A contestent on longstanding British quiz show Mastermind was tested on his knowledge of anthology comic 2000 AD — and won, landing a place in the series’ semifinals. The episode aired September 7 on BBC in the UK.
Mastermind is a long-running BBC quiz show that first aired in 1972. Based on the creator Bill Wright’s personal experience of being interrogated by the Gestapo in World War 2, the format has each contestant in turn sit in a single chair in a dark studio under a spotlight answering questions in rapid fire. Before they begin, they must say their name, occupation and specialist subject (instead of name, rank, serial number). It has two rounds, one tests how well the contestants know their own chosen specialist subject, followed by a second round that covers general knowledge. Each round is around 2 minutes in length.
Business intelligence developer Chris Matterface chose his specialist subject as the ‘2000 AD Comics of the 1980s and 1990s’, with his three rivals being quizzed on the essays of George Orwell, the movies of Madonna, and World War 2 founder of the women’s branch of the Air Transport Auxiliary Pauline Gower.
In his alotted time, Matterface was asked twelve questions covering many creators and series from the 1977-established comic’s first two full decades including Judge Dredd, Rogue Trooper, Strontium Dog, Judge Anderson, Sinister Dexter, Devlin Waugh, two works of Alan Moore, Hewligan’s Haircut, the (notorious) Summer Offensive of 1993, and a 2000 AD series by the comic’s first female writer. He scored ten points with only one wrong answer and one pass.
While a respectable number, Matterface went from third place to first based entirely on the general knowledge round, managing an extra 13 points in 2.5 minutes.
In his words,
“To get through to the semifinals – to coin a phrase from the pages of 2000 AD – it feels absolutely Zarjaz!”
