QI. Image shows from L to R: Alan Davies, Sandi Toksvig. Copyright: TalkbackThames
QI

QI

  • TV panel show
  • BBC Two / BBC One / BBC Four
  • 2003 - 2024
  • 312 episodes (21 series)

Panel game that contains lots of difficult questions and a large amount of quite interesting facts. Stars Sandi Toksvig, Stephen Fry and Alan Davies.

Episode menu

Series C, Episode 9 - Creatures

Cuttlefish

Extra Tasks

- An extra difficult question is provided with 200 points for anyone who gets it.

- A "spot the cuttlefish competition" - There is a cuttlefish or part of a cuttlefish hidden in one of the questions.

Topics

- The panel's buzzers contain animal noises (Bill - donkey; Andy - gorilla; Helen - chicken; Alan - mosquito). Out of those, the chicken has the most chromosomes with 78, arranged as 39 pairs. (Forfeit: Gorilla)

- Tangent: The number of chromosomes has no relation to genetic make-up of an animal. It is known as the "C-value paradox".

- Tangent: The Adder's tongue fern has the most chromosomes of any living thing, with 1,320.

- Tangent: All creatures have an even number of chromosomes. Correction: Some creatures, mainly hybrids such as mules, ligers, zorses and wholphins, have an odd number of chromosomes (e.g. mules have 63 because horses have 64 and donkeys have 62).

- When a pair of pygmy chimpanzees or bonobos sees a box, they have sex with each other. It happens no matter what the object is. They are the happiest of all the apes. Male bonobos also practice penis-fencing.

- Swimming through treacle is very similar to swimming through water in terms of speed. It is harder to use your arms because you are pulling. However, you get a large spring forward when using your legs.

- The material used to write on blackboards is called "Gypsum". Chalk, also known as calcium carbonate, is found in limestone, marble, coral, the skeleton of humans and fish, the lenses of human eyes, and indigestion pills. (Forfeit: Chalk) Correction: The lenses of fish eyes, not human eyes, are made out of chalk.

- Bonus question: "C6H12O6(S) + 6O2(g) -> 6CO2(g) + 6H2O(g)" is the chemical equation for the oxidisation of glucose - in other words, "an explosion in a custard factory". (Answered correctly by Helen) Correction: The formula is actually just of the resperation of custard, not of an explosion in a custard factory.

- The French for "Custard" is "Crème Anglaise", because they do not believe the word exists.

- Apart from being able to sing, the New Guinea Singing Dog is the only dog that can climb trees.

- Octopuses pretend to be coconuts. (Forfeit: Cuttlefish)

- Tangent: The correct plural for "Octopus" is "Octopuses" not "Octopi". An octopus the size of volleyball can fit into a soft drink can.

- Marie Curie, discoverer of uranium and with her husband Pierre also discovered radium, was the first person to win two Nobel Prizes, one in physics and one in chemistry. Marie and her daughter Irène Joliot-Curie (the second woman to ever win a Nobel Prize) died of leukaemia, because they did not know of the dangerous properties of uranium. Pierre was killed by a runaway horse.

- Cuttlefish prize: It was in a photo of Marie Curie shown whilst the question was asked. The sepia tone was created using a pigment from cuttlefish. "Sepia" is Italian for "Cuttlefish". The panel fail to spot it. Correction: The sepia used in photographs may not have come from cuttlefish.

General Ignorance

- The pie chart was invented by Florence Nightingale. Correction: The pie chart was actually invented by William Playfair.

- Cuttlefish prize: A sepia photo of Florence Nightingale appears. Alan spots the sepia and claims the bonus points.

- Most tigers are kept in private hands in the USA. (Forfeit: Asia; Zoos)

- Silly, Billy, Chilly, Pussy, Pissy, Corny, Punchy, Misery, Messy and Prat are all places in France. (Forfeit: The Ten Dwarfs - given by the audience)

- Tangent: Bill once visited a French town called "Bitche".

Deleted scenes

- Chimpanzees are thought to be the closest thing to the common acestor of both humans and apes. Chimpanzees live in trees.

- Most anicent humans from thousands of years ago lived out in the open or in simple dwellings. More people live in caves today than did thousands of years ago. There are 40,000,000 people living in caves in China alone. (Forfeit: Caves)

- "Red-headed" people need 20% more anaesthetic than average in order to be put under for an operation. No-one knows why.

Scores

- Helen Atkinson-Wood: 200 points (Current record)
- Andy Hamilton: 22 points
- Alan Davies: 15 points
- Bill Bailey: -20 points

Notes

For more information on the chromosomes correction, see the QI Qibble Blog. For others, see the Series C DVD.

Broadcast details

Date
Friday 18th November 2005
Time
10:30pm
Channel
BBC Four
Length
30 minutes

Repeats

Show past repeats

Date Time Channel
Thursday 8th July 2010 9:40pm Dave
Tuesday 17th August 2010 9:40pm Dave
Saturday 30th October 2010 9:00pm Dave
Wednesday 16th February 2011 11:00pm Dave
Wednesday 18th May 2011 10:40pm Dave
Sunday 21st April 2013 1:40pm Dave
Sunday 21st April 2013 5:40pm Dave
Thursday 20th June 2013 10:00pm Dave
Friday 21st June 2013 1:05am Dave
Tuesday 26th November 2013 11:00pm Dave
Wednesday 30th April 2014 10:40pm Dave
Thursday 1st May 2014 2:10am Dave
Saturday 26th July 2014 10:20pm Dave
Tuesday 20th January 2015 11:00pm Dave
Tuesday 14th April 2015 11:00pm Dave
Wednesday 16th September 2015 9:20pm Dave
Saturday 12th March 2016 1:40am Dave
Saturday 12th March 2016 9:20pm Dave
Thursday 19th May 2016 2:20am Dave
Thursday 19th May 2016 11:20pm Dave
Saturday 10th September 2016 1:40am Dave
Saturday 10th September 2016 9:40pm Dave
Wednesday 15th February 2017 6:40pm Dave
Thursday 16th February 2017 2:40pm Dave
Wednesday 12th July 2017 1:00am Dave
Thursday 10th August 2017 11:40pm Dave
Friday 11th August 2017 1:40am Dave
Monday 18th September 2017 11:20pm Dave
Tuesday 19th September 2017 1:20am Dave
Wednesday 29th November 2017 11:20pm Dave
Monday 29th January 2018 11:40pm Dave
Tuesday 30th January 2018 1:40am Dave
Friday 9th February 2018 11:00pm Dave
Saturday 10th February 2018 1:00am Dave
Saturday 14th April 2018 12:40am Dave
Saturday 14th April 2018 2:40am Dave
Monday 30th July 2018 11:20pm Dave
Tuesday 23rd October 2018 1:55am Dave
Thursday 17th January 2019 11:40pm Dave
Friday 18th January 2019 1:40am Dave
Tuesday 24th September 2019 11:00pm Dave
Monday 16th December 2019 11:40pm Dave

Cast & crew

Cast
Stephen Fry Host / Presenter
Alan Davies Regular Panellist
Guest cast
Bill Bailey Guest
Andy Hamilton Guest
Helen Atkinson-Wood Guest
Production team
Ian Lorimer Director
John Lloyd Producer
Mark Freeland Executive Producer
Sally Debonnaire Executive Producer
Nick King Editor
Jonathan Paul Green Production Designer
Howard Goodall Composer

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