Queenstown brains will go into battle tomorrow night during the Big Pub Quiz being held at the Memorial Hall in aid of the Red Cross Christchurch Appeal.
Organiser Matt Booth said he came up with the idea of a mass pub quiz after being advised against going to Christchurch.
"I wanted to do something, but after being told that people should stay away from Christchurch, I had to figure out a plan B.
"At first, I was just thinking of having a few friends round for a Salvo's-bought fancy dress party, but I thought I could do better than that and last Sunday, with a bit of a Monty's-induced hangover, it came to me ... and here we are."
Mr Booth hoped to raise thousands of dollars for the Red Cross tomorrow night, as well as giving locals and visitors "a flexing of the grey matter".
Local businesses had shown their generosity by donating to the evening, with all the major skifields providing hundreds of dollars worth of prizes.
As well as the quiz, the evening will feature music by Queenstown entertainers Margaret O'Hanlon and Mark Wilson, with Richard Stringer and the team from Harcourts auctioning rare and much sought-after lots, including season passes, as well as a pair of tickets to the Elton John concert in November.
"As charity fundraisers go, it's not a match for the likes of Thriller in the Chiller - I certainly don't expect a brainiac celebrity like Stephen Hawking or Stephen Fry to be fronting up - but I'd love to have a big quiz every year for the community to get its teeth into, and to help charities in an entertained way."
Doors open tomorrow night at 7pm with tickets priced at $10, and the Big Pub Quiz begins at 7.30pm.
