Mastermind

- Season 4

(2009)

The contest to find Mastermind Champion 2006 begins. Specialist subjects here are the history of US submarines to 1960, the Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey, Blackadder, and the life and works of Ivor Novello.

The contenders are quizzed on their specialist subjects American Jazz to 1950, Gerrard Winstanley and the Diggers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the life and times of Eleanor of Aquitaine.

The operas of Verdi, the Inspector Morse novels and television series, Anne Boleyn, and the locomotives of Sir Nigel Gresley are chosen as specialist subjects by the contenders in the black chair.

The four contenders answer questions on The Marlow Family novels by Antonia Forest, India v Pakistan Test cricket, British dreadnoughts 1906-1957, and Star Wars Episodes IV-VI.

Mountaineering in the UK, US military aircraft of World War II, the Rebus novels of Ian Rankin, and the life and career of Michael Schumacher are the specialist subjects chosen by the contenders quizzing in the black chair.

The history and geography of enclaves and exclaves, the films of David Cronenberg, the life and works of Caravaggio, and British television sitcoms 1970-1990 are the specialist subjects of the contenders in the black chair.

The life and films of Cary Grant, the Reformation in England 1500-1600, British track and field athletics since 1980, and the life and works of Frederick Nietzche are the specialist subjects chosen by the contenders in the black chair.

The history of metal mining in Britain, Kettle's Yard and its artists, the life and films of Lindsay Anderson, and the Chronicles of Narnia are the specialist subjects chosen by the contenders taking the black chair.

The films of Stanley Kubrick, Anglo-Scottish warfare 1296-1540, the life and works of David Bowie, and the Bodyline Ashes tour of Australia are the specialist subjects of the four contenders taking the black chair.

The four contenders have specialist subjects civil heraldry of the Russian Empire 1500-1918, the history of the crossword, the life and work of the Venerable Bede, and the history of London Zoo.

The Endurance expedition 1914-1917, the life and works of Eugene Smith, the California sound 1965-1975, and the history of forensic science are the specialist subjects of the contenders in the black chair.

The four contenders answer on specialist subjects the life and career of Sir Richard Goodwin Keats, the life and career of Bette Davis, the American Revolution, and the life and works of Douglas Adams.

20th century Liechtenstein, the life and works of Bruce Springsteen, the Titanic, and the life and career of Mary Seacole are the specialist subjects taken by the contenders in the black chair ahead of the general knowledge round.

The NBA finals 1975-2005, the Napoleonic Wars 1796-1815, the life and work of Nevil Shute, and the life and work of Woody Allen are the specialist subjects as the contenders face questions in the black chair.

The contenders' specialist subjects are the history and culture of Arabic dance, Charlton Athletic Football Club, the life and fictional work of Jorge Luis Borges, and the history of firearms 1300-1900.

The philosophy of existentialism, the Little Women series by Louisa May Alcott, the life and work of Gwen John, and music of The Jam are the four specialist subjects from the contenders in the famous black chair.

The four contenders answer on specialist subjects the life and work of Hunter S Thompson, Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds, the life and career of Kenneth Williams, and the history of the Academy Awards.

Venomous snakes, the life of Robert Fitzroy, the Hilda Tablet plays by Henry Reed, and World Cup football 1930-2002 are the chosen specialist subjects of the contenders in the black chair.

Prehistoric art up to 8000 BC, the novels of Charles Dickens, the life and music of Edith Piaf, and the life and films of James Dean are the specialist subjects of the four contenders quizzing in the black chair.

The political and physical geography of continental Europe, the rock band Ash, Lorenzo de Medici, and the life and career of John Lowe are the chosen specialist subjects of the contenders in the black chair.

The contenders answer questions on specialist and general knowledge. Their chosen subjects are the history of the modern marathon 1896 to present, middle Egyptian literature, The Vicar of Dibley, and the life and times of Anne Frank.

Croatian geography, the Flashman novels by GM Fraser, the life and films of Powell and Pressburger, and the life and career of Winston Churchill are the four contenders' specialist subjects as they quiz in the black chair.

The history of the Hammer films 1945-1973, the Little House novels by Laura Ingalls, the British motorcycle industry 1945-1985, and the Rolling Stones are the specialist subjects faced by the contenders in the black chair.

The first round concludes with the last four hopeful contenders taking specialist subjects the career of R.E.M., the Roger Brook novels of Dennis Wheatley, Summer Olympics 1896-2004, and the life and career of Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

William Joyce, the Sandman graphic novels of Neil Gaiman, the Nobel Prizes, and the novels of Jilly Cooper are chosen as specialist subjects as the second round commences.

The contenders answer on life and music of Ian Dury, the Agatha Raisin series, the life and gospel of St Mark, and the history of cryptography and code-breaking, followed by general knowledge.

The life and times of Rosa Parks, the life and reign of Edward I, the Gormenghast trilogy by Melvyn Peake, and the films of Jim Carrey are the specialist subjects of the four in the black chair.

Led Zeppelin, the fiction of HP Lovecraft, Gustav Landauer, and the Hercule Poirot novels of Agatha Christie are chosen as specialist subjects by the four contenders in the black chair.

The contenders in the black chair answer on specialist subjects the life and reign of Elizabeth I, the life and music of Stevie Wonder, the Bernard Sansom novels of Len Deighton, and the Reginald Perrin novels and television series.

Boxing heavyweight world title fights since 1950, the life and career of Andrew Jackson, the Regency novels of Georgette Hayer, and the life and work of Edward Jenner are the specialist subjects in the last semi-final.

The life and work of Thomas Girtin, Margaret Mitchell and Gone With the Wind, Edward VII, the life and fictional works of Albert Camus, Porridge and Going Straight, and the Ottoman Empire 1878-1924 are the specialist subjects in the final.