“That’s embarrassing. It’s pronounced ‘Mow-arna’ not ‘Moaner’.”

Charles C

One of the busiest quiz nights ever saw 15 teams come to test their wits against the famous weekly trivia trial. On the way to the prizes – and the juicy jackpot contest – we learnt: otters live in a ‘holt’ and when they gather on water it’s called a raft; Ethiopia was where coffee originated; and, the word ‘vinegar’ comes from the French words for ‘sour wine’. It also saw the room erupt, and the heckles rain down on me, when I mis-pronounced the Disney film ‘Moana’ as ‘moaner’ rather than ‘mow-arna’.

After a traditionally closely fought first half, with everyone within a seven-point range, the scores opened out a little in the second half as a few three-point questions came out of the hopper. Come full-time, “The Last Team Standing”, who were, mercifully, still standing, won the consolation sweets, while wonder-couple, “Insert Witty Team Name Here” won the second-from-bottom bottle of wine. With a few points more than them, special mention for power-duo, “Belgarum” who had the highest score on a per-person-basis.

Abandoning a team name (“Wuhan Clan”) from a few weeks ago that even in their own view now feels a bit close to the bone, “Wuhan Clan Seems A Bit Dark Now” came in third, doing particularly well on the cryptic tube stations. Just two points more, in second place, then in what must be an all-time record, were FOUR(!) teams: “Jenny Potter & The Chamber Of Sluts”, “Big Catz (riaoww!)”, “Sorry Siobhan”, and the dangerously named “Straight Outta Quarantine”, all doing impressively well on the movie posters. As the drama escalated, there were then a further FOUR(!) teams (“85G”, “The Rookies”, “They Must Keep It On Microfiche” and “Total Quiz Annihilation” with the same highest score. Truly unbelievable scenes! A four-way tie-breaker on the number of spaces available in the UK’s largest closed prison (2,106 – if you’re thinking of making a reservation…?) saw “Total Quiz Annihilation” emerge victorious.

“They Must Keep It On Microfiche” won through to the jackpot envelopes with the closest guess to my question on the diameter of the world record largest pancake – 15.01 metres! However, the right envelopes eluded their clutches and the £112 remained unclaimed. Still, a rollover for next week sees the money gallop up to £187. It’s all to play for. It’s up for grabs but you gotta be there. Would love to see you there. #onlytheduchyarmshastheanswer