University Challenge S54E15 - UCL v. St Andrews

[@PS-vm3we]

Two of the most pleasant teams in the competition in this play-off, but worthy winners with a captain who is truly a delight to watch!

[@jeff__w]

“Two of the most pleasant teams in the competition…” My thought exactly. Usually, I like one team more than the other but, in this case, they were both immensely likable and I didn’t want either to lose.

[@noahbanks7684]

Mandel is a real player. This UCL team could be a dark horse

[@gabsymalone6307]

Amol has confirmed he was rather poorly during the filming of this episode on X/Twitter and the speed definitely suffered - still we did go past 300 on aggregate which I wasn't sure was gonna happen at one stage. And 21/31 vs 13/18 are both really good bonus conversions - just a shame about those four penalties from the losers, and I think the winners still rely too much on one individual. But they're in the next round - here's to hopefully Amol getting better quickly so the speed/quality picks up ;).

[@dondesmond7969]

Wasn't there a comment earlier in the season about how this isn't a game for oldies. Well done Mandel. MVP.

[@Ramboost007]

There always is, forgetting that Open University is one of the best-performing institutions in UC

[@jeff__w]

Often, when a team is more than 100 points behind, especially near the end of the match, they get a bit sullen (and who can blame them?), but St Andrews remains light-hearted and engaging in a completely natural way throughout. 24:20 26:34 For that alone, I was rooting for them. (But, being entirely fickle, I was rooting for UCL, too.) UCL’s Josh Mandel is clearly the star of that team, The stats will reflect how many starter questions he answered but I’m not sure if anyone will have the patience to comb over the bonus questions to see just how many of those he nailed, too. (My guess is quite a lot.) Congratulations to the winning team and I hope the other team can take a bit of solace in, besides appearing on TV as Amol Rajan always says, having been appreciated as a very pleasant, likable team (as another commenter and I observed in separate comment).

[@guavaguy4397]

Such wonderful teams, sad to see the one go.

[@jessicaellina3878]

Excellent match..two good teams! UCL sailed to a well deserved victory, but well done to a very able St Andrews. Mandel has a great range of knowledge. Thankd CP😊

[@Ramboost007]

My favorite moments were in 11:36 and 25:11, Buffet-Mogel casually drinking water in the middle of science starters. She was unlucky too, she went up against UCL Mandel who was faster on the buzzer on the literature questions than her, so she had to take risks through early interruptions

[@chrishobbs58]

Hello again! Two good teams here, one was just a bit more knowledgeable, and a lot quicker on the buzzer...at least with one player in particular. The winning team is a strong contender, be interesting to see how far they can go. My best to both teams, and to each individual.

[@aliceharuna4]

UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE S54E15 MATCH STATS BELOW UCL: 215 St Andrews: 105　Eliminated Starter Questions Stats UCL: 110 Jack = 0/2 Mandel = 8/8 {80 points} Holtermann Entwistle = 2/3 {20 points} Prabhakar = 1/2 {10 points} Starter Success rate: 73.33% (11/15) ST ANDREWS: 40 Buffet-Mogel = 2/4 {20 minus 10 points} Capell = 1/1 {10 points} Skerrett = 2/3 {20 minus 5 points} Rosas = 1/3 {10 minus 5 points} Starter Success rate: 54.55% (6/11) Bonus Questions Stats UCL: 105 Bonus success rate: 70.00% (21/30) ST ANDREWS: 65 Bonus success rate: 72.22% (13/18)

[@pattheplanter]

How about stats on time taken to answer the bonus questions? UCL spent a lot of pointless wondering about bonuses. Which was certainly impolite toward the end.

[@GorgyCL]

Rosas would be 10 minus 10 bc he was 1/3

[@aliceharuna4]

@@GorgyCL I've checked again that one of his incorrect answer was without a penalty at 11:51

[@GorgyCL]

@@aliceharuna4 You're absolutely right, I forgot about the post-interruption chances. Thank you for the precision 🫡

[@araucariapasquale1]

Get well soon, Amol!

[@Cassandra_Steel]

Two very charming, capable teams. But what can you say, Mandel is just a beast

[@oiseaubaladeur]

He truly is, he carried the team

[@sunkenindeaf]

28:24 Buffet-Mogel's _meh_ goodbye.

[@judithbaban5150]

Perhaps it was because hardly asked any Literature questions

[@SundaraRamanR]

10:50 to be fair, "Finlandisation" also sounds like just as much of a reach to my ears 🙂

[@shoaibmemon8788]

so true i mean what's the difference Yugoslavisation or Finlandisation they do seems like an equal reach 😂

[@Cassandra_Steel]

One more syllable I guess. Things also just start sounding more reasonable when you know them to be true

[@ubiergo1978]

I think when Amol mentioned as the "reach", it was more geographical xD

[@jeff__w]

I’m not so sure, from my point of view. The problem, I think, is that Yugoslavia ends in _-ia_ and what do you do with that? Is the word _Yugoslaviazation_ or just _Yugoslavization?_ (The former, though longer, sounds better to me, a bit like _civilization,_ maybe.) Then, again, I knew the answer (and was familiar with the term _Finlandization_ when it was current, as late as the mid-1970s) so maybe I’m just used to that.

[@SundaraRamanR]

@Andy-pz2fg 🤷 we all have that moment with UC, where a question seems super easy and "everyone knows this", and it turns out it was just your circle/region/environment that had you believe that.

[@chron123]

Spoiler block

[@ChrisWar666]

Bump!

[@martinmills135]

ripe bollocks

[@ChrisWar666]

@@martinmills135 have a shower mate, you shouldn't leave them like that.....

[@martinmills135]

@@ChrisWar666 sober pillock

[@ChrisWar666]

@@martinmills135 I'm afraid I can only offer you a drink to help with that unfortunate problem. I'll see if someone can make a nice caipirinha for you!

[@Exurb1a]

Mandel is an absolute unit

[@adityaswamy9647]

Mandel is awesome!

[@freddiethecutestcavapoo9184]

Thanks Cosmic P - the saviour of my Mondays! ...Spoiler block line...! LOL! Good game with two nice teams. UCL might well make it to the final 2 providing nothing happens to Mr. Mandel (80 of their points in starters alone!!)

[@anttihelin6820]

10:10 I think it's a bit odd to say it was (only) for economic reasons. The threat of another invasion was always in the background. The Soviet-Finnish treaty signed in 1948 (which became an article of faith in Finnish-Soviet relations for the Finns) was ostensibly about the potential use of Finnish territory to attack the USSR, but mainly about Finland co-operating with the USSR in the event of a NATO-Warsaw Pact war.

[@Elcio_Leal]

I'm thrilled to see a bazooka for the first time in this competition. By the way, thanks, CP, for uploading this episode.

[@SoSo-li6dn]

I used to go home every monday to watch UC with my Dad; I moved far away and went every other weekend. Mum insists he didnt watch it on the telly, and he is just clever. Im sure he is revising on monday night on youtube - and so am I.

[@saatosauli]

Enjoying the righteous smug face of Mandel at 27:04 :D and a very impressive music round answer! He is carrying them somewhat but UCL still a strong team, nice to see them go through. And amusing to hear Rajan starting to throw some bants in :D

[@Joe-nb3fs]

Mandel MVP

[@MrPotsy81]

I like Amol's tie. Thanks CP for posting....

[@WonderWhatHappened]

We now learned the nickname of Amol.

[@zaphbrox8239]

May appear in a future episode of UC. Hopefully not!

[@manomancan]

Amazing so far, though does Amol seem a bit down today? Is he a bit ill? Just realised how much I took for granted the excitement he brought to the game!

[@helenswan705]

On the plus side, it stopped him babbling so much in the final minutes!

[@JoltColaOfEvil]

Anyone else finding Amol's delivery more sedate than usual in this episode?

[@aymbaut9361]

sounded like he had a sore throat

[@ubiergo1978]

@@aymbaut9361 YES!, the "a bacteriophage" 25:34 is as rasp as it can be. O.O, and from that point onwards it got worse and worse.

[@JohnJacobJingleheimerSchmidt7]

He confirmed on Twitter that he had a bad cold and sore throat during this taping :( Luckily he said he felt much better by the next episode!

[@FrenchArrogance]

Spoiler space since commenting ½ hour after upload Great job all around by UCL but especially impressive by Mandel, such a strong performance and fast on the buzzer.

[@SundaraRamanR]

I don't know if Amol was a bit poorly or something during this episode, but his delivery of the introduction was especially calm and soothing this time.

[@Zoomo2697]

He certainly sounded 'under the weather ' sore throat. 😅

[@Zoomo2697]

He certainly sounded 'under the weather ' sore throat. 😅

[@SundaraRamanR]

Buffet-Mogul looks like Aubrey Plaza's younger sister that went a goth route.

[@DennisDaguman]

YES! This comment. Kinda like a nerdy sister going to a goth route.

[@Elitist20]

And Holtermann-Entwistle is Emerald Fennell's sister who chose academia over showbiz.

[@SC_Jolly]

Thank you! Great game!

[@nickkkyyy]

The team that wins usually has one super start answerer and UCL have that with Mandel

[@Petit784]

Quite the showing from UCL. A swiftness that can go a mile.

[@AttilatheNun-xv6kc]

Mandel's their greatest asset.

[@dn7778]

23:01 I think they got it wrong here. That word has several meanings, one of which is to refer to the genus. Didn't matter of course.

[@ubiergo1978]

Somehow this was more.... "approachable" than any of the 1st round matches.... As always someone somewhere is always shouting an answer. here: SINUS! (only because I'm a veterinarian), AMOR! (only because I'm Chilean), VOYAGE! (Only because I love Jules Verne's books), PETRI! (also for the veterinary part). =)

[@mrcool7140]

Being from Germany alone brought me a lot of answers here: Dom, Nürnberg, Regensburg, Worms, Tod in Venedig, Petrischale... As you said; a lot more approachable.

[@JONNYTUBSTER]

Amol sounds like he’s gotta cold in this one ! Very fitting for November

[@geoffpollock6892]

Except that it is recorded months ago ...

[@JONNYTUBSTER]

@ maybe hay fever or smth haha

[@Kai-cl3ps]

Im really gonna miss Aubrey Plaza on University Challenge 😭

[@theyruinedyoutubeagain]

Amol is absolutely adorable

[@Lagerfanny-g7e]

He’s a woke arsehole.

[@charlessperling7031]

While written in 1895, The Seagull was first staged in 1896.

[@zaphbrox8239]

What is the opposite of Allosaurus, the way Hotermann Entwistle said it? A: Alla did not see us. 28:26 Buffet-Mogel's goodbye didn't look like a goodbye. More like a "whatever".😅

[@abhijeetkushwaha424]

'Just say a Russian word' "GULAG"

[@jpharnad]

This comment is not about this round, but an earlier one: University Challenge S49E35 Semi Final 1, Jul 10, 2023 kzbin.info/www/bejne/sHycpH-hnq2EY7M About the numerical question (at 19'24"): The only numbers between 0 and 9 whose cube is a 3 digit number ending with the same number are: 5, 6 and 9, whose cubes are 125, 216 and 729 respectively. If we take the first two digits of these only, in reversed order, to form 2 digit numbers, this gives 21, 12 and 27, and their squares are 441, 144, and 729 respectively. So if the question asked had stipulated this, the correct answer would indeed be 729. But the question asked was not this. Instead it stipulated that: "Reversing the order of its first two digits gives its square root." If this is done, the numbers obtained are 215, 126 and 279, none of which is the square root of the original three digit number. An incorrectly stated question, but nevertheless a correct answer to another question, which was not the one stated! Very curious.... What does this suggest?

[@chessuser6554]

mandel is actually rivaling prime zeng and mays for the carry of UCL

[@freezeaware9]

2:18 Upton Snodsbury is NOT a real place, it is one of the fruits on the Willy Wonka wallpaper.

[@15multiventure51]

It certainly is a real place - a village in Worcestershire, England.

[@jeff__w]

Ha, no, those were “snozzberries.” And what, exactly, were snozzberries? Well, Roald Dahl used the word one more time 15 years later in his adult novel _My Uncle Oswald:_ _"There's only one way when they get violent," Yasmin said. "I grabbed hold of his snozzberry and hung onto it like grim death and gave it a twist or two to make him hold still."_ Um, yeah, that's what snozzberries are.

[@johncartwright8154]

I lived there from 1992 to 2010 years ago. I now live adjacent to the Piddle Brook in Naunton Beauchamp. The villagers here were described as "suspicious of strangyers, of lowe intellect and dirty" by a traveller in the 18thC. We haven't changed much!

[@pedrorochadacunha8129]

No more Buffet-Mogle, i'm crying 😞

[@Roblafo]

You are down bad, can't say i'm not though lol

[@grimftl]

Call me a dirty old man, but she's babelicious.

[@bethanowen9475]

Mandel is a beast!

[@winner_brawlstars8230]

That's my boy Mr.Prabhakar man

[@marty9011]

A convincing win for the winning team. Is it really such a thrill to be on TV as Rajan keeps suggesting ... ? Thank you CP.

[@genevievedolan1288]

I wish he wouldn’t keep saying that! Sounds kind of patronizing and like it’s everyone goal in life…

[@jeff__w]

@@genevievedolan1288 I agree. And it’s not the 1950s anymore. People can appear around the world on social media, as we know. (And, as you said, that might not be everyone’s goal in life.)

[@castelodeossos3947]

@@genevievedolan1288 Mr Rajan is so Politically Correct, he cannot help being patronising. Especially his always referring to the losing team's loss as being 'unfair', meaning, of course, that the winning team's win too is unfair. And ignorance is merely 'bad luck', to make sure they may be seen as victims of misfortune.

[@PS-vm3we]

@@castelodeossos3947Sense you’re making none; is it politically correct to patronise?! Amol is just being jovial and aiming to leave the losers with some good cheer. And there is often a fair portion of luck involved; whether questions fall into the players’ wheelhouse, whether the opponents are a fraction of a millisecond quicker on the buzzer.

[@dertyp1769]

It's pretty cool, right? Youd be telling the story for a while at least

[@enlisty]

Gosh, UCL has such long winded and rambling discussions

[@2eleven48]

Yes.

[@nathelondon3719]

Go UCL.

[@vishvice12]

Shortest music round ever

[@tidnid1869]

wish they were longer, the only ones i can get right with my classical music knowledge

[@jeffg.6110]

Still kills me when an entire team forgets (or didn’t pay attention to in the first place) a Bonus hint like “all answers start with the same letter.” I get they’re nervous and under time pressure, but all 4 members ignoring key parts of the question?

[@TheSabian321]

Yet another cheatcode surname: Holtermann Entwistle

[@keihnungm2011]

27:05 never seen a smugger face

[@pattheplanter]

Poor form with time-wasting by UCL, not allowing time for more questions. They should know to pass fast, politely. Good knowledge but bad quiz etiquette.

[@2eleven48]

Quite.

[@csinibaba37]

St. Andrews without a single Scot?

[@grimftl]

As always, thanks to CosmicPumpkin for bringing some culture to Allen, Texas. This was a *very* difficult round of questions. I wouldn't say I would've been dead weight, but I couldn't keep up with Mandel. Also, Buffet-Mogel is a foxemous babe! 🦊

[@anthony1947]

Mandel is someone who might just squeeze into our pub quiz team..... But not in place of me 😊

[@treekangaroo.7691]

Amol sounds a bit sick today

[@paulgovan3507]

I'm dying to see if "Geopolitics since WW2" will be more or less off-limits as always. I've been too busy this UC 'season' weeping over wars and genocide in the present tense and real world to watch a show that notoriously avoids recent-ish/current geopolitics like the plague.. PS. Don't panic - I never post this comment more than twice per season/year... (Paul G)

[@kurt11110]

holtermann-entwhistle looks like a young margo ledbetter

[@saadmelouk3466]

2:07 she has changed it this time

[@timothywalker1388]

Shame about the constant blithering and time wasting by UCL. Hopefully a fit Amol won't allow it next time.

[@petermolnar5692]

fucking unfair bro, there should be an age limit

[@paristen8556]

Why? There have been a number of "older" contestants in the past (meaning over 30 or so) who have not contributed very much. Remember that while knowledge may (or may not) increase as you get older, reaction time decreases, so I suspect it's a trade-off. At my advanced age, with a lifetime in the knowledge business, I systematically score somewhere between the winner and loser each week, and have actually beaten the winning team a couple of times - but that's sitting quietly in my office in front of the computer, not under the TV spotlight. This time my score was 180 (9 starters for ten, 18 answers for 5 apiece).

[@shanilmisra]

first lol

[@davidhume9455]

Amol actually sounder more pleasant and as others have said two most agreeable teams. But, oh how I wish they'd drop the guy who shouts out the names. So dated.

[@Ramboost007]

They have to keep Roger Tilling, the name call identifies to the contestants who buzzed first and gets the right to answer the starter. There were instances already this season where the contestant who didn't buzz first jumped the gun and answered, and that caused confusion and warnings from Amol.

[@castelodeossos3947]

Dated? For crying out loud.

[@carolineben-ari2798]

I, however, love him. Long may he continue calling out the names.

[@Olivia-cq7tv]

No way! He's iconic UC.