'A brain city to discover': Presenter Alex Zane on Leeds as the ultimate setting for Trivial Pursuit takeover

For decades, Trivial Pursuit has been the ultimate test of family harmony and obscure knowledge.

Now, the iconic board game is leaving the living room table and taking over West Yorkshire with a giant, city-wide interactive trail.

The free five-week event, running from July 25 to August 30, marks a monumental milestone as Leeds celebrates 400 years since it was granted its royal charter in 1626.

Organised by LeedsBID in partnership with toy giant Hasbro, the project transforms the city centre into a playable board game.

At the heart of the celebration is Leeds-born presenter and podcaster Alex Zane, who jumped at the chance to return to his old stomping ground to curate the entertainment history of the city.

"I wish there was an exciting story for this, like a bat signal was launched from the glorious northern powerhouse of Leeds down here to London," Alex joked. "I saw it in the sky, hopped on the LNER from King's Cross, and when I arrived, they were waiting for me".

In reality, a simple email invitation to speak about music at Roundhay Park was all it took - largely because the connection is deeply personal, with his mother still residing in the area near Soldiers Field.

Gigs, wedges, and 'pieces of cheese'

The interactive city trail challenges players to explore key local landmarks while testing their knowledge across six classic trivia categories.

Checkpoints are spread across the city centre, from Geography and Sports to Science and Art.

Players will collect coloured wedge stickers for their physical game cards before heading to the final checkpoint at Brodrick Hall inside Leeds City Museum to answer a deciding question.

But even a professional broadcaster admits he has his limitations when it comes to general knowledge.

"I am a very competitive person, so it was nice to be able to engage with Trivial Pursuit in a much more relaxed manner," Alex admitted. "But I have to say, Brown is my absolute blind spot. I was never very well-read as a child - I was almost exclusively a Stephen King reader.

“If I'm forced to pick Brown and someone around the table is literary in their knowledge, I cannot believe how useless I am".

"However,” Alex is quick to point out, “put me on Pink for Pop Culture, or Green for Science and Nature, and I'm your man".

Of course, playing the game comes with its own age-old debates; most notably, what to call the plastic tokens collected in your circular mover.

"It's a wedge. It's officially a wedge, but growing up, my family always called them 'pieces of cheese,'" Alex laughed. "Though I've had intense arguments with friends who insist they are 'slices of pie.'

“Frankly, if you call it a slice of pie, we can't be friends".

Roundhay memories and the 'Forgotten History' category

For Alex, the standout memories of Leeds are inseparable from the live music that defined his youth.

While he was too young to attend many of the 80s gigs inside the arena, he vividly recalls standing on the other side of the fence at Roundhay Park to hear The Rolling Stones and Michael Jackson play.

When asked what he would change if he were designing a custom Leeds edition of the game, Alex had a specific "elevated pitch" for Hasbro: a new category called "Forgotten History".

"I think there is a huge passion for forgotten history. It’s about the things that used to be in Leeds that have gradually been lost to the sands of time and redevelopment," Alex proposed. "For example, the Dark Arches by Leeds City Station, where I spent many a Saturday afternoon.

“It was this labyrinthine, underground city selling strange, handcrafted goods like beads and strange pagan jewellery. Everything down there smelt of Joss sticks - it felt like a fantasy film".

Ultimately, the presenter believes the trail is the perfect excuse for residents to look at their surroundings with fresh eyes, rather than taking local landmarks for granted.

"It's a brain city to discover," Alex said. "When we go on holiday to another city, we visit every museum, cathedral, and landmark. But we rarely do it in our hometown because it's right there on our doorstep, and we think, 'Oh, I'll do it tomorrow'

"This trail provides the perfect opportunity to actually go out, unleash your competitive side, and find out a little bit more about the place you call home".

Participants who successfully collect all six category wedges can enter a weekly draw to win holiday vouchers and local prize bundles, and game cards are free to pick up at any of the six primary category locations from July 25.