Many football fans have a complex system of which team to support in any given match, based on a wide variety of factors that may appear arbitrary and inpenetrable to the outsider, but internally to them makes complete sense. I have a similar system for determining which team to support in University Challenge.

This entirely serious in every way and not at at all arbitrary ranking is as follows:

– Christ’s College, Cambridge

– Emmanuel College, Cambridge

– Bath Spa University

– Newnham College, Cambridge or Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

– Any other Cambridge college not otherwise named here

– Merton College, Oxford

– Any other Oxford college

– University of Hertfordshire

– University of Middlesex

– Imperial College, London

– Sheffield Hallam University, Oxford Brookes University

– University of Cardiff

– Glasgow School of Art, University of St Andrews, Nottingham Trent University

– Any other university

– SOAS