Quizmaster Chris Hunt hosts two regular quiz nights at the Victoria Inn and has helped raise more than £140,000 for charity through quizzes in venues around Colchester and beyond.
At the Victoria Inn, we work with some brilliant people who help make the pub what it is – from suppliers and musicians through to the organisers behind our regular events. In this regular Friends of the Victoria Inn interview series, we catch up with the people behind the scenes.
This time we’re talking to Chris Hunt, whose Film, TV and Music Quiz and General Knowledge Quiz have become regular fixtures at the Vic. We asked him how it all started, about raising money for charity, and about some of the memorable moments he’s experienced over the years.
For anyone who hasn’t been yet, tell us a bit about your quiz nights and how they started. What made you decide to become a quizmaster in the first place?
The quizzes started at The Purple Dog when we were asked by an HMV member of staff to run a quiz to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust. I said I’d do it, and it was so popular that we just carried on doing them every month.
Over time, that led me to host quizzes at different venues. At the Victoria Inn, I run a Film, TV and Music Quiz on the first Wednesday of each month and a General Knowledge Quiz on the second Thursday, with all proceeds going to a different charity or cause each time.
I like to think the quizzes are suited to all ages. It’s a bit of fun for a couple of hours and a good way to raise money for some wonderful causes.
Your quizzes have now raised more than £140,000 for charity. When you first started, did you ever imagine it would reach that sort of total?
No, definitely not.
I’ve done a fair few quizzes over a long period of time, so I suppose the total has built up gradually, but I’m really proud that together we’ve managed to raise so much for so many good causes.
The Victoria Inn now hosts both the Film, TV and Music Quiz and the General Knowledge Quiz. What can people expect if they come along for the first time?
A bit of fun, really.
There are some easy questions and some hard ones, some serious and some silly, and hopefully a few that jog people’s memories from years ago.
I like to think nobody really cares too much about winning. It’s more about having a few drinks, supporting the pub, raising money for charity and putting up with my voice for a couple of hours.
You must have seen some memorable team names and answers over the years. What’s one that still makes you laugh?
I’m terrible at remembering things, but a team that has been coming along for about 15 years has always called themselves “Snagglepuss Walken”, which still makes me laugh.
I’ve also had a few moments where I’ve completely made a tit of myself. Last year I asked a question where the answer was “H” from Steps, but apparently it could also have been someone else, and I didn’t realise that at the time.
People around me looked very confused. It was bad. I’ve genuinely had nightmares about it since.
People can also hire you to run quizzes for private events, birthdays and corporate nights. How does that work if someone wants to book you?
People can contact me to do quizzes for private events, though it’s not something I really advertise.
I’m not really a business, but I’ve done loads of private events for things like school PTAs, mainly to help out people who are regulars at the quizzes.
And finally… be honest – if you were entering your own quiz, would you win? Or would someone eventually catch you out?
No, I definitely wouldn’t win.
I’m good at thinking up questions and rounds, but I’d be absolutely crap if it were the other way round.
Chris hosts the Victoria Inn Film, TV and Music Quiz on the first Wednesday of each month, alongside the General Knowledge Quiz on the second Thursday, with money raised each time going to charity.
Next time you fancy a few drinks, a few questions, and possibly hearing Chris accidentally stitch himself up with his own quiz, come along and get involved.
See you at the bar.
