(Dr) Reginald Webster

An assistant psychiatrist from Whalley in Lancashire, Reginald Webster is better remembered as a broadcaster, particularly on the early radio quiz show Ask Me Another. His initial subject when he appeared on Mastermind in 1973 was 'Witchcraft'. He was an acknowledged expert on this, but the extent of his expertise did not become fully apparent until the actual recording. The questions had been poorly researched ,and Reginald queried (as far as Magnus Magnusson can recall) virtually every other question! In the end he won, and also won his semi-final with 'Spanish Literature'. In the final, to avoid the embarrassment of facing another set on 'Witchcraft', he took 'The Geography of Spain' and finished as runner-up to Patricia Owen.

Magnus Magnusson's book I've Started So I'll Finish, published in 1997, prefixed Reginald Webster's name with 'the late' - apparently Magnus thought that he would be so far advanced in years by now that he must be deceased. Magnus subsequently received a communication to the effect that the entry in his book had been brought to Reginald's attention! Although his eyesight no longer permitted him to read, Reginald was obviously interested to find that he had been given a mention in the book but was obviously somewhat concerned to have his premature demise reported. Consequently, Magnus ensured that the offending words 'the late' were deleted from the passage in question in the paperback edition of the book - only to discover too late that a caption to a photograph still referred to 'the late Dr Reginald Webster'! Such is life.