Leicester team to compete in University Challenge

Four talented students from the our University are going to show Paxman what they’re made of in an upcoming episode of University Challenge.

The team comprises captain Pip Brown, 21, Stanley French, 20, Graham Aldred, 64, Jamie Byrne, 21, and fourth year medical student Alexander Chadwick as the reserve. The show is scheduled to air on 18 September.

Our University was the first ever winning team of University Challenge in 1963, and this year’s foursome are ready to represent once again.

The historically challenging quiz show pits two teams against each other as they battle head-to-head through a series of niche and academically focused questions. In recent years the show has taken on a cult status; renowned for its demanding knowledge requirements, fast pace and no-nonsense host Jeremy Paxman.

Coming from respective departments at the University, the team hold a diverse range of academic backgrounds- Pip Brown has just completed her first year of Psychology with Cognitive Neuroscience, Stanley has just finished his second year of Chemistry, Jamie is about to go into the fourth year of his Physics degree and Graham is in the midst of his PhD research in Toponymic Archaeology

Team captain Pip Brown described the process as, “Stressful, surreal but very rewarding; I will remember this experience for the rest of my life!”

Tune in to watch the episode on Monday 18 September on BBC Two at 8:00PM.

The Students' Union will be holding trials for next year’s team in October, for further information contact Alice Copperwheat at ac645@leicester.ac.uk