Tue Feb 02 12:42PM by TV Editor
A Mastermind contestant has set a record low score after getting only five points in last Friday's show – the worst result in the 37-year run of the BBC Two quiz show.
Kajen Thuraaisingham failed to impress when answering questions on his specialist subject - the life of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey.
The 28-year-old software analyst from London said in a statement through the BBC after the show: "I tried my best but it wasn't my night."
Despite a promising start, Thuraaisingham only answered four questions correctly on his specialist subject, and later won just one point in the general knowledge round.
Mastermind host John Humphrys expressed his commiserations to the unlucky contender. He added: "It's the black chair syndrome. No matter how hard you prepare for a show, the mind can just go blank when you're in that chair and the lights are on you."
Kajen Thuraaisingham broke a record previously held by contestant Michael Burton, who scored only seven points just two months ago.
Could you have done any better? Here's the list of questions he had to answer for the general knowledge round:
1. Which insects got their name from the ancient superstition that they crawl into the ears of sleeping people?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Ants
(Correct answer: Earwig)
2. One of the taglines of which 2001 blockbuster film was "December 7th 1941, it was a Sunday morning"?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Pearl Harbor)
3. In Greek mythology what did Prometheus steal from the gods? He was punished for this by being chained to a rock where an eagle ate his constantly replenished liver.
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: A spark of fire)
4. Pierre is the capital of which American state?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Vermont
(Correct answer: South Dakota)
5. What do people suffering from trichotillomania have a compulsion to do?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Pull out their hair)
6. The American ambassador's London residence Winfield House was sold to the United States for $1 by which chain store heiress?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Hilton
(Correct answer: Barbara Hutton)
7. The "Heroic" in a Flat Major Opus 53 is one of 16 of Chopin's works in the form of which dance?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Polonaise)
8. In women's gymnastics, the uneven bars on which swinging routines are performed are also known by what name?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Trapeze
(Correct answer: Asymmetric bars)
9. Whose 1770 poem The Deserted Village describes the appalling effects of the enclosure acts on the rural poor?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Oliver Goldsmith)
10. Ursus Maritimus is the scientific name for which bear?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: The polar bear (Correct)
11. Le Maillon Faible is the French television version of which British quiz show?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Mastermind
(Correct answer: The Weakest Link)
12. The Halle Orchestra is based in which venue in Manchester?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Salford
(Correct answer: Bridgewater Hall)
13. A device capable of storing electricity consisting of conducting plates separated by a layer of insulating material is given what name?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Battery
(Correct answer: Capacitor)
14. Which Warwickshire town granted its royal prefix by Queen Victoria in 1838 claims to be the home of England's first lawn tennis club?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Leamington Spa)
15. What word can mean a joint of pork, to pawn, or a German white wine?
KAJEN THURAAISINGHAM: Pass
(Correct answer: Hock)
(Source: Yahoo)
