Tonight Mastermind's tenth season opens and, between now and Christmas, 48 contestants will pit their wits against each other in the quest to win television's premier quiz battle.

Magnus will be 'starting', and he hopes that you will stay with him until he has 'finished' the search for the successor to London taxi-driver Fred Housego as Mastermind 1981.

The first heat comes from the RAF College at Cranwell and the contestants are: Peter Arbuthnot (commodity broker): Indus Valley Civilisation (2500-1700 bc)

Phillida Grantham (youth worker): Wines of Europe

Leslie Grout (schoolmaster): St George's Chapel, Windsor, since 1475

Peter Wilcockson (art gallery manager): Life and Work of Picasso to 1940