting to go second made any difference but there it is. Sorry Sam, this failing better and better lark is still a work in progress for us. Hopefully we'll get better at it in the second half of the season! That said we enjoyed a thoroughly convivial evening in the company of of one of our oldest and favourite hosts, we never expected it to be otherwise!

A very happy Christmas to all - and onwards (and hopefully upwards) to the next half of the season!!

World class proof that Scots eat too much sugar

(R1/Q5)

Albert beat History Men

Albert just get better and better

Mike O'B delivers his gnomic report...

Albert Quiz Team's Days of Shame:

"Like a line of 6000 zombies trying to get in",

"There was rife drunkenness and drug taking",

"Police dogs being kicked, officers attacked".

All these quotes are taken from Baroness Louise Casey's report on the Wembley Stadium Riots but it is a little known fact that the Baroness shadowed the Albert team for over a year and consequently had a ready made store of apt phrases to draw upon. Thankfully events were slightly more restrained last night at The Didsbury. The good humour and sporting attitude of our opponents completely undermined our tendency to mayhem.

We managed just 4 points between us in Round 6 and The Albert scored only 2 twos in the last four rounds. But overall an enjoyable evening and a reminder that the real point of quizzing is having a good social evening.

whilst Ivor sees it thus...

It was a cold dark night… However once we had navigated the rain and puddles of Storm Barra we faced a further storm of superior knowledge from the Albert, comfortably ensconced in this season’s newest home venue. The League’s pub venues are a bit like the Open Golf courses as they fall off the rota and then years later seem to get restored (Hoylake and Portrush for example). We had not been to the Didsbury since it was the home of Snoopy’s Friends (formerly of the Woodstock) - the team now known as the Bards (renamed following an unfortunate contretemps with the Didsbury landlord that led to their exclusion). The pub tonight was most hospitable and we had the snug almost to ourselves. Anne-Marie and Richard were on QM duties for the setters.

With Anne and Vanessa away our team included Mike, David and me as well as Alison (Mrs C) who had hoped for luckier questions than in her previous outing. It started well as she got a steal with Joe Jordan but then Seat 3 (going second) proved to be the Jonah seat with four consecutive steals in the wrong direction followed by two unanswereds. We were 11 behind at the half way point and consider it a triumph that we didn't get a further thrashing when we were down. We lost heavily not because of blurts, but because Albert had a superior steal rate (8 to our 5) and two rate (9 to our 6), of which Ashton on his own got 6 twos.

Going second also got us more unanswereds (7 to Albert's 5) and there were the usual 'questions to the wrong seat' and 'going for the wrong one of two alternatives' (Gold Cup or Champion Hurdle?) and the 'almosts' (not quite getting the right German pronunciation).

Mike H weighs in...

The quiz was blessed by the presence of Prodigal quiz-setters Richard (who QMed) and Anne-Marie.

A little surprisingly in what was a very difficult quiz (average combined score, I think, the lowest so far this season), I managed to get 2 twos, though admittedly two of the easiest questions of the evening - and I must make an apology to my team mates for not getting Antigonus for the question about The Winter's Tale. I answered "Autolychus" who was a character in the play but not the man pursued by the bear. That has been wrong in my head for the past 56 years!

The History Men were ahead after two questions, but after that brief moment of hope, heavily defeated, including 'nul points' in Round 6. Our first two of the evening was not until Round 3 Question 4 - by which time, Albert had four. Overall, it could well have been a bad toss to lose.

Our favourite questions? Round 7 Question 3, Round 8 Question 4 and Round 3 Question 2.

Bards beat Electric Pigs

A welcome win for the home team keeping them two places off the foot of the table

Tokyo 1500 silver for Scotland

(R2/Q3)

KFD beat Ethel Rodin

KFD continued their march towards the top beating last season's champs

Kieran reflects in between overs...

In a novel plot twist, the game that is always decided on the last pair was decided on the penultimate pair when Martin's familiarity with the glittering career of Keith Peacock put us 4 points ahead with only 3 left on the table for the defending champions. London(ish) clubs were good to us tonight since, while I was watching the Watford v City game last Saturday I thought to myself "I never knew they ran out to Z Cars."

(Stokes has just bowled Warner off a no ball, FFS)

Madness tribute to Ska

(R1/Q1)

As trailed last week the match was played in a spirit of goodwill to all, even the question-setters who served up 13 unanswereds between two of the best teams in the league (7-6 against us) and only 12 twos, split evenly. Well not quite evenly since Greg pocketed four of them in becoming by far the MVP.

(Drinks, Brisbane and Stockport, both)

Tokyo 800 silver for Atherton

(R2/Q4)

As usual it was a team effort that got us over the line. Barry's unequalled knowledge of 18th and 19th century European goings-on scored with Königsberg and Talleyrand. David weighed in with "There's a riot going on the beach" and the missing elements from Abbey Road. Martin scored the winning point as I've mentioned. And me? Well I'll always have Watford.

(I swear if Ollie Robinson beats Warner's bat one more time without finding the edge, or finds the edge but it doesn't carry, I'll swear)

James on his ward round

(R1/Q7)

The feast of the Immaculate Conception didn't feature. Some question-setters can't take a hint and I've been scourging myself all week for no reason.

As for The Griffin, well, we had to relocate to the middle room because the front room was occupied by a solitary United fan watching the pointless contest with our former selves. Everything else was in order, especially President Bob who conducted proceedings in his habitual unfussy but authoritative manner. Mike Dean could take a note or two from the master.

(The Aussies are getting on top, same as ever)

Tokyo silver for Miss 'Boss'

(R2/Q5)

The most shocking news of the evening is that a pint in the Griffin now costs more than £3. If anything can do for our criminal government it's that. An ashen-faced Martin commented "I'll have a half." The second most shocking news was that David got a Springsteen-related question wrong when Bob wouldn't allow "equestrian" instead of "show jumping". Bob is immaculate in a lot of ways and we couldn't, or wouldn't, and didn't argue.

(Drinks again. Yup both, as above)

Man from Delmonte's Man

(R4/Q4)

At the halfway point of the season we're right behind the Prodigals with Albert and Ethel breathing down both our necks. Wonder if we can get Jimmy, Michael, Ashton and Greg binned off to AFCON for six weeks or so?

(Warner just planted Leach, twice; it's done)

Head of Tory unit still searching for Europe

(R7/Sp)

Now we have our four week mid-season break before taking on the Historymen in the ~~Chastity Shield~~ Lowly Grail final. The final will happen somewhere with somebody as QM and maybe vaccine passports required. At the moment we don't know much more than that. But it's a trophy so it's important. We've not had one of those for a long time. Ask Pep if trophies matter. Then retreat. Quickly.

(Labuschagne is flaying Leach to all corners of the Gabba and 5Live are wittering about camel beauty contests; Stokes has done his knee and this is embarrassing - so is the cricket)

Happy Christmas to all and all good wishes for, particularly, a healthy New Year.

City star with most England goals of all time

(R2/Q7)

Quiz paper set by...

...The Prodigals

Average Aggregate score 63.0

By some way the hardest paper this season so far - but one that included some of the most interesting questions (which in the end seems to me more important).

In our match at the Albert Club there were 15 unanswered questions breaking pretty evenly between the 2 teams.

I liked the way the paper kicked off with the Hidden theme pairs of Round 1. Neither team at the Club got the theme but we both kicked ourselves when it was revealed. Round 2 on Women's sport was perhaps a little niche to occupy a whole round but certainly redressed some male imbalance on our usual question fare. As ever the Run-on Round 3 was popular provoking a few knowing smiles.

Finally thumbs up for Round 4 themed on famous guitarists. Pop bands are not my strong suit (as you doubtless know by now) so after scouring my scant knowledge of pop to match a guitarist to a Spanish city how pleased was I to note that all guitarists were on the menu. "Segovia" followed a split second later to register my first two of the evening.

Mediterranean queen of cuisine

(R6/Q6)

so what did Mike O'B think...

The quiz itself was a mixture with, for some of us, an overloading of sport and music - but also some interesting topics, including the Run-ons which seem to have become a staple of the quiz. Going first certainly benefited us in the first half but both teams found the second half hard going.

With a combined score of 67 in our match this was the most difficult quiz of the season and perhaps going second made it more difficult still. Of course it would have been much easier had we known the answers to the questions. Reviewing the paper afterwards it was apparent there had been a lot of effort crafting the questions (e.g. Run-ons with a book title and a music title, internal pairs with overall thematics, as well as the gee whizz questions and new takes on quiz classics “We all know ... but…"). To mix my golfing metaphors it was 'a Carnoustie rather than a St Andrews' as far as difficulty and skills sets required.

and Ivor...

A quiz not without interest. Sometimes the themes did help - even if we got the link to the theme wrong. We plumped for Queen Latifah (rather than Little Missy) suspecting that aristocratic titles might link hear to Prince Buster rather than to Marvel alter-egos. The true theme was not detected by our team - not even by Young David who watches these films (so no chance for the rest of us who are as old school as the Law Lords who asked “Who are the Beatles?").

On the Beatles questions it was fortunate that Mike H and I had discussed on the way to the quiz why he does not drive at night (poor lighting) which led us to a reflection on the Guinness heir who "didn’t notice that the lights had changed” in A Day In The Life with its monumental chord. That and The Archers and superior South American language skills led to Mike being our MVP tonight. No one remembers any obscenities in Hey Jude but as Richard remarked we will all be listening from 2.30 mins onwards and once we hear it will be an ear-worm for life.

and finally Damian's view...

This was a well-executed and varied paper with plenty of subject matter to tickle all our palates. Opsi Mike even took a rare sabbatical from attending what ever goes on at the Etihad these days to sit and quiz with us and even got a pop music question right (when was the last time that happened?). As usual, we enjoyed the Run-ons and selected one of these as our QotW.

One minor quibble with the paired question about which country has Quechua as one of its two national languages. The answer given was correct but was not the only one that fits the bill. Quechua is a widely spoken and official language in Bolivia and Peru as well. That said, it was not our question anyway and so I was spared the indignity of my prepared (and equally correct) answer of being dismissed as wrong.

Question of the Week

This week Roisin has chosen the first question in Round 3, the Literature/Pop music Run-on Round...

Which 1979 Pulitzer-prize winning true-crime novel by Norman Mailer depicted events around the trial of murderer Gary Gilmore and its aftermath?

&

Which 1976 double album, ranked number 4 on Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, featured the hit singles I Wish, Another Star and Sir Duke?

For the answer to this and all the week's other questions click here.

Just a picture

(R8/Q4)

...and also

2019/2020 WIST Finals

The league programme recommences on January 12th but the week before, on January 5th, we will play the much-delayed 2019/20 season's finals...

WIST Champions (Smart Alex v Albert) to be played at the Ladybarn Club, and

Lowly Grail (History Men v KFD) to be played at the Albert Club (unless either Kieran or Ivor inform me otherwise).

Tom Benson from the Shrimps has kindly agreed to set the paper for us.

Mike Wagstaffe from the Stockport League has indicated he would like to come along, so I suggest he QMs one of the matches and I QM the other.

As for the paper I will ask Tom to email it to me and I'll ensure the paper copies get to the Ladybarn Club and the Albert Club on the 5th (remember that from January 12th onwards the papers will be left each week behind the bar at the Fletcher Moss - as happened this week).

Stockport QL Christmas Quiz

(message from Mike Wagstaffe)

We're extending an invitation to any WithQuiz teams who'd like to join us for the Stockport Quiz League’s 2021 Christmas Quiz.

We’re missing our ‘European’ matches against WithQuiz and would love to see some of the north-of-the-Mersey friends that we’ve made over the years.

The quiz will be at Heaton Sports Club on Green Lane, Heaton Moor on Monday 13 December, starting at 8.30 pm.

The quiz has 100 questions, usually including a picture round and in some years there has been a musical/audio element. It will be set and presented by Greg Spiller who will be very familiar to those in WithQuiz. There is a ludicrously cheap £1-per-head entry fee, with proceeds going to charity.