Original version

BBC Radio 4

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

BBC Radio 4 LW

The 3rd Degree

Games & Quizzes

Factual

Quiz show hosted by Steve Punt from UK universities

Quiz show hosted by Steve Punt from UK universities, in which a team of three students takes on a team of three of their professors

BBC Radio 4 FM

BBC Radio 4 Extra

The 3rd Degree: Series 1

The 3rd Degree: Series 1: Episode 1: Southampton

Comedy

Entertainment

Episode 1

Episode 1: Southampton

Series 1

Southampton

BBC Radio 4 Extra - The 3rd Degree, Series 1, Southampton

Three students from Southampton University take on their professors in a battle of wits.

4 Extra Debut. Steve Punt hosts the battle of wits as three students from Southampton University take on their professors. From February 2011.

Coming this week from the University of Southampton, host Steve Punt quizzes Biology students and Mathematics dons alike on dachshunds, Dante, and Doctor Who. So if you've ever wondered whether "The Golgi Apparatus" refers to part of a eukaryotic cell or is merely a little-read Robert Ludlum novel then this is the show for you.

"The 3rd Degree" is a funny, lively and dynamic new quiz show aimed at cultivating the next generation of Radio 4 listeners whilst delighting the current ones. It's recorded on location at a different University each week, and it pits three Undergraduates against three of their Professors in a genuinely original and fresh take on an academic quiz. Being a Radio 4 programme, it of course meets the most stringent standards of academic rigour - but with lots of facts and jokes thrown in for good measure.

Together with host Steve Punt, the show tours the (sometimes posh, sometimes murky, but always welcoming!) Union buildings, cafés and lecture halls of six universities across the UK.

The rounds vary between Specialist Subjects and General Knowledge, quickfire bell-and-buzzer rounds and the 'Highbrow & Lowbrow' round cunningly devised to test not only the students' knowledge of current affairs, history, languages and science, but also their Professors' awareness of television, film, and Lady Gaga... In addition, the Head-to-Head rounds, in which students take on their Professors in their own subjects, were particularly lively, and offered plenty of scope for mild embarrassment on both sides...

The resulting show is funny, fresh, and not a little bit surprising, with a truly varied range of scores, friendly rivalry, and moments where students wished they had more than just glanced at that reading list...


Producer: David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.

Your digital radio entertainment station showcasing the best in comedy and drama

Your digital radio entertainment station showcasing the best in comedy and drama. With recent favourites from BBC Radio 4.

Quiz show in which a team of university students takes on a team of their professors

Quiz show hosted by Steve Punt from a UK university, in which a team of three students takes on a team of three of their professors

Accessibility links

Programme Index

The 3rd Degree

Series 1

Episode 1: Southampton

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC Radio 4 LW

About BBC Radio 4