THE BBC quiz series Mastermind has been on TV since 1972. Its question topics often cover great depths of history, but a guide at Peterborough Cathedral has brought more than usual depth and breadth to the new series.

The guide, Stephen Dodding, a retired dentist, chose “Medieval Cathedrals of England” as his specialist subject, and sailed through the first round, in the programme broadcast on BBC2 on Monday of last week. Each of his 12 answers was correct, and he had no passes.

The other contestants brought some variety to the episode with their own topics: Dolly Parton, the life and works of Alfred Wainwright, and the political career of Robert F. Kennedy.

Mr Dodding had two questions on Peterborough, the cathedral that he knows best. The first concerned the temporary interment there of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the second was on John Wastell, the Tudor architect of the Gothic style that Peterborough shares with Canterbury. Speaking to the Peterborough Telegraph this week, Mr Dodding described the questions as “quite a coincidence”.

Something of a quiz-show veteran, Mr Dodding has participated in Only Connect, 15-1, Pointless, and Bullseye in the past. The famous Mastermind black chair brought a new challenge. He said: “I was sitting there beforehand, extremely nervous, and found it a struggle to walk to the chair itself, because everyone is looking at you.”

He has always been fond of cathedrals, he said, and last year spent three months using his Senior Railcard to visit 19 of the 22 that comprise the medieval set. “I had an absolutely fantastic time researching it — it was an absolute joy,” he said.

Mr Dodding came out on top, and goes through to the semi-final. Viewers must wait to see how he fares, and whether his next specialist subject will have an ecclesiastical theme. The final of the series, which is presented by the newsreader Clive Myrie, has already been filmed in Belfast, and is expected to be broadcast in April.