Sunday 6 January 2008

The Quiz Ninjas of Nazareth

Juliet:
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)
As a matter of course, I regularly participate in pub quizzes. What other institution rewards the obscure, anorak-y knowledge of celebrities, flags, TV shows and military history? Our local (and a fine beast she is) is The Railway, a proper down-at-heel, kind-at-heart boozer in West Didsbury. It's hemmed in on one side by the Lounge - £6 cocktails containing "muddled" fruit - and on the other by The Metropolitan. I could go on for an age about "The Met" it's the most expensive, unwelcoming, pretentious tossfest of a pub this side of Soho. Ok, so the food's all right. And there's often a beautiful Audi R8 parked outside. But the pub itself is soulless, and soul-drainingly popular.

Anyway, I digress....Deciding on a name for your assembled crack team of pub quiz experts is very much like choosing a band name: it can change from week to week and, by nature, has to define the entire ethos of your group. Names should be either:

a) topical,
b) witty,
c) rude,
d) punning,
e) surreal,
f) referencing TV, film or music, or
g) all of the above.

Also like band names, the name is at least as important as what you produce. Who wants to pick up the mantle of Kings of the Quiz under a shit moniker like "Kev n his mates" or "Shandy Bob"?

This week, we were called "Sonic Death Monkey", after Jack Black's band in High Fidelity. Of course, next week, we shall quiz our brains out under the moniker "Barry Jive and the Uptown Five".

Previous pub quiz team names include:

Mr Cuddles' Alibi (after the soft toy was found in the boot of the McCann's Megane)
The Disco Biscuits
My Achilles Brain

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the link - right back atcha!