BBC University Challenge viewers witness 'best comeback ever' in show's history
The latest series of University Challenge launched with a thrilling face-off between Sheffield and Warwick students, leaving viewers gobsmacked by what's being hailed as the most remarkable comeback in the programme's history.
Monday's episode (July 14) saw Sheffield take an early lead, racking up a formidable 170 points to Warwick's 120. However, in a breathtaking final few minutes, Warwick rallied to clinch victory with a decisive 210 points, completely flipping the match.
BBC presenter Amol Rajan was visibly taken aback by the unexpected turn of events, labelling it a "brilliant comeback".
He said: "That is an absolutely perfect example of how momentum is everything, because you (Sheffield) began in the first 10 minutes by soaring and taking it away and then just disappeared at the last five minutes. I'm so sorry, bad luck, but you lost to a fantastic team."
He went on to praise Warwick as "inspirational", saying: "You guys are going to be an eternal inspiration for teams that are quite far behind with five minutes to go.
"But in the end you won by a comfortable margin. It was a brilliant comeback, we shall definitely see you again. Well done."
Amol also hinted that this might not be the last we see of Sheffield, adding: "170 might well be enough to come back again, so we might well see you again."
Viewers were quick to take to social media to share their reaction to the gripping match, celebrating it as an exhilarating kick-off to the new season, reports the Express.
One commented: "What a great start to the new series, and what an excellent recovery from Warwick! Well done them, and best of luck to them and Sheffield who will surely be back too, in your next matches!"
Another chimed in, stating: "Excellent start to the new series. This bodes well for the coming weeks..."
Amol's return as quizmaster also garnered praise among fans.
A delighted viewer remarked: "Monday nights are made for this! Two really likeable teams and what a comeback from Warwick. Quizmaster looking very sharp as ever. Welcome back @amolrajan."
"Wow what a comeback from Warwick," another fan said. "They stayed in the game when all seemed beyond them. No wonder that show was picked for episode one."
"That was by far the best comeback I've ever seen on this show," another avid fan said.
The 42-year-old quizmaster reprised his role on the show after viewers recently watched him embark on an emotional journey to the Ganges in search of healing following his father's death. The British-Indian presenter has openly discussed his struggles with bereavement, revealing how grief "can really screw you up".
His pilgrimage to India's largest religious festival, the Kumbh Mela, served as a significant step in confronting his loss. On The One Show, he shared how the profound experience had "made a big difference" in coping with his sadness.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
9 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Wynne Evans jokes about the 'dark side' in latest post as he plugs new radio show after leaving the BBC following Strictly controversy
Wynne Evans joked about leaving the 'dark side' in his latest post plugging his new radio show on Thursday. The Strictly contestant and opera singer's career has been left struggling in the last six months after he made a controversial joke during his time preparing for the Strictly tour in January. He used a vile sexual innuendo and was also caught up in a 'wandering hand' incident with dance partner Katya Jones, who seemed to remove his arm from her lower waist on the show. After the BBC launched an investigation into his conduct, bosses decided not to renew his radio contract for his show. Wynne has now launched a new daily radio show called The Wynne Evans Show, broadcasting live every weekday from 9am to 12pm on his website, following his departure from BBC Radio Wales. He was promoting on his Instagram Story on Thursday as he shared an image of this show graphics along with the slogan above which read: 'Even he's left the dark side.' 'This show is for my community – The Wynners – who've supported me through thick and thin,' Wynne previously said. 'It's a space where we can come together every morning, share a laugh, play the music we love, and just be ourselves.' It comes after last week Wynne confirmed a brand new business venture amid fears he's split from his new fiancée Liz Brookes. He took to Instagram to share the news that he has joined up with a restaurant in his hometown. The Welsh House Carmarthen shared a video of Wynne to their Instagram confirming that the former Strictly Come Dancing star is joining as a partner in the business. In the clip, Wynne confirmed the venue would be renamed The Welsh House by Wynne and will see him cook 'MasterChef' style dishes. After his BBC Wales radio show was cut, Wynne also confirmed he will be hosting a brand new programme from the restaurant and bar. Proudly showing off his hometown, he revealed: 'One thing that is changing is The Welsh House, it's going to become The Welsh House by Wynne! 'I promise you it will have MasterChef dishes on the menu, it's going to have a warm welcome and I want you to come and see me, OK? The Strictly contestant and opera singer's career has been left struggling in the last six months after he made a controversial joke during his time preparing for the Strictly tour in January (seen with partner Katya Jones) 'It's going to be the home of the radio show as well, so get in touch with us, make your bookings and I'll see you soon - I better get cooking!' In a caption, The Welsh House added: 'We're thrilled to welcome Wynne Evans, iconic Welsh opera singer, presenter, and legend as a new partner in our Carmarthen family! 'A proud local and passionate champion of Welsh food, drink, and culture, Wynne brings unmatched energy and love for the town to help us create something truly special. Big things are coming… The Welsh House by Wynne.' The Sun claimed Wynne is opening the restaurant to 'capitalise' on his 2023 Celebrity MasterChef win and to 'distract' himself amid reports of his separation from Liz. 'He's opening a restaurant focusing on Welsh food to distract from the Liz separation,' a source told the publication. 'He paid the Welsh House to take over their existing space.' 'He is trying to capitalise on his MasterChef win apparently,' they added. It is not Wynne's latest side hustle as he also recently started work as an Airbnb host, leasing out a property in Llansteffan - eight miles away from his hometown. MailOnline contacted Wynne's representatives for comment. In recent weeks, Wynne sparked fears of a split from his new fiancée Liz after deleting his engagement post from Instagram and unfollowing her. MailOnline also revealed Liz no longer follows Wynne, who only proposed to the events company boss last month. He got down on one knee during a romantic trip to Morocco and documented the gesture on Instagram, posting snaps of him proposing and a close-up of Liz's ring. He wrote: 'Big news… I got engaged! 'This weekend in Morocco, somewhere between the couscous, the camels, and me limping around the souks like a man with no spatial awareness, I proposed to Liz — and she said yes! (No take-backs, I've checked.) 'She's clever, she's kind, she's got excellent taste in men. 'Absolutely no idea how I pulled that off, but here we are! Feeling very lucky, very happy, and just a tiny bit smug.' However, the picture has now mysteriously disappeared from his account, as have any mentions of his fiancée. Wynne was previously married to wife seven years, Tanwen - the mother of his two kids - but they split in 2016. Wynne and Liz then met in 2024 shortly before his stint on the BBC1 dancing show, and Liz was often sat in the audience during the live shows. After his BBC Wales show was cut, Wynne announced that he would be launching a new radio show - which he has now confirmed he will record from The Welsh House. In May, he wrote on Instagram: 'The Wynne Evans Show is coming back, live every day from 9am - 12pm on a new app, on Alexa and Google (we don't have to say 'smart speaker' anymore!) and at 'This is our next adventure. And I need you more than ever. We will have great music, my question of the day, the mystery voice, your soundtrack stories and so much more, because we have each other again.' Wynne's show wasn't renewed after it emerged he used sexual innuendo during the Strictly Live Tour and was also caught up in a 'wandering hand' incident with dance partner Katya Jones, who seemed to remove his arm from her lower waist on the show. After the BBC launched an investigation into his conduct, bosses decided not to renew his radio contract for his show. Then, it was revealed that his travelogue series with Joanna Page was cancelled after just one series. The programme originally aired in February and March of this year and was placed on ice when Wynne was dropped from the Strictly tour before returning to screens. An insider told The Sun: 'Once the first series was slapped on ice, there was always a huge question mark hanging over the prospect of a second outing. 'Only now has the BBC publicly confirmed it won't be returning. 'It means that Wynne has no TV show or radio show with the Beeb, and effectively marks the end of their relationship.'
Metro
11 minutes ago
- Metro
Doctor Who legend takes swipe at 'grumpy old fans' of BBC series
Doctor Who's Mark Gatiss has told disgruntled viewers of the long-running BBC sci-fi series that 'it's not for you anymore'. The 58-year-old Sherlock co-creator has contributed to the show in more ways than one, penning nine episodes and guest-starring as various characters across Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat's eras of the show. As well as being the mastermind behind episodes such as The Unquiet Dead, Victory of the Daleks and Robot of Sherwood, he also played Richard Lazarus in season three's The Lazarus Experiment and the Captain in 2017 Christmas special Twice Upon a Time. In a new interview, the acclaimed screenwriter has defended the show from backlash in recent years from certain fans who have claimed it has declined in quality since Jodie Whittaker and Ncuti Gatwa's tenures as the titular Time Lord. 'As much as I love old stuff, the job of the show constantly is to regenerate itself,' Gatiss told the Radio Times. Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro's TV Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your show in the link we'll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you. He continued: 'And sometimes when I meet grumpy old Doctor Who fans, you think, 'You've just fallen into the same space time trap, that it's not as good as it used to be, because it's not for you anymore.' If you still like it, that's great. It's great, but it's not for you.' The creative believes that the show's primary audience will always be younger, explaining that his 2014 Peter Capaldi episode (Robot of Sherwood episode) featured a scene where the Doctor and Robin Hood fight with spoons. When he attended a friend's wedding shortly after, he saw two children fighting with spoons and thought 'that's job done'. He warned about the pitfalls of nostalgia: 'It's a strange thing, because I've revived so many things, but I think nostalgia is a great enemy, and we have to all be careful of it. 'It's part of the reason we're in the mess we are, I think – weaponised nostalgia,' calling it a 'dangerous' path to go down. ''Nothing's as good as it used to be,' and yet people can't see that people have always thought that, even when it used to be better. It's a dangerous thing,' he concluded. Some fans have accused the show of relying too much on nostalgia in recent years, from bringing David Tennant and Catherine Tate back for the 60th anniversary to Billie Piper's shock return in the latest season finale. More Trending Former Doctor Peter Davison (and David Tennant's father-in-law) called it a 'completely mad idea' that he couldn't quite wrap his head around. Meanwhile, the future of the show since Ncuti Gatwa's exit as the 15th Doctor remains up in the air as we wait to see if Disney Plus will renew its deal for more seasons. In a recent chat with Deadline, BBC Studios CEO Tom Fussell remained optimistic about the show returning, saying: '[BBC Studios is] really committed to Doctor Who and is continuing to look at ways in which we can bring the show to fans.' View More » Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: MasterChef's John Torode reportedly used 'worst racial slur there is' before sacking MORE: BBC confirms Two Doors Down is returning 2 years after show was cancelled MORE: Why is EastEnders not on tonight? Latest news on today's episode
Leader Live
11 minutes ago
- Leader Live
Daniel Dubois denies accusation of mental fragility ahead of Oleksandr Usyk bout
Usyk's manager Egis Klimas insisted Dubois was the 'same guy' as two years ago and still had 'weakness' in his mind following the Briton's ninth-round stoppage in Poland to the current WBA, WBO and WBC champion. That second defeat of Dubois' career, after he took a knee to be counted out against Joe Joyce in 2020 following a broken left orbital bone, sparked more question marks, but the 27-year-old has bounced back with knock-out wins over Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and most notably compatriot Anthony Joshua. Klimas' claim was followed by Sergey Lapin, sports director of Usyk's team, stating talk of Dubois' new-found mental focus was an 'illusion', which sparked pushback by Queensberry promoter Frank Warren and Dubois' trainer Don Charles. IBF-belt holder Dubois cut a relaxed figure while verbal volleys were traded and laughed when Usyk uttered on multiple occasions 'don't push the horses', but made clear he will do whatever it takes to create history and become the first British undisputed world heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 2000. 'Right now I just want to get it on, I'm going to write my own script. They have their own script, I am going to write my own and win these belts and be the man,' Dubois insisted. 'I've prepared right. I'm just on a different level now, I'm ready to come through whatever I need to on Saturday and get all them belts. I am chasing glory and I am chasing greatness. 'This is history-making and I have just got to do a real demolition job. I'm hungry and ready for it.' Warren sparked the war of words when he expressed his belief that Dubois would shock favourite Usyk, which Klimas immediately took umbrage with. Trainer Charles later suggested Kilmas must have been 'sleeping' during Dubois' last three fights before Riz Khan, Dubois' manager, accused Team Usyk of being 'rattled'. Usyk disagreed but let his ice-cold demeanour slip slightly when his age came into question. 'It's your opinion? Maybe, I don't know. I not feel (rattled),' Usyk responded. 'Listen, I respect this guy, this young guy. This guy is motivated but I am too. I am not an old guy. 38 is not old, you know? We will see on Saturday.' A post shared by Queensberry (@queensberrypromotions) Dubois did respond to chants of Usyk by trying to gee up the assembled media in his favour before he walked off without pictures of the duo being taken, which forced Warren to step in and jokingly go head-to-head with Saturday's favourite. Before Dubois left the stage he fielded a question about an alleged bet of 500,000 dollars placed on Usyk to win by multiple-weight world champion Canelo Alvarez. But Dubois said: 'It don't mean nothing to me, it don't mean s*** to me. He is going to lose his money, I am just focused now. Let's get it on. 'I know what I've got to do. I am a young lion and I just need to take over, be the man and execute him.'
