Peterborough Cathedral volunteer romps into Mastermind semi-final

Peterborough Cathedral volunteer tour guide Stephen Dodding has moved into the semi finals of the famous TV quiz show Mastermind with an extraordinary performance.

In the episode that was broadcast at 7:30pm on BBC Two on Monday night, Stephen romped to victory with 29 points, three more than his closest competitor on 26.

Stephen, a retired dentist, scored a perfect 12 out of 12 on his specialist subject ‘Medieval Cathedrals of England.’ This included two questions about the city’s own cathedral.

First, he was asked which queen was buried in the cathedral in 1587 before being moved to Westminster Abbey 25 year later (Mary Queen of Scots) and which Tudor Gothic architect is believed to have been responsible for Peterborough Cathedral’s magnificent fan vaulted retrochoir (JohnWastell).

Stephen then followed it up with a further 17 correct answers in the general knowledge round with just two incorrect answers.

As a heat winner, Stephen will move on to the semi-finals which begin following the broadcast of final two heats on the next two Mondays (February 5 and 12).

The episode is available to watch back on BBC iPlayer.