"Rah Rah Rah - we're going to smash the oiks!"

[thumbElf]

Anyone else watchign the Young Ones University Challenge episode

Dammit what channel?

aaargh, Starter for Ten, that's what I meant to watch tonight

I do like that YO episode.

aaaarrrgh sorry, it has just finished - BBC2 - probably get it on the internet?

Have always liked that episode but didn't watch it again tonight.

Oh dear 'Starter for ten' was sooooo disappointing.

The book was one of the funniest things I've ever read too....but the film was awful.

Predictable brit-comedy wasn't it? I found it mildly enjoyable, but I haven't read the book.

I really liked starter for ten. I've not read the book though.

Oh I can't urge you to read the book enough Molesworth. It's v v funny.

I didn't realise there was a film of it, and when I saw it was on last night I was really expecting something good, but it fell very flat.

Thanks for the tip TH

Starter For Ten was quite fun and faithful to the book. The "seeing the answers" thing was done a little more believably.

I'm sure they took a few liberties with UC lore though. Just off the top of my head:

• In the 70s/80s people introduced themselves on the show much more formally, i.e. "Jonty Farquhar, from Cheltenham, reading Classics." They always said "reading" and they never said "hi!" as they do today.

• I'm sure the announcer always did the college first, then name - so he should have said "Bristol, Jackson!" and so on, not vice-versa.

• And I thought the "5 points off for an incorrect interruption" thing was a recent innovation too.

• And if they were doing it in 1986, wouldn't the ridiculous "baton" rule be in place?

i loved the film, very funny and took me back to the 80s. (though i love whatshisname).

mark gatiss got bamber spot on didn't he.

anyone on here been on UC?

Still, they got one thing right - he ended up with the right girl! No sane man would have given vacuous, flighty, simpering Alice longer than a night's consideration. Dark, wide-mouthed, dirty, witty Rebecca was always far more interesting.

rebecca was the nicest and i love that brian was a huge kate bush fan

'Dark, wide-mouthed, dirty, witty Rebecca' Fab description! You should write too UQD

Yes Mark Gatiss did a fantastic Bamber, I agree!

The book is excellent!

The book is very good, but I feel it was let down by the totally unbelievable incident with the envelope of questions. The film handled that slightly better - I was fearing they'd cop out and have Bristol storming to a legitimate victory!

The book constantly reminds us of The Challenge, to the extent of having questions and answers at the head of every chapter. That's the other thing the film did wrong - to sag into straight rom-com territory in the middle half-hour, almost losing sight of the UC plot altogether.

I loved the fact that he left the University Challenge studio in an ice cream van! I've never , ever been in one of those and I don't suppose I ever will.

I liked the Rebecca character - she dressed just like me back in the day.

I wish I'd met girls like Rebecca at university... Well, OK, I did but I never asked any of them out - they all seemed a bit scary. I was more likely back then to go for Lucy Chang types - quiet intellectuals! And any Alice type would have been fawned all over by several dozen rugger-buggers and likely to be spending every evening in the bar with them, as well as New Year with three of them...

Yes, the film lost the all-consuming thing about UC. That was THE most important thing to Brian.

Also, in the book it was more through Brian's eyes. The realisation that you suddenly have at that age that not everyone has had the same upbringing as you - the wider world - and working out where you fit in it.

In answer to the earlier question, dh was on UC. At my college it was considered terminally uncool even to apply to be on the team.

how did he do bocca?

I worked with someone last year whose son was going to be on UC. Don't see her much now so no update, unfoirtunately

Sadly, they were defeated by Footlights College Oxbridge. wink

i can't see your wink

was it a young one then?!

Sorry, sea

It wasn't a young one but it was many years ago. Dh still has the name tape thingy from the front of the desk. I can't name the victors because (a) I've forgotten and (b) after all the kerfuffle about today's Indy on Sunday I am now paranoid about divulging any details which might identify me or dh to anyone who was desperate enough to stalk/track us down.