Researcher Blogs

The success of University Challenge contestant Gail Trimble has littered the press this week, revealing a peculiar aspect of the British psyche – as a nation, we don't embrace and applaud intelligence.

For the Sun, Trimble is "Universally Challenged", (http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article2262112.ece) castigated for now knowing: who won the ‘best female' award at the Brits last week; who Chelsea's new manager is; the name of the lead British actor in Slumdog Millionaire; and the winner of the most recent series of Celebrity Big Brother.

I concede that Trimble clearly has not had the pleasure of picking her way through the London Lite on a cramped tube journey. Yet isn't it sad that, upon hearing of the record "intellectual blitzkrieg" (Paxman) of 1,200 points she wracked up for Corpus Christi on their way to the final, our knee jerk reaction is to find a flaw; to wrap ourselves in the comforting notion that Trimble is not like us.

General knowledge is all very well and good, but knowledge is not the same thing as intelligence – the two cannot be conflated.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with reading the London Lite – the ink, after all, doesn't come off on your fingers. But why do we feel the need to criticise Trimble just because she chooses to pick up a book instead.