How To Run a Pub Quiz

9th April 20189th April 2018
by Daniel Lassman

How to run a pub quiz: Step 1. Ring 020 8446 1384

Step 2. Book a quiz

Step 3. Job done, relax.

Right, that’s the marketing pitch done. Assuming you’re still ready and want to go the do-it-yourself route then few hints and tips. Let’s start with the building blocks of a successful quiz..

The Venue

Your players will ideally all have line of sight of your “quiz host” (who I’ll assume is you) and vice versa. Before the quiz, check that everyone can hear you – if your using an amplifier and microphone then do a sound check, have someone listen from different parts of the room for both clarity and volume (echo can be a nuisance) – if needs be reposition the speakers, adjust the volume and tone controls – increasing treble and decreasing bass may make you sound slightly tinny but clearer.

Also remember that once the room fills the sound quality will change. What you may not realise is your volume will decrease both due to the (hopefully) happy chatter in the room and because we absorb some of the sound energy (true dat) so don’t be afraid to adjust the volume upwards (but avoid distortion).

Make sure there are tables for your teams – if there are no tables then invest in clipboards.

Before The Quiz

You can have the quiz answer sheets, table/picture rounds, scrap paper and pens laid out on each table before your guests arrive on each table.

When your players file in, let them know they can get a head start on the table round(s) – a more guest friendly way of encouraging teams to take their seats than simply asking them to. It’ll also get them in a quiz frame of mind.

The Quiz

If your quiz has any novelty rounds or rules (and my advice is to not over load your quiz this way, there’s still a place for comfort that comes with the simple and straight forward) then make sure you clearly articulate these at the beginning of the night. Your role as Quizmaster is not only to present the questions, mark the answers and present prizes, its about injecting some entertainment into the proceedings – making it an event. That’s why here at Weekly Quiz our hosts are experienced performers, many are professional comedians.

The questions should be a balanced and accessible collection of interesting trivial facts (do you know the name of which country contains all the vowels but once and once only?*), a few easy ones to keep people engaged and some difficult teasers that make people think and get teams talking.

To start you off we’ve some free questions that you are welcome to use (pilfer?) – scroll down to the bottom of our home page for all the links – here’s a starter https://www.weeklyquiz.co.uk/general-knowledge-fun-quiz/