Pub Quiz!!

A 2009 study puts the number of regular weekly pub quizzes in the U.K. at 22,445.  This is a serious national past time, and one I can get into.  Thursday night up the street from my flat, a great pub has a weekly Pub Quiz - my first one.  Basically you get together a team between 1-6 people, pay a pound a piece (or something close to that) and then are succumbed to the torture of knowing how little you actually know.

The quizmaster (see pic) shouts out two rounds of 20 questions (generally in some sort of thick accent which also requires expats to have to translate each question first), and then your team gets together, rolls their eyes left / right / up / down racking their brains to come up with any sort of realistic answer.  The quizmaster then gathers the papers, grades them, and announces the winner that will usually get a cash prize or bar voucher.

For example:

• Who was the Arch Bishop of Canterbury when the first woman was allowed to enter Parliament?
• What country first legalized euthanasia?
• What mammal is the only to live as a parasite?
• What city did Stevie Wonder run for Mayor?
• What do you call a crack in a glacier (pronounced "glaaah-see-yer") ?
• What year was Mohammad Ali born?

You get the idea ... no cell phones allowed for this ... and they mean it.  The quizmaster called someone a spazz twice after a dispute over the intended use of the iPhone after a question.

Whereas in the U.S. bars that have trivia usually have just Kara and I with a couple creepy dudes hanging around (much to my disappointment), in the U.K. pub quizzes are down right an educational experience that pack the pubs and simply just give everyone a somewhat justifiable reason to be in the pub AGAIN.  Lovin' it!

Oh, P.S.  We got last place.  Leaves plenty of room for improvement!!