Tina Foster talks to Egghead Judith Keppel
The quiz show has been running since 2003 and continues to delight and entertain viewers of BBC2. Many of the panel have been there from the start and have almost become friends to many of us. When I was offered the opportunity to talk to Judith Keppel I was pleased to find her as charming as she appears to be on the screen.
Judith famously won Who Wants To Be A Millionaire in November 2000, becoming the first British winner of the top prize, and went on to be a panellist on Eggheads – she still enjoys taking part today.
Judith has royal connections – she is the granddaughter of Walter, 9th Earl of Albemarle. Her great-grandfather, the 8th Earl, was brother-in-law of Alice Keppel, the mistress of King Edward VII, the great-uncle of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. The Duchess of Cornwall is therefore her second cousin once removed.
Through the noble lineage of her aforementioned grandfather, her genealogy can be traced back to Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II of England, who, coincidentally, were the subjects of her Million Pound Question on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
This link with royalty has caused some jokes about her connection with the first family, but she has always maintained her dignity and appears to be proud of her heritage without name dropping. I found her to be a very genuine lady who obviously enjoys her work.
I asked her how she felt about being the butt of some teasing because of her relation to the Royal Family and felt that occasionally the Question Master, Dermot Murnaghan had gone a little too far. She assured me that there was never any malice and the whole show was full of fun and joshing.
The current inquisitor Jeremy Vine keeps everyone amused and they spend most of the recording days laughing.
Strictly not an option
We discussed Jeremy’s entertaining stint on Strictly Come Dancing where he was a surprise hit with the public. I asked Judith if she had ever been asked to take part but she assured me that she was “too stiff”, I was delighted there was no mention of the age factor!
The BBC can record up to five shows in one day, but currently with a pool of eight members they do get some respite, as only five sit on each panel. Recorded in Glasgow the teams are transported to the studios at the expense of the BBC.
The working day for “arguably the best quiz team in Britain” can start as early as 7.45am and go on until 9.00pm at night. Because they have a revolving team they do have a break, but it is still a long day.
Fresh Eggs
With the need to replace CJ, who left the programme in May, the BBC are running a new series entitled Make Me An Egghead to find two new team members, one man and one woman, bringing them up to nine members.
This was scheduled to start at the end of August, but at the time of writing had not been confirmed. The new format will identify the two new Eggheads who will go through an elimination process, which will involve answering a series of questions. Hopefully the new members will fit in the team successfully.
The traditional nightly programme is often criticised by viewers as they find the Eggheads too smug and pleased with themselves when they win. Don’t we all love it when the challengers win?
In fact, we in our office are considering putting in our own team as it all sounds such fun. But don’t hold your breath if you are hoping to see us on your screen: I am having trouble even filling out the form.
