Quirky quiz to hit the €200,000 milestone for local charities
The monthly quiz organised by Bernard O'Byrne at Floods in Athboy takes place on Thursday night, when the amount raised from the long running fundraiser is set to surpass the €200,000 mark.
What started off as a one-off fundraiser that raised €1,400 for a local charity in 2012 has evolved into the ‘monster table-quiz’ it is today and Thursday’s quiz will bring the total amount raised by O’Byrne’s table quizzes beyond the €200,000 mark. This will be the 168th running of the quiz on Thursday 3rd October, and it promises to be a special night.
Various groups and clubs around the town get their chance to raise funds, and Athboy High Nelly Club have the honour of being the group chosen to mark this monumental occasion. They are asking everybody attending the quiz to wear a ‘mad’ hat and the winner will receive a ‘substantial prize’.
Since it’s inception in 2012, Bernard has consistently curated eight rounds, consisting of 10 questions each, bringing the grand total of questions asked at Flood’s to 13,400, which is no mean feat. His claim to fame is that no two questions have ever been the same.
Bernard has put the success of the quiz down to each person who attends, adding that he has not put a penny in himself, with the exception of purchasing a few raffle tickets. Bernard also wishes to thank the businesses and individuals who donate raffle prizes. He said Seamus and Mary Flood as hosts have really contributed in no small way to the success of this event and that backroom helpers from ticket sellers, collectors, answer checkers, result calculators and caterers are all critical in keeping the show on the road.
When lockdown arrived in March 2020, the social side to all our lives drastically changed. But Bernard organised a weekly online quiz on Zoom to help people get through these tough times. The feedback he received was second to none, and it was the highlight of many people’s weeks.
One of Bernard’s quizzes even made it as far as the United States, where students at the University of California used his quiz to raise funds for the victims of the Berkeley balcony collapse, which claimed the lives of six Irish J-1 students in 2015.
Over the years, ‘quirky questions’ have been added to the quiz, namely, ‘The Simpsons Question’, which Bernard has deemed Dermot Hopkins responsible for and the first question in the quiz is always related to the popular American animation show. The teams who turn up on a regular basis have created some fancy names for themselves, from ‘The Golden Girls’ to‘The Kewt Hoors’ and the ‘Royal Box’, the latter of which Bernard’s wife Tina is a member. Indded, Bernard would like to thank Tina sincerely for putting up with his obsession with table quizzes.
The community groups and the people of Athboy would like to say thank you to Bernard for all the pleasure you have brought them on the way to this monumental €200,000 milestone.