Stephen Merchant quiz

1. Riffing on Karl's ship with rough areas, which part of the ship did Steve warn was "very rough"?
   • The bow
   • The crow's nest
   • Aft
   • The poop deck
   Show answer

   Aft

   Steve added "They steal your tires!" and Ricky marvelled: "A ship so big there was rough areas!"

   📼 XFM S1E20 · 13 Apr 2002
2. Talking about a 75-stone man on Jerry Springer, what did Steve say should have been a clue it was time to diet?
   • He was listed on the Ordnance Survey map
   • He needed planning permission to roll over
   • He showed up on the weather radar
   • He had his own postcode
   Show answer

   He was listed on the Ordnance Survey map

   Ricky went one better: "We've given you your own mayor."

   📼 XFM S2E05 · 21 Sep 2002
3. Ricky voiced the attacking chimps' plan: "You go for the nose. I got his bollocks." What sort of chimps did Steve then picture?
   • New York gangster chimps, like the Sopranos
   • Cockney barrow-boy chimps
   • Posh public-school chimps
   • Scouse football-hooligan chimps
   Show answer

   New York gangster chimps, like the Sopranos

   Steve first asked "What accent have they got there?" and then settled on: "Were they kind of New York gangster chimps? They're like Soprano chimps?"

   📼 Podcast S1E03 · Dec 2005
4. Ricky said he'd been invited to the palace about three times. Why did Steve feel snubbed?
   • Ricky said he'd take Jane, not him
   • He co-wrote The Office and Extras but never got an invite
   • His invitation went to the wrong address
   • The Queen had asked for Karl instead
   Show answer

   He co-wrote The Office and Extras but never got an invite

   Ricky's explanation: "I think the Queen knows who's the main one, who's the driving force." He'd also imagined her saying "I love that Mung Ungler."

   📼 BBC Radio 2 NYE Special · 31 Dec 2005
5. Steve mocked The Chemical Brothers' latest music video. According to him, what did it show?
   • A dog chasing a ball
   • Shots of what you see from outside a train
   • Just a spinning record
   • Just a lava lamp
   Show answer

   Shots of what you see from outside a train

   Steve: to them, a view from a train "is more glamorous and exciting, apparently, than seeing the lads themselves in the video."

   📼 XFM S1E17 · 23 Mar 2002
6. Answering the claim that they invented Karl, Steve said that if they had created him, he would not have...
   • ...made him quite so tight with money
   • ...given him all the best lines
   • ...squandered a character that good on this poxy radio station
   • ...let him anywhere near Rockbusters
   Show answer

   ...squandered a character that good on this poxy radio station

   Steve had already doubted the critic just for liking the show: "I'm already questioning his critical faculties."

   📼 XFM S4E04 · 18 Jun 2005
7. Steve finally had the wedding guests going berserk to Come On Eileen. What ruined it?
   • The fire alarm went off
   • The groom started his speech
   • The bride announced she was throwing the bouquet
   • The cake was wheeled out
   Show answer

   The bride announced she was throwing the bouquet

   Everyone went back outside for the bouquet and the confetti. Steve: "She ruined my special night... It's on her head."

   📼 XFM S4E06 · 2 Jul 2005
8. Ricky noted that in the Werther's advert the grandad gives one to his grandson. What did Steve say happens after it cuts?
   • Grandad eats it himself
   • The grandson asks for a Wispa instead
   • The grandson spits it out into a hanky
   • The grandson throws it back and says "get me a Twix"
   Show answer

   The grandson throws it back and says "get me a Twix"

   Steve: "I think it cuts there before he throws it back in his face and says 'get get me a Twix'."

   📼 XFM S2E28 · 1 Mar 2003
9. Ricky said homeless people recognise him. Steve said that was his demographic: people who do what?
   • Read old copies of The Sun on the bus
   • Listen to Xfm on a radio they found
   • Shelter in the BBC reception
   • Watch TV through the window at Dixons
   Show answer

   Watch TV through the window at Dixons

   Ricky played along, imagining them saying "Ricky Gervais is on... pop the telly on."

   📼 XFM S2E12 · 9 Nov 2002
10. Picturing the Antarctic scientists getting Ricky's message, Steve imagined one of them complaining that they'd actually voted for whom?
    • Ricky Martin
    • Rick Astley
    • Ricky Hatton
    • Ricky Tomlinson
    Show answer

    Ricky Martin

    Ricky had imagined a slightly underwhelmed reaction: "Eh, fella from The Office", "Oh yeah. Go on".

    📼 XFM S4E02 · 4 Jun 2005

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