Warwickshire quizzer bows out of TV's Mastermind

Madeline Grant from Newbold Pacey, who became one of the youngest women to win her opening round of BBC 2’s Mastermind, had lead after the specialist subject round.

The 25-year-old scored 11 correct answers in the semi-final on her specialist subject, the Life and Works of Jane Austen.

But she was then overhauled by the eventual winner, Alfred Williams, in the General Knowledge round, taking his total to an impressive 25, two points clear of his nearest rival - Madeline’s total was 18.

Madeline said: “I was a bit disappointed not to get a few more points in the General Knowledge section, particularly the name of Donald Trump’s Florida resort, which slipped my mind in the heat of the moment.

“The other contestants were brilliant quizzers and really nice and encouraging.

Overall I had a great time and really enjoyed preparing for Mastermind, as I’ve been a big fan of quizzing since school, and I’ve always loved Jane Austen.

“I was also really lucky to be allowed to do Harry Potter in the first round as 262 people had applied to do it and I was the only one who got the nod.”

Madeline had her first taste of quizzing success aged 13, as part of a team that reached the National Schools Challenge finals.

She also captained the St Hilda’s College, Oxford University Challenge side in 2013

This was her second outing on Mastermind.

Back in 2014, she came second in her heat scoring highly on her specialist subject, the novels of EM Forster.

Madeline now works in Westminster as a digital officer for the free-market think-tank the Institute of Economic Affairs.