The founder of ‘Goose Quizzes’ has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2020 New Year’s Honours List for ‘services to Charitable Fundraising during Covid-19’.
Andrew ‘The Goose’ Wildgoose (33) has run the Edinburgh based quiz company since 2011, employing a large team who collectively organised up to 45 weekly pub quizzes in Scotland’s central belt.
On 16 March 2020 he took the decision to suspend the company’s services due to the impending Covid-19 outbreak and set about adapting the business model so that they could now provide home-based quizzes using an online streaming platform.
Since then, the re-shaped company has delivered many hundreds of online quizzes, having put together thousands of quiz questions and marked thousands of answer sheets every week.
The quiz attracts thousands of viewers from all over the world mainly in the Edinburgh area but also throughout the UK and from as far afield as the USA, Canada, Kazakhstan and Greenland.
What sets Goose Quizzes apart from other companies is the ability to rapidly and accurately mark written responses (and a whole manner of spellings!) from proper pub-quiz-style questions. There are no multiple choice quizzing.
Goose Quizzes provide quizzes through a range of platforms, such as Skype, WebEx and Microsoft Teams, though they find the best platform for recreating the team-based atmosphere of a pub quiz is ZOOM. It’s easily accessed via web browser or a straightforward download, and it allows staff to assign a group into teams to talk and discuss questions privately, all without leaving Zoom.
There is no charge for participants. While players are asked to financially support if they can (to help keep the business afloat) the hosts always reassure viewers that if they cannot afford to support then they are still very much welcome to join in.
In developing an online version of the traditional pub quiz, families and friends who live apart can virtually group together and form a team to play along.
In addition, there is an online chat function which allows individual participants to interact with the quiz hosts and other players, creating a much needed social community, especially appreciated by those living alone.
His team also helps to promote other local businesses through the quiz. Local breweries, food establishments, musicians and craft companies have all benefited at a time when they are suffering badly due to the lockdown and physical distancing requirements.
Andrew has also set up a charitable project called ‘GQTON’ where T-Shirts are sold to provide a fund to run fundraising quiz events for charities, at no cost.
The ‘Goose’ told The Edinburgh Reporter: “I’ve been doing this since I left university in 2011 and provided pub quizzes to around 45 pubs, mainly in Edinburgh although we were expanding through to Glasgow.
“There were five of us working full time plus another 12 hosts and all the quizzes were physical or in person and when the Covid restrictions came into place it was about preserving jobs which we have been able to do and none of us were furloughed.
“This year the notification procedure regarding the award changed so I found out via e-mail and genuinely thought it was some sort of scam, but after checking it out, it’s been quite exciting. I have no idea who nominated me but the figures suggest it was sometime in August.
“None of my friends know about this as I was told not to tell anyone, but they will find out tonight. It’s been a busy time and we are still doing quizzes over the festive period and, although I am not on tonight’s quiz, I will be back for our big quiz on Hogmanay.
“It starts at 7pm and will be free on Twitch. Unlike other quizzes there will be no questions about the coronavirus.
“Once the pandemic is over we want to return to supporting venues and help them get the footfall back through the doors, but we have learned so much over the last nine-months and will keep an presence as well which is like adding another string to our bow. In fact we are considering mixed events which will include both physical and virtual participants.”
To take part in the ‘Not the 2020’ Hogmanay quiz click here
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
