Who came out on top of the table? The Building Quiz results revealed

Back for the second year in a row the Building Quiz - held by Turner & Townsend alinea and Fieldfisher in aid of charity the Epilepsy Society  – returned with a bang - with those in attendance all gathered to find out the answer to one question. Who was going to claim the title?

Held on 28 November at Fieldfisher’s central London office it is hard to imagine a better setting for a night of competitive quizzing.

With arrivals from 6pm those in attendance were blessed to make the most of the office’s stunning views, enjoying the glistening lights over the Thames from the law firm’s balcony with a drink in hand and rousing renditions of Say a Little Prayer, Don’t Look Back in Anger, and a mash up of With or Without You and She Will be Lobed from the band The Super Tenants.

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At 6.30 teams made their way to their tables - ready for the first of eight regulation rounds covering a wide breadth of topics.

Hosted by Turner & Townsend alinea partner Kostas Dellas and Cecily Davis, construction and projects partner at Fieldfisher, teams’ general knowledge and common sense was pitted against one another not only in the regular quiz rounds, but also a series of Family Feud-style bonus rounds entitled Fieldfisher Fortunes (see box).

Round one saw the teams testing their geographical knowledge with 10 questions all about world. The round, which included, questions such as “What state is the Grand Canyon in? and “What is the largest country in the Commonwealth by land area?” (The answers are Arizona and Canada for those playing at home), saw the first joker cards, which double a team’s score for that round, played. To do this a member of each team was required to stand on their chair and hold their card up before the first question had been asked.

In this round Overbury certainly made the right decision about playing their joker - scoring a perfect 10 and claiming the optimum 20 points.

Round two, which centred on the business world, was devoid of joker cards, and tested the players’ knowledge of various industries. Highlights from the round included players being asked “What food does Papa John’s sell?” (Pizza) and “What leaf is the emblem of the National Trust?” (Oak).

The first of the Fieldfisher Fortunes (see box) took place between rounds two and three, with the first head-to-head battle centering on beach day activities and fought between Hydrock, now Stantec and Canary Wharf.

Rounds three and four, involved questions that involved food and music. Particularly tricky questions in these rounds included ”Which UK bread manufacturer takes its name from the latin for strength of man?” (Hovis), and “What word is in the tite of hits from The Police, Take That, and Queen?” (Magic). 

It was also the point where one of the most contentious points of the evening, with one team asking for a heads up on upcoming categories to decide when they would play their joker card. This caused some outcry from the teams who had already played their cards, proving that the competitive spirit is alive and well.

After some back and forth between participants, including one quipping that those who had already played their card could have shown the initiative to ask, Davis told 

At this point dinner was served, with the Super Tenants returning to the room, to take requests including (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, Merry Christmas Everyone, and Back For Good. 

Fieldsisher Fortunes

Across the night the captains of teams were called up two by two to battle it out in the head-to-head Fieldfisher Fortunes rounds.

Each pair competed to answer a survey questions asked to 100 people - the captain’s had to buzz in and whoever gave the answer that had been given by the most surveyed people was given a task - decide whether to pass or play.

If they chose to play, their team was required to provide all the answers on the board. If they passed, the other team had to do the same. The ten points was then awarded to the team that either completed the board, or their opponent should they fail to do so before achieving three strikes. 

The questions posed included:

• Name something you do at the beach
• Name something people are afraid of
• Name something that goes on toast
• Name a Christmas carol

Explore some of the highlights in the gallery below.

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In the second half of the quiz the competition only ramped up, with teams keenly tuned in wanting to ensure they secured every possible point.

Round five was one that favoured those of a scientific persuaion. Teams were asked to answer a series of questions featuring questions around the natural world. 

Rounds six and seven flew by in a flurry of questions - with games and sport and TV and folm being the topics of exploration. 

The final round tested contestants’ knowledge of famous indiviuals - while the all important bonus points on offer during the Fieldfisher Fortunes’ rounds continued to be pivotal.

With all the answers revealed it was time to wait for the final calculations to be carried out. After everything was said and done (and a few disputes) Greystar were announced as the winner in a very tight race ahead of Canary Wharf.

Hydrock, now Stantec claimed third place, while the closeness of the competition was sumemed up by the fact Fieldfisher and Overbury were deadlocked for fourth place.

The Missfits finished in sixth place, while Turner & Townsend alinea rounded out the field.

A huge thank you to everyone attended the night for an unforgettable evening as well as their support for the fundraising efforts for the Epilepsy Society.