Weakest Link Rugby Special - part 7

Then there were two

The charity Rugby Special of the quiz show The Weakest Link was broadcast first on 20 March 2004 and repeated at the end of October.

When asked for it, the BBC were kind enough to send us a tape of the programme, which we have been presenting, round by round, as it now gets down to the business of winning the money. There are just two more episodes with a delightful ending fitting for Christmas.

Nine international players started facing Anne Robinson who was not nearly as grim and foreboding as she usually is.

The players, all internationals, taking part were Will Greenwood, Colin Charvis, Brian Moore, Geordan Murphy, Matt Dawson, Simon Taylor, Thomas Castaignède, Matt Dawson and Martin Bayfield. Each round the contestants vote off a player dubbed the weakest link.

In order those who voted off in the first four rounds were Healey, Dawson, Castaignède, Charvis, Murphy and Bayfield. That leaves solemn Greenwood, serious Moore and boyish Taylor for Round 7.

There is £5,000 available each round. The team managed to bank that in each of the first two rounds.

QA is Anne Robinson.

QA: Round 7. There's £17,700 in the kitty. Three of you left. There's another ten seconds coming off the time. We'll start with the strongest link from the last round. That's Simon. Let's play The Weakest Link. Start the clock.

Simon, the harbour bridge in which Australian city is sometimes referred top as the coat hanger?
ST: Sydney

QA: Will, in nature a bee larva that is destined to become a queen is fed exclusively on a substance called royal what?
WG: Honey
QA: Jelly

QA: Brian, in fashion what is the usual four-letter term for the dimensions of an item of clothing?
BM (troubled): Pass
QA: Size

QA: Simon, in dining the hors d'oeuvres is served when in relation to the main course - before or after?
ST: Before

QA: Will, in leisure which amenity is likely to have a deep end and a shallow end?
WG: Swimming pool

QA: Brian, in motor racing what nationality is the Formula One driver Michael Schumacher?
BM: German

QA: Simon, in the home what 'u' is the hobby of covering and stuffing furniture?
ST: Upholstery

WG: Bank!

QA: Will, which word means softened and genial as a result of maturity and rhymes with yellow?
WG: Mellow

QA: Brian, in history which Venetian traveller visited China in the 13th century?
BM: Marco Polo

QA: Simon, in the animal kingdom the word panther is a term used in the UK for a leopard that is which colour - pink or black?
ST: Black

QA: Will, in medicine what is the term for an involuntary, painful spasm in a muscle or group of muscles, often in the calf?
WG: Cramp.

QA: Brian, in UK politics the officials who administer the policies of the government are collectively known as the civil what?
BM: Service

ST: Bank!

QA: Simon, in language what 'c' is the French word used in English to me a stereotyped expression or hackneyed phrase?
ST: Cliché

QA: Will, in geography the island of Samoa is situated in which ocean?
WG: Pacific

QA: Brian, in the home what name is given to the fibrous cord that is coated and waxed to make a candle?
BM: Wick

QA: Simon, in Rugby League a dropped goal is worth how many points?
ST: One

WG: Bank!

QA: Will, in the children's book Treasure Island, what is the name of the cabin boy - Roger or Jim?
WG: looks worried but the music crashes before he can answer.

QA: Time's up and you did very well. You won £3,500. Now in Round 8 you get the chance to treble what you bank. Before that, guys, you have to decide who's staying and who's going. It's time to vote off the weakest link.

Ghost voice: Statistically the weakest link is Will as he got most questions wrong. The strongest link is Simon, but who will be taking the final walk of shame?

QA: Voting over. It's time to reveal who you think is the weakest link.

The players stop writing and switch on their screens.

WG: Brian
BM: Will
ST: Brian

QA: Simon, do you think Brian is the worst player?
ST: Um. I think it was a close-run thing but he hesitated over a couple and probably was - yeah.

QA: So, Shaggy, did you think Brian was the worst player?
WG: I think that Simon's been the stand-out player of the whole show. I don't think he's got a question wrong in the whole show. Correct me if I'm wrong.
QA: You're wrong.
WG: Not that it really matters.
QA: Just as an added piece of interest guess who's got more questions wrong in the whole game than anyone else.
WG: Ahem. Well, I know I got more wrong than Austin.
QA: You got more wrong than anyone, dear.
WG: Aren't I a lucky git?

QA: It's votes that count. Brian, you are the weakest link. Goodbye.

Brian, as unemotional as ever, wanders over the "walk of shame" and speaks to the television audience.

BM: Well, I'd like to see Will win because he's English, but to be fair I think Simon's been one of the best performers, if not the best performer all the way through and I suspect quite strongly that he will win.

NB: Anne did not tell us, but the cabin boy's name was Jim.

To be continued.....