QI | What Was C. B. Fry Offered After The War?

7 April: On this day in 1939, King Zog of Albania was exiled from Albania.
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This clip is from QI Series A, Episode 08, 'Albania' with Stephen Fry, Alan Davies, Clive Anderson, Sean Lock and Linda Smith.

[@mglenadel]

The seat of the royal throne of Albania was built remarkably high up off the ground in an attempt to convey the exalted nature of His (or Her) Royal Highness. Albanians, however, felt it was unseemly for a King of Queen to have to climb up to the throne using a ladder or a stool. Many a decade went on by without a suitable heir to the throne, when the Albanians got news of this remarkable brit and his accomplishments…

[@dizzy_derps]

Ah, well done. Points for you!

[@glifosfato]

the rare occasion when a KZbin comment is worth reading

[@nonotherthananother]

When TV came to Albania only the president had the TV set so news would begin with: "Good evening comrade president."

[@alansmithee419]

To "leap backwards into the throne of Albania" sounds like a metaphor for *something.* God knows what.

[@NickC-Ohio]

Is this a joke or real? Love either way

[@LPJack02]

RIP Linda Smith (January 29, 1958 - February 27, 2006), aged 48 And RIP Sean Lock (April 22, 1963 - August 16, 2021), aged 58 You both will be remembered as legends.

[@zakethekid1333]

"He was a Fry, he would have welcomed it." Best line.

[@ConstantChaos1]

I feel it so hard (lol)

[@Zeromega159]

oof, can you imagine what it would be like if c.b actually accepted the offer? "now here we are, live, with the king of albania, melchitt fry who is about to grace his people with a few words" "BAAAH!!!"

[@moritzh6876]

"All you need is a cellar full of wine and a society of those who love you" Words to live by :D

[@Fcutdlady]

Moritz H you are quite right :--)

[@justincronkright5025]

When you're rich, and have had a more streamlined for production path in your life.

[@Sabrowsky]

Wise words from a presumably wise man

[@seanthebluesheep]

Maybe so but Christ, imagine the cellar of wine you could buy with an Albanian society that loves you.

[@pseudonayme7717]

For 'those who love you' see 'all the other winos'😄

[@stuffles26]

Wow...Sean Lock wasnt lying. Joseph Darby (the springheeled jack as he was known) actually did what sean said...im actually amazed by this as it sounded way to farfetched...

[@robsonneves6189]

topladtootill But when did Sean Lock lied in a panel show? He usualy is sarcastic but i dont remember him actually lying.

[@risvegliato]

Yeah. Joseph Darby was a famous spring-jumper from Netherton. How Sean Lock knows this I don't know. He doesn't sound very Black Country to me. Fair play to him. Those of us who were brought up round here know the name.

[@petersenior5432]

Robson Neves Three words: Get The Carrot.

[@apocrypha5363]

Carrot in a box...

[@EebstertheGreat]

There is a legend that he is behind that legend, yes. He did not, however, jump 32 feet across a canal.

[@ImmaterialDigression]

Surely he could have settled for a cellar full of wine, the company of those that loved him, and the throne of Albania thrown on top. Come on Fry!

[@Bitemis]

Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown

[@ragnar97]

The crown carries certain responsibilities that may take up quite a bit of your time. Plus the threat of people suddenly turning against you and wanting to kill you. If have the cellar, the money to keep it full and good friends there's really no need for the crown, it only offers things to worry about.

[@garethlawton5278]

I've always thought even for those with the greatest intentions. Those who bend down to pick up power and seek it are not to be trusted.

[@CorvusCorone68]

throne, thrown, was that intentional? nice bit of homophonage there

[@tobybartels8426]

But it was his friend Hilaire Belloc's way of hinting that Belloc would no longer be Fry's friend of Fry took the throne, and you can't give up the company of a man like Belloc!

[@N.I.R.A.T.I.A.S.]

Pity he wasn't offered the chance to become a citizen of France ... he could have been ... a French Fry ... I'll show myself out.

[@RushatiMukherjee]

TheLongDark choked on my food 😂

[@kenwhitaker1962]

TheLongDark 👏

[@mattmccann8805]

Don't even get your coat.

[@bobbythorman7421]

That was brilliant.

[@stenen]

hows the kids? :-D

[@jaxsjpg3225]

When they mentioned the guy from the Black Country I got very excited! I live like 2 minutes from the statue and less than a minute from the canal, it’s lovely to take a walk down and see all of the information boards about him

[@markbrown2640]

To Stephen's dismay, the panel were almost completely disinterested in C. B. Fry having been offered this prestigious job and he needed two or three trys to redirect them off of just jumping in general.

[@paulbradford8240]

What an amazing piece of trivia! Also, the mention by Sean of Joseph Derby made me search on-line and surprised me with something of which I had never heard before.

[@MarquessaBuffy]

So, in some alternate timeline Stephen Fry would be related to the King of Albania? That’s fascinating.

[@herbivorethecarnivore8447]

He could have _been_ the King.

[@SavageGreywolf]

@@herbivorethecarnivore8447 no, C.B. Fry's grandson is still alive. _He_ would be the king. Incidentally, C.B. Fry's son, who would have been the heir, was also named Stephen Fry.

[@herbivorethecarnivore8447]

@@SavageGreywolf See: Could have

[@128daz]

Well Stephen may never have become King as Albania was annexed by Italy in 1939. The King (King Zogg I) never returned as the then Communist government banned him from coming back. So he'd just be an heir really.

[@andiroidYT]

As usual Sean had the best line at 1:25 'Chest of drawers?'

[@danieltheisland]

I was waiting for someone to say "he was offered a position on the cabinet"

[@mariahcarey9470]

3:45 "And he said "I don't want the throne just give me the mantlepiece" lmaoooooooo

[@matthewsawczyn6592]

This is like a classic Fawlty moment haha

[@cloudsparrow7729]

What Hilaire Belloc said was - "all you need is wine, and a cellar full of people whom you love. With a concealed entrance. And a padlock"

[@richard6440]

Hannibal Lecter ?

[@cloudsparrow7729]

@@richard6440 By Jove, I think you're right. Or Josef Fritzl

[@jayel1471]

We have lost Sean now, along with Linda. So sad.

[@edwardtremethick]

Sean will be missed.

[@AnnabellaRedwood]

Definitely.

[@meddc1]

One of my favourite QI clips

[@ZanraiKid]

So, what your saying is C. B. Fry was invited to join the post-war supergroup T H E L E A G U E O F N A T I O N S

[@Whiteythereaper]

ZanraiKid (whose mission statement it was to try not to take over the world)

[@yamanmustafa7574]

You're

[@Schralenberger]

Strangely enough he's right. Joseph Darby was a north country canal jumper, weights and all. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Darby_(jumper)

[@MrDREWASIDE]

Linda Smith!! Brilliant comedienne ❤️❤️❤️❤️ r.i.p. Sweetheart xx

[@Observ45er]

Fry's party trick was to leap from a stationary position on the floor backwards onto a mantelpiece; he would face the mantelpiece, crouch down, take a leap upwards, turn in the air, and bow to the gallery with his feet planted on the shelf. Persuasion would occasionally get him to perform this turn at country houses, much to the interest of the guests. - - Wikipedia

[@J.L.Media.]

I wish I’d never mentioned the bloody mantlepiece!

[@CB-dg4gg]

QI is such a general purveyor of fact I find the conflict with the laws of CB Euclid and CB Newton a destabilising factor in my universe.

[@alicewright4790]

So weird that two people in this clip have passed away. Terribly sad

[@joealtmaier9271]

I imagine if he'd accepted King of Albania, he'd of been dead in a few months. The previous king had run away. There had to be more to the story.

[@vallraffs]

And yet whenever I play as Mussolini, Zog stays to fight. But it's pretty funny, like beating up on Haile Selassie.

[@Wolf6119]

The guy who left his throne vacant for CB Fry was actually Vidi I, who was Zog's predecessor. Zog was elected as President after Vidi fled, and later declared himself King, about 8 years after the alleged offer would have been made to Fry.

[@NoobLord98]

HOI4 is a fun game indeed, isn't it?

[@KAF128]

When you threatened to beat up Haile Selassie, did he run 10000m to get away?

[@ZBott]

Still just want full episodes on KZbin.

[@georgecaplin9075]

Z Bott considering we pay for the sodding bbc the whole lot should be on iplayer with a download button next to each episode.

[@gwishart]

But then UKTV (which is part-owned by the BBC) couldn't rake in advertising revenue from endlessly repeating them on Dave.

[@andrew7taylor]

There are loads of QI episodes on KZbin. Right from the very first one.

[@Auger3504]

"All you need is a cellar full of wine and the society of those who love you." Oh, so true.

[@Dallas-Nyberg]

The fellow Sean mentioned was Joseph Darby (1861 - 1937). Among his long list of feats, he.... - Jumped over twenty chairs placed ten feet apart. - Jumped over six chairs in one jump. - Cleared two chairs 18 ft apart. - Jumped off one brick, end up, over a chair, lands on another brick end up, and backwards without knocking the bricks down. - Jumped on to a man's face while lying down and off again without hurting the man. - Jumped 36 ft in three successive jumps and in the third jump lands on a man's back, whilst he is lying across the edge of two chairs, and off again without hurting him. - Jumped off one brick, end up, over a horse 15 hands high. - Leap over a full sized billiard table lengthwise.

[@chanky1000]

It's amazing that he knew Ranjitsinjhi

[@TheHutchy01]

Instead the man with the greatest collection of names declared himself King, Ahmed Zogolli, later known as King Zog Zogu.

[@binaway]

The son of Zog (Zog II) was/is 6ft7inch and married an Australian. Although never having been to his ancestral land and after his fathers death he claimed the Crown during the communist dictatorship. I have no idea what happened to him after the fall of the communists. In 1919 a group of Albanians offered the throne to a member of the by then ex-Turkish royal family. He declined but the Albanians didn't know when a German conman who looked nothing like a Turk turned up claiming he had come to accept the throne and for a short time was effectively the King.

[@ballantynemoyes8019]

The son of Zog I was Prince Leka who died in 2011. He did indeed marry an Australian, Susan Cullen-Ward. He was declared King of the Albanians on the death of Zog in 1961 by Albanians in exile but this was, of course, not recognised by Albania. He was succeeded as pretender to the throne by his son, also Leka, who was born in 1982 in Johannesburg. The family were allowed to return to Albania after the fall of communism in that country and Leka I and his wife are buried in the royal Mausoleum in Tirana.

[@zetetick395]

Wow, if you're gonna lie... LIE BIG!

[@InvagPrune]

Hail Zog

[@zbr76]

I'm all for female comedy, but GOD Linda Smith was APPALLING in this clip.

[@SavageGreywolf]

she was really stuck on that mantelpiece thing, wasn't she

[@alanira2971]

The fact that people need to preface any and all complaints against female comedians with an "I'm not sexist" disclaimer really says a lot to be honest. It's ironically defeating the exact point of itself; it needlessly draws the attention towards the gender of the comedian and makes female comedians seem even more pathetic as a result. No one wins.

[@KryzMasta]

Alan Ira Quite right. She was just singularly awful and should have kept her mouth shut. Nothing to do with her gender.

[@user-yv2cz8oj1k]

She wasn't speaking that long and was serious for most of it and only made the one joke. The problem with opinions is that idiots also have them. 🤣

[@borismuller86]

"Chest of drawers?" What an amazing comeback.

[@titanuranus3095]

Is that some sort of position?

[@luuketaylor]

A cellar full of wine and the society of those who love you? Well, apart from the cellar, I've got wine and loved ones aplenty! I guess getting a cellar is my new goal.

[@richard6440]

i have a foldable winerack in the garage with 6 bottles of white wine on it. And my wife loves me . Now , flights to Albania .....................................

[@Davey101_]

Lol. Stephen sounded like Arthur "two sheds" Jackson there.

[@-theflea-4561]

Position vacant, King of Albania. No time wasters…

[@postscript67]

I'm surprised they didn't mention the famous misprint in a newspaper article about C. B. Fry that said he could 'leap backwards onto a mantelpiece from a standing fart.'

[@andynicholson7944]

And the Albanian cricket team was never the same.

[@martychisnall]

How is Stephen Fry related to C. B. Fry? Would he be King of Albania in some alternate timeline?

[@zbr76]

A distant cousin I think. Very doubtful that he would have a claim to the Albanian throne in that alternate timeline.

[@killianoshaughnessy1174]

Imagine if C.B. Fry really did go through with becoming a King of Albania.

[@Mathemagical55]

He wasn't really offered the throne of Albania - it was a prank by his friend Ranjitsinhji.

[@eliwatson7936]

“KING! Of the League of Nations”

[@Domdrok]

Man, I was waiting for one last mantle joke at the end of his schpiel.

[@zbr76]

Linda Smith REALLY played that one-string banjo, didn't she? I'm all for comediennes, but she WASN'T funny.

[@DeathlyTired]

Linda Smith ♥ Much missed.

[@suddenwall]

Passed away at 48? What a shame :(

[@pkingpumpkin]

how did she die?

[@michaelritchie2968]

She had ovarian cancer.

[@Mochrie99]

Hard to believe it's been over 10 years since Linda passed away. She was a great comedienne. Loved listening to her as a panellist on "Just A Minute", not to mention her couple appearances on QI.

[@zbr76]

@@Mochrie99 'Her couple of appearances on QI' that weren't remotely funny. One of the few comediennes that in my opinion, just plain sucked.

[@Gubalicious]

I wish I'd never mentioned the bloody mantelpiece! 😂😂😂

[@AymenDZA]

He looks like a younger stephen fry in that pic

[@JaneAustenAteMyCat]

Goodness, watching this now and half the contestants are gone. The world is a lesser place with the loss of Sean Lock and Linda Smith.

[@nicktombs1876]

I thought Sean Locke was making his fact up so I googled it, Joseph Darby 1861 to 1937 was a standing jumper, couldn't make it up.

[@LaMoo202]

Mannn oh man I haven't seen a Paul Frank tshirt in oh sooo many years now!! I remember when they came out and saying that they were all the rage was definitely an understatement!! If you had ANYTHING Paul Frank... you were just cooler than the rest lol especially the tees like that lol 😆 😂 ahhh youth!! What a massive piss around lol

[@aim-to-misbehave5674]

Someone need to write an alternate history novel where nothing is different except that Stephen Fry is king of Albania...

[@Ghoul_18]

Stavros fry *

[@alanrogers7090]

It was Joseph Darby who has the statue for jumping records. It is in Netherton.

[@TheTradge]

Linda Smith was always a wonderful panellist, sorely missed

[@carsonking5549]

Is there an episode with both, Clove James and Sandi Toksvig on together? I think they are the same person!

[@carsonking5549]

Clive*

[@mcnulty70]

That’s Clove Anderson

[@mcnulty70]

Clive*

[@jjpower6769]

Subtitles for those of us who are hard of hearing would be helpful.

[@matlew1960]

C. B. Fry was the original Elf on the shelf..

[@TheHutchy01]

My response would of course have been "Fuck off Hilaire, I'm going to be a king"

[@specialized29er86]

Imagine jumping back onto the mantle with a 12'' candle burning.

[@twocvbloke]

To answer Sean's question (a bit late I know!), if an ember spits out of the fire onto your bumcheek, it'll make you leap into the air for sure, where you land is another problem, he just got lucky... :P

[@BlueBagger83]

I, for one, am glad he declined. Look what's happened since: the country is dark and sinister, full of mobster types who prey on young women to use as they see fit. But, as luck has it, Liam Neeson came along, spoke a powerful truth through a phone, and went on to kick Albanian ass. If Fry had taken said position, none of this likely happens, and Neeson never has a resurgence in his career.

[@mathewfullerton8577]

@B3K1M H You obviously missed the fact that he was making a joke based on the movie "Taken". Get off your high horse and enjoy some humor.

[@zippymcfearson2776]

What position ? Well there was this other fellow already up on the mantle piece that day..........

[@muesli_snipes]

The obvious answer would have been a position on a mantelpiece.

[@davidmartin5483]

So we could have had a Rrrrroyal Quiz Master

[@greenredblue]

I so want Alan to have deadpanned "pile-driver" so Fry would choke on his tea with laughter, and nobody else would get it.

[@macsnafu]

But Stephen, what about the mantelpiece??? ;-)

[@samsonsoturian6013]

One of the guys that would be king of Albania during that period was Zog, the only reigning monarch to ever fireback at wouldbe assassins.

[@r0bw00d]

He gave up diplomatic immunity for a cellar full of wine and good friends? Pfft!

[@harley419]

Linda Smith was such a joy

[@drumboarder1]

Pretty unrelated but why is there the option to report a comment for child abuse?

[@eltzrothm1]

Can we have a documentary about this Fry guy?

[@richard6440]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._B._Fry

[@anonUK]

C.B.Fry is buried at St Wystan's Church in Repton, a village between Derby and Burton, just off the A50 from Stoke to Leicester.

[@richard6440]

After winning a scholarship, Fry was educated at Repton School and then at Wadham College, Oxford. His greatest strength academically was in the Classics. At Repton he won the school prizes for Latin Verse, Greek Verse, Latin Prose and French. He was also runner-up in German.[11] His weakest subject was mathematics; he gained the headmaster's permission to study Thucydides instead and dispensed with maths for the rest of his academic career. Repton has a strong tradition in football and Fry played for the under-16 Repton football side in his first term, aged thirteen. He went on to captain both the school's cricket and football teams, and also won prizes for athletics.At the age of sixteen he played for the Casuals in the F.A. Cup.

[@gordonramsdale]

Wish someone in my genetic line was like that I might actuallybe good at sport and more intelligent

[@csjrogerson2377]

He shod have taken it. Albania has gone seriously downhill since those days. Think how splendid it could have become with a Fry in charge.

[@jamezz41]

eh, probably a good idea to turn it down considering what happened afterwards...

[@EebstertheGreat]

Joseph Darby could not jump 32 feet from a standing position. His alleged record is 14 feet with weights, which is probably possible, though I can't find any modern records for that kind of jump. 32 feet would be significantly longer than the world record for a long jump with a running start!

[@tenjed4224]

it was 39 ft over three jumps. darby usually did multi jump competitions.

[@Google_Does_Evil_Now]

But he was using momentum weights. Try it. I tried this with dumbbells in the gym and I travelled 16.5 feet with an arm speed of 74 revolutions per minute. I find the 10kg weights to be right for my BMI. It's a lot of fun and more exciting than just lifting them.

[@RAFMnBgaming]

Sounds like an anime.

[@johnforensicman6179]

Does he play sport or cricket? I thought cricket was an aid to insomnia?

[@NickC-Ohio]

How is it exactly that Alan knew that it was his relative? He's not exactly known for doing his research

[@grendelum]

would that we could all have a cellar full of wine…

[@millomweb]

4:00 someone called Fry and someone called singee - bet the third person was called burnt !

[@neptunestardust]

He looks like Stephen Or is it just me?

[@nikhilreddy8550]

Actually he does a bit.

[@KevTheImpaler]

He turned down being the King?

[@a7xdude87]

Linda strikes me as someone who you wouldn't want to be stuck chatting to at a party

[@MatgoStyles]

She was secretly battling ovarian cancer here and died just 3 years later.

[@Ulleskelf]

I’d suggest you seek out some of her work where you don’t have to have comedians talking over each other. She was hilarious and I miss her view of the world.

[@thardingau]

The panel should stop interrupting each other.

[@decam5329]

That's how conversation works.

[@JarthenGreenmeadow]

"chest of drawers...."

[@iffracem]

I think typically arrogant of Britain and the rest of the "League of Nations" that they thought they had the right to make a sportsman, that had apparently nothing to do with Albania, the Monarch. Why not make... I don't know.. an ALBANIAN the Monarch of ALBANIA

[@atomicexistentialism8428]

It wasnt britain and the LON that asked. It was the Albanian delegation themself. It also isn't the first time. The british royal family are german with dutch roots.

[@Lnch4ALion]

It's called the Frying Game

[@AnnaAnna-uc2ff]

OK

[@kipperbill]

K I N G O F T H E LEAGUE O F N A T I O N S

[@lekarzkto]

What!

[@johnnunn8688]

Instead, King Zog got the position.

[@Jesusexplains]

Prince Stephen Fry 🤴 ? ... Nah!

[@zanemurcha2675]

They are only interested in the mantel piece throughout the whole video.

[@wilsoncrocker]

so, stephen fry is actually albanian royalty

[@quarteronline]

I think Steven by virtue of the fact that you were born there were probably hetrosexual men in your family line leading up to you!

[@Dannys-mb5xy]

I wish the panelists (who are never actually very funny) would shut up so we could hear the interesting stuff that Fry has to say.

[@ansuhmayram]

the arrogance oozing out of fry

[@paulreeves7249]

Fry likes to claim to be related to any famous fry ! Utter cods wallop