Jeremy Paxman denies claims University Challenge is sexist

University Challenge host Jeremy Paxman has insisted that the show is not sexist, despite a significant lack of female contestants. In an article the Financial Times, the presenter attributed this to students handpicking their own teams and a supposed male preference for quiz contests.

This follows a series which saw two all-male teams compete in the final round, as well as repeated accusations of sexism and a lack of female representation, particularly in the later stages of the competition.

Mr Paxman commented: “As for the testicle issue, since we know that intelligence is not determined by gender, it must be a question of taste. The teams are not chosen by the college or university authorities but by the students themselves.”

“The students are encouraged to enter teams which broadly reflect their institution. I suspect that — like football or darts — more males than females care about quizzing.”

He added that applicants increasingly “prefer not to be gendered” in the application process, limiting the potential to engineer the contest’s gender ratio.

However, past contestant Hannah Rose Woods, who captained for Cambridge in 2016, said: “Is there any wonder that women are reluctant to put themselves in the public eye, when they are presented as one long strip-tease.”

This follows a string of objectification of female contestants in the media. A Telegraph article had announced Ms Woods would not be walking away from the finals empty handed, having received a marriage proposal on Twitter.

Furthermore, recent Oxford contestant Emma Johnson was frequently referenced as having an apparently unusual combination of “beauty and brains,” as well as being the “hottest contestant ever.”

Commentators have cited social media backlash as a reason women are less likely to want to compete. Last summer, Warwick contestant Sophie Rudd was targeted by abusive internet trolls over her gender.

However, both male and female contestants have become objectified media sensations. Recent Cambridge constestant Eric Monkman, who eliminated Ms Rudd in a face-off last month, sparked a trend of “Monkmania” with his distinctive facial expressions, causing many fans to describe him as the ideal husband.

In December last year, an all-female team from Oxford defeated their opponents by 130 points in the show’s Christmas special.