Quiz Down't Pub

One of the most fantastic things about living in GB is that the television is quality. Its sitcoms aren't big productions, unlike the US, where actors can get paid insaaaaaane amounts of money for their comic genius. What the Brits do the very best, I think, is producing documentaries. The reputation for unbiased and factual reporting that the BBC has enjoyed extends to the British documentary, as well. By default, it then trickles down into the rest of the UK's television productions.

While the opportunity to watch television is rarely there *sigh*, when I get a chance to watch, most likely you'd find me switching on to either a programme that features Michael Palin, Bruce Parry, David Starkey, Simon Schama or Hardeep Singh Kohli. They have all hosted excellent documentaries informing the British (and sometimes American) public on subjects such as travel in the Himalayas (or other remote Asiatic regions), the role of religion, the rise of secularism and the bizarre nature of ALL tribal rituals (our own, included). I had the condensed version of the history of the monarchy in Britain and I am sure that I could be a tour guide at the Tower of London if I had to be.
The British have a way of making their facts far more fascinating than their fiction, so catching a documentary or a quiz show (more about those in a minute) was the way for me to hothouse my assimilation into UK culture, and helped me understand cultural references even better.
When I first arrived in London, I would send the SO off to work and I watched early morning telly until 11am, get out of bed, have coffee, watch afternoon telly, get back out of bed, fix dinner, clean house, watch evening telly. It was my initiation into current pop culture references, British history, American history (!), socio-biology, religion and politics. This, you see, was a prerequisite for understanding any water-cooler banter and since I planned to eventually get a job, it was important for me to familiarise myself with all things Britannia. The only problem with watching daytime telly (I've been here for over five years, I can call it telly) is the sheer number of competitions they run asking you to phone in and win luxury villas in Spain, and such. I blew a good portion of my savings trying to win us one of those - 50 pence for every call! My all-time favourite programming, however, is the news quiz show called 'Have I Got News For You'. I've laughed until I've pee'd (only a little bit) many times when watching. Enjoy.
This brings me to the announcement that I am hosting another competition. It's a pub quiz and I'll announce all of the rules AND the questions this Friday. There is only one prize so if you want to play in teams, then you'll have to argue amongst yourselves as to who will claim the great wheel of cheese. There will be bonus points awarded to highly original team names as well as highly original answers. I like to think we'll have a bit of a laugh with this one. We'll run the quiz until the Tuesday after that and then either with my extra sensory perception powers or my one contact in the US who seems to have everybody's address, I'll find a way to send out the prize. Ready to play? Righty-ho (once again, I've been here for over five years and I can say righty-ho without sounding like a prat - at least in my head) we're off.