University Challenge Cambridge contestant ‘should get a hair ad’ after hair-flicking display

The latest episode of BBC2 Monday night favourite University Challenge saw viewers distracted from host Jeremy Paxman’s usual flurry of tricky questions – by a contestant continuously flicking her hair. 

Rebecca Marrow, from the Peak District, who’s studying Natural Sciences at St John’s College, Cambridge, couldn’t resist playing with her brunette locks throughout her appearance on the academic quiz, particularly as the tension mounted toward’s the episode’s final minutes. 

Marrow’s swishing of her long hair left some on social media saying she could ‘bag a hair commercial’, but others admitted they found it more than a little irritating.      

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Competition-wise, it was a relative stroll in the park for Marrow and her team-mates, who conquered the Royal Academy of Music’s team by an impressive 220 to 40.  

Much of the Twitter reaction to the latest episode of the show – another first-round match – though focused on Marrow’s hair-twiddling.   

@RoxxieToxxic wrote: ‘Marrow flipping her hair like she’s in a perfume advert.’ 

@StuLoversidge penned: ‘Stop swishing your hair Marrow. This is #UniversityChallenge not a L’Oreal advert.’ 

@13Atomic felt the same, writing: ‘For goodness sake leave your hair alone Marrow.’  

@monkeyalan proffered: ‘Try a hair bobble/band Marrow?’ @TonyPGreaves agreed, saying: ‘Marrow in desperate need of a hair band.

Others though were smitten by Marrow’s impressive intellect. 

Her finest moment came when she beat the Royal Academy of Music’s four brainboxes to correctly answer a question on…music.

@carolinerijkse asked: ‘Rebecca Marrow from St. John’s on #UniversityChallenge May I have your hand in marriage?’

Despite the show being in its earliest round, there’s already been an impressive roster of characters to rival fan favourite Monkman this series.  

Seoan Webb, who’s studying Ancient and Modern History at Oxford’s Corpus Christi College, was tipped to be the stand-out star early on. 

Last month, Webb’s ‘thousand-yard stare’ left viewers cold – and impressed – with his ‘merciless’ intellect as he gained most of his team’s points after they conquered Bristol University 175 to 135. 

Taking to Twitter, fans of the show hailed the 19-year-old as the ‘stand-out’ superbrain of the series – despite it only being the second round of the student quiz. 

After some commented on his awkward body language and deeply intense stare, one of his former teachers, from Elthorne High School in Ealing, West London, asked viewers to ‘be kind’, saying her former student was a ‘phenomenon’. 

Webb gained 10 A* at GCSE at the state school comprehensive in 2017.

Despite his steely demeanour on the show, she added that he was ‘the loveliest kid’.

London teacher @NikkiCDaniel wrote: ‘Seoan Webb is a phenomenon. The brightest person both Mark and I have ever taught and the loveliest kid. He is the real deal. Please twitter, be nice. Good luck #CorpusChristi’

The school’s library also tweeted, saying they were ‘proud’ of their former student.