''Christmas University Challenge'' is a British quiz programme which has aired on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

since 2011. It is a spin-off from

University Challenge ''University Challenge'' is a British television quiz programme which first aired in 1962. ''University Challenge'' aired for 913 episodes on ITV from 21 September 1962 to 31 December 1987, presented by quizmaster Bamber Gascoigne. The BBC ...

that airs daily over the Christmas period, and features teams of noteworthy alumni from British universities competing in the same format as the parent show. The current holders are

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the f ...

, who won Paxman's final episode on 30 December 2022.

Series

2011

2011 results

*Winning teams are highlighted in bold. *Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated. *Teams with orange scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round. First Round Semi-finals Final The 2011 series was won by

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

whose team of Robin Bhattacharyya,

Daisy Goodwin Daisy Georgia Goodwin (born 19 December 1961) is an English screenwriter, TV producer and novelist. She is the creator of the award winning ITV/ PBS show ''Victoria'' which has sold to 146 countries. She has written three novels: ''My Last Duc ...

, John Lloyd, and Edward Stourton beat the

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands (county), West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded i ...

's team of

Vadim Jean Vadim Jean (born Bristol, 9 December 1963)"Zip up your Rhino suit"
Global Ideas Bank ...

Daisy Christodoulou Daisy Christodoulou is Director of Education at No More Marking, an online engine which aims to help teachers with comparative-judgement assessment of school work. Before this she was head of education research at the charity Ark, where she con ...

Christian Wolmar Christian Tage Forter Wolmar (born 3 August 1949) is a British journalist, author, railway historian and Labour Party politician.Carla Mendonça Carla Mendonça (born 1961) in Coventry, Warwickshire is a British actress. She is known for playing Orla Crawshaw in ''Coronation Street'', Sophie Johnson in the CITV children's sitcom ''My Parents Are Aliens'' (2001–2006) and Mrs. Fitzgeral ...

2012

2012 results

*Winning teams are highlighted in bold. *Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated. *Teams with orange scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round. *A score in ''italics'' indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question. First Round Semi-finals Final The 2012 series was won by

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...

whose team of

Rachel Johnson Rachel Sabiha Johnson (born 3 September 1965) is a British journalist, television presenter, and author who has appeared frequently on political discussion panels, including '' The Pledge'' on Sky News and BBC One's debate programme, ''Questi ...

Patrick Gale Patrick Evelyn Hugh Sadler Gale (born 31 January 1962) is a British novelist. Early life Gale was born in 1962 on the Isle of Wight, the youngest of four children. His father was the prison governor of HM Prison Camp Hill on the Isle of Wight, ...

Kate Mosse Katharine Mosse (born 20 October 1961) is a British novelist, non-fiction and short story writer and Television presenter, broadcaster. She is best known for her 2005 novel ''Labyrinth (novel), Labyrinth'', which has been translated into more ...

and Yan Wong beat the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

's team of

John Boyne John Boyne (born 30 April 1971) is an Irish novelist. He is the author of eleven novels for adults and six novels for younger readers. His novels are published in over 50 languages. His 2006 novel ''The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'' was adapte ...

Razia Iqbal Razia Iqbal (born 1962) is a journalist employed by BBC News. She is a special correspondent, reporting for outlets across the BBC. From 2011 Iqbal has also presented '' Newshour'' on the BBC World Service. She has also presented ''Talking Bo ...

David Grossman David Grossman ( he, דויד גרוסמן; born January 25, 1954) is an Israeli author. His books have been translated into more than 30 languages. In 2018, he was awarded the Israel Prize for literature. Biography David Grossman was born i ...

and

Charlie Higson Charles Murray Higson (born 3 July 1958) is an English actor, comedian, author and former singer. He has also written and produced for television and is the author of the ''Enemy'' book series, as well as the first five novels in the ''Young Bo ...

2013

2013 results

Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

whose team of

Quentin Stafford-Fraser James Quentin Stafford-Fraser is a computer scientist and entrepreneur based in Cambridge, England. He was one of the team that created the first webcam, the Trojan room coffee pot. Quentin pointed a camera at the coffee pot and wrote the XCoff ...

Helen Castor Helen Ruth Castor (born 4 August 1968 in Cambridge) is a British historian of the medieval and Tudor period and a BBC broadcaster. She taught history at Cambridge University and is the author of books including ''Blood and Roses'' (2005) and '' ...

Mark Damazer Mark David Damazer, CBE (born 15 April 1955), is a former Master of St Peter's College, Oxford, and a former controller of BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 7 in the United Kingdom. Early life and education Damazer was born on 15 April 1955. He is the ...

and

Lars Tharp Lars Broholm Tharp (born 27 March 1954, Copenhagen, Denmark)THARP, Lars Broholm
, '' < ...

beat

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mon ...

and their team of

Hugo Rifkind Hugo James Rifkind (born 30 March 1977) is a British journalist. A columnist for ''The Times'' since 2005, he began presenting a Saturday morning programme on Times Radio in July 2020. He has been a regular guest on ''The News Quiz'', on BBC Rad ...

, Mary-Ann Ochota,

Simon Singh Simon Lehna Singh, (born 19 September 1964) is a British popular science author, theoretical and particle physicist. His written works include ''Fermat's Last Theorem'' (in the United States titled ''Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve th ...

and Rory McGrath.

2014

2014 results

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the fifth-oldest surviving college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by ...

whose team of

Tom James Thomas James MBE (born 11 March 1984) is a British rower, twice Olympic champion and victorious Cambridge Blue. In a British coxless four in 2012 he set a world's best time which still stood as of 2021. Background and early life James was bor ...

Emma Pooley Emma may refer to: * Emma (given name) Film * ''Emma'' (1932 film), a comedy-drama film by Clarence Brown * ''Emma'' (1996 theatrical film), a film starring Gwyneth Paltrow * ''Emma'' (1996 TV film), a British television film starring Kate Be ...

, Adam Mars-Jones and Dan Starkey beat the

University of Hull The University of Hull is a public research university in Kingston upon Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1927 as University College Hull. The main university campus is located in Hull and is home to the Hull ...

and their team of

Rosie Millard Rosemary Harriet Millard (born 17 April 1965) is a British journalist. writer and broadcaster. Millard is Chair of BBC Children in Need and Chair of Firstsite gallery in Colchester. She is vice Chair of Opera North. Previous roles include CEO ...

, Malcolm Sinclair,

Jenni Murray Dame Jennifer Susan Murray, (''née'' Bailey; born 12 May 1950) is an English journalist and broadcaster, best known for presenting BBC Radio 4's ''Woman's Hour'' from 1987 to 2020. Early life Murray was born in Barnsley, West Riding of Yorks ...

and

Stan Cullimore Ian Peter Cullimore (born 6 April 1962) is an English musician, journalist and actor. He played guitar, between 1983 and 1988, for the Hull-based indie rock band The Housemartins. Early life He was born in Stapleford, Cambridgeshire. He moved ...

2015

2015 results

*Winning teams are highlighted in bold. *Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated. *Teams with orange scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round. *A score in ''italics'' indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question. First Round Semi-finals Final The 2015 series was won by

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...

whose team of

Robin Lane Fox Robin James Lane Fox, (born 5 October 1946) is an English classicist, ancient historian, and gardening writer known for his works on Alexander the Great. Lane Fox is an Emeritus Fellow of New College, Oxford and Reader in Ancient History, Un ...

, Heather Berlin,

Louis Theroux Louis Sebastian Theroux (; born 20 May 1970) is a British-American documentarian, journalist, broadcaster, and author. He has received two British Academy Television Awards and a Royal Television Society Television Award. After graduating fro ...

and

Matt Ridley Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley, (born 7 February 1958), is a British science writer, journalist and businessman. He is known for his writings on science, the environment, and economics and has been a regular contributor to ''Th ...

beat the

University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...

and their team of

Sid Lowe Simon James "Sid" Lowe (born 21 June 1976) is an English columnist and journalist. Born in Archway, London, and based in Madrid, he covers Spanish football for many publications, websites, television channels, radio stations, and football-relate ...

, Nicci Gerrard,

Adam Hart Adam Hart is an English scientist, author and broadcaster, specialising in ecology, entomology and conservation, especially in southern Africa. He has co-presented three BBC TV documentaries on social insects (BBC4's ''Planet Ant: Life Inside ...

and

Ruth Reed Ruth Reed is a British architect and was the first woman to be elected president of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) 2009–2011.

2016

2016 results

* Winning teams are highlighted in bold. * Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated. * Teams with orange scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round. * A score in ''italics'' indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question. First Round Semi-finals Final The 2016 series was won by

St Hilda's College, Oxford St Hilda's College is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college is named after the Anglo-Saxon Saint, Hilda of Whitby and was founded in 1893 as a hall for women; it ...

whose team of

Fiona Caldicott Dame Fiona Caldicott, ( Soesan; 12 January 1941 – 15 February 2021) was a British psychiatrist and psychotherapist who also served as Principal (college), Principal of Somerville College, Oxford She was the National Data Guardian for Health a ...

Daisy Dunn Daisy Florence Dunn is an English author and classicist. Early life and education Daisy Dunn was born in London and attended Ibstock Place School in Southwest London and The Lady Eleanor Holles School in Hampton on an academic scholarship. She ...

Val McDermid Valarie "Val" McDermid, (born 4 June 1955) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for a series of novels featuring clinical psychologist Dr. Tony Hill in a grim sub-genre that McDermid and others have identified as Tartan Noir. Biography ...

and Adele Geras beat the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

and their team of

Louise Doughty Louise Doughty is the author of nine novels, five plays for radio and a TV mini-series. Her most recent book is ''Platform Seven'' (2019), currently being adapted as a four-part drama. The previous book, ''Black Water'', (2016) was nominated as ...

, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Kamal Ahmed and Steve Bell.

2017

2017 results

Keble College, Oxford Keble College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to th ...

whose team of Paul Johnson,

Frank Cottrell-Boyce Frank Cottrell-Boyce (born 23 September 1959)"COTTRELL-BOYCE, Frank", ''Who's Who 2010'', A & C Black, 2010; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2009 ; online edn, Nov 200 Retrieved 2010-05-16. is an English people, English screenwriter ...

Katy Brand Katherine Frances Brand (born 1979), known as Katy Brand, is an English actress, comedian and writer, known for her ITV2 series ''Katy Brand's Big Ass Show'' and for Comedy Lab ''Slap'' on Channel 4. Early life and education Brand was born in ...

and

Anne-Marie Imafidon Anne-Marie Osawemwenze Ore-Ofe Imafidon (born 24 June 1990) is a British-Nigerian computer scientist. Imafidon founded and became CEO of Stemettes in 2013, a social enterprise promoting women in STEM careers. She was a computing, mathematics a ...

beat the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

and their team of Anna Machin,

Martin Hughes-Games Martin Hughes-Games (born 16 April 1956) is a natural history programme producer, presenter and author. He is best known for co-presenting the BBC magazine-style nature series ''Springwatch'' and its spin-offs, ''Winterwatch'', ''Autumnwatch'' ...

Sophie Walker Sophie Walker (born 27 May 1971) is a British political activist who was the founding leader of the Women's Equality Party (WE) in the United Kingdom. She led the party from 2015 until 2019, first appointed unanimously by the steering committe ...

and

Pippa Greenwood Pippa Greenwood is an English plant pathologist. She appears frequently on the BBC's long-running ''Gardeners' World'' television programme and has been a regular panellist on ''Gardeners' Question Time'' on BBC Radio 4 since 1994. She also was ...

2018

2018 results

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite ...

whose team of

Dan Mazer Daniel Gideon Mazer (born 4 October 1971) is a British screenwriter, producer, and comedian. Mazer is best known as the long-time writing and production partner of comedian Sacha Baron Cohen and worked with him on his three unorthodox characters ...

Mark Horton Mark Horton may refer to: * Mark Horton (archaeologist) (born 1956), British maritime and historical archaeologist, television presenter and writer * Mark Horton (bridge) (born 1950), British author, journalist and expert on bridge * Mary Ann Horto ...

Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posi ...

and

Michael Axworthy Michael George Andrew Axworthy (26 September 1962 – 16 March 2019) was a British academic, author, and commentator. He was the head of the Iran section at the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office between 1998 and 2000. Personal life and fam ...

beat the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

and their team of

Philip Ball Philip Ball (born 1962) is a British science writer. For over twenty years he has been an editor of the journal ''Nature'' for which he continues to write regularly. He now writes a regular column in '' Chemistry World''. He has contributed to ...

Laura Wade Laura Wade is an English playwright. Early life Wade was born in Bedford, Bedfordshire. She grew up in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, where her father worked for a computer company. After completing her secondary education at Lady Manners School i ...

Misha Glenny Michael V. E. "Misha" Glenny (born 25 April 1958) is a British journalist and broadcaster, specialising in southeast Europe, global organised crime, and cybersecurity. He is multilingual. He is also the writer and producer of the BBC Radio 4 s ...

and Iain Stewart.

2019

2019 results

whose team of

Jonathan Clements Jonathan Michael Clements (born 9 July 1971) is a British author and scriptwriter. His non-fiction works include biographies of Confucius, Koxinga and Qin Shi Huang, as well as monthly opinion columns for '' Neo'' magazine. He is also the co-aut ...

, Henry Gee,

Richard Coles Richard Keith Robert Coles (born 26 March 1962) is an English writer, radio presenter and Church of England clergyman who was the vicar of Finedon in Northamptonshire from 2011 to 2022. He first came to prominence as the multi-instrumentalis ...

and

Timothy Allen Timothy Allen (born 1971) is an English photographer and filmmaker best known for his work with indigenous people and isolated communities around the world. Early life Timothy Allen was born in Tonbridge, Kent, England, the second son of two ...

beat

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

and their team of

Jonathan Freedland Jonathan Saul Freedland (born 25 February 1967) is a British journalist who writes a weekly column for ''The Guardian''. He presents BBC Radio 4's contemporary history series ''The Long View''. Freedland also writes thrillers, mainly under the ...

, Tom Solomon,

Anne McElvoy Anne McElvoy (born 25 June 1965) is a British journalist, contributing to ''The Economist'', London ''Evening Standard'', and the BBC. Early life McElvoy attended St Bede's RC Comprehensive School in Lanchester, County Durham, and read German ...

and

Roger Mosey Roger Mosey (born 4 January 1958)"Rose ...

2020

2020 results

The Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

whose team of

Tim Marlow Timothy John Marlow (born 1962) is a British writer, broadcaster and art historian who is the Director and Chief Executive of the Design Museum,Hannah McGivern (October 7, 2019)Tim Marlow leaves Royal Academy of Arts to head London’s Design Mu ...

Lavinia Greenlaw Lavinia Elaine Greenlaw (born 30 July 1962) is an English poet, novelist and non-fiction writer. She won the Prix du Premier Roman with her first novel and her poetry has been shortlisted for awards that include the T. S. Eliot Prize, Forward Pri ...

, Jacky Klein and

Jeremy Deller Jeremy Deller (born 30 March 1966) is an English people, English conceptual, video and installation artist. Much of Deller's work is Collaboration, collaborative; it has a strong political aspect, in the subjects dealt with and also the Idealiz ...

beat the

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

and their team of

David Nott David Malcolm Nott (born 1956) is a Welsh consultant surgeon who works mainly in London hospitals as a general and vascular surgeon, but also volunteers to work in disaster and war zones. Having recognised that training others could greatly in ...

, Juliet Jacques,

Adrian Edmondson Adrian Charles Edmondson (born 24 January 1957) is an English actor, comedian, musician, writer and television presenter. He was part of the alternative comedy boom in the early 1980s and had roles in the television series ''The Young Ones (TV s ...

and Justin Edwards.

2021

2021 results

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

whose team of Catherine Slessor, Thomasina Miers,

Miles Jupp Miles Hugh Barrett Jupp (born 8 September 1979) is an English actor, singer, and comedian. He began his career as a stand-up comedian before playing the role of the inventor Archie in the children's television series ''Balamory''. He also played ...

and Phil Swanson beat

Hertford College, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...

and their team of

Soweto Kinch Soweto Kinch (born 10 January 1978) is a British jazz alto saxophonist and rapper. Biography Born in 1978 in London, England, to a Barbadian father, playwright Don Kinch, and British-Jamaican actress Yvette Harris, Soweto Kinch began playin ...

Elizabeth Norton Elizabeth Norton is a British historian specialising in the queens of England and the Tudor period. She obtained a Master of Arts in archaeology and anthropology from the University of Cambridge, being awarded a Double First Class degree, and a ...

, Adam Fleming and Isabelle Westbury.

2022

2022 results

*Winning teams are highlighted in bold. *Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated. *Teams with orange scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round. *A score in ''italics'' indicates a match decided on a question. First Round Semi-finals Final The 2022 series was won by

whose team of Elizabeth Kiss,

Andrew Copson Andrew James William Copson, FRSA, FCMI, MCIPR (born 19 November 1980) is a Humanist leader and writer. He is the Chief Executive of Humanists UK and the President of Humanists International. He has worked for a number of civil and human rig ...

Martin Edwards Charles Martin Edwards (born 24 July 1945) is the former chairman of Manchester United, a position he held from 1980 until 2002. He now holds the position of honorary life president at the club and Director of Inview Technology Ltd. Biography ...

and Martin O’Neill beat the

and their team of Katharine Norbury, James Graham,

Sian Reese-Williams Sian Reese-Williams (born 18 November 1981) is a Welsh actress, best known for playing detective Cadi John in three series of ''Hidden (2018 TV series), Hidden''. Early life Reese-Williams was born in Glanamman, South Wales. She lived in Swan ...

and Graeme Hall.

Series

2011

2011 results

2012

2012 results

2013

2013 results

2014

2014 results

2015

2015 results

2016

2016 results

2017

2017 results

2018

2018 results

2019

2019 results

2020

2020 results

2021

2021 results

2022

2022 results

External links