PUBLISHED 21 March 2022
On Wednesday of last week, Mr Green and I, alongside seven intrepid Lower School quizzers set off for Bury Grammar School in the exciting annual excursion that is the Junior Schools’ Challenge – a contest loosely based on its bigger and better-know university brother. Unlike UC, this version involves ‘stealing’ answers from your opponents if they get any wrong, so careful listening to the question by both sides could bring reward (as we all know, listening carefully is the forte of children everywhere).
East Lancashire weather did not disappoint: dishcloth-grey skies, and the fine rain that soaks you through being readily supplied as we parked up by the school. We were greeted in BGS’s fine central library where teams from Stockport GS, Lancaster RGS, Merchant Taylor’s, Calday Grange and BGS prepared for action. Suitably fortified by sandwiches (tuna, ham or cheese), a chocolate biscuit, crisps (plain – can’t go wrong) an apple, and an orange juice, we were trooped off to the history rooms to begin our Round Robin preliminary matches. Up against strong opposition, our B team of Michael, Charlie, Mayank and Myles were unsuccessful in their matches, though they came tantalisingly close in one game. Mr Green reported that they had given a good account of themselves.
Next door the A squad of Hiruni, Taym and Oliver were working hard to buzz in quickly. They were involved in an exciting tie-break against Stockport which we won, but a weaker performance against Bury sadly saw us eliminated (as indeed were the same Bury team). So neither squad made it through to the semi-finals (shades of MCFC v Stoke in 1998 – reference for older readers), but there was much to enjoy, as usual. Particularly, as ever, the amazingly arcane questions which the setters seem to think thirteen-year-olds should reasonably know – obscure proverbs and collective nouns, long-forgotten silent cinema stars, TV programmes of the 1970s, literary works of the eighteenth century, Eurovision Song Contest entries, wildflower names, highfalutin musical terminology, brain-bending calculus, accurate recall of numbers of esoteric elements in the Periodic Table, and a whole gallimaufry of other unconsidered trifles. And we wouldn’t have it any other way!
Our two teams enjoyed meeting like-minded youngsters from other schools, and the cut-and-thrust of competition. We hope for better luck next year, and need to keep practising our buzzer technique and, perhaps on occasions, our listening skills. Quiz Club is every Wednesday and new members are welcome because, of course, general knowledge is for life – not just for Christmas.
David Smyth