Weekly Match Reports - Summer 2024
(A big thank you to Jonny Peacock)
Finals Night - (Presentations) (19 Sept)
Nobody on the road, nobody on the beach, I feel it in the air, the summer's out of reach, and that’s it, the summer league is over and done with… except of course there is the grand finale trophies night first. Seven keen teams flocked to the Blackbird for the final shout of the summer season.
Chris Potter had concocted a set of one hundred and fifty teasing questions to bring out the best in the quiz teams, including some good ones on the animal world, a selection below. And what a night it was, but first there were prizes to present – The Plough taking the premiership and blockbuster cups, with Woodstock Social Club picking up the championship crown, see pics © Beth of the Bunch!.
The art (or is it a science?) of the handicapper was tested yet again, giving the final result of a win by two points for the Masons Arms, closely chased by home team the Blackbird, with the Ploughman’s Bunch! in third place by one point after a super strength blockbuster.
The Blackbird is a great venue, friendly staff, and a lively atmosphere. Paula put on a magnificent buffet which was enthusiastically consumed during the forty-point picture round.
The 2024-25 Winter League starts with a tabletop quiz at the Masons Arms, 8pm 20:00 on Thursday 17 October, see you then if not before.
Thanks to Chris Potter for the questions, with an animal selection from the night below.
Q1: Capable of reaching 40 mph, what is the fastest running bird in the UK?
Q2: The word ‘vaccine’ comes from the Latin for which animal?
Q3: From the Greek word for pan pipes, what is the name for the vocal organ of birds?
A1: Pheasant (no, not Keely Hodgkinson, she was another answer).
A2: Cow (smallpox vaccine derived from cowpox by Edward Jenner)
A3: Syrinx. ,"σύριγξ".
WEEK 18 - (12th Sept)
Question setter Tim Busby wound up the summer season with his usual imaginative variety of topic selection including a bit of a horsey theme, more below. The Plough rounded off a successful campaign with a win against their peers the Bunch! to secure the Premiership and Blockbuster trophies, and Woodstock Social Club finished well clear of the field to win the Championship by several lengths.
The Ploughman’s Bunch! welcomed their friendly rivals in the Wolvercote Derby, but they were unable to gallop home against their stablemates. The teams lined up for the starter and question master David Quinn, and were neck and neck until the Plough landed the first of five bonuses on the fifth question, under pressure to remember Pascal’s Law. More bonuses in rounds two and three, and by a nose in the picture round put the Plough seven ahead. The teams were neck and neck in a full house round six, but the Bunch! left their home straight gallop too late, winning the final round but not the race. No steward’s enquiry needed for the result at the post: Ploughman’s Bunch! 78 – Plough 85.
Woodstock Social Club had already secured the championship trophy, but could not end their season with a win against their pedigree chums the Royal Blenheim, who romped home 81 – 58.
The White Hart stumbled at the last fence, letting their rivals for the championship runners-up, the Gardeners Arms, come through on the stand side to win and take the coveted championship second place. The Gardeners had a really fun night as usual with the White Hart and were made to feel very welcome, which considering four of them were fifteen minutes late due to the horrendous traffic problems in Oxford! The away team won six of the seven rounds and both sides were surprised at the Pimm’s question that no one knew the answer to, even though they had all drunk quite a few of them over many years! It all finished White Hart 68 - Gardeners Arms 82, level on points but higher match scores took the Gardeners to second place.
Things can get heated at the lower reaches of the league as well as the peak, and in the bottom of the table clash at the Blackbird the visitors always held the upper hand. As always it was a friendly quiz with great food at half time. The race was to the swift, not the other bird, as it finished Masons Arms 69 Blackbird 58.
And that’s it for the summer league, until the finals night at the Blackbird next week, 19 September. Thanks to Tim Busby for a whole season of questions, with a horsey selection from this week below.
Q1: In Miguel de Cervantes’ novel, what is the name of Don Quixote’s horse?
Q2: Which mountain in the far north-west of Scotland shares its name with the 1967 Grand National winner?
Q3: What is the name of Michael Morpurgo’s War Horse?
A1: Rocinante.
A2: Foinavon.
A3: Joey.
WEEK 17 - (05th Sept)
Question setter Tim Busby wrote a range of questions with a good, varied selection including sporty topics, more below.
There were two all-premiership matches, one of which all but secured the title for the Plough.
On a damp murky night Bletchingdon Nomads hosted the Plough, who appreciated the warm we
lcome in the busy clubhouse. Lisa was reading the questions for the first time, and she made a good job of it, too. The home team were desperately unlucky, just the same as when these two teams last met, on election night 4 July, remember that? On that earlier occasion the Nomads unerringly selected the questions neither team knew, and this time it was a slightly kinder nine out of thirteen, but the depleted Nomads squad did concede five bonuses, an improvement on the ten last time. A very satisfying choice of food was set out – both meaty and veggie, which went down very well with both teams in the autumnal mizzle. The visitors had the match won before the end of round six, but the home team saved their best form until the final round, securing an eight-all draw. A very sociable evening ended Bletchingdon Nomads 60 - Plough 85.
The other premiership clash was relocated to the Gardeners Arms, with the Plough in darkness for staff holidays. Away team the Royal Blenheim are still in with what’s euphemistically termed a mathematical chance of lifting the trophy, but they will need something unusual next week. The away-from-home team the Bunch! were missing key players, but narrowly missed out in a high-scoring game that finished Ploughman’s Bunch!72 - Royal Blenheim 75.
Another relocation was for the Woodstock Social Club, currently homeless, at ‘home’ to the Blackbird, who kindly agreed to host the match as the ‘away’ team. Do keep up. Although it might have seemed strange for Woodstock to be the home team at the Blackbird, the ever convivial atmosphere there makes sure everyone feels at home anyway. Although a very pleasant evening all round, it wasn't a close contest with Woodstock taking every round. Grateful thanks to the pub for the copious amount of food, and also to Tim Busby who stepped in to read his questions. Final score was Woodstock Social Club 77 - Blackbird 55.
The White Hart could finish championship runners-up, but it all depends on their rivals the Gardeners, who they meet next week in the decider, that’s a good match in prospect. This week, after a ten-all first round the White Hart were always ahead, although the Masons threatened to turn it around in the last. Enjoyable opponents, as always, and very good food, it all ended Masons Arms 57 - White Hart 64.
And that’s almost it for the summer league, with one league match to come, and the finals night at the Blackbird on 19 September. Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a sports selection from this
Q1: In American Football, the Dallas Cowboys are based in which city?
Q2: Yorkshire Cricket Club play home at Headingly, and at ‘North Marine Ground’ in which town?
Q3: In 1988, who became the first British golfer to win the US Masters?
A1: Arlington. (At the AT&T stadium, since 2009.)
A2: Scarborough.
A3: Sandy Lyle.
WEEK 16 - (29th Aug)
Question setter Tim Busby set a range of questions which produced some high scores this week, with a wider selection of liberal arts topics, more below.
Top news! The Blackbird get their first win of the summer league, so with only two weeks to go there is now no team without a win, and no unbeaten team. From the lower depths of the table, the Blackbird overcame the Ploughman’s Bunch! of the premiership, so an excellent result for the home team. It was great for the Blackbird to get a win at last, it was nip and tuck all night. In the Blackbird's Achilles heel, the Give it away round, the arrow must have missed and landed on Beth's table, good choices to give away, swung the game the Blackbird’s way, for a welcome victory. Good set of questions, with multiple options for answers, proper pub quiz. Final score was a very high-scoring Blackbird 81 – Ploughman’s Bunch! 78.
Woodstock Social Club now have a sufficient lead to be confident of winning the championship, congratulations to them. After a drawn first round Woodstock built up a solid nine point lead going into the pictures. From then on sides were fairly evenly matched but the Masons were never quite strong enough to overturn the result. As expected, the evening was accompanied by delicious beer and food, and a very pleasant atmosphere. Final score: Masons Arms 66 - Woodstock Social Club 72.
Royal Blenheim 84 - Bletchingdon Nomads 74. This was an interesting game. The first round set the tone, nothing to choose between the teams. A full house each! In the second round both teams got one wrong, but the Blenheim got a bonus. In round three Nomads got their hopes up, another full house! Blenheim scored six, so a five point lead to Nomads. Then in the picture round it was the Blenheim's turn to get a full house. A one point lead to Nomads going into round five, then the Blenheim stepped it up with full houses, while the Nomads lost their way, Blenheim ten points ahead. Final round Nomads found their footing, but the Blenheim kept up the pressure to take the match. Good fun!
With the Plough closed for staff holidays, the Gardeners kindly agreed to host their ‘away’ match at home. Millie was working hard at the bar, keeping the wide selection of beers flowing, and catering was from the excellent Little Venice Pizzeria over the road in North Parade. The ‘visiting’ home team got off to a good start, and were fourteen ahead after three rounds. Then something quirky and interesting from Tim Busby in the picture round, people featured on UK banknotes – that brought out the best from the Gardeners, with a full house twenty. The next round was tied, was the tide turning? Unfortunately for the friendly Gardeners team, it wasn’t, and two strong final rounds meant the match finished Plough 90 – Gardeners Arms 64.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with an arty selection from this week below. Weekly Scores, Reports etc. are at: www.oxfordshire-quiz-league.com
Q1: Whose painting of Barbie was sold at Christie’s in 1986 for £1.1 million?
Q2: ‘The Nude Maja’ and ‘The Clothed Maja’ are major works by which artist?
Q3: With her sculpture in Newington Green, London, who was mother to author Mary Shelley?
A1: Andy Warhol. (the last of his ‘American Icons’ series)
A2: Goya. (1746 – 1828)
A3: Mary Wollstonecraft (unveiled 2020, sculptor was Maggi Hambling)
WEEK 15 - (22nd Aug)
Question setter Tim Busby keeps varying the themes to keep the interest going, and a wider selection of pop music was on the juke box this week, more below.
Woodstock Social Club had a successful visit to championship rivals the White Hart Eynsham. As seems to be a frequent occurrence in matches between them, the overall score does not show the wild swings in scores. A 15 - 2 win to Woodstock in round two almost matched by 13 - 4 to the White Hart in round seven. By that time the deficit was too big to bridge but it did bring a degree of respectability to the result for White Hart. White Hart 64 - Woodstock Social Club 71, and Woodstock look to be well positioned for the final weeks of the championship.
When the Ploughman’s Bunch! hosted the Masons Arms the home team steadily eked out a ten-point lead over the first three rounds, helped by bonuses on Sheryl Crow, Albert Hammond, and the River Lena, and a lucky guess on Olympus. But the Masons, who had had three bonuses of their own plus more than their fair share of questions neither side knew, hit back by scoring three more than their opponents on the pictures. The Bunch! edged a topsy-turvy round five, then selected three unanswered questions in round six, the visitors cut the lead to two going into the last round, and they halved that deficit after the first three questions. But the Bunch! held their nerve and didn't get anything else wrong, Beth's luck turning as she gave away the only remaining unanswered question of the round and held on to the artist one - by which time victory was confirmed and it didn't matter that reporter Jeremy had begun Toulouse-Lautrec of the exact score. Scrummy food and nice speckly beer topped off a pretty enjoyable evening under Martin's assured chairmanship. Ploughman’s Bunch! 72-67 Masons Arms.
Guest question reader Jonny used his team’s bye to make himself useful at the Gardeners, hosting city rivals the Blenheim. The first half was evenly matched, with the visitors leading by just four after the picture round. The Blenheim then found their recent top form to win rounds five and six, and then to pull clear in the final round. Very welcome pizza was brought in, a great selection, and Millie worked hard behind the bar keeping the busy pub supplied. Final result Gardeners Arms 67 – Royal Blenheim 82, continuing their winning run with the highest score of the night.
The Nomads always love it when the Blackbird lands at Bletchingdon. It’s always going to be a great night and this week was no exception. Both teams started well, and were 10-10 at the end of the first round. The Nomads kept going at that pace, but the Blackbird slowed a little and so were 47-33 down when it came to round five. Almost serious stuff up to this point. But when the subjects were read out, the Blackbird’s own ‘Irish Entertainer of the Year’ wasn’t too impressed with a TV question from the 1960s “when only three people had a TV set” but, in a Machiavellian masterstroke, captain John immediately announced, “We’ll go for the 1960’s TV question”. Fortunately, it was one of the Blackbird team who’d had one of those TV sets and so they picked up two points with “David Janssen”. In fact, they were the first points in a much better round for the Blackbird, and they took the round 8-9. The Nomads came back a little in round six and, as the match moved into the final round, the Nomads were leading by sixteen points. The Question Master read out the subjects to be given away in round seven, and when he got to ‘Irish Entertainer of the Year’ there were cries of “conflict of interests” given that the Blackbird had their own ‘Irish Entertainer of the Year’. In the spirit of the evening though, the Nomads gave the Blackbird this as their first question. As the Question Master readied himself to read the question, Frank from the Blackbird said, “If this isn’t Daniel O’Donnell, then we’re stuffed”. Given that he’d already heard the answer, the Question Master almost hesitated thinking ‘Is it worth me reading the question out’. But, in accordance with Rule 72, Point 3, Para ii, the question was read out and much to everyone’s surprise the Blackbird responded with “Enya”. Oh dear. It was even worse that the Nomads said "Johnny Logan". To quote a Nomads player who was unavailable "Never ignore the bleeding obvious" Both teams gave away well though, drawing the round 6-6. With people literally rolling around with laughter by now, no-one had a clue what the scores were at the end - but the records show that the main quiz ended Bletchingdon Nomads 72 – 56 Blackbird. It was a great night with much laughter and showed what quizzing is all about – credit has to go to both teams for a fantastic evening.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a pop music selection from this week below.
Q1: Who spent two weeks at number one in the singles chart in 2000 with ‘Toca’s Miracle’?
Q2: Who had a top five hit in 1969 with the Roy Wood song ‘Hello Susie’?
Q3: Which 1989 top 20 hit has the line ‘Sick James, my biggest influence, tell me why, James and Bobby Purify’?
A1: Fragma.
A2: Amen Corner.
A3: Fergus sings the Blues (Deacon Blue).
WEEK 14 - (15th Aug)
Another set of interesting and varied questions from Tim Busby this week, and it’s good to see some science topics too, more below.
An anticipated visit by the Nomads to the Masons was an interesting evening. It appeared that Nomads terrible form was continuing after the first round. One point down, then Masons fell apart, losing round two 14-2, so a Nomads lead of eleven overall. Nomads Increased the lead by one in round three, then Masons won the picture round by five and round five by four, and round six by one. So Nomads had a slender lead of two going into the final round. This was close but Nomads got their nose in front, ending a five match losing run going back to early July: final score Masons Arms 62 - Bletchingdon Nomads 68.
The Gardeners Arms had a really happy night at the Blackbird, and as always made to feel at home, plus of course great food! A quite close game with the Gardeners scoring 11 points in 5 rounds which seemed very odd. The scores were Blackbird 65 – Gardeners Arms 76.
The Plough were looking to recover from last week’s defeat at the hands of the resting (a bye) Blenheim, hosting strong opponents the White Hart Eynsham. A glacially slow start had the visitors 2-0 up after the opening four questions. The Plough had good scores in rounds three and five, but the others were all more even. But the home team built up a good lead against some informed quizzing from the White Hart. Pizza and chips was very welcome on a night that ended Plough 79 – White Hart 59.
Woodstock Social Club, playing what was apparently their last match at this venue, met the Ploughman’s Bunch! The final round saw the Bunch! thrashed 13-4, just the kind of thing that the depleted team had feared against their affable, table-topping opponents. Fortunately for the Bunch! this was the last round, which they went into with a 21-point advantage thanks to some outstanding answers across the team, helmed by makeshift captain Martin. The away side edged first round thanks to a fishy bonus and an excellent intervention by David Quinn on the land speed record. The second round was also close, then two bonuses helped them win the third round 14-8, before edging the pictures. The Bunch! took the penultimate round 13-10, and promptly went into that thrashing which rebalanced things a bit under question-master Tim Busby who was thanked by all for another good set of questions. Woodstock Social Club 68 – Ploughman’s Bunch! 80.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a scientific selection from this week below.
Q1: Which of the naturally occurring noble gases is radioactive?
Q2: Density divided by volume equals mass is the formula for whose principle?
Q3: What is the medical name for leprosy?
A1: Radon.
A2: Archimedes.
A3: Hansen’s Disease.
WEEK 13 - (08th Aug)
No change in the league standings this week, but there were some high scores and tight matches, thanks to another suite of stimulating questions from Tim Busby, more below. Woodstock stay top of the championship with a good win against premiership opponents, and the Royal Blenheim ended the Plough’s long unbeaten run.
Week thirteen – unlucky for some, and the Plough lost their twenty-five match unbeaten sequence from 30 November 23 to an in-form Royal Blenheim. The visitors took control from the start of round one, which they won 14-4, and the Plough were going to find it hard to recoup that deficit. They pulled three back in round two, but the Blenheim kept the pressure up with consistent correct answers, and a full house 12-12 round six left the Plough trailing by nine points. The final round started well for the home team, and it was 73-76 after six questions, but then it was all correct for both teams and the Blenheim finished worthy winners in the highest-scoring match of the season so far: Plough 79 – Royal Blenheim 82.
Bletchingdon Nomads continue their occasional habit of losing to championship opponents, this time at home to Woodstock Social Club, who consolidated their lead at the top of the division. The visitors took an early lead before Nomads fought back in rounds three and four so that after the pictures the gap was six in Woodstock's favour. The rest of the night was a disaster for Nomads, culminating in a score of 0 - 11 in round seven. Nomads took it in good spirit though - "just one of those nights". Bletchingdon Nomads 50 – Woodstock Social Club 77. And a very close result between two Oxford city teams ended Gardeners Arms 69 – Masons Arms 68.
White Hart 58 - Ploughman’s Bunch! 83. A warm welcome as ever in Eynsham, but the home team were depleted in the absence of Graham and despite some first-round bonuses found themselves 16-33 down before clawing something back with a victory on the pictures. Rounds five and six were closely contested under the inquisition of the avuncular Trevor, the home team hitting double figures in both of them, but each was shaded by the Bunch! with bonuses on Marti Webb and the Quaggas (what a band they were) and everyone sober enough to remember pizzicato. The Bunch! then won the give-it-away round rather more decisively, despite three bonuses for the home team, Beth inspired on the ginger beer before the next chapter in her lifelong quest to distinguish between cheese and egg sandwiches.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a geographically themed selection from this week below. W
Q1: Which English lake was created in 1730 when the River Westbourne was dammed?
Q2: What is the capital city of Turkmenistan?
Q3: Located in Caithness, what is the most northerly point of the Scottish mainland?
A1: The Serpentine (Hyde Park, London).
A2: Ashgabat. (capital of Turkmen SSR since 1925).
A3: Dunnet Head. (Gaelic: Ceann Dùnaid)
WEEK 12 - (1st Aug)
Four teams were in the sixties, two in the seventies, and one each in the eighties and the nineties this week, so it was just like the mini round of song lyrics. That was just one example of the great questions from Tim Busby this week, more below.
Woodstock Social Club bounced back to the top of the championship this week after one week in second place, courtesy of a win against the Gardeners Arms: Woodstock 78 - Gardeners 64. Woodstock built a five point lead after round two, with things remaining tight for the next three rounds. Round six was a killer for Gardeners as a 12-3 score meant it would be almost impossible to recover from there. Woodstock took the final round by a single point to confirm victory. And far away in the city of Oxford it was Royal Blenheim 69 - White Hart 63.
Ploughman’s Bunch! 83 - Bletchingdon Nomads 77. With no unanswered question until the penultimate one in round five, a root cause analysis would conclude that two strong teams faced gentler questions than in recent weeks. A bonus to the Nomads on the next question saw them cut the Bunch! lead to two, this following symmetrical 13-10s in the first two rounds, a full house in the third, the pictures also tied, and the home team sneaking ahead with a bonus on Mauritius. Round six was decisive, early bonuses cancelling each other out before the Bunch! extended their advantage to eight thanks to Taylor Swift and the Shakers, what a great band they were. The home team then lost their head, and the armour question was the second unanswered one of the night. But a drawn final round in which a further four unanswered questions were shared between the teams meant that the Nomads were unable to bridge the gap on a very enjoyable evening.
The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that’s the way to bet. The unbeaten top team the Plough travelled to the Blackbird, yet to register a win. The result is never certain, but after a full house first round, both teams all correct, it felt that things could go either way. With the Plough releasing Tim Cat for question reading duties fair play was ensured, and the scores were close each round, but the Plough pulled a little further ahead each time, including 20/20 vision on the pictures. The mini lyrics round produced some fine singing from the Plough, music lovers beware. Paula put on her finest buffet, very hungrily demolished, while Yorkie kept order at the bar. Then the final round was a disaster for the Blackbird, conceding three bonuses at 2-15 and it finished Blackbird 63 – Plough 92.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a sport themed selection from this week below.
Q1: Who won the 2021 Grand National on the horse Minella Times?
Q2: Who is the only player to win two Golden Ball trophies at the Men’s Football World Cup?
Q3: Which Harlequins captain was men’s England Rugby Union captain from 2012 to 2017?
A1: Rachael Blackmore.
A2: Lionel Messi. (2014 Brazil and 2022 Qatar)
A3: Chris Robshaw.
WEEK 11 - (25th July)
Another interesting and varied set of questions from Tim Busby this week produced some tight, twisting matches. The championship lead has changed again, set up for a possible tight finish.
Two premiership teams met at their home venue, the Plough Wolvercote, but it was the Plough who were playing hosts to their friendly rivals and stablemates, the Ploughman’s Bunch! The home side got off to a slow start, losing the first two rounds to fall four behind thanks to some inspired picking from Beth of the Bunch! The Plough pulled five back to go one ahead in the third round, where the Bunch! secured the only bonus but selected two unanswered questions and were landed with another two at the end of mini-rounds. Even stevens in the picture round, then again the Bunch! were cursed to pick the three neither team knew in round five to fall seven adrift. Soft white baps and chips went down a treat, sustaining the teams for the final rounds. The home team just edged round six, then it was all even, in scores and blanks, in the final round to finish Plough 72 – Ploughman’s Bunch! 63.
The Blackbird and the Masons met in Headington Quarry, and the Masons made something of a shaky start being 30 – 36 down after the picture round. It was a game of two halves, with the Masons staging a recovery to finish Masons Arms 57 – Blackbird 52 at the final whistle.
The score in Woodstock after two rounds was 2-29. Although the Woodstock SC persevered well after that, but it was not enough against the Blenheim, who logged the highest score of all teams for the third consecutive week. Woodstock Social Club 37 - Royal Blenheim 80.
Gardeners Arms 49 - White Hart 56. After three rounds the White Hart were leading 26-5. It was 12-1 in the first round thanks to the away side making inspired (lucky) choices. After the pictures they had increased the lead to 23 (41-18). But it was definitely a game where the second half contrasted with the first. Everything went the Gardeners’ way winning all three rounds. But they couldn't do quite enough to wipe out that big lead. As a result the White Hart go back to the top of the championship, where they spent the first three weeks of the season.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a city themed selection from this week below.
Q1: With a population of 465,000 what is the largest city in Nebraska?
Q2: Composer Frederick Delius was born in which British city?
Q3: Which is the largest city in the EU starting with ‘T’?
A1: Omaha. (2nd: Lincoln, 294,000)
A2: Bradford. (born Fritz Theodor Albert Delius, 1862, d. 1934)
A3: Turin. (847,000; 2nd: Tallinn, 457,000)
WEEK 10 - (18th July)
Average scores took a dip again this week, with some low scores, especially for the losing teams, three in the forties, roaring.
Did I jinx the Nomads last week by highlighting their record against championship opposition? Well, it happened again this week, White Hart 67 - Bletchingdon Nomads 45. The friendly tone for the evening was set when the visitors offered their 'spare' player to be question master, thus allowing Trevor, the White Hart's usual QM, to lend his knowledge to the team. The quiz itself had a low-scoring start, with both teams stuck firmly in single figures for the first two rounds. While the hosts found a bit of form after that, the Nomads' luck failed to change, with only a partial recovery in the final round, which came too late to prevent a sizable margin of defeat.
The Blenheim continue their high-scoring run of form, at the expense of visitors the Blackbird this week: Royal Blenheim 77 - Blackbird 42.
The start was delayed at the Plough following a misunderstanding wrapped in a misapprehension about the questions. Multiple calls and emails resolved the non-mystery as the questions were where they belonged. The start was delayed to 8:45, just like old times, when question-master Rupert magisterially decreed that there need be no further delay, and there wasn’t. A low-scoring start, 14-9 after two rounds, soon picked up when the home team won rounds three and five convincingly, punctuated by the Masons triumph (other cars are available) in the picture round. Two more low scores rounded things off in an odd night of eighteen unanswered questions and eighteen bonuses. It all ended around the usual time at: Plough 76 – Masons Arms 46.
Gardeners Arms 54 - Ploughman’s Bunch! 66. Setting the tone for a low-scoring contest, the teams were locked at 12-12 after two drawn rounds, both teams making some wrong choices and missing the odd open goal. A couple of bonuses in round three, with some inspired guesses, and surprisingly only conceding one point on the four motoring questions, saw the Bunch! take a narrow lead into the pictures, which were also tied, as was round six. Round five, though, was decisive - three bonuses handing the away team an 11-4 scoreline as David Quinn, fresh from a messy squash triumph, peaked; ten up going into the last round, the Bunch! coasted home. It was a real pleasure to be in the refurbished pub in North Parade, with its good range of beers, mysterious gins, and delicious food rustled up by Chloe on a very enjoyable evening.
WEEK 9 - (11th July)
So we reach the half-way point of the summer league, week nine of eighteen, and although the league positions are unchanged this week there were some intriguing results.
The Bletchingdon Nomads of the Premiership now have the dubious distinction of having lost three matches to Championship opposition, this week to the Gardeners Arms. It was a Lovely sunny evening at Bletchingdon with cricket being played outside, it almost felt like it was summer.
The Gardeners led for the first five rounds, and then on the sixth both teams were level on 62, but the visitors eventually won the seventh round by four points, after falling foul of the question about the longest river flowing into the English Channel, only thinking about England but fortunately the Nomads took into account that a channel has two sides! Both teams had a lovely friendly evening with lots of laughter, and a final score of Nomads 67 - Gardeners 71.
It was a very low scoring match at the Blackbird, pretty close for three rounds with the White Hart slowly edging ahead. The away team were up thirteen after the pictures and sixteen before the last round - lucky as they lost that 9-1. The Bird had only one of their usual Irish flag wavers; they correctly guessed that Limerick was the third largest city in the Republic. Guess where he came from? As ever a very enjoyable night: great food and great craic. It all finished Bird 51 - Hart 59. And across town it was Masons Arms 55 - Royal Blenheim 75.
There was a surprise guest question reader at Woodstock, Tim Busby, good to see him out and about. He witnessed a disastrous start for the home team, ten-nil behind in round one before recouping one question to 2-12. A stronger second round for the hosts lifted them to only three adrift, but the match slipped away as visitors the Plough won the next four rounds to go twenty ahead with only one round to play. Woodstock’s pride was restored by winning the final round convincingly 10-4, and the match finished Woodstock Social Club 60 – Plough 74.
In response to the Irish question some others, like me, tried to write a Limerick about Limerick, and failed on the tricky rhyme. So I googled this, from genius Tim Vine: “There was an old man from Limerick, who was completely unaware of the short, often humorous, poems that shared the same name as his hometown.” ©Tim Vine pun-slinger.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with a television themed selection from this week below.
Q1: Who was the original presenter of ‘Would I lie to you’?
Q2: Who has replaced Holly Willoughby as the female host on GMTV?
Q3: Who were the original (1965) team captains on ‘Call my Bluff’?
A1: Angus Deayton. (Rob Brydon took over from Series 3, 2009)
A2: Cat Deeley.
A3: Frank Muir and Robert Morley (later, Patrick Campbell)
WEEK 8 - (04th July)
As the people decide, the quiz teams debate, and there were some very high-scoring matches in an unprecedented© high-scoring landmark™ week. No photo ID was required, so the concessionary travel passes (other forms of ID may be acceptable) remained unexamined. No Nigels were harmed in writing this report.
Week eight in the summer league schedule was super Thursday, with two keenly contested all-premiership matches. The Nomads crossed constituency boundaries to visit the Plough Wolvercote, and it all started to go wrong for them as soon as it all started. The visitors contrived to pick the three unanswered questions in round one to go 12-6 behind, and apart from a tied picture round the rounds all went to the Plough with varying degrees of decisiveness. The home team could hardly put a foot wrong under Tim Cat’s steely captaincy, while the Nomads tripped up every time, consistently picking double blanks and conceding ten bonuses. The Plough ended with a super-majority landslide of 93 to the Nomads lost deposit of 61. And it was all very high-scoring at the Blenheim, who overcame the Ploughman’s Bunch! 84 – 75, no recount required.
The Masons went to the country, with a photo-op at the White Hart Eynsham, no hi-vis or hard hats needed. The visitors started strongly at question time, answering all their own questions plus a bonus in round one, then consolidated in round two to lead by seven points. The White Hart managed to recover to bring the scores level after the pictures. This situation continued after round six, which was cunningly slipped in fifth by question master Trevor in a 'Biden moment' (his words). The hosts then drew clear in rounds five and seven (still with me?) to record a rare victory. The exit polls showed White Hart 73 - Masons Arms 66.
Blackbird 66 - Woodstock Social Club 69. The result was a lot closer than Woodstock should have allowed, but a strong last round from Blackbird was not enough to overturn a twelve point deficit going into round seven. Rounds one and five were shared but a decisive 10 - 5 score to Woodstock in round six meant Blackbird's heroic (13 - 4) effort in round seven was to be in vain. Woodstock are now six points ahead at the top of the championship, with a clear mandate from the people for the next five years, sorry I meant doing well for the summer.
Thanks to Tim Busby for the questions, with an appropriately political selection from this week below. Weekly Scores, Reports etc. are at: www.oxfordshire-quiz-league.com
Q1: Which former MP (2010 – 19) wrote the 2023 autobiography ‘Politics on the Edge’?
Q2: Who became leader of the Welsh Labour Party and First Minister of Wales in March 2024?
Q3: Margaret Thatcher was MP for which London constituency from 1959 to 1992?
A1: Rory Stewart.
A2: Vaughan Gething.
A3: Finchley. (Finchley and Golders Green, won by Sarah Sackman, Labour, in 2024)
Music Table Top - (27th June)
Thanks to Jeff for a great quiz, and thanks to the Masons Arms for hosting it.
Cue the music, book the venue, and we are away! Eight teams, 43 people, met in the function room of the Masons Arms, Headington Quarry for a summer music quiz, and maybe a few of their excellent beers. The quiz, not the beer, was put together and hosted by music maestro Jeff Welch.
Jeff had curated six rounds of themed music clips, and one of twenty four pictures, and what a great selection it was, mixed up over the decades and styles, something for everyone. There was no limit on the numbers in a team, which varied from three to seven or eight.
Put the needle on the record for round one, twelve tracks by performers with literature-inspired names, opening perceptively with the Doors. Home team the Masons Arms started off with a maximum of twelve, equalled by the Royal Blenheim. Things can only get better in round two, sixteen songs with things in the title, and nobody wanted to miss a thing, especially the Blackbird, only missing one.
We crossed the pond for round three, to the city that never sleeps, for a New York theme, starting of course with Old, now dead, Blue Eyes himself. Woodstock Social Club equalled the Blenheim with a maximum twelve, but the Plough trio were only one behind with their best score of the night. Then Jeff distributed the twenty four pictures while there was a rush to the bar. The White Hart and local heroes the Masons Arms were top teams here, with a healthy twenty one each.
Three words repeated in the titles for round five saw another top score from an improving White Hart, while round six went from the sublime Clash: Rock ‘the’ Casbah to the ridiculous Prelude (where’s Neil?) After ‘the’ Goldrush, that is three word song titles sandwiching ‘the’. The Blenheim and the White Hart Pushed ‘the’ Button with fifteen, with the rest Up ‘the’ Junction and Down ‘the’ Dustpipe.
Groups with mis-spellt names were the theme of round six, and it was much to Tim Cat’s disappointment that there was no Leonard Skinhead. The Nomads finally found their best form, equal top scoring with eleven, but much like Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams it was Too much, too little, too late. The Ploughman’s Bunch! distinguished themselves in round two, achieving the equal lowest score, but in every other round they managed the lowest score unaccompanied.
With only the thirty-nine point blockbuster to go, it was close at the top with the Blackbird third. But the White Hart were top team in the blockbuster, as they were in all of the final five rounds, but it was not quite enough, ending one point short of winners the Royal Blenheim, congratulations to them.
1. Royal Blenheim 122
2. White Hart 121
3. Blackbird 119
4. Masons Arms 112
5. Nomads 108
6. Woodstock Social Club 108
7. Plough 107
8. Ploughmans Bunch! 82
WEEK 7 - (20th June)
The Plough were honoured to be the first away team to visit the revived Gardeners Arms North Parade, and it was good to see the home team back in their rightful place. Our interiors correspondent writes that the traditional look has been preserved, but with a smart redecoration and new seating it’s a timely refurbishment that preserves the best of the original features. The visitors were on good form, winning the first three rounds and the pictures, before the home team found their mojo in round five to win it 11-8. A good performance by the Gardeners was overcome by a stronger one from the Plough to take the match Gardeners Arms 61 – Plough 87. The food was truly a Barmecide feast (you may need to look that up), and a good night was had by all, with fun, sociability and beer, it’s good to be back.
With the Euros post-match celebrations having been cancelled, it was eerily quiet in Bletchingdon.
However, it didn’t take long for fans to realise that the real match of the day was about to kick off at 8.00pm with a Premiership game between the Nomads & Royal Blenheim. Both teams made a great start - taking 23 out of a maximum 24 points in Round One. It remained nip and tuck during the first half with the Nomads leading by just 2 points as the teams began Round 5. The Nomads then tried to induce an air of complacency into their opponents’ mindset by talking about the Nomads traditional ‘Round 5 collapse’. But cunningly the Nomads won Round Five 13-8 and, at last they had a significant lead of 7 points as they began Round Six. However, the Nomads hadn’t avoided their traditional ‘Round 5 collapse’ – they’d just delayed it until Round 6 which the Royal Blenheim took 5-13. And so there was only one point in it again as the teams went into the final ‘give it away’ round. Unfortunately for the Blenheim, they gave away questions that, not only did they know, but so too did the Nomads. So the Nomads took the round 12-4 and the final score was Nomads 77 – 70 Royal Blenheim. There was more food and drink than either team could manage, and a great evening was had by all.
Woodstock Social Club 63 – Masons Arms 61. A very even game that could have gone either way. Woodstock SC had three regulars out, but their replacements did very well. The Masons levelled the scores half way through round seven but the deciding question turned out to be about that legendary Hartlepool character, Andy Capp. He provided a bonus point for Woodstock SC.
Bunch! 77-50 Blackbird. On a sunny evening and in the aftermath of England's stirring draw with Denmark, the Bunch! edged round one despite Darragh's inside knowledge of Bradley Walsh's other work, and took control with a 10-4 round two which included a lucky bonus on Dearborn and an unlikely one on ancient cars. If the Disney mini-round was up their or at least Beth's, street the 2023 Sport one was even more so as David Quinn garnered all six points and vindicated the decision to have Martin reading. Despite the Blackbirds' triumph on the pictures the Bunch! went into the second half with a double-figure lead. They extended this with bonuses on Dad's Army and Mary Norton in round five (all players who were old enough to have listened to Housewives' Choice now too old to remember it); and another fortunate bonus on Kubla Khan gave the Bunch! a narrow win in round six before the jovial visitors finally ran out of steam to concede the final round 2-10 (Judas Priest!) and usher in timely and tasty food to close out another enjoyable evening.
WEEK 6 - (13th June)
Average scores this week have crept back up towards the early season highs, a happy development for all. And it’s welcome back to the Gardeners Arms, North Parade, who have migrated en masse from the Seacourt, after holding their home games there for nearly two years. The Gardeners had a tough first match in their new identity, away at the Royal Blenheim. The Blenheim achieved the highest score of the week by a long way, while the Gardeners were no doubt still reeling from their house move. The score was Royal Blenheim 77 – Gardeners Arms 44.
Jonny took advantage of the Plough’s bye to drop in as guest question reader when the Nomads visited the Blackbird, and what a match it was. It was a narrow 10-7 win to the home team in round one, then after a tied round two the Blackbird got all theirs right in round three, while the Nomads missed out on their final two to finish the round 12-8. But they gained two more in the picture round and dominated round five 4-11 to take the lead for the first time. A strong comeback from the Blackbird, 11-5 in the sixth, launched them into the final round four ahead. The first four questions of give-it-away went unanswered, and with only four to go the home side were one ahead at 58-57, what could possibly go wrong? Quizzer’s nightmare – a Blackbird chirped out the answer to the question they had given away to the Nomads (Niels Bohr, never to be forgotten). Very sportingly the Nomads did not take this answer as their own (they admitted later that they had not known) but took a spare, and got it. Both teams got the last two right to end Blackbird 60 – Bletchingdon Nomads 62 (would or could have been 61-60, alas). That’s how it goes, unfortunately. Yorkie the barman kept the drinks moving and Paula put on the super buffet of stew, doorstep sandwiches, sausage rolls and baked spuds. Perfect for a cold rainy night, even one in mid-June.
At the Masons in the Quarry a tight game played out under the cricket on the big screen, with Oman (Oh man!) frequently losing a couple of wickets during the time the teams took to either choose a subject, or deliver an answer they'd thought of straightaway. The visitors took the lead mid-way through round one with a hogget and were never behind after that. The Masons did level it up at the end of round two with a bonus on Reveille, but the Bunch! then took the next six points on Scotland. The home team kept plugging away and reduced the deficit to one after the pictures and over the generous food, but the Bunch! edged round five - only to pick two unanswered letter questions to allow the Masons to equalise the scores again on the seventh question of the penultimate round. The away team took the next nine points, though, and so could afford to concede the last round narrowly on what was a tense but enjoyable evening, the win down to some inspired answers from across the team and steely captaincy from Beth. Final score: Masons Arms 61-67 Ploughman’s Bunch!
Woodstock Social Club 62 - White Hart 56. As the result shows, this was a close game. It didn't seem that way after round two though, as Woodstock had built an eleven point lead by then. White Hart then took the next four rounds to reduce the lead to a single point going into round seven. Earlier on the White Hart had graciously allowed Woodstock's answer 'Minister for War' to stand after question reader Marise had (quite correctly) disallowed it. At one point it looked as though this might end up as the final difference between the teams, which might have been awkward! However Woodstock took the last three questions to put the result beyond any 'what ifs'.
WEEK 5 - (6th June)
I was expecting the questions this week to feature the small boats crossing to Dunkirk, sorry I meant D-Day, I always confuse those two. So, in grateful and respectful tribute to those who made that crossing eighty years ago, a few references may invade the report this week, brought to you by special correspondent Norman D Landings. Tim Busby was again the Overlord of the tricky questions, with average scores dropping from last week’s low of 57 to a nadir (so far?) of under 53.
For the second week running a premiership side lost out to championship opponents, and again it was the hapless Nomads who got the fuzzy end of the lollipop. Back up to full strength the Masons hauled their landing craft on to the Nomads beaches, where John the question master performed “unplugged” for the evening. The Masons got off to a flying start at the beachhead, but it was nip and tuck all the way to the final score which was Bletchingdon Nomads 56 – Masons Arms 57. This gave the Masons their first win of the summer season, in what they described as a really enjoyable quiz with some tough but fair questions.
Some bright spark set off an electrical fire in the White Hart, Eynsham, leading to an evacuation to the Red Lion along the road. The questions, and Trevor the question reader, survived the blaze non-smoking. The Plough stuttered to a small lead which was put to the sword by the White Hart, winning round three 11-1 with three bonuses, which in the event was their high water mark. The final two rounds were decisive, going for gold at 26-3 overall to the away team, to finish the match White Hart 37 – Plough 69. And on the unnaturally quiet Botley Road the result in Elms Parade view was Seacourt Bridge Inn 63 – Blackbird 38, which boosts the Seacourt to the pinnacle of the championship.
Ploughman’s Bunch! 65-36 Woodstock Social Club. The hosts started well again, 7-2 up with two bonuses, until the Woodstock clawed three back on the last two questions of the opening round. But a solid round two in which the Bunch! somehow got all their questions right, plus another bonus, saw them extend the lead, and a 9-2 round three, plus 11-7 on the pictures, put them a neat 40-20 up at the break as both teams enjoyed the food rather more than what had preceded it. The low-scoring trend continued with the visitors' first high-spot, a drawn fifth round (5-5), then the home side won the last two rounds comfortably before the Woodstock triumphed in the blockbuster. Answers of the night, under DQ's assured chairmanship, came in the shape of David's davits, Shabba Ranks, and AO. Let’s go!
WEEK 4 - (30th May)
Tim Busby certainly cranked up the level of difficulty this week, with average scores dropping from seventy last week to some way below sixty. All matches had an unusually high number of unanswered questions too, but it’s good to be challenged occasionally, and all teams get the same questions.
A premiership team fell to championship opposition for the first time this summer – so the questions may be tricky, but they have produced some interesting results. After a strong start being three points ahead, Woodstock managed to hang on to the lead with all the rounds just one point apart. The Nomads slowly crept back up, but the last two rounds saw the hosts increase their lead and secure a win in the final questions. Woodstock Social Club 55 – Bletchingdon Nomads 51, taking Woodstock to the top of the championship.
Masons Arms 37 - Seacourt 61. Very pleasant evening with lovely food and company. Sadly though both teams struggled with the first two rounds, as exactly half of the questions were 0-0 and in a lot of instances even when the answer was given no one was any the wiser! Luckily the other rounds were more normal.
Ploughman’s Bunch! 73-44 White Hart. The Bunch! were quick out of the traps again, taking the first seven points before selecting their share of the unanswered questions to end round one 9-6 up; after the first four picks of round two were answered correctly, the visitors went on a bad run, securing just two of the next twenty points - so that although the pictures were shared, the White Hart went into the second half, after a fine array of food, 44-25 down. Round five was also drawn, but the Bunch! extended their advantage in the closing stages. It was a good team performance against cheerful opponents, Beth returning to captain with calm assurance, a 12-1 bonus count to the Bunch! including David Parr's Dan Walker, Charles's Roanoke and Orogeny, and Liz's Paul Desmond - although Isonomy, Melinoë, and Young Thug had to be supplied by magisterial question-master David Quinn.
The Plough were downtown in the Blenheim, very busy and noisy until about 9pm, when peace descended. The visitors were narrowly ahead after four rounds, but capitulated in the fifth to fall five behind, which was going to be difficult to recoup against a full strength Blenheim team. But after one key Plough player self-evicted for an early bath, the four survivors regrouped under captain Nancy. A couple of bonuses in round six pulled the Plough up to only three behind, and it was still like that after the first four questions of give-it-away. Then some magic happened, the away team landed ten points without reply, and the Blenheim could only ‘peel the power’ recoup a consolation two points on Bananaman to finish Royal Blenheim 64 – Plough 69.
WEEK 3 - (23th May)
Average scores jumped up to within a cat’s whisker of seventy points this week, but it’s the Nomads in the cat’s pyjamas, overcoming the Ploughman’s Bunch! in the premiership. Elsewhere, Woodstock Social Club had a night to remember in Botley to rise up the championship.
It was an interesting night at the all-premiership match in Bletchingdon, and the game started well for visitors the Bunch! The away team picked up a bonus and their own question at the start of round one, but then the Nomads woke up to win the round 12-5. The Bunch! pulled two points back in round two, then the Nomads won round three by five points, giving them a ten-point lead. The picture round and the fifth were both won by a point by the Bunch!, then the Nomads collapse was a round late. So Nomads went into the final round only two points up. After ten questions of Give it away, it was all square, Nomads gave Bunch! the topic "Rivers". No one knew the River Axe. So Rock Albums to the Nomads. And their resident rock musician stepped up to the plate, knowing "The Endless River " (not the Axe) was by Pink Floyd. Proof that careful selection in the Give it away round is very important! Final score, winning by a whisker, Bletchingdon Nomads 73 – Ploughman’s Bunch! 71.
A delayed start due to traffic issues meant the Seacourt was even more noisy and raucous when the quiz got going. At times Carsten seemed in danger of losing his voice, having to shout the questions. Woodstock got off to a flyer and built an eleven-point lead after just two rounds. Things settled down for the next three rounds, before the Seacourt reduced the lead to five points in round six. The first four questions in round seven all went to the Seacourt to give them a one point advantage and the possibility of victory. However the remainder of the questions favoured Woodstock, and with the round drawn it meant a win for Woodstock. This leapfrogs them from last in the championship to second place, pole vaulting the three higher teams, with a leap and a bound. It all ended Seacourt Inn 63 - Woodstock Social Club 68.
The Plough made the most of their last home match before election night (had you heard?) by losing 0 – 6 to the Blackbird on the first ‘mini’ round in the 3x4 round three. But that was the high point for the away team, missing some regulars and bringing in new and occasional players, a warm welcome to them. The Plough, like the Nomads, were ten points ahead after three rounds despite a strong showing from the Blackbird, 11-7 with three bonuses, in round three. But the Plough pulled further ahead in every round, under Tim’s captaincy, to finish the match with the highest score of the night: Plough 87 – Blackbird 53. The Blenheim were way out west at the White Hart in Eynsham, with Trevor keeping his usual calm control, only to see the home team finish twelve points adrift at White Hart 66 – Royal Blenheim 78.
WEEK 2 - (16th May)
We are settling into summer with Tim Busby back as question setter, but with only nine teams competing there are just four matches each week to report on. All four premiership teams won this week, two at home and two away.
The Plough went up the hill to Headington Quarry for an firm favourite fixture against their friends the Masons Arms, always a keenly anticipated match. The home team made a strong start, winning the first round by one point, and drawing the second 10-10 with two bonuses each, so that could have finished very differently had either team picked other letters. Round three was the first of two decisive wins for the Plough with four bonuses to take it 12-4. The Masons won the picture round and give-it-away, but a further two bonuses in round six swung the match for the visitors. Final score Masons Arms 63 - Plough 76.
Ploughman’s Bunch! 76-43 Seacourt. A depleted Seacourt outfit had a particularly luckless opening three rounds, the Bunch! racking up a 29-8 lead despite only edging the bonuses 5-2 as the away team chose nine questions that neither team knew. After nearly trebling their score via the pictures, the Seacourt won round five but that was as good as it got for them, with the Bunch! taking the last two rounds, despite the Seacourt's boxing Answer of the Night, to romp home under Martin's assured chairmanship, buoyed by tasty food.
The Nomads are always aware that the visit of their friends from Eynsham is a fun and interesting night. Nomads won the first three rounds and the picture round, and were fourteen points up. They thought they had got rid of the round five collapse - alas no, lost it 12 2 . That cut the lead to four, then the White Hart collapsed, the Nomads won round six 12-5. A small loss in round 7 still left the final score Nomads 66 - White Hart 57. And the Blenheim travelled to the Blackbird, winning 62-79.
WEEK 1 - (9th May)
Summer is here! After a lively tabletop hosted by the Blackbird and set by Frank Dillon last week, the regular weekly league matches started this week, and it felt like summer at last on a warm sunny evening. Warm evening, cold beer, hot quiz, it’s all good. And we welcome back Tim Busby as our summer setter, with thanks to Jeff Welch for a stimulating winter league, now a distant memory.
The Nomads opened their account with a win at the Seacourt. The Nomads came into the summer league with a scratch team due to holiday absences, but received a warm welcome from the Seacourt Bridge, who were similarly depleted. The first round was a slow affair, the home team taking it 6-5. Round two, 7-8 to the Nomads, evening it up 13 all. Round three, a bad one for Seacourt 1-8. Picture 14-16 and Nomads began to stretch their lead. The remaining rounds were a similar story 2-10, 5-9, with the final round being 7-12. Nomads running out winners 42-66. A great night with great hosts.
The Blackbird went west to Eynsham to meet the White Hart, who welcomed them for the second time in about a month, and saw their visitors take an early lead. The new 'pick a letter' round proved fruitful for the hosts as some fortunate choices enabled them to take it 12-3, and establish a lead which they then extended over the following rounds. A revival by the Blackbird in round five cut the lead back into single figures, but the number of 70s-based questions was more to the hosts' liking than Darragh's (as he may have mentioned), and made for a relatively comfortable margin in the end. White Hart 71 - Blackbird 56.
The Plough hosted the Woodstock Social Club, another repeat of a recent match. The Plough were at full strength and on top form, winning every round and a hatful of bonuses. Woodstock came closest on the pictures, falling only one short, and pulled out some great answers, especially on classic 60s and 70s pop and rock, but it was not enough to save the day. The visitors won their first bonus on the last question, appropriately enough on a 1976 Queen LP, but the match was in the bag for the Plough, winning 88 - 61. And in downtown St Ebbes, in the shadow of the mighty Westgate Shopping Centre it was Royal Blenheim 76 – Masons Arms 61.