The historic Porter Tun Room in the City of London is the setting for the culmination of the 1980 series. Of the 48 starters, the four finalists competing for the beautifully engraved Caithness glass trophy and the title of Mastermind 1980 are:

Fred Housego (licensed taxi-driver): The Tower of London

John Keogh (postgraduate student): The House of Godwin 1016-1066 Samuel Mortimer (civil servant): The life and works of Joseph Haydn Ingram Wilcox (civil servant): The Crusades 1095-1192