Mastermind 'dumbs down' with questions on Jennifer Aniston

Mastermind has long been regarded as one of the most testing quiz shows on British television, with its darkened studio, dazzling spotlight and intimidating black leather chair.

But this week, the BBC2 programme was facing accusations of dumbing down, after it allowed one of its contestants to choose the Friends actress Jennifer Aniston as a specialist subject.

In the 35 years since it was created, Mastermind has seen aspiring brainboxes questioned on topics ranging from the history and genealogy of European royalty to the life and works of Gilbert & Sullivan.

For some aficionados, however, the sight of host John Humphrys interrogating a contestant on the subject of Aniston, a Hollywood actress best known for playing ditzy Rachel in the long-running sitcom - may have proved too much.

The quiz show, which was first aired in 1972, presented by the late Magnus Magnusson, a formidable Scot of Icelandic parentage, was initially thought too "highbrow" and the series was scheduled in a late-night slot. But the show became a massive hit and was soon promoted to prime time where it attracted millions of viewers.

Since the relaunch of the show in 2003 after a six-year break with Humphrys as host, more populist subjects have been included, such as The Simpsons, the music of the Smiths and Britain's football grounds.

Jon Kelly, the producer of Mastermind, denied that such topics marked a decline in the quiz show's standards. "Mastermind has always had a balance of high-brow and populist subjects. Monday night's show is a classic case in point. Alongside Jennifer Aniston was the life and works of Frida Kahlo, German wines and the life and career of Henry Ford.

"Last week we had the life and work of Johannes Kepler and the Duke of Wellington, and next week's show will feature Dante's Divine Comedy, Sir Edwin Lutyens and the battle of Gettysburg," he said.

A former contestant on the show, Glenys Hopkins, 70, from Warrington, agreed that the questions were not getting any easier. "I think the range of subjects is becoming broader, not dumber," she said. "I don't see why someone has to be dead to be considered worthy as a subject. Jennifer Aniston is a well-known actress with a good body of work behind her."

Mrs Hopkins, whose specialist subject in 1991 was the author Raymond Chandler, said it was right that the show embraced more populist subjects at times. "If it's all highly cultural and intellectual it may not keep the audience around," she said.

The show's format was originally devised by Bill Wright, an RAF gunner who drew on his wartime experience as a prisoner of war in Germany. The ritual of asking contestants to give their "name, occupation and specialist area" under a spotlight, reflected the interrogation of PoWs asked for their "name, rank and number".

Unlike many quizzes, the show offers no cash prize, only the satisfaction of answering as many questions correctly as possible.

Contestants compete against each other and the clock to earn the most points by answering questions on general knowledge as well as their specialist areas. Since the show's return, the original format has remained unchanged, with 12 first-round heats, four quarter-finals, the grand final - and the catchphrase coined by Magnusson, "I've started so I'll finish".

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