Bridgnorth barman to carry on quizzing after Mastermind defeat
A bar manager from Bridgnorth who made it to the finals of this year's Mastermind, has said he intends to carry on entering quizzes despite his defeat on the show.
Ben Spicer, 26, was one five in an all-male final screened on BBC2 on Monday night, which was the 50th Grand Final of the programme.
He scored a creditable 22 and came joint fourth out of six in the iconic quiz show, hosted by Clive Myrie.
The former Bridgnorth Endowed pupil chose the British Lions as his specialist subject, scoring 10. In previous shows he had answered questions on hit TV show Peaky Blinders and the band Coldplay.
Ben said that despite achieving his target of winning his heat, he was still "a bit gutted" after losing out on Monday.
He said: "I’ve definitely enjoyed the Mastermind experience, even if it was hard work revising for the specialist subjects.
"My target going in was to win my heat and reach the semi final, so everything I achieved after that was a bonus, and I was absolutely buzzing to make the grand final.
"Having said that, I’m still a bit gutted because I think there were a few questions I should have got correct that slipped away from me in the final.
"My overarching emotion though is one of pride at having achieved something quite special and overachieved on my target."
Ben, who runs regular quiz nights at the Bassa Villa in Bridgnorth where he works, says the next quiz he enters will offer cash rewards.
He said: "I certainly will not be having another go at Mastermind anytime soon - those specialist subjects are hard work and very time consuming, but never say never, and I already have a few ideas for new specialist subjects rattling around my head if I ever do brave it again.
"I think my next focus though will be to apply for shows that take a little less effort and have some financial reward!
"I have been running lots of quizzes lately at the Bassa Villa and they are thriving, we’re packing out the pub every time now with our quiz every first Thursday of the month. I’m always looking for new people who want to give my quizzes a go though, so all are welcome."
