Brain of Britain

Revision as of 18:13, 14 February 2011

Host

Franklin Engelmann (1968-72)

Robert Robinson (1973-2008)

Russell Davies (stand-in, 2004, 2009, host 2010-)

Peter Snow (2007)

Co-hosts

Adjudicators (usually silent): "Mycroft" (Ian Gillies, 1973-2001), "Jorkins" (Kevin Ashman, 2002-7)

Broadcast

BBC Radio 4, 16 January 1968 to present

Synopsis

Radio's premier clever-clogs quiz show, originally spun-off from a segment in What Do You Know?.

Four contenders gather from a selected region of the UK, and the presenter asks a question of each, continuing until they get one wrong - that's open to the other contestants on (silent) buzzers. There's a point for a correct answer, five in a row gains a bonus mark, and ten seconds are allowed for thought. In the event of a tie, bonus questions count double; a five question play-off is available if required.

Half-way through each episode is a "Beat The Brains" section, where a listener sets two questions, hoping to stump the panel on one, and win a book token. Like the main quiz, this interlude was also carried over from What Do You Know?.

The contest features 48 competitors - eight each from London, the Home Counties, the Midlands and East Anglia, the North of England, four from the South-West, and four drawn from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Until 2006, each heat featured people from the same geographic region. The twelve heat winners, and four highest-scoring runners-up, compete in semi-finals, with the winner of each advancing to the final.

Every three years, the annual winners return for a Brain of Brains competition. Every nine years, the triennial champions compete in the Top Brain contest, possibly eight years after their original triumph. The Brain of Brains and Top Brain scheduled for 2007 were delayed until September 2008, allowing Robert Robinson to return to the host's chair.

In recent years, Robert Robinson's health has not been good enough for him to participate, despite the show relocating to London on occasion to facilitate his continuing contributions. 2007 saw Peter Snow taking up the mantle, along with a few other minor changes: contestants will introduce themselves rather than a speil by the host, and will be referred to by their first names rather than Robinson's traditional "Mr Jones/Mrs Smith". Also, a production team set the questions rather than one individual, as Kevin Ashman was unable to travel to Manchester regularly. Robinson returned for the 2008 series, but was again absent in 2009, with Russell Davies standing in. In August 2010, Robinson announced that he would not be returning, allowing Davies to officially step up to the the role of host.

Champions

Regular Series

Those listed for 1954-1967 are winners of the Brain of Britain segment of What Do You Know?

1954	Martin Dakin	1972	A. Lawrence	1990	Jim Eccleson	2008-9	Geoff Thomas
1955	Arthur Maddock	1973	Glyn Court	1991	Chris Wright	2009-10	Ian Bayley
1956	Anthony Carr [1]	1974	Roger Pritchard	1992	Mike Billson	2010-11	Iwan Thomas
1957	Rosemary Watson	1975	Winifred Lawson	1993	Geoffrey Colton
1958	David Keys	1976	Thomas Dyer	1994	Ian Wynn-Mackenzie
1959	Dr Reginald Webster	1977	Martin Gostelow	1995	Ian Kinloch
1960	Patrick Bowing	1978	James Nesbitt	1996	Kevin Ashman
1961	Irene Thomas	1979	Arthur Gerard	1997	Daphne Fowler
1962	Henry Button	1980	Tim Paxton	1998	Guy Herbert
1963	Ian Barton	1981	Peter Barlow	1999	Leslie Duncalf
1964	Ian Gillies	1982	John Pusey	2000	Mike Smith-Rawnsley
1965	Robert Crampsey	1983	Sue Marshall	2001	Tom Corfe
1966	Richard Best	1984	Peter Bates	2002	Dr David Jones
1967	Lt. Cmdr. Loring	1985	Richard Fife	2003	David Stedman
1968	Ralph Raby	1986	Stephen Gore	2004	Alan Bennett
1969	T. D. Thomson	1987	Ian Sutton	2005	Christopher Hughes
1970	Ian Matheson	1988	Paul Monaghan	2006	Pat Gibson
1971	Fred Morgan	1989	Barbara Thompson	2007	Mark Bytheway

[1] At 18-years-old, the youngest ever winner.

Brain of Brains

1956	Anthony Carr
1959	Unknown
1962	Irene Thomas
1965	Ian Gillies
1968	Unknown
1971	Unknown
1974	Roger Pritchard
1977	Tom Dyer
1980	James Nesbitt
1983	Peter Barlow
1986	Richard Fife
1989	Glen Binnie [1]
1992	Mike Billson
1995	Geoffrey Colton
1998	Kevin Ashman
2001	Leslie Duncalf
2004	Alan Bennett
2008	Mark Bytheway

[1] Mr Binnie finished second to Miss Thompson in the 1989 final, and took her place when she was unavailable to record the Brain of Brains competition.

Top Brain

1962	Anthony Carr
1971	Ian Gillies
1980	Roger Pritchard
1989	Peter Barlow
1998	Kevin Ashman
2008	Mark Bytheway

(The assistance of Quizplayers in this section is acknowledged.)

Catchphrase

"Aaaah." (and other slightly pained cries, as Robert Robinson fills while the adjudicator considers an answer.)

Theme music

Various versions of "Rondo", including that by the fabulously named Waldo de los Rios.

Trivia

The record score on a programme final is 35, although there have been higher scores in earlier rounds.

Former producer Richard Edis explained the show's appeal, "When the audience hear a question to which they know the answer, they feel warm. When they know and the competitors don't, they're positively incandescent."

Merchandise

A Brain of Britain quiz book was published in 1986.

Feedback

@@ Line 45: / Line 45: @@
 |'''1955''' ||Arthur Maddock || '''1973''' ||Glyn Court ||'''1991''' || Chris Wright || '''2009-10''' || Ian Bayley
 |-
-|'''1956''' ||Anthony Carr [1] || '''1974''' ||Roger Pritchard ||'''1992''' || Mike Billson
+|'''1956''' ||Anthony Carr [1] || '''1974''' ||Roger Pritchard ||'''1992''' || Mike Billson || '''2010-11''' || Iwan Thomas
 |-
 |'''1957''' ||Rosemary Watson || '''1975''' ||Winifred Lawson||'''1993''' || Geoffrey Colton