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University Challenge 2023–24

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The 53rd series of the quiz show University Challenge began on 17 July 2023 on BBC Two,[1] and ended with the final on 8 April 2024,[2] when Imperial College London triumphed for a record-breaking fifth time. This was the first series to be hosted by Amol Rajan, who succeeded Jeremy Paxman. Rajan's presenting style, more energetic and less austere than his predecessor, garnered positive reception from critics and viewers.

Background

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In the quiz show, two teams of four compete on the buzzer to answer a "starter" question, earning ten points for a correct answer and losing five points if interrupting with a wrong answer before the question is finished. Three "bonus" questions are given to the winning team, on which they can confer. Question writers are on hand to rule on the correctness of answers.[3] As in the first episode of the 53rd series, a draw leads to a single tie-breaker question on the buzzer.[4] The competition is open to all universities and university colleges in the UK, of which 120 applied and 28 made the televised rounds this series.[5] Teams often bring mascots.[6][3][7]

The 53rd series was the first to be presented by the BBC journalist and presenter Amol Rajan, the third host in the programme's 60-year tenure. He succeeded Jeremy Paxman, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, after 29 years as host.[8] The series had a new set and opening sequence, but maintained its theme tune and announcements by Roger Tilling.[9] Rajan adopted a more relaxed and enthusiastic persona than Paxman,[7][10] praising impressive answers while sometimes mocking poor answers.[11][10] He maintained a number of traditional phrases, such as "Fingers on buzzers – here's your first starter for 10".[12] Rajan had appeared as a contestant in the Christmas series in 2020 and reported having watched the series for years.[8][13]

The 53rd series began on 17 July 2023 and aired on BBC Two in the Monday 8:30 p.m. timeslot,[8][4] following the quiz shows Mastermind and Only Connect.[3] It was produced by Lifted Entertainment, a division of ITV Studios.[14] Episodes were filmed in MediaCityUK, Salford, without a studio audience.[15]

Results

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Northeastern University – London debuted in the competition, losing to York.[16]

The final matched up two undefeated teams, from Imperial College London and University College London (UCL). With their win, Imperial became the institution with the highest number of series wins: five.[5][7] Tom Stoppard joined for a ceremony in the final to mark the winners.[7]

  • Winning teams are highlighted in bold.
  • Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated (as they were not one of the highest scoring losers).
  • Teams with orange scores had to win one more match to return in the next round.
  • Teams with yellow scores indicate that two further matches had to be played and won (teams that lost their first quarter-final match).
  • A score in italics indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question.

First round

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Trinity College, Cambridge 175 185 University of Manchester 360 17 July 2023
University of Aberdeen 190 125 University of Birmingham 315 24 July 2023
Birkbeck, University of London 220 205 Oxford Brookes University 425 31 July 2023
University of Southampton 155 180 Christ Church, Oxford 335 7 August 2023
Emmanuel College, Cambridge 240 60 Jesus College, Oxford 300 14 August 2023
King's College, Cambridge 145 190 University College London 335 21 August 2023
University of East Anglia 235 125 University of Strathclyde 360 28 August 2023
The Open University 155 230 Hertford College, Oxford 385 4 September 2023
Balliol College, Oxford 145 285 Imperial College London 430 11 September 2023
University of Sheffield 290 115 Loughborough University 405 18 September 2023
University of Warwick 265 140 Wolfson College, Cambridge 405 25 September 2023
Bangor University 150 320 University of Edinburgh 470 2 October 2023
Lincoln College, Oxford 225 65 King's College London 290 9 October 2023
University of York 190 120 Northeastern University – London 310 16 October 2023

Highest scoring losers play-offs

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Trinity College, Cambridge 245 120 University of Southampton 365 23 October 2023
Oxford Brookes University 155 255 The Open University 410 30 October 2023

Second round

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
University of Warwick 185 205 Trinity College, Cambridge 390 6 November 2023
The Open University 265 130 University of East Anglia 395 13 November 2023
Emmanuel College, Cambridge 130 155 Christ Church, Oxford 285 20 November 2023
Hertford College, Oxford 140 225 University College London 365 27 November 2023
University of Manchester 215 105 University of Edinburgh 320 4 December 2023
University of York 155 165 Birkbeck, University of London 320 11 December 2023
University of Sheffield 130 105 University of Aberdeen 235 1 January 2024
Lincoln College, Oxford 120 250 Imperial College London 370 8 January 2024

Quarter-finals

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
University of Manchester 160 95 Birkbeck, University of London 255 15 January 2024
University of Sheffield 160 195 Imperial College London 355 22 January 2024
Trinity College, Cambridge 190 170 The Open University 360 29 January 2024
University College London 200 130 Christ Church, Oxford 330 5 February 2024
University of Manchester 120 205 Imperial College London 325 12 February 2024
Birkbeck, University of London 200 160 University of Sheffield 360 19 February 2024
Trinity College, Cambridge 150 165 University College London 315 26 February 2024
The Open University 75 170 Christ Church, Oxford 245 4 March 2024
University of Manchester 145 130 Christ Church, Oxford 275 11 March 2024
Birkbeck, University of London 100 165 Trinity College, Cambridge 265 18 March 2024

Semi-finals

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Imperial College London 240 110 Trinity College, Cambridge 350 25 March 2024
University College London 210 165 University of Manchester 375 1 April 2024

Final

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Imperial College London 285 120 University College London 405 8 April 2024
  • The winning Imperial team consisted of Justin Lee, Adam Jones, Suraiya Haddad, and Sourajit Debnath, who beat the UCL team of James Hall, Ali Izzatdust, Tayana Sawh, and Jacob Finlay.
  • The trophy was presented in the studio by Amol Rajan, with Sir Tom Stoppard featuring in a separate ceremony filmed on location at Imperial College London to commemorate the university's fifth series win.

Spin-off: Christmas Special 2023

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Since 2011, a spin-off Christmas series is aired, featuring distinguished alumni.[17] It began on 18 December 2023, in the 8:30 p.m. timeslot on BBC Two.[18] The competition featured only one team from Oxford or Cambridge, fewer than previous Christmas series.[19]

First round

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Out of seven first-round winners, only the top four highest-scoring teams progress to the semi-finals.

One first-round episode, filmed in November, was not aired due to complaints from two contestants over accessibility requirements. The BBC said the rest of the series was not affected by the withdrawal of the episode, which involved an Oxford and Cambridge team. One neurodivergent contestant reported being denied subtitles and only partially receiving accommodations for sensory needs. Another said they were told on the day that previously agreed on audio description would not be provided. The BBC apologised to the participants.[20] The UK National Federation of the Blind encouraged the series to be withdrawn and re-recorded.[21]

  • Winning teams are highlighted in bold.
  • Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated.
  • Teams with grey scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round.
  • A score in italics indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question.
Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
King's College London 155 120 City, University of London 275 18 December 2023
Royal Holloway, University of London 170 95 University of East Anglia 265 19 December 2023
University of Dundee 75 185 Bangor University 260 20 December 2023
Corpus Christi College, Oxford 265 80 University of Edinburgh 345 21 December 2023
Imperial College London 110 80 University of Liverpool 190 22 December 2023
Middlesex University 175 115 University of Leeds 290 26 December 2023

Standings for the winners

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Rank Team Team captain(s) Score
1 Corpus Christi College, Oxford Alex Bellos 265
2 Bangor University David Neal 185
3 Middlesex University Dan Renton Skinner / Heather Phillipson[a] 175
4 Royal Holloway, University of London Liz Sayce 170
5 King's College London Ayshah Tull 155
6 Imperial College London Anjana Ahuja 110

Semi-finals

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Royal Holloway, University of London 160 180 Corpus Christi College, Oxford 340 27 December 2023
Bangor University 85 195 Middlesex University 280 28 December 2023

Final

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Team 1 Score Team 2 Total Broadcast date
Corpus Christi College, Oxford 80 175 Middlesex University 255 29 December 2023

The winning Middlesex University team consisted of David Heathcote, David Hepworth, Heather Phillipson, Dan Renton Skinner and Lola Young,[a] who beat Corpus Christi College, Oxford and their team of Francesca Happé, Michael Cockerell, Alex Bellos and Steve Waters.

Reception

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Rajan's first episode outperformed the BBC One programme in the same timeslot, with 1.9 million viewers.[22] In a five-star review, Sean O'Grady of The Independent praised that Rajan appeared to enjoy presenting and to be knowledgeable but not arrogant. O'Grady found the questions difficult and wide-ranging.[23] Carol Midgley rated it four stars for The Times, remarking on Rajan's "less daunting" personality and the quiz's toughness;[24] in another four-star review, Anita Singh of The Daily Telegraph praised that Rajan had a "brasher presence" but "didn't over-egg it".[25] The Herald's Alison Rowat gave it three stars, describing it as a "fine debut".[11] Mark Lawson of The Guardian also gave it three stars, saying that Rajan "has shown how seriously he takes the role by significantly adapting his presenting style to this new challenge".[4] In contrast, James Delingpole of The Spectator criticised the subject matter of questions, including climate change, supranational unions and "gender and diversity" artists.[26]

After the first episode, viewers criticised that Rajan was positioned low down relative to his desk.[27] Rajan said this would be changed for the following series.[28] Melanie McDonagh of The Spectator praised Rajan's outfit but believed the slate screen from which he read prompts was inferior to question cards, reducing eye contact with contestants.[29] By the end of the series, according to i's Nick Hilton, Rajan had become popular among fans and successfully established a new style for the programme.[10]

In January 2024, Rajan rejected an answer about dance music genres with the words: "I can't accept drum'n'bass – we need jungle, I'm afraid".[30] The clip went viral and was remixed by numerous social media users.[31] Rajan was offered festival sets by DJs after the event.[30] Joe Muggs of The Quietus argued that drum'n'bass should have been accepted as correct.[32]

Misinformation on social media alleged that one team's octopus mascot and one contestant's coloured jacket were antisemitic or pro-Palestinian references to the Israel–Hamas war that began in October 2023. The episode in question was filmed in March 2023.[33][28] The politician Jacqueline Foster paid damages and issued an apology to one contestant after asking for them to be expelled and arrested after their appearance. However, a complaint to the House of Lords commissioner was not upheld.[6][34][35]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b Dan Renton Skinner was the original team captain, but was unable to make the recordings of the semi-finals and final, so Heather Phillipson took over as captain, and David Heathcote took his place as a team member.

References

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  1. ^ "BBC Two - University Challenge, 2023/24, Trinity College, Cambridge v Manchester". BBC Online. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  2. ^ "BBC Two - University Challenge, 2023/24, The Final". BBC Online. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Ahuja, Anjana (22 December 2023). "My University Challenge debut was a heady festive cocktail". Financial Times. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Lawson, Mark (17 July 2023). "University Challenge review – Amol Rajan is lighter, kinder and more passionate than Paxman". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b Henry, Grace (8 April 2024). "University Challenge 2024 reveals winner as institution makes new record". Radio Times. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b Safdar, Anealla (6 March 2024). "UK: Muslim student accused of anti-Semitism wins case against politician". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d Radcliffe, Alex (8 April 2024). "'Astonishing speed!': the University Challenge final reviewed by last year's winner". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  8. ^ a b c Lewis, Isobel (5 July 2023). "University Challenge: Amol Rajan 'excited' to take over from Jeremy Paxman as quiz show's new host". The Independent. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  9. ^ "University Challenge returns on BBC Two and iPlayer – asking the questions, Amol Rajan!". BBC. 5 July 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  10. ^ a b c Hilton, Nick (8 April 2024). "I was sceptical – but Amol Rajan is the real winner of University Challenge". i.
  11. ^ a b Rowat, Alison (17 July 2023). "University Challenge, BBC2 and catch up on iPlayer". The Herald. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  12. ^ Bryan, Scott (14 July 2023). "New host, new set, same fiendish questions: behind the scenes with the all-new University Challenge". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  13. ^ Hughes, David (17 July 2023). "Who is Amol Rajan? Why new University Challenge host has replaced Jeremy Paxman and what time it's on tonight". i. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  14. ^ Badshah, Nadeem (1 December 2023). "University Challenge special axed over lack of support for disabled contestants". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  15. ^ Bourne, Dianne (17 July 2023). "I went on the new-look University Challenge - the questions are so hard I could have cried". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  16. ^ "Northeastern students impress in first appearance on historic BBC quiz show". Northeastern Global News. Northeastern University – London. 9 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  17. ^ Weaver, Matthew (18 December 2023). "BBC called to defend 'elitist' format of University Challenge". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  18. ^ "Festive cheer and intellectual prowess unite in the University Challenge Christmas Special Series". BBC. 13 December 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  19. ^ Gilbert, Gerard (18 December 2023). "Of course University Challenge is elitist – that's the whole point". i. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  20. ^ "University Challenge: Christmas episode axed after ableism complaints". BBC News. 1 December 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  21. ^ "BBC Quiz show cancelled after complaints of failure to support disabled participants". The Economic Times. 2 December 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  22. ^ McIntosh, Steven (18 July 2023). "Amol Rajan: Critics warm to University Challenge's new presenter". BBC News. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  23. ^ O'Grady, Sean (17 July 2023). "University Challenge review: Amol Rajan is a natural as he takes up the baton from Jeremy Paxman". The Independent. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  24. ^ Midgley, Carol (17 July 2023). "University Challenge review — Amol Rajan is a chummier host but the questions are dastardly". The Times. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  25. ^ Singh, Anita (17 July 2023). "University Challenge, review: Amol Rajan reins in the smug to ensure the quiz is the star". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  26. ^ Delingpole, James (29 July 2023). "University Challenge deserves Amol Rajan". The Spectator. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  27. ^ Murray, Tom (18 July 2023). "University Challenge viewers point out awkward set design issue as Amol Rajan takes over as host". The Independent. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  28. ^ a b Singh, Anita (16 January 2024). "University Challenge gives Amol Rajan a smaller chair because he 'looks like a villain'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  29. ^ McDonagh, Melanie (18 July 2023). "Amol Rajan's University Challenge debut showed he is no Paxman". The Spectator. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  30. ^ a b Tapper, James (13 January 2024). "'We need jungle, I'm afraid': how University Challenge went viral on the rave scene". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  31. ^ "Jungle fans remix University Challenge host Amol Rajan". BBC News. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  32. ^ Muggs, Joe (16 January 2024). "I Can't Accept That: University Challenge, Jungle And How Glibness Creates Bad History". The Quietus. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  33. ^ Vassell, Nicole (21 November 2023). "BBC denies octopus mascot on University Challenge was 'antisemitic' attack". The Independent. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  34. ^ Walker, Peter (6 March 2024). "Tory peer pays damages after alleging University Challenge mascot was antisemitic". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  35. ^ "University Challenge student gets payout from Tory peer over antisemitism claim". BBC News. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
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