Test the Nation
Encyclopedia
Test the Nation is a television programme, first broadcast in 2001 by BNN
in the Netherlands
where the concept is owned by Eyeworks Holding who license it to TV production companies around the world.
Typically there is a studio audience who answer the questions along with the viewer. The studio demography
is broken down into fun categories often designed to challenge or affirm stereotype
s. For example, in the United Kingdom, white-van men
and fashion models are commonly thought to be less intelligent, whilst doctor
s and scientists are expected to score highly. The fun is in comparing your score against your fellow countrymen. There is also a group of celebrities pitting their wits against the audience, and one or more 'experts', who comment on aspects of the particular show's topic.
, Spain (Antena 3TV), New Zealand, Denmark, Japan, Ireland and in the Middle East on the Arabic language MBC1
.
and Phillip Schofield
. The BBC tests are devised and standardised by the academic Colin Cooper
, of Queen's University Belfast, who is sometimes referred to on the programme as 'Sooperman Cooperman'.
Viewers can play along using interactive television
, log onto the BBC website
, or just use a pen and paper to keep score.
The first show, in May 2002, was an IQ test and the six groups of 50 studio participants included blondes, brunettes, teachers and students. They were pitted against a group of 10 celebrities including EastEnders
star Adam Woodyatt
, pop music presenter Fearne Cotton
, Olympic athlete Jonathan Edwards
and former Sunday Times editor and broadcaster Andrew Neil
. The teachers came out on top. The last IQ test in the UK was shown on 27 August 2007, when the studio groups were reality show contestants, clairvoyants, surgeons, removal men, Robinsons, Wallaces and celebrities. In this episode Danny Wallace
, a successful writer, made his first appearance as co-host. He replaces Phillip Schofield, who now works only with ITV. Experts who joined Dr Colin Cooper on the IQ test panel have included Sylvia Herbert, a director of British Mensa
(2002 and 2003) and Baroness Susan Greenfield
, scientist and polymath (2004).
Although there is usually an end-of-year test in the UK each year around Christmas, there wasn't one at the end of 2006. But at the start of 2007 there was a similar programme broadcast on BBC One called Your Country Needs You, presented by Patrick Kielty
, with the same general format.
From 2002 to 2004, the colour scheme used to change with every test. As of 2005, a red colour scheme was implemented for the questions and blue for the answer section. A bevel-like shape was added with the new graphics, title sequence and colour scheme, but it is unclear why.
The fonts used were Reaction Ultra (for the title) and a font called "iq font improved 2" for the question graphics. As of 2005, "DIN Mittelschrift" was used for the questions.
Test the Nation is an RTÉ
programme, based on the successful BBC concept, Test the Nation.
First airing on RTÉ One
on 5 June 2006, the show follows the UK format almost identically. In studio, two presenters oversee proceedings, which feature 6 teams of 40 contestants from various sectors of society. Members of the public participate by SMS
or via the internet. The Macromedia Flash applications used are identical to those used by the BBC. A trial version of the application appeared prior to the first quiz night, featuring 12 questions on a number of topics, including the Birmingham Six
, the former occupants of the Grafton Street site now occupied by Brown Thomas
, and which Irish alcohol company Toto Schillaci advertised for.
This version of Test the Nation covers the whole island of Ireland as opposed to just the Republic
; thus there is overlap between the content of the RTÉ and BBC versions of the show. As opposed to the BBC system of division by nearest city (which let people in Ireland enter if they chose Belfast), RTÉ divide results by historical Irish county
.
The first show
The show first aired on RTÉ One on 5 June 2006, with Miriam O'Callaghan
and Ray D'Arcy
overseeing proceedings. As well as historical Irish counties
,
other questions asked for demographic division included the participants preference for tea
or cappuccino
, and their support for Roy Keane
or Mick McCarthy
during The Saipan Incident.
Their in-studio teams were Hairdressers, Football
fans, an extended family from County Clare
, employees of Revenue, Estate Agents, a collection of people who had done their Leaving Certificate
in 1986, and the "RTÉ Allstars", a collection of RTÉ presenters including Eddie Hobbs
and Charlie Bird
.
The show was nominally part of, and the last show in, an RTÉ series The Time of Our Lives, covering the 20 years from 1986 to 2006, during with the Irish economy
changed the country unrecognisably.
The second show
This aired on 1 January 2007 and was presented by Miriam again but this time Craig Doyle
was her co-host. It was a test of the nation's IQ. It was revealed that the county with the highest IQ was Monaghan
. Panelists included Neil Delamere, Cathy Kelly
and Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin
.
with the episode Test the Nation: IQ. A second episode called Test the Nation: Watch Your Language was broadcast on September 9, 2007, a third episode aired on January 20, 2008, called Test the Nation: Trivia, and a fourth episode Test the Nation: Sports aired on Sunday May 25 at 8 pm (8:30 NT) on CBC Television. A fifth episode Test the Nation: Canada Eh? aired on Sunday September 7 at 8 pm (8:30 NT) on CBC Television.
The sixth episode called "Test the Nation IQ" was broadcast on January 24, 2010 and was the second version of the IQ edition. People were tested on their IQ through a test that was designed by Professor James Parker from Trent University and Professor Don Saklofske. Celebrities that had their IQ's tested included Justin Trudeau
, Dragon's Den's W. Brett Wilson
and Our Lady Peace's Jeremy Taggart
. In an interesting twist, Test the Nation had professional hypnotherapist Donald Currie hypnotize members of each team to see if hypnosis could help them achieve better IQ test scores. 1/3 of the hypnotized group did experience a jump in IQ score of up to 10 points.
The Canadian show was hosted by Wendy Mesley
and Brent Bambury
for the first five editions, except Test the Nation: Sports, which was hosted by Ron MacLean
and Wendy Mesley
. The sixth edition was hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos
and Carole MacNeil
.
In the Canadian version, celebrity guests are selected to represent one of six in-studio teams. The celebrity guests also take the test and the top celebrity's score is revealed on air. Test the Nation: Trivia featured celebrities: Farley Flex
, Debbie Travis
, Lorne Cardinal
, Carlo Rota
, Samantha Bee
and Tricia Helfer
. Test the Nation: Sports celebrity guests are Paul Coffey
, Debra DiGiovanni
, Alan Thicke
, Brian Bailey, Victoria Pratt
and Chris Murphy
.
BNN
BNN is a three letter abbreviation which can refer to*Banana News Network, A Pakistani comedy TV Show.*Bart's Neverending Network , a radio and television broadcasting organization in the Netherlands...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
where the concept is owned by Eyeworks Holding who license it to TV production companies around the world.
Show format
The format is designed to allow viewers to answer a number of questions in order to measure their IQ or their ability in some other 'intellectual' area. For instance, in the UK (where the show has run since 2002) there have been editions of the show devoted to general knowledge, knowledge of the UK itself, and the English language. There is also an annual test of the year's events just before Christmas.Typically there is a studio audience who answer the questions along with the viewer. The studio demography
Demography
Demography is the statistical study of human population. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic human population, that is, one that changes over time or space...
is broken down into fun categories often designed to challenge or affirm stereotype
Stereotype
A stereotype is a popular belief about specific social groups or types of individuals. The concepts of "stereotype" and "prejudice" are often confused with many other different meanings...
s. For example, in the United Kingdom, white-van men
White van man
"White van man" is a term popularised in the United Kingdom by the journalist Jonathan Leake, then transport editor at The Sunday Times, to describe drivers of light commercial vehicles such as the Ford Transit....
and fashion models are commonly thought to be less intelligent, whilst doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
s and scientists are expected to score highly. The fun is in comparing your score against your fellow countrymen. There is also a group of celebrities pitting their wits against the audience, and one or more 'experts', who comment on aspects of the particular show's topic.
Versions
The format has now been made around the world in countries including Australia, Germany, Belgium, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Spain (Antena 3TV), New Zealand, Denmark, Japan, Ireland and in the Middle East on the Arabic language MBC1
Middle East Broadcasting Center
The Middle East Broadcasting Center Group is the first private free-to-air satellite broadcasting company in the Arab World which was launched in London in 1991 and later moved to its headquarters in Dubai in 2002. MBC Group provides multiple channels of information, interaction and entertainment...
.
Britain
The British version, made by Talent Television for the BBC, was originally presented by Anne RobinsonAnne Robinson
Anne Josephine Robinson is an English journalist and television presenter, known for her assertive views and acerbic style of presenting. She was one of the presenters on the long-running British consumer affairs series, Watchdog, from 1993 to 2001 before returning in 2009...
and Phillip Schofield
Phillip Schofield
Phillip Bryan Schofield is an English broadcaster and television personality best known for presenting shows such as This Morning, Dancing on Ice, and various game shows including The Cube.-Early life and career:...
. The BBC tests are devised and standardised by the academic Colin Cooper
Colin Cooper (academic)
Colin Cooper is a British psychologist and senior lecturer in the School of Psychology at Queen's University Belfast. Cooper also devised the multiple-choice IQ tests for the BBC television programme Test the Nation. Among the questions, Cooper said that he had managed to "sneak in a few things...
, of Queen's University Belfast, who is sometimes referred to on the programme as 'Sooperman Cooperman'.
Viewers can play along using interactive television
Interactive television
Interactive television describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with television content as they view it.- Definitions :...
, log onto the BBC website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, or just use a pen and paper to keep score.
The first show, in May 2002, was an IQ test and the six groups of 50 studio participants included blondes, brunettes, teachers and students. They were pitted against a group of 10 celebrities including EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
star Adam Woodyatt
Adam Woodyatt
Adam Brinley Woodyatt is an English actor and media personality, best known for his role as Ian Beale in the long-running BBC soap opera EastEnders...
, pop music presenter Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton is an English television and radio presenter who is known for presenting a number of popular TV programmes such as Top of the Pops and the Red Nose Day telethon. In 2007, she became the first regular female presenter of BBC Radio 1's Chart Show...
, Olympic athlete Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards (athlete)
Jonathan David Edwards, CBE, is a former British triple jumper. He is a former Olympic, Commonwealth, European and World champion, and has held the world record in the event since 1995....
and former Sunday Times editor and broadcaster Andrew Neil
Andrew Neil
Andrew Ferguson Neil is a Scottish journalist and broadcaster.He currently works for the BBC, presenting the live political programmes The Daily Politics and This Week...
. The teachers came out on top. The last IQ test in the UK was shown on 27 August 2007, when the studio groups were reality show contestants, clairvoyants, surgeons, removal men, Robinsons, Wallaces and celebrities. In this episode Danny Wallace
Danny Wallace (writer)
Daniel Frederick Wallace is a British filmmaker, comedian, writer, actor, and presenter of radio and television. His notable works include the books Join Me, Yes Man, and the TV series How to Start Your Own Country.He lives in London, with his wife, an Australian publicist...
, a successful writer, made his first appearance as co-host. He replaces Phillip Schofield, who now works only with ITV. Experts who joined Dr Colin Cooper on the IQ test panel have included Sylvia Herbert, a director of British Mensa
Mensa International
Mensa is the largest and oldest high-IQ society in the world. It is a non-profit organization open to people who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a standardised, supervised IQ or other approved intelligence test...
(2002 and 2003) and Baroness Susan Greenfield
Susan Greenfield
Susan Adele Greenfield, Baroness Greenfield, CBE is a British scientist, writer, broadcaster, and member of the House of Lords. Greenfield, whose specialty is the physiology of the brain, has worked to research and bring attention to Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.Greenfield is...
, scientist and polymath (2004).
Although there is usually an end-of-year test in the UK each year around Christmas, there wasn't one at the end of 2006. But at the start of 2007 there was a similar programme broadcast on BBC One called Your Country Needs You, presented by Patrick Kielty
Patrick Kielty
Patrick Kielty is an Irish comedian and television personality from Dundrum, Northern Ireland.-Background:He was affected by The Troubles in Northern Ireland. On 25 January 1988 his father, businessman Jack Kielty, was shot dead by the Ulster Defence Association /"Ulster Freedom Fighters" , a...
, with the same general format.
From 2002 to 2004, the colour scheme used to change with every test. As of 2005, a red colour scheme was implemented for the questions and blue for the answer section. A bevel-like shape was added with the new graphics, title sequence and colour scheme, but it is unclear why.
The fonts used were Reaction Ultra (for the title) and a font called "iq font improved 2" for the question graphics. As of 2005, "DIN Mittelschrift" was used for the questions.
Ireland
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
programme, based on the successful BBC concept, Test the Nation.
First airing on RTÉ One
RTÉ One
RTÉ One is the flagship television channel of Raidió Teilifís Éireann , and it is the most popular and most watched television channel in Ireland. It was launched as Telefís Éireann on 31 December 1961, it was renamed RTÉ Television in 1966, and it was renamed as RTÉ One upon the launch of RTÉ...
on 5 June 2006, the show follows the UK format almost identically. In studio, two presenters oversee proceedings, which feature 6 teams of 40 contestants from various sectors of society. Members of the public participate by SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...
or via the internet. The Macromedia Flash applications used are identical to those used by the BBC. A trial version of the application appeared prior to the first quiz night, featuring 12 questions on a number of topics, including the Birmingham Six
Birmingham Six
The Birmingham Six were six men—Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Joseph Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, William Power and John Walker—sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975 in the United Kingdom for the Birmingham pub bombings. Their convictions were declared unsafe and quashed by the Court of...
, the former occupants of the Grafton Street site now occupied by Brown Thomas
Brown Thomas
Brown Thomas & Company Limited is a chain of four Irish department stores, located in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick. Owned by Wittington Investments, Brown Thomas is an upmarket chain, akin to Canada's Holt Renfrew chain and Britain's Selfridges stores, which are also controlled by the Weston...
, and which Irish alcohol company Toto Schillaci advertised for.
This version of Test the Nation covers the whole island of Ireland as opposed to just the Republic
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
; thus there is overlap between the content of the RTÉ and BBC versions of the show. As opposed to the BBC system of division by nearest city (which let people in Ireland enter if they chose Belfast), RTÉ divide results by historical Irish county
Counties of Ireland
The counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...
.
The first show
The show first aired on RTÉ One on 5 June 2006, with Miriam O'Callaghan
Miriam O'Callaghan
Miriam O'Callaghan is an Irish television current affairs broadcaster, chat show host and radio presenter with Raidió Teilifís Éireann . She has presented the leading current affairs show, Prime Time, since 1996, and her own chat show, Saturday Night with Miriam, since 2005...
and Ray D'Arcy
Ray D'Arcy
Raymond 'Ray' D'Arcy is an Irish television and radio presenter. He currently presents a weekday morning radio programme, The Ray D'Arcy Show, on Today FM...
overseeing proceedings. As well as historical Irish counties
Counties of Ireland
The counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...
,
other questions asked for demographic division included the participants preference for tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
or cappuccino
Cappuccino
A cappuccino is an Italian coffee drink prepared with espresso, hot milk, and steamed-milk foam. The name comes from the Capuchin friars, referring to the colour of their habits.- Definition :...
, and their support for Roy Keane
Roy Keane
Roy Maurice Keane is an Irish former footballer and manager. In his 18-year playing career, he played for Cobh Ramblers in the League of Ireland, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United, before ending his career at Celtic in Scotland....
or Mick McCarthy
Mick McCarthy
Michael Joseph "Mick" McCarthy is an English-born former Irish international footballer who is currently the manager of Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, where he has been in charge since July 2006....
during The Saipan Incident.
Their in-studio teams were Hairdressers, Football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
fans, an extended family from County Clare
County Clare
-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
, employees of Revenue, Estate Agents, a collection of people who had done their Leaving Certificate
Leaving Certificate
The Leaving Certificate Examinations , commonly referred to as the Leaving Cert is the final examination in the Irish secondary school system. It takes a minimum of two years preparation, but an optional Transition Year means that for those students it takes place three years after the Junior...
in 1986, and the "RTÉ Allstars", a collection of RTÉ presenters including Eddie Hobbs
Eddie Hobbs
-Early career:Hobbs worked for Zurich Life 1979 to 1991 and left his position as Marketing Manager to set up a fee-based financial planning company TIPS. In March 1993 Hobbs published a landmark report "Endowment Mortgages The Hometruth" which collapsed sales of endowment homeloans in Ireland by...
and Charlie Bird
Charlie Bird
Charles "Charlie" Bird is an Irish journalist and broadcaster. He was Chief News Correspondent with RTÉ News and Current Affairs until January 2009. He took up the role of Washington Correspondent, but prematurely returned to his earlier post in Ireland in June 2010.-Early life:Bird was born in...
.
The show was nominally part of, and the last show in, an RTÉ series The Time of Our Lives, covering the 20 years from 1986 to 2006, during with the Irish economy
Celtic Tiger
Celtic Tiger is a term used to describe the economy of Ireland during a period of rapid economic growth between 1995 and 2007. The expansion underwent a dramatic reversal from 2008, with GDP contracting by 14% and unemployment levels rising to 14% by 2010...
changed the country unrecognisably.
The second show
This aired on 1 January 2007 and was presented by Miriam again but this time Craig Doyle
Craig Doyle
Craig Doyle is an Irish television and radio presenter. To British viewers he is recognisable as working for the BBC and ITV...
was her co-host. It was a test of the nation's IQ. It was revealed that the county with the highest IQ was Monaghan
County Monaghan
County Monaghan is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Monaghan. Monaghan County Council is the local authority for the county...
. Panelists included Neil Delamere, Cathy Kelly
Cathy Kelly
Cathy Kelly is a Northern Irish internationally best-selling author of female fiction. She is a former journalist.Kelly is one of the largest women's authors to come out of Northern Ireland along with Marian Keyes and Cecelia Ahern, having once outsold both Dan Brown and J. K. Rowling in the UK....
and Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin
Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin
Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin is an Irish schoolteacher, television personality, and singer from County Mayo, who won the 2005 Rose of Tralee contest. Ní Shúilleabháin graduated with a first-class honours degree in theoretical physics from University College Dublin in 2005 and won the Mayo Rose...
.
Canada
Test the Nation debuted in Canada 18 March 2007 on the Canadian Broadcasting CorporationCanadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
with the episode Test the Nation: IQ. A second episode called Test the Nation: Watch Your Language was broadcast on September 9, 2007, a third episode aired on January 20, 2008, called Test the Nation: Trivia, and a fourth episode Test the Nation: Sports aired on Sunday May 25 at 8 pm (8:30 NT) on CBC Television. A fifth episode Test the Nation: Canada Eh? aired on Sunday September 7 at 8 pm (8:30 NT) on CBC Television.
The sixth episode called "Test the Nation IQ" was broadcast on January 24, 2010 and was the second version of the IQ edition. People were tested on their IQ through a test that was designed by Professor James Parker from Trent University and Professor Don Saklofske. Celebrities that had their IQ's tested included Justin Trudeau
Justin Trudeau
Justin Pierre James Trudeau, MP is a Canadian politician. He has represented the Montreal electoral division of Papineau in the Canadian House of Commons since 2008 as a member of the Liberal Party and currently serves as the party's critic for youth, post-secondary education, and amateur...
, Dragon's Den's W. Brett Wilson
W. Brett Wilson
Brett Wilson is a Canadian entrepreneur, member of the Order of Canada, philanthropist and the lead deal making panellist or "Dragon" of all-time on CBC's Gemini Award-winning Dragons' Den. Wilson was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan...
and Our Lady Peace's Jeremy Taggart
Jeremy Taggart
Jeremy Ronald John Taggart is a Canadian drummer, best known for playing with Our Lady Peace since 1993.-Early life:Taggart was born in Toronto, Ontario and has two brothers and one sister. Music was a central part of his youth, as his parents were also musicians, and Taggart learned to play drums...
. In an interesting twist, Test the Nation had professional hypnotherapist Donald Currie hypnotize members of each team to see if hypnosis could help them achieve better IQ test scores. 1/3 of the hypnotized group did experience a jump in IQ score of up to 10 points.
The Canadian show was hosted by Wendy Mesley
Wendy Mesley
Wendy Mesley is a host and reporter for CBC Television's consumer investigation series Marketplace. She is also a frequent back-up anchor for CBC's flagship evening news program The National. She also co-hosts Test the Nation with Brent Bambury...
and Brent Bambury
Brent Bambury
Brent Bambury is a Canadian radio and television personality, who has hosted a number of programs for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. A New Brunswick native, Bambury began his CBC career at stations in Saint John, Halifax and Montreal. In 1984, he became a correspondent for CBC Stereo's...
for the first five editions, except Test the Nation: Sports, which was hosted by Ron MacLean
Ron MacLean
Ronald Harold "Ron" MacLean is a Canadian sportscaster for the CBC who is best known as the host of Hockey Night in Canada.-Early life and career:...
and Wendy Mesley
Wendy Mesley
Wendy Mesley is a host and reporter for CBC Television's consumer investigation series Marketplace. She is also a frequent back-up anchor for CBC's flagship evening news program The National. She also co-hosts Test the Nation with Brent Bambury...
. The sixth edition was hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos
George Stroumboulopoulos
George Mark Paul Stroumboulopoulos is a Canadian television and radio personality, best known as the host of CBC Television's George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight and being a VJ for Canadian music television channel MuchMusic...
and Carole MacNeil
Carole MacNeil
Carole MacNeil is an award-winning television journalist and producer with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. She is the host of CBC News Now from 12 to 3 p.m. Eastern Time Zone on the CBC News Network....
.
In the Canadian version, celebrity guests are selected to represent one of six in-studio teams. The celebrity guests also take the test and the top celebrity's score is revealed on air. Test the Nation: Trivia featured celebrities: Farley Flex
Farley Flex
Farley Flex is a Canadian music promoter, artist manager, and motivational speaker. He is best known for being a judge on the reality television series Canadian Idol....
, Debbie Travis
Debbie Travis
Debbie Travis is a British television personality, self-taught interior designer, and former fashion model. She is best known as the host of Debbie Travis' Facelift and Debbie Travis' Painted House...
, Lorne Cardinal
Lorne Cardinal
Lorne Cardinal is a stage, television and film actor, best known for portraying character Davis Quinton on the Canadian television series Corner Gas.-Personal life:...
, Carlo Rota
Carlo Rota
Carlo Rota is a British-born Canadian actor, best known to Canadian audiences for his role on Little Mosque on the Prairie and to international audiences for starring on the FOX series 24.-Early life:...
, Samantha Bee
Samantha Bee
Samantha Bee is a Canadian comedic actress and author best known as a cast member on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.-Early life:Bee was born in Toronto, Ontario into an unconventional family...
and Tricia Helfer
Tricia Helfer
Tricia Janine Helfer is a Canadian actress and former model, best known for her roles as Number Six in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica miniseries and television series, "Carla" on Burn Notice, and FBI Special Agent Alex Rice on Dark Blue, as well as for hosting the first season of Canada's...
. Test the Nation: Sports celebrity guests are Paul Coffey
Paul Coffey
Paul Douglas Coffey is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey defenceman in the National Hockey League. Known for his speed and scoring prowess, Coffey ranks second all-time among NHL defencemen in career goals, assists, and points, behind Ray Bourque.-Playing career:Coffey was drafted 6th...
, Debra DiGiovanni
Debra DiGiovanni
Debra DiGiovanni is a Canadian stand-up comedian of Italian descent originally from Tillsonburg, Ontario.Her comedy career began with the help of Humber College's inaugural year of their Comedy Writing and Performance course, in 2000 and has since been nominated for the coveted Tim Sims Comedy...
, Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains.- Early life :...
, Brian Bailey, Victoria Pratt
Victoria Pratt
Victoria Ainsle Pratt is a Canadian actress and fitness model. Her television roles include Xena: Warrior Princess, Once a Thief, Cleopatra 2525, Mutant X, and Day Break. Her film roles include House of the Dead 2.-Early life:Pratt attended Chesley District High School in Chesley, Ontario...
and Chris Murphy
Chris Murphy (Canadian musician)
Chris Murphy is a member of the Canadian rock band Sloan.Although born in Prince Edward Island, Murphy is commonly associated with Nova Scotia; like his fellow bandmates, he currently resides in Toronto...
.
UK
- The National IQ Test (11 May 2002)
- The National 2002 Test (23 December 2002)
- The National Relationship Test (22 March 2003)
- The National IQ Test 2003 (4 May 2003)
- The National Quiz (6 September 2003)
- The 2003 Test (22 December 2003)
- The Great British Test (20 March 2004)
- The National IQ Test 2004 (22 May 2004)
- The Popular Music Test (4 September 2004)
- The 2004 Test (19 December 2004)
- The Big Entertainment Test (12 March 2005)
- The 20th Century Test (4 June 2005)
- Know Your English Test (8 October 2005)
- The 2005 Test (18 December 2005)
- Know Your Planet Test (29 May 2006)
- The National IQ Test 2006 (2 September 2006)
- The National IQ Test 2007 (27 August 2007)
Canada
- Test the Nation: IQ (18 March 2007)
- Test the Nation: Watch Your Language (9 September 2007)
- Test the Nation: Trivia (20 January 2008)
- Test the Nation: Sports (25 May 2008)
- Test the Nation: Canada Eh? (7 September 2008)
- Test the Nation: IQ (24 January 2010)