Really Big Quiz raises thousands for Devon Freewheelers

Exeter’s 14th annual Really Big Quiz, held at the Corn Exchange in aid of Devon Freewheelers, has succeeded in raising over £7,600 for the Lord Mayor of Exeter’s charity of the year.

Organised by chartered accountancy firm Simpkins Edwards, the quiz saw a packed hall of 72 teams fight it out for the title of Exeter’s brainiest business.

Teams representing local businesses from across Exeter enjoyed a testing evening of questions delivered by Simpkins Edwards’ very own Jeremy Paxman and Bamber Gascoigne; partners John Coombs and Adrian Hemmings.

At the interval, the exuberant and highly entertaining James Morrish of Kivells held a rapid-fire auction with the top item for the night - a tour for 20 at Exeter Brewery including food and beer tasting - going for the princely sum of £600.

As ever, Mr Morrish encouraged everyone in the room to pay an extra £1 to participate in a hilarious game of Heads or Tails. This, together with the auction, raffle and money raised from entry fees, helped beat last year’s total by over £1,100, including a record breaking £1,350 raised by the raffle. This enabled the Lord Mayor to present a cheque to Devon Freewheelers that will help propel its fleet of branded bikes and riders over 106,000 miles over the coming year.

The champion team on the night was last year’s runner-up, First Bank Data, breaking a run of three wins in a row for ATASS Ltd that earned them the right to keep the 13 year old trophy.

In their place the triumphant First Bank Data team collected the sparkling new Really Big Quiz trophy, freshly branded with Simpkins Edwards’ new-look logo. However, it was a close-run thing with three teams tying for second place, requiring a record two tiebreaks to separate second and third; amazingly two teams guessed the length of the M5 within 25 kilometers of the actual total (262km). Exeter City Council eventually emerged victorious taking second place with St Mark’s Church in third.

Commenting on the success of the event John Coombs, Partner at Simpkins Edwards, said: “This year’s Really Big Quiz was full of thrills and spills as well as frantic bidding for a host of outstanding auction items. Together, this helped us raise a phenomenal amount for the Lord Mayor’s charity, Devon Freewheelers, whose volunteers transport urgent blood samples, whole blood, breast milk, medication and other medical supplies across Devon.

“We’d like to congratulate First Bank Data on taking the trophy and we’d also like to thank all the businesses that generously donated prizes for the auction and raffle.”

The Lord Mayor of Exeter, Councillor Cynthia Thompson, added: “We would like to thank everyone for their ongoing support of Devon Freewheelers and pay tribute to all the hard work from Simpkins Edwards for organising and running the 14th Really Big Quiz, in honour of the Lord Mayor’s chosen charity.”

Adrian Hemmings of Simpkins Edwards added: “James Morrish of Kivells played a fantastic part in jockeying the crowded room into a bidding frenzy. With his help, we added thousands of pounds to the total for the night. We’d also like to give special mention to the Sea Cadets who once again collected answer sheets and distributed prizes enabling the smooth running of the event. Their help plays a key part in making the quiz a huge success and an enjoyable evening for all involved.”