A serial quizzer from Lancaster has won through to the final of Mastermind.

Diane Howe secured her place during the semi-final of the popular BBC2 show broadcast this week and her appearance in the final is due to be televised later this spring.

It was Diane’s second attempt at reaching the final after first appearing in the show six years ago.

“I’ve always enjoyed quizzing and have got more confident as I’ve got older,” she said. “You’ve just got to keep testing yourself.”

Diane Howe, who has reached the final of Mastermind.

placeholder image — Diane Howe, who has reached the final of Mastermind.

But there’s testing yourself and really testing yourself as sitting in the famous black chair in the Mastermind studio does take some nerve.

“You do get a little practice walking to the chair beforehand but when they do the take and play the music, it gets a bit scary but you’ve just got to keep calm,” Diane said.

The show, which is now presented by newsreader Clive Myrie, is filmed in Belfast and features two rounds – the specialist subject and general knowledge.

In the first heat, Diane chose Henry VIII’s sixth wife Katherine Parr as her specialist subject because she had enjoyed studying Tudor history at Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School from 1975-82.

She later took a degree in English and History at St Katherine’s College in Liverpool, now Hope University.

For the semi-final, Diane’s specialist subject was the American musician Jeff Buckley, as she was a fan of his music.

Although she was a bit disappointed with her score of nine, her general knowledge saw her beat her opponents with a final score of 20.

In the final, Diane will answer questions on Jim Lovell, the Apollo 13 astronaut played by Tom Hanks in the film.

If Diane wins, she will be the second Mastermind champion to come from Lancaster, following in the footsteps of Stephen Tomlin who won in 1991.

His prize was a glass bowl which was later displayed at the City Museum.

Stephen no longer lives in Lancaster but Diane has actually quizzed against him as she has been a member of Lancaster Quiz League for 30 years and currently is captain of the team at the Three Mariners on St George’s Quay.

And her success on Mastermind so far follows many other appearances in television quiz shows.

In 2017, she was a member of the first team to ever win £100,000 on The Chase, coming away with £25,000. She also appeared in the first two episodes of Impossible, where she won £2,700, and in her first tv quiz show – Fifteen to One – in the 1990s, she won a trophy.

Diane has also appeared in A Question of Genius and the Great British Intelligence Test.

She now has Popmaster in her sights and would also like to try Beat The Chasers and Who Wants To Be A Millionnaire.

When not quizzing, Diane, a former personal assistant, is a full-time carer for her husband Dermot, and volunteers at Animal Care and Lancaster Priory.

No doubt they and the whole of Lancaster will be cheering her on in the final.