An Obsession
AVULTURE can swallow enough botulinum toxin to kill 300,000 guinea pigs – this is the weird and wonderful fact that 10 years ago landed Anne Miller a job on hit TV quiz show QI.
The 33-year-old, who gleaned the info during a trip to Dundee Science Centre, is one of QI’s famous “elves” – a term coined by former host Stephen Fry to describe the show’s fabulous fact finders.
Anne, who grew up near St Andrews, Fife, is known on the programme as the “tartan elf ” and says coming up with the most obscure questions for the comedy quiz show is the best job in the world.
But the Edinburgh Uni graduate says don’t ask her to join your pub quiz team because she is terrible at run-of-the-mill general knowledge questions.
Anne, who has found some of her most bizarre facts on the back of cereal packets and the inside of greetings cards, said: “Never in my wildest dreams did I think one day I would grow up to be an elf but it’s the best job in the world.
“We get called elves because all the world’s information is in a big pile and we are sorting through it like Santa’s elves sort children’s letters.
“We are trying to find the golden nuggets. You want a fact that makes you turn to the person beside you and say you never guess what I’ve just read about? It has to excite you.
“People might think QI is people downloading their brain of things they already know but it is the opposite.
“I know a giraffe has a long neck but I didn’t know a group of giraffes is called a tower.”
Anne, who is married to musical director and lecturer Sam, added: “All the elves have magpie minds.
“I’ve found facts in online articles – there’s a Starbucks inside the CIA’S headquar ters but they don’t write people’s names on the cups.
“Or, in library books that haven’t been opened in so long that they let out a cloud of dust when you turn the page.
“Folk think it would be awesome to have an elf on their pub quiz team but that’s not the case.
“I suck at normal general knowledge questions but ask me something obscure and I will probably know it.
“My husband always beats me at Trivial Pursuit, which is pretty demoralising.”
Anne and the team have just finished recording the R series of QI and now she is nose deep in books about subjects beginning with S.
She explained: “All the series are based on a letter of the alphabet. We had to postpone making the last five episodes of R due to Covid but they are in the can now and we are researching S. “At the moment, my reading consists of everything from scorpions and Saturn to seashells and sharks. “I will also be making sure there are lots of Scottish facts going in too. “I started with the show on season J. I’m a bit worried about X as there are only so many things you can say about xylophones and X-rays. “The jury’s out on where we go when it gets to Z. Some suggestions are starting over again or using numbers, which would be infinite.” The former Madras College pupil added: “I ’ ve been lucky
Scots clever clogs Anne Miller reveals the joy of fact-finding to bamboozle guests and audience on BBC’s long-running panel show as she launches the fourth hit book from the series
enough to work with Stephen Fry and Sandi Toksvig. They are both incredible.
“We have had some amazing panellists but my absolute favourite is Susan Calman. It was the P series and that particular episode was about the postal service. There was a red post box on the set and she decided to squeeze herself inside. Sarah Millican, Sara Pascoe and Dave Mitchell are also favourites.
“Another great joy of working on QI is that each episode has a technical rehearsal where we run through all the questions and pictures to make sure everything is in tip-top working order.
“As the panel aren’t allowed to see the questions before they record, the seats are filled instead by QI elves and we get to answer questions, set off klaxons and play with the props.”
Anne, who is also assistant producer on QI’s sister show The Museum of Curiosity on BBC Radio 4, got a first-hand experience of the show when she was just a teenager.
She explained: “I got the opportunity to go down and do work experience on the show.
“As you will know the buzzers differ every week. The theme was international and the studio was done up like an airport. I ended up voicing Jack Dee’s buzzer – not a bad claim to fame. I loved my time there and I became obsessed with facts. I saw the fact about the eagles and toxins on the sensation wall at Dundee Science Centre and emailed it to QI and they said send us some more and we might employ you.
“I think they were joking but I kept sending them facts and they gave me a place on their internship scheme and 10 years later I am still there.”
Anne is also co-author of the new QI book Funny You Should Ask, which is based on the weekly Why Workshop segment on Radio 2’s breakfast show with Zoe Ball.
She said: “This is my fourth QI book and one of my favourites.
“It’s based on the best questions that have been sent in over the last 18 months by Radio 2 listeners for the elves to answer.
“Topics range from goosebumps to grapefruit, pizza to pirates and everything in between. We’ve also added some of our own.
“It’s been incredible to see the physical book because it was made completely digitally over zoom and google hangouts. Covid meant we could not get together physically to brainstorm.”
Anne, who met her husband when they were both 18 and studying at
Edinburgh University, is also author of the children’s mystery series Mickey and the Animal Spies.
She said: “There are very few people who don’t like quizzes or puzzles.
“My kids’ books are about a little girl who likes to solve codes and is asked to join an agency headed up by a cobra snake.
“I think QI and its sister shows have proved so popular because humans are by nature curious and want to learn new things.
“I was a good child at school but I used to get into bother with the teachers for asking too many questions.
“Little did they know I was just in ∙ training to become QI’s tartan elf.”
Funny You Should Ask...Your Questions Answered by the QI elves is out on October 15, price £12.99
Goosebumps to grapefruit and pizzas to pirates ANNE MILLER ON THE FOURTH QI BOOK