University Challenge - and hearing Paxman swear
Yes - and I have the evidence:



Well, not of the swearing, but bear with me... that's me on the left, by the way, though I no longer have the blond highlights - that's a wholly different story.

After a quick trip over the Pennines from York to Granada Studios in Manchester, June 2000, the four of us were getting a bit peckish. So we made our way to the canteen. Just before we got there, we stumbled on another team - from Aberdeen, the ones we were about to face, although we didn't know it at the time. At the same time, Paxman turned up, somewhat flustered as his train was late. One of the other side collared him and (somewhat stupidly) told him what a crock of shit is book "The English" was - and then asked him to sign it. Paxo's reaction: a Vulcan-style raised eyebrow, followed by the immortal line "Fuck off!". This left our dimwitted friend proffering a pen to thin air, as Paxo left. We almost pissed ourselves.

We had our dinner and made our way to the Green Room. Not long afterwards, being a bit bored and wanting to have a bit of a wander, I opened the door. Trevor MacDonald was outside - which was a surprise.

It was soon time for the show to start. We were marched out to the new studio - the bowls-of-hell orange studio, so new it still had saw dust all over the place. Seriously, they could have hoovered the place...

The theme tune played - the audience went wild - too wild - and too loud. CUT!

The theme tune played - the audience went not especially wild - too not especially wild - and not loud enough. CUT!

Then, like Goldilocks' porridge, the audience was just right.

Paxo started with a few questions to warm us up and make sure all the equipment was working - it was the first time the new studio had been used. I answered - and got it wrong. And again - I had clearly left my brain behind. Crap.

So, the show started - and somehow my brain returned. I got the opening question right, not to mention a few more. To cut a long story short, we won the first round.

We retired, jubilant, to the Green Room, and got pissed. Eventually, after another team faced off, we had to go. We were chucked out into the Mancunian night - to be faced with a load of farm machinery. I began to wonder how much I had had. Turns out that the local ITV news had not reported farmers' protests at the time as "they were not militant enough". The farmers decided to show Granada how militant they were: by setting a muck spreader to blow right in front of the reception.

All in all, it was quite a day.

A little while later, a friend of mine and supporter of the team said that he found two stars of Coronation Street doing a line of coke when he went to the bogs that night. Shame there were no camera phones in 2000...
( Parmesan Quality b4 Quantity, Sat 13 Jun 2009, 1:23, 5 replies)

June 2000?
I wonder if we were at the same recording?

(I have no memory of farmers' protests, though...)
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Sat 13 Jun 2009, 9:26, closed)

Don't think so - I'm sure you would have remembered the muck spreader.
Cearly in the same year, though.
( Parmesan Quality b4 Quantity, Sat 13 Jun 2009, 12:07, closed)

I can't remember too much of any of it, to be honest.
Drink is bad.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Sat 13 Jun 2009, 14:53, closed)

God...
Paxo is sex on toast.
( monkeybananaraffle, Sat 13 Jun 2009, 14:58, closed)

Would
that is all
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 13 Jun 2009, 19:03, closed)