Hot off the press Hound

What a terrible week, "the humanity! the humanity!  '. I lost a toenail and Robson spent most of Wednesday escaping from his eiderdown.

The rest of this tale , if you are sitting gently, will be told with the aid of autocorrect and the letters D and S

Round One - Landmarks, surprisingly we'd only been to 2 out of ten of them each but recognition  was enough for full points.

Then it went mental;. Face recognition in Chinese bogs? Winklepickers and the noise clogs make? Did Leonard Cohen teach us nothing? ( the last was not an actual question).. A good shout on Hungary banning Heineken and we all moved on making our Klumpen noise in the shoes round. Ugg is not the name for Eskimo boots. Note for future selves, it's always Asda if in doubt.

And so we continued down the rabbit hole; A pint arrived that said "drink me" so I did .

Connections- fluke, Turin shroud, Tony hatch and Moonraker lead us to nautical terms . 10/10

And so the Vallaint four took on the Ten Pointers ; Bruce Willis, Trevor Francis and Lionel Richie. Fuck 'em all I say. (Not in one day, might take it out of you). This left the Hound feeling confident at the half way point.

So, here we took a break and then settled in for the second half

Connections took us from Beirut to nit-comb via the exotic, a well travelled route.

The Jeopardy round started out deceptively tame but descended into farce with the question 'Name one of Adele's two number one singles'. Graham claimed to have never heard 'Hello' which lead to Steve, Robin and myself trying to offer renditions of this ballad sotto vocce in order not to alert the other teams (as if they didn't already know the answer).
Steve: Hello...
Graham: Hello?
Robin: .....from the other side
Daren: the scousers?
Robin: Hello
Graham: Hello?
All: HELLO
Graham: impacted waxy eardrum


We did manage to swerve some nasty bear traps so all was well with team Hound.

The music round passed me by with nothing of note

No, seriously ladies and gentlemen , we won. Only 3 teams but we won

This is probably a very poor representation of the night but I like to see myself as a Monet, giving impression through shining light in equal measures as shadow in order to see the whole. You are entitled to see it as bollocks.

This year's Hound Maundy Thursday, on 13th April, will be a jaunt to Hastings for mini golf and fish and chips on the beach, all washed down with copious amounts of alcohol. The 'Houndwarts' express leaves from east Croydon at about 10:00 am. More details available upon request.

St Patrick O'Hound

Runners and riders. A small field but quality not quantity. Graham and myself had spent most of the week enjoying the weather and watching the racing, Mike was off to a funeral tomorrow.

Now Siobhan and Gerry don't need many excuses to throw in some Irish themed questions; with St Paddy's tomorrow and in the middle of Cheltenham. So we braced ourselves, looked around nervously at the rest of the runners and riders....

And we're off! The first obstacle was this bunch of eejits.

Randomly perm Mary/Sinead or Dermot/Declan/Patrick with Murphy/Fitzpatrick/O'Connor and you'll get 2 or 3. we got 7 1/2, still not sure who number four is.

Current Affairs is always a tough obstacle. We got the Crufts winning dog and that Ed Sheeran would cameo in Game of Thrones but stumbled over whose stamps were being sent into space and the strength of that Cape Doctor.

Down the back straight and unsurprisingly round three would be "Ireland". Again not a 100% clean jumping display, not knowing what boxty is (again I think) or Ireland's all-time biggest musical act (U2, not Riverdance) but there were some accurate leaps over the identity of Rosemary Scanlon and who coined the name "Vanessa".

Next up would be the connections and that of "Dame" was bagged in two by yours truly, serene progress through this round. Ten pointers dispatched easily and it was halfway with one circuit complete. Judgement of the experts? Travelling nicely with plenty in hand but still in a leading group of 3 or 4 with no outright leader.

Out into the country on the 2nd circuit with the connections. Now, with apologies to David Coleman, the Hound started to open its legs and show its class. Champ was effortlessly linked to Pnhom Penh which flowed smoothly to Humble Pie. Sceptic brought it all back again and the Hound was starting to ask questions of the rest of the field. Onto the Jeopardy though and what's this? A rare stumble. We didn't know one of the gentlemen of Verona, let alone both of them? All of a sudden it was out of our hands. A non-existant bear trap was swerved regarding an 1815 battle and we levelled up into the home straight and the music round.

Expecting yet more Oirishness, the music actually played out well for us. Only Level 42 required a second listen to identify the song as we powered up the finishing hill. But was it enough? Relief all round when it was apparent nobody had nailed the jeopardy and it played out to a 5 lengths (points) win for the Hound. The Busters were a gallant second with The Anoraks having fallen at the Jeopardy, gambling on those Two Gentlemen of Verona.

Cue a hosing down with a celebratory pint/carrot depending preference and bring on the Gold Cup. One from my hols.

Slán leat

Pictures of Hounds

A double feature this week, covering the Saturday night 6th Purley cubs quiz in addition to the usual Thursday night nonsense.

Thursday first, Steve's in the house along with myself and Robson. Mike is once more surplus to Lady & Tramps requirements and joins us to make four. Siobhan declares that Steve seems to sense when she is going to set  a TV/films round and turns up accordingly. Truth is he has been team bonding in London and is still on his way home. Photographic evidence of Daren's op scar is produced, he hopes to get along to the Smugglers on Gold Cup/Paddy's day.

Pictures play to a strength as well, images of little doggies.

 

 

Some uncertainty between cocker/springer spaniel but other wise plain sailing and full marks.

 

Current affairs includes this week's hot topic in the O'Neill household, the collapse of Gozo's azure window. Mike chips in on a couple including one about the Imperial War Museum. Unable to get the African airport with a crap runway (Lagos), too many likely contenders, or that Rochdale has banned swearing in the streets, good luck enforcing that one. Two other gender equality questions are also missed, a drop relative to recent standards. 

 

    

 

Twenty out of twenty on the above mentioned TV/films round without breaking sweat.

 

Shocked to find that that the Connections round is already 6 questions old by the time I return from buying a round.  The team has already established that Batman is the answer to Question 10, but I am able to fill in two gaps with General Gordon and Maureen O'Hara. The former subsequently turns up again on Saturday.

 

Ten point questions negotiated successfully. Brighton Rock had to be the percentage bet for the Graham Greene book featuring Ida Arnold, and all pretty sure that The Sheffield Steelers play Ice Hockey.

 

Chain letters sorted out much better this week, full marks on questions covering Billy Goats Gruff, lobsters, mountains. sleeves, castles, inhalers, indian bread, school days off, plastic receptacles, shoulder decorations and listening. Plenty of variation.   

 

        

 

Only one real stumbling block on the Jeopardy Round this week, not prepared to guess at the English translation of 'Dachshund' and probably don't have to. Turns out to be Badger Hound.

 

Slight slip between OMD's 'Joan of Arc' and 'Maid of Orleans' but otherwise good on the music round. A decent win, 6 clear of second place. Everyone contributed enough to suggest that it might have been a different story with less of us.

 

I often end up with at least one cryptic note that I can't remember the significance of, but this week's is up there with the best. 'Mary's dad is an Iran ayatollah's little sister'. Any offers from people there as to what this was about, or indeed anybody else?

 

In other news, one of the Anoraks has extended an invitation to join his team for a wholly music quiz in Cheam on Weds 19 April. £5 a head for St Raphael's Hospital, teams of up to 8.

 

Onto Saturday, myself and Robson joined by Clare and Jane. The wall display behind handy for the subsequent astronomy questions.

 

 

 

 

Eight rounds of ten questions covering good old fashioned quiz subjects, Films/History/Food & Drink/Art & Lit/Sport/Geography/Science & Nature/Gen Knowledge. Joker for double points on selected round. 20 songs, artist only required, to finish.

 

Fair play to the quizmaster, who is known for revelling in setting difficult questions, some very good questions including ones that can be solved with logic and reason, or guessed as it is sometimes known. Could perhaps have had a few more easier ones, at least one team scored zero on the first round. We scored a more than decent 7 out of 10 in all 4 of the first half rounds. Delighted to report that we got the Harvey Wallbanger question correct, overturning years of obstinately getting this one wrong. Believe it or not Siobhan's team couldn't remember it! She may also have a recognised a question about peas, we somehow didn't even though it was suggested and also fell for a Winston Churchill Bear Trap. If it looks, sounds or smells like a Bear trap then it probably is a Bear trap. 4th place at halfway, but all 3 ahead of us have played their joker and only The Quizacles 11 points ahead look difficult to catch.

 

Half time food is another unqualified success for the kitchen ladies, chicken in white wine sauce followed by apple/raspberry strudel with custard. Apparently kitchen ladies have long memories and at least one still harbours a grudge that they were referred to as old in a previous year's blog! We naturally quickly put this down to Kevster denying any knowledge ourselves. Whilst we are on the subject a big up to Kevster for the use of his BT subscription to watch not only Man City 5 Monaco 3, but also Barcelona 6 PSG 1.   

 

 

Sport turned out  to be our poorest round, only 5 out of 10. Other teams actually all got less, except an 8 for The Quizacles increasing their lead to 14. We managed 8 for each of the remaining regular  rounds (doubled up for Geography) to their 7 each time. 

 

Memorable correct answers include Filo Pastry, Sapphire, Ivanhoe and Parsec, one each see if you can guess who. Only 3 adrift going into the music...

 

Local people still remember the year when this same quizmaster said of the music round, 'I don't need the name of the pieces  just the composer and the year'. Thankfully this year it is pop/rock and only the artists are needed.   

 

We missed only two, agonisingly at it turned out. Instead of McFly/Pat Boone we should have stuck with Busted/Bobby Darin, our first thoughts. Quizacles scored 16 taking it by 1 point, a couple of boxes of Quality Street our consolation prize. I earned some kudos from the evening's host for being the onlyone to recognise the final tune as Looking Glass. A few familiar faces from the PA stopped off at our table for a friendly chat. And a couple of bottles won in the raffle rounded off a good evening for all concerned

 

Graham

 

 

 

 

 



Slam Dunk Hound

An unusual make up to the team this week. With regulars sidelined from the Hound and LATT, we joined forces with Mike and David. Would this be a match made in heaven or clash of styles? It shall all unfold.

Got to start pre quiz though. The highlight of our respective days was Graham's trip to the Science Museum and my being bitten by a dog in Banstead Woods. Well, hardly a highlight actually, but really irksome. So far, no untoward characteristics have emerged, I think.

Well, we hardly needed help for Round 1, Welshies in honour of St David.

Tim Dalton confused us a bit and Sian Lloyd doesn't bear much resemblance to herself any more but a confident ten.

Usual nonsense in the Current Affairs. In one of the less subtle examples of match fixing, a Bandy (sort of ice hockey) game in Russia ended 11-9 with all 20 goals own goals. That something we can bet on over here?

Onto history and good teamwork here as our LATT contingent chipped in with Mike's encyclopaedic knowledge of UK car plants and David's placing of the first use of "women and children first" to the fore.

Connections and we introduced our newcomers to our game of guessing the connection and it was David who linked the connection of a 1955 Sinatra film to London hospitals in 3. Think we've had this round before.

Ten pointers and what use would a tailor make of a plonker? Bit of chemistry suggesting it might be made of lead but a vacuous answer of weighing down cloth wouldn't be good enough, actually used for ironing the cloth. Well played to Graham though straight in with the common name for Hanson's disease.

Now we have't done this very often but we went well and truly off piste on the connections. Big gaps were linked up with some very unlikely answers and we really had the wrong team for knowing that Simple would be kind to the skin. So, a poor showing there but as ever, jeopardy would be all important.

Teamwork again would be to the fore but the one that vexed us most would be which UK city first introduced a congestion charge in Nov 2002. None of us had a convincing alternative to London, but this smelt to me solely of bear trap. "Wilson" in Castaway wasn't given a second thought, given Mike's certainty of basketball.

Well, we were indeed tripped up on the jeopardy; the city proved to be a bear trap with the answer of Durham but our joy was short lived on learning Wilson was a volleyball. Tension mounted, we knew the Anoraks has similarly blown and the team myself and Graham know a few of the guys from had similarly gone down in flames. Maybe the Busters turn? Score after score was read but the last one read out was Hound! Maybe our first win with a bust jeopardy? Naturally we shared the spoils with Mike and David and partied long into the night, well until the last train anyway.

Running out of pictures to put up so here's one from my holiday. Only ten days to Cheltenham!