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GK 20
Quiz
Question | Answer |
---|---|
Blarney Castle was built on the orders of which Irish Lord, who shares his name with an author? | Cormac McCarthy |
In Hawaiian myth who was the Fire Goddess, the goddess of fire, lightning, wind and volcanoes and the creator of the Hawaiian Islands? | Pele |
Jozef Tiso was the first President of which country - at the time a client state of Nazi Germany? | Slovakia |
Which Whig statesman became British PM in 1754 upon the death of his brother? | Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle |
In Ovid's Metamorphoses, which son of Phoebus drove the Chariot of the Sun for a day, but lost control, crashed, and turned Africa to desert? | Phaeton |
The shortest war in history occurred in 1896, and lasted 38 minutes - it involved the UK against who? | Zanzibar |
The Plymouth Brethren were actually founded, despite the name, in which city? | Dublin |
Lucretius' work "De Rerum Natura" was partly an attempt to explain which Greek philosopher's thinking to a Roman audience? | Epicurus |
The US painter George Bellows is, perhaps, best-remembered for his series of paintings depicting which sport? | Boxing |
Which English Anglian mystic wrote "Sixteen Revelations of Divine Love", a 14th-Century work documenting a series of intense visions of Jesus she experienced while ill? | Julian of Norwich |
1968 film "Bullitt" won its only Academy Award in which category? | Best Editing |
Which was the first movie in the Carry On franchise? | Carry On Sergeant |
Which was the second movie in the Carry On franchise? | Carry On Nurse |
For which 1966 film did Steve McQueen receive his only Academy Award nomination? | The Sand Pebbles |
Which UK TV series aired its final episode on 30th July 2006, after 42 years? | Top of the Pops |
Which song by the Allman Brothers Band is the theme tune to "Top Gear"? | Jessica |
Who was the first person to win a posthumous Academy Award for Best Actor? | Peter Finch (Network) |
In the 1993 UK TV adaptation, who played "Lady Chatterley's Lover"? | Sean Bean |
In which 2000 film do thieves steal 50 cars in one night? | Gone in 60 Seconds |
Who was the United Kingdom's first female newsreader after she was recruited to present the Midday News on the newly launched Independent Television in 1955? | Barbara Mandell |
Jung divided our psychological make-up into consciousness, personal unconsciousness and what else? | Collective unconscious |
Which French artist and sculptor who developed a rough-hewn, primitive style of direct carving was killed in the trenches at Neuville-St.-Vaast in 1915? | Henri Gaudier-Brzeska |
French poet, playwright, short story writer, novelist, and art critic of Polish descent was wounded in the head in 1916 in WW1, but succumbed to Spanish flu in 1918? | Guillaume Apollinaire |
Which philosopher spent nine months in an Italian prisoner of war camp towards the end of WW1? | Wittgenstein |
Which major battle of WW1 started on the morning of July 1, 1916? | Battle of the Somme |
Which WW1 battle took place from 9 to 12 April 1917? | Battle of Vimy Ridge |
Who discovered the circulation of the blood in 1616? | William Harvey |
Which Czech doctor is credited with the first classification of blood into the four types (A, B, AB, 0(zero)) of the AB0 blood group system (Landsteiner only distinguished blood into 3 groups)? | Jan Jansky |
The French psychologist Alfred Binet devised the first practical example of what? | Intelligence test |
In early psychology, under a system created by Henry Goddard, individuals with the lowest mental age level (less than three years) were identified by what term? | Idiots |
'Calculus' derives from the Latin word for what? | Stone |
Whose first book, released in 1971, was "How To Cheat At Cooking"? | Delia Smith |
The long S letter is used for which mathematical function? | Integration |
George I was the first king of which house to rule Great Britain? | Hanover |
Which policeman was shot dead in "The Blue Lamp" but resurrected for an eponymous TV series? | Dixon (of Dock Green) |
Who is the official messenger from the House of Lords to the House of Commons? | Black Rod |
Whose house is in the backdrop of Constable's "The Haywain"? | Willy Lott |
Which actress married Douglas Fairbanks Jr after a 3 year love affair in 1920, and was nicknamed "America's Sweetheart"? | Mary Pickford |
The former name of which capital city lends its name to a breed of goat, cat and rabbit? | Ankara (Angora) |
Which ballet move involves "A step of beating in which the dancer jumps into the air and rapidly crosses the legs before and behind"? | Entrechat |
Which architect designed the Sheldonian Theatre at St John's College, Oxford? | Christopher Wren |
Wren and Hawksmoor designed which building that acted a permanent home for retired sailors of the Royal Navy - it operated from 1692 to 1869? | Royal Hospital, Greenwich |
Which Bohemian-born architect designed the Wurzburg Palace (or Residence) in Wurzburg, Germany? | Balthasar Neumann |
Give a year in the American Revolutionary War. | 1775-83 |
Which French architect designed the now-demolished Hotel Montmorency in Paris and the Royal Saline d'Arc-et-Senans and wrote an influential treatise on architecture in 1804, two years before his death? | Nicolas Ledoux |
Opened in Madrid in 1725, the Sobrino de Botín is listed by the 'Guinness Book of Records' as the world's oldest example of what type of establishment? | Restaurant |
Located on a peninsular in Corunna Bay in Galicia in northwestern Spain, what is the name of the oldest ancient Roman lighthouse still in use? | Tower of Hercules |
With which treaty of 1492 did Henry VII disclaim all historic rights to French territories, except Calais, in return for an end to French support for the pretender, Perkin Warbeck, and an indemnity of £159,000? | Treaty of Etaples |
According to legend, who was King Arthur's illegitimate son who fought against Arthur at the Battle of Camlann? | Mordred |
In 1996, Jose Ramos-Hortha and Bishop Carlos F.X. Belo were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to bring peace and independence to which country? | East Timor |
Which group of chemical elements, along with scandium and yttrium are called 'rare earth metals'? | Lanthanides |
Which element, atomic number 61, wasn't discovered until 1945 and is named after a Titan in Greek myth? | Promethium |
What nationality was the chemist Carl Mosander, who discovered the elements lanthanum, erbium and terbium? | Swedish |
Which Egyptian deity was usually depicted as either green or black and often carried a crook and flail? | Osiris |
Which orchestral piece was played at the funerals of both Albert Einstein and John F Kennedy? | Adagio for Strings |
Æthelflæd, Lady of the Mercians, (d. 12 June 918), was the daughter of which King? | Alfred the Great |
Who became king in 899 upon the death of his father, Alfred the Great, captured the eastern Midlands and East Anglia from the Danes in 917 and became ruler of Mercia in 918 upon the death of Æthelflæd, his sister? | Edward the Elder |
Which planet transits the sun from Earth about 13 or 14 times per century? | Mercury |
Which form of social security is abbreviated as UBI? | Universal Basic Income |
The Kirkstone Inn is on the road that links Ambleside with which lake to the North? | Ullswater |
What name is given to a spiral in which the length of the radius vector is inversely proportional to its angle with the polar axis,so that its equation is R theta equals A? | Hyperbolic spiral |
Which Swiss mathematician investigated the logarithmic spiral that he called the "spira mirabilis" and requested that one be carved on his tomb, although following his death in 1705, an Archimedean spiral was inscribed instead? | Jacob Bernoulli |
Which management theory is based on the idea that the selection of a candidate for a position is based on the candidate's performance in their current role, rather than on abilities relevant to the intended role? | Peter principle ("managers rise to the level of their incompetence.") |
Which river is often used as a dividing line between the eastern and western areas of Northern Ireland, towns to the west often being seen as having less government investment? | Bann |
Rising in Mongolia, and the central of three great rivers (the others are the Ob and Lena) what is the largest river system flowing to the Arctic Ocean? | Yenisei River |
The first woman philosopher mathematician known to history, who was the head of the Neoplatonic school at Alexandria, but was murdered by fanatical Christians in AD 415? | Hypatia |
Who was the mother of the emperor Tiberius, at one point exercising very real power in Rome? | Livia |
"So equal, yet so opposite are their merits that they may be balanced in endless controversy." These words of Edward Gibbon refer to which two Greek philosophers? | Aristotle and Plato |
In which town or city was the artist David Hockney born? | Bradford |
Which Hockney painting was described as "a stunning diagram of '60s California, of blazing sunlight and cool water, of liquid blossoming into frozen chaos"? The painting's title was also given to a 1974 film about the artist. | A Bigger Splash |
The ancient town of Balkh is in which modern-day country? | Afghanistan |
Which Pakistani city of nearly 2 million people lies just at the eastern end of the Khyber Pass? | Peshawar |
The Accursed Mountains are mainly in which country? | Albania |
Which UNESCO World Heritage Site near Lake Mutirikwe and the town of Masvingo may have been the greatest medieval city in sub-Saharan Africa? | Great Zimbabwe |
The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of what? | Wetlands |
Who was UK chancellor from 1964 to 1967? | Jim Callaghan |
Which US general commanded WW2 forces in China and Burma; he died after surgery for stomach cancer on October 12, 1946? | Joseph Stilwell |
Who was the second woman to go into space? | Svetlana Savitskaya |
Andrew Fitzgibbon and Thomas Flynn are the two possible contenders for the youngest man to do what? | Win a Victoria Cross |
In which city was Joan of Arc burned at the stake? | Rouen |
Which European countries were unified until 1905? | Norway and Sweden |
Which club took its name from Christopher Catt's pie shop? | Kit-Cat Shop |
Which city did Hadrian order rebuilt in 130AD, and rename Aelia Capitolina? | Jerusalem |
Which nickname is used for someone who begins or furthers a political career somewhere where they have no roots? | Carpetbagger |
Which day of the week was 'black' in 1929's Wall Street crash? | Thursday |
Who married photographer Anthony Armstrong-Jones in 1960? | Princess Margaret |
In which decade was Charles created Prince of Wales? | 1950s |
Who won the Battle of Actium? | Octavian |
What term is used for the time between legislative sessions? | Prorogation |
Who was Britain's first deputy Prime Minster? | Clement Attlee |
Named after an Illyrian king who may have been the discoverer of its tonic properties, which genus of flowering plant is used in Italian drink Aperol, is the main ingredient of angostura bitters and gives its name to an Alpine distilled beverage? | Gentian |
What one-word name is also used for the 'botanical box', a stiff container used by botanists to keep field samples viable for transportation? | Vasculum |
Which English essayist, literary & art critic, and fiction writer (1839-94) wrote "Studies in the History of the Renaissance" (1873), and philosophical novel Marius the Epicurean (1885)? | Walter Pater |
In Ancient Rome, holders of which office were responsible for maintenance of public buildings and regulation of public festivals? Their name comes from the Latin for public building. | Aediles |
Possibly deriving from the Latin for 'to bind', holders of which title in ancient Rome were civil servants who acted as bodyguards to magistrates who held 'imperium'? | Lictor |
Which Scottish poet and folk tale collector wrote variously coloured (eg Red, Lilac, Blue, Green etc) "Fairy Books" in the late 19th century and early 20th? | Andrew Lang |
The Macdermots of Ballycloran was which prolific 19th century author's first published work? | Anthony Trollope |
In which country was artist James Jebusa Shannon born? | USA |
A leading British Impressionist, who created The Bridge, The Beach at Walberswick (1890) and Girls Running: Walberswick Pier (1894)? | Philip Wilson Steer |
A Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, which British artist (1862-1937) was a noted caricaturist, painter and teacher at Slade College? | Henry Tonks |
Which two islands are separated by the Tsugaru Strait? | Honshu, Hokkaido |
In New York City, what body of water separates Long Island from Manhattan? | East River |
Who was the first aviator to fly over Angel Falls? | Jimmie Angel |
How many players are there per team in a game of shinty? | Twelve |
What name is given to the stick used in a game of hurling? | Hurley |
What is the name of the ball used in the sport of hurling? | Sliotar |
What is camogie? | Women's hurling |
How many points are awarded in hurling for sending the ball above the bar? | One |
How many points are awarded in hurling for scoring a goal by sending the ball below the bar? | Three |
In which city is the International Ice Hockey Federation based? | Zurich |
Sometimes represented as a goat on Crete, the most-frequently mentioned foster-mother of Zeus? | Amalthea |
In Greek myth, who was the Titan, Pre-Olympian God of the Sea? | Oceanus |
Which Greek God had a helmet that made its wearer invisible? | Hades |
Atlas was the son of which Titan, who fathered him with the sea nymph Clymene, and is often depicted as a God of mortality? | Iapetus |
The last son of Gaia in Greek myth, which monstrous giant was defeated by Zeus buried under either Mount Etna in Sicily, or the volcanic island of Ischia? | Typhon |
Who are the only three Olympian Gods in the Greek pantheon whose names did not begin with 'A' or 'H'? | Zeus, Poseidon, Demeter |
In Greek myth, who was the mother of Zeus, who saved him by giving Cronos a stone wrapped in swaddling so that he wasn't eaten by his father? | Rhea |
In Greek myth, in what form did Zeus rape Antiope and thus father Amphion and Zethus, the founders of Thebes? | Satyr |
Into which animal did Zeus turn Callisto to allay the suspicions of Hera? | Bear |
Sharing her name with an animal, which half-woman, half-snake of Greek myth was the mate of the fearsome monster Typhon, and known primarily for being the mother of monsters, including many of the most famous monsters of Greek myth? | Echidna |
Which school of Japanese painting was the dominant style of painting from the late 15th century until the Meiji period which began in 1868? | Kanō school |
Hishikawa Moronobu was a Japanese artist known for popularising which genre of woodblock prints and paintings in the late 17th century- the term means 'pictures of the floating world'? | Ukiyo-e |
Which Japanese artist, born in Ano-o in 1733, and active in the late 18th century founded an eponymous school of painting? | Maruyama Okyo (Maruyama School) |
Give a year in the life of Hokusai. | 1769-1849 |
Which Japanese ukiyo-e artist, considered the last great master of that tradition, is best known for his landscapes, such as the series The 53 Stations of the Tōkaidō and The 69 Stations of the Kiso Kaidō; and for his depictions of birds and flowers? | Hiroshige |
The Bronze Age archaeological site of Phaistos is situated on which island? | Crete |
Which major historical school of Japanese painting was created in 17th century Kyoto by Hon'ami Kōetsu (1558–1637) and Tawaraya Sōtatsu (d. c.1643) and later consolidated by brothers Ogata Kōrin (1658–1716) and Ogata Kenzan (1663–1743)? | Rinpa School |
Currently one of Greece's 13 regions, capital Larissa, which region was known as Aeolia in Homer's Odyssey? | Thessaly |
In Greek myth, Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of where? | Mycenae |
Alongside Pheidias, Myron and Praxiteles, he is considered one of the most important sculptors of Classical antiquity, who is often known by the epithet "of Argos" and sculpted a famous bronze male nude known as the Doryphoros (Spear-carrier)? | Polycletus/Polykleitos |
Biblically, who was King David's father? | Jesse |
Before marrying David, the Bible tells us that Bathsheba was whose father? | Uriah |
Which of Jesus's disciples famously doubted the resurrection? | Thomas |
Who was the chief author of the epistles in the New Testament? | St Paul |
Music historians generally consider the dulcian to be the forerunner of which instrument? | Bassoon |
Absolom, Solomon and Adonijah were the sons of which Biblically character? | David |
In the Biblical book of Numbers, which man's donkey is initially the only one to detect the presence of an angel? | Balaam |
In the Bible, the superiority of Elijah and of his God in the test at Carmel, and the slaughter of the 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah, fired which character's vengeance - Elijah going into the wilderness to escape her? | Jezebel |
What name is given to the morbid fear of work? | Ergophobia |
Which French engraver (1832-1883) provided works for an 1870 copy of The Rime of The Ancient Mariner, an 1875 copy of Tennyson's Idylls of The King and posthumously an 1884 copy of Poe's The Raven? | Gustave Doré |
Together with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, who was the third member of Cream? | Jack Bruce |
Which British engineer (1871-1955) invented the first powered vacuum cleaner? | Hubert Cecil Booth |
Which plants are the only living genus in the family Aquifoliaceae? | Ilex/holly |
In the Japanese children's cartoon shown worldwide, and featuring anthropomorphic cube shaped animals, what species of animal is Pecola? | Penguin |
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) provides help for refugees specifically from where? | Palestine |
What is largest city in the State of Palestine? | Gaza |
Frequently known as "White Egret Castle" or "White Heron Castle" because of its brilliant white exterior and supposed resemblance to a bird taking flight, which Japanese castle miraculously escaped a WW2 bombing raid? | Himeji castle |
In the Bible, what are the three theological virtues? | Faith, hope, charity. |
What is the professional body RIBA in the UK? | Royal Institute of British Architects |
In football, which two teams would compete in the Eternal Derby, featuring fans nicknamed Grobari (gravediggers) and Delije (heroes)? | Partizan and Red Star Belgrade |
Which NFL team completed an undefeated regular 1997 season? | New England Patriots |
Who was the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers when they won the Superbowl four times in the 1980s? | Joe Montana |
Which American was the 2008 Summer Olympic champion for the decathlon and was also World champion in 2005? | Bryan Clay |
Where were the 2002 Commonwealth Games held? | Manchester |
Where were the 2006 Commonwealth Games held? | Melbourne |
Who won the women's 100m at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics? | Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce |
Called "The Father of American Football" (1859-1925) who created the sport's line of scrimmage and the system of downs, among other inventions? | Walter Camp |
Which men's javelin thrower was Olympic champion in 2004 and 2008, European champion in 2006 and 2010 and World Champion in 2009? | Andreas Thorkildsen |
At which Ivy League University were American Football's rules formulated? | Yale |
The Rose Bowl stadium, site of the American Football Rose Bowl Game is located where? | Pasadena |
Named after the Roman goddess of plants and motherly love, what is the name of the dwarf planet that orbits between Mars and Jupiter? | Ceres |
Although he played under the pseudonym A.H. Chequer, what was the real name of the footballer who scored the only goal in the first ever FA Cup Final? | Morton Betts |
Elizabeth Taylor won an Oscar for Best Actress for her role as a society call girl in which 1960 film? | Butterfield 8 |
On which Italian island is the novel 'Catch-22' set? | Pianosa |
Angostura bitters, used in pink gin, was named after a town in which country? | Venezeula |
What is the name of the river that is formed by the confluence of the rivers Tigris and Euphrates in the Iraqi town of al-Qurnah? | Shatt Al-Arab |
Thought to have been the first iron-clad battleships in history, what was the name of the ships, meaning 'turtle ships' in Korean, that made up the fleet built by the Korean naval hero Yi Sun-shin to defend against the Japanese invasions in 1592? | Kobukson |
Which religion was founded by Vardhamana Mahavira in the 6th Century BC? | Jainism |
In 1875, which became the first trademark to be registered in the UK? | Bass Red Triangle |
Which singer-songwriter painted the cover of the 1974 Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young album 'So Far'? | Joni Mitchell |
Which former Cistercian abbey lies near Helmsley in the North York Moors National Park, North Yorkshire, England? | Rievaulx Abbey |
One of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England which abbey is located approximately 3 miles (5 kilometres) south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire? | Fountains Abbey |
A relative of KingStephen, which saint holds the unusual distinction of having been Archbishop of York twice, both before and after his rival Henry Murdac? | William of York |
The Vale of Pickering lies in which English county? | North Yorkshire |
Housel is another name for which Christian rite? | Eucharist |
Which revolt in Norfolk, England during the reign of Edward VI, largely in response to the enclosure of land began at Wymondham on 8 July 1549? | Kett's Rebellion |
Who was the last Roman Catholic Archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1556 to 1558, during the Counter Reformation? | Reginald Pole |
Who wrote 'Supplication of Souls', a response to Simon Fish's 1529 'Supplication of the Beggars'? | Thomas More |
Deriving its name from an Asian capital, what name is given to reversible figured fabric of silk, wool, linen, cotton, or synthetic fibres, with a pattern formed by weaving? | Damask |
Which Roman road ran from London to York via Lincoln? | Ermine Street |
In which specific field is the Hugo Award given out? | Science Fiction |
Orsino, Duke of Illyria, appears in which Shakespeare play? | Twelfth Night |
Which Dickens novel is part set in the USA? | Martin Chuzzlewit |
In which jail did John Bunyan write "A Pilgrim's Progress"? | Bedford |
Which character's real identity was (once) Linda Lee Danvers? | Supergirl |
What does the word 'avast', beloved by pirates, actually mean? | Stop |
What were the names of the three 'Borrowers' in Mary Norton's book? | Pod, Homily, Arrety |
Where is "As You Like It" set? | Forest of Arden |
What is the first line of the Shakespeare play "Twelfth Night"? | If music be the food of love, play on |
What is this character "^" called? | A circumflex |
Of what was William Shakespeare's father a manufacturer? | Gloves |
Who wrote "Copia: Foundations of the Abundant Style"? | Erasmus |
Who was William Shakespeare's wife? | Anne Hathaway |
Robert Armin replaced who as Shakespeare's "fools"? | Will Kempe |
Which lost Shakespeare play was based on "Don Quixote"? | Cardenio |
"The Two Noble Kinsmen" is based on which of the Canterbury Tales? | Knight's Tale |
After Shakespeare's death, which dramatist entered into an exclusive arrangement with the King's Men similar to Shakespeare's? | John Fletcher |
Who wrote the plays "Histriomastix" in 1599 and "What You Will" in 1601? | John Marston |
Asyntedon is the grammatical term for the omission of what? | Conjunction |
What is the grammatical term for the repetition of one word from the end of a line to the start of a next? | Anadiplosis |
Which French administrative region was formed from combining Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, and Lorraine on 1 January 2016? | Grand Est |
Margarete Wittgenstein, the sister of Ludwig, is the subject of a afmous 1905 painting by whom? | Klimt |
Which intellectual society at the University of Cambridge was founded in 1820 by George Tomlinson, and had former members including Lytton Strachey, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Tennyson, EM Forster and three of the Cambridge spy ring (Burgess, Philby & MacLean)? | The Apostles |
The last words of which important 20th century work are "Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent"? | Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus (Wittgenstein) |
As well as Plato, which ancient Greek and student of Socrates also wrote still-extant Socratic dialogues? | Xenophon |
Which Ancient Greek philosopher drew a distinction between 'kinetic' and 'static' pleasures? | Epicurus |
Pythagoras and Epicurus were both born on which Greek island? | Samos |
Which Cyrenaic philosopher, who argued that happiness is impossible to achieve, and that the goal of life was the avoidance of pain and sorrow, was so pessimistic he was nicknamed the 'death persuader'? | Hegesias |
Which river passes through Stuttgart, Wernau and Heidelberg? | Neckar |
The Bullingdon Club is a notorious dining club based at which university? | Oxford |
Which artist famously re-opened his wife's grave at Highgate to retrieve unpublished pems? | Dante Gabriel Rossetti |
Give a year in the life of biographer James Boswell. | 1740-95 |
In which modern-day country was Marc Chagall born? | Belarus |
Which man had the nickname "The Sage of Cheyne Row"? | Thomas Carlyle |
Who wrote the 1892 novel "La Debacle"? | Emile Zola |
Dorothea Brooke is a heroine of which novel? | Middlemarch (Eliot) |
In a 1722 book, who ends up having relationships with Callum Murray and "a gentleman of Bath"? | Moll Flanders |
Give a year in the life of Alexander Pope. | 1688-1744 |
Which military veteran wrote an autobiography called "Walking Tall"? | Simon Weston |
Which poet wrote "New Bats in Old Belfries" and "Mount Zion"? | John Betjeman |
In myth, who dipped Achilles in the river Styx, holding him by the heel? | His mother Thetis |
The musical genre 'acid house' is believed to have originated in which city? | Chicago |
The New Testament book of Acts ends with whose imprisonment in Rome, awaiting trial? | Paul |
The New Testament book of Acts is traditionally ascribed to which author, who wrote the preceding book? | Luke |
The name Adam is derived from the Hebrew word for what? | Human or man |
Fino and manzanilla are both forms of which beverage? | Sherry |
Which champagne bottle size holds 1.5l of wine? | Magnum (2 bottles) |
In the Bible, what was the occupation of Abel? | Shepherd |
Who had a hit with "Leader of the Pack" in 1964? | The Shangri-Las |
Which song's first line is "I saw the light on the night I passed by her window"? | Delilah |
Marmande, Tiny Tim and Delicante are all types of which foodstuff? | Tomato |
Which metal, atomic number 55, expands the most when heated? | Caesium |
Spraint is the dung of which animal? | Otter |
9 on the Mohs scale, which is the third hardest mineral, after diamond at 10 and moissanite at 9.5? | Sapphire |
Which is the only living part of the body that lacks a blood supply? | Cornea |
Founded in 1991, which British trade union has around 25,000 members who work in broadcasting, film, theatre, entertainment, leisure and interactive media? | BECTU |
Which genus of flowering plant was discovered on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic) about 1696 and named after a renowned German botanist? | Fuchsia |
Which product takes its name from the terebinth tree, and is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from live trees, mainly pines? | Turpentine |
What is the second highest rank in the RAF? | Air Chief Marshal |
What is the second highest rank in the Army? | General |
In the TV show 'Thunderbirds' what was the name of Kyrano's daughter? | Tin-Tin |
In the TV show 'Thunderbirds' what relation was villain the Hood to Kyrano, Jeff Tracy's manservant? | Half-Brother |
In the TV show 'Thunderbirds' who piloted Thunderbird 3? | Alan Tracy |
In the TV show 'Thunderbirds' what was Thunderbird 3? | A rocket |
In the TV series 'All Gas and Gaiters' who played Reverend Noote? | Derek Nimmo |
Which TV family lived at Skypad Apartments? | The Jetsons |
Who played the character Anton Chigurh in 'No Country for Old Men'? | Javier Bardem |
Who played lead character Rick O'Connell in The Mummy trilogy? | Brendan Fraser |
In which 2008 remake of a 1951 film did Keanu Reeves play the alien Klaatu? | The Day the Earth Stood Still |
Who played 'Beetlejuice' in the film of the same name? | Michael Keaton |
Which London borough was formed in 1965 from the area of the former Municipal Borough of Wembley and Municipal Borough of Willesden of Middlesex? | Brent |
Which Scottish village, with a population of less than 200, has two railway stations? | Tyndrum |
What is a Spanish 'alcazar'? | Castle |
Which feature of New York was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (1822–1903) and Calvert Vaux (1824–1895)? | Central Park |
How are the Ellis Islands now known? | Tuvalu |
The Bargello is a museum in which European city? | Florence |
Which abbey near Yelverton, Devon, England is associated with Sir Francis Drake? | Buckland Abbey |
Who has children called Poppy Honey Rosie (b. March 2002), Daisy Boo Pamela (b. April 2003), Petal Blossom Rainbow (b. April 2009), Buddy Bear Maurice (b. September 2010), and River Rocket (b. August 2016)? | Jamie Oliver |
Which sportsman's first child, born 5th May 2016, was called Boomer Robert? | Michael Phelps |
Who married Ryan Reynolds in 2012? | Blake Lively |
Who was chancellor from 1947 to 1950? | Stafford Cripps |
Give a year in the life of Ivan the Terrible. | 1530-1584 |
Which was the last constituency that Winston Churchill represented? | Woodford |
Jimmy Carter famously farmed which foodstuff? | Peanuts |
In which castle was King Charles I held prisoner from 1647 to 1648? | Carisbrooke Castle |
What name was given to Duvalier's secret police in Haiti? | Tontons Macoutes |
Who was "Monty's Double"? | M.E. Clifton James |
Which city was the capital of the Holy Roman Empire during the time of Charlemagne? | Aachen |
Who captained the ship on which Darwin sailed "The Beagle"? | Fitzroy |
Who was the firstborn child of Queen Victoria & Albert? | Victoria, Princess Royal ('Vicky') |
What is the literal translation of 'Tontons Macoutes', the Haitian secret police? | Uncle Knapsacks |
What was a sepoy? | Native Indian soldier |
Which man refused the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize? | Lê Đức Thọ |
Jointly awarded, but with one man declining, who actually accepted the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize? | Henry Kissinger (Lê Đức Thọ refused) |
Which ancient Roman ended all of his speeches with "Carthage must be destroyed"? | Cato the Elder |
In which year was the 999 service introduced in the UK? | 1937 |
What was Aristotle's school of philosophy entitled? | Lyceum |
Which man married Emma in 1838 and lived at Downe, near Sevenoaks in Kent? | Charles Darwin |
Who was the consort of Edward VII? | Alexandra of Denmark |
The future Edward VII apparently had an affair with which actress, allegedly hastening the demise of Prince Albert? | Nellie Clifden |
Douglas Hyde was the first president of which country? | Ireland |
Which political party did James Goldsmith found in the mid-90s? | Referendum Party |
Which Nigerian culture, named after a Jaba village, produced many terracotta sculptures around 500BC? | Nok |
Where was the Hamangia culture, that began around 5250/5200 BC and lasted until around 4550/4500 BC, was based in which region? | Bulgaria/Romania |
Which period of Japanese history lasted 14,000-2300BC? | Jomon |
Which city, currently called Dur-Sharrukin, was founded in 717BCE by Sargon II? | Khorsabad |
Sennacherib, Sargon II's successor, moved the Assyrian capital to which city? | Nineveh |
Located at the site of present-day Tell el-Muqayyar, what was the principal city of ancient Sumeria? | Ur |
Which ruler of Persia possibly founded and certainly built up Persepolis as the capital? | Darius I |
Known, as 'pioneers', who were victorious in 1838's Battle of Blood River? | Voortrekkers |
Who was Rugby School's headmaster from 1828-42? | Thomas Arnold |
Nathaniel Woodward was a Victorian reformer in which field? | Education |
In which decade was England's last public execution? | 1860s (1868) |
Who was the last man to be publicly executed in England? | Michael Barrett |
In which year was HMS Hood sunk? | 1941 |
Edward John Eyre was a controversial 19th century governor where? | Jamaica |
Fairfax defeated Rupert in which June 14th 1645 battle? | Naseby |
Which battle of 9th September 1513 is sometimes also called the Battle of Branxton? | Flodden |
Which US civil war leader gave his name to a tree? | General Sherman |
Of which country was Sidney Holland PM from 1949 to 1957? | New Zealand |
What is the name of Bill Murray's character in Groundhog Day? | Phil Connors |
What date is 'Groundhog Day'? | February 2nd |
Who popularized the term "MacGuffin" with his 1935 film The 39 Steps? | Alfred Hitchcock |
Which 1920s film star appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the film It brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl"? | Clara Bow |
In 'Thunderbirds' who piloted Thunderbird 5? | John Tracy |
In 'Thunderbirds' what type of vehicle was Thunderbird 5? | Space Station |
For which film did Kate Winslet win an Academy Award in 2009? | The Reader |
Who was the first Spanish actress in history to receive an Academy Award and the first Spanish actress to receive a star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame? | Penelope Cruz |
Who directed the film "Vicki Christina Barcelona"? | Woody Allen |
Who invented the zoopraxiscope, considered the first movie projector? | Eadward Muybridge |
2013's "No Man's Nightingale" was the last published book by the original author to feature which fictional detective? | Inspector Wexford (Ruth Rendell) |
Theseus and Hermia are characters in which of Shakespeare's plays? | A Midsummer Night's Dream |
Later a film, who wrote the 1990 novel "Devil In A Blue Dress", his debut work? | Walter Mosley |
Which British playwright won the Nobel Literature Prize in 2005? | Harold Pinter |
Which post did Henry James Pye attain in 1790, holding it until his death in 1813? | Poet Laureate |
The expression "ipsa scientia potestas est" ('knowledge itself is power') first occurs in whose Meditationes Sacrae (1597)? | Francis Bacon |
Which Bombay-born architect designed the British Embassy in Rome? | Basil Spence |
Which Charles Dickens character was supposedly based on the author's own father? | Mr (Wilkins) Micawber |
Who painted "The Fable of Arachne (Las Hilanderas)"? | Diego Velazquez |
Which US artist, whose father was a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, painted the Ferragosto and Lepanto Series? | Cy Twombly |
Completed in 1907, but not premiered until after his death in 1909, whose opera was "Le Coq D'Or"? | Rimsky-Korsakov |
Who founded the art movement of 'Suprematism'? | Kasimir Malevich |
Hailed as one of the greatest photographs of all time, whose work was 1907's "The Steerage"? | Alfred Stieglitz |
Who wrote the 1934 book "Technics and Civilisation", in which he charted the evolution of technology, which he saw as driven by capitalism? | Lewis Mumford |
Which Russian poet was twice arrested by Stalinist forces, in 1934 and 1938, and died in a transit camp in the latter year? | Osip Mandelstam |
The Abbe Breuil was an eminent archaeologist much involved in the discovery and investigation of which prehistoric cave complex in the Dordogne? | Lascaux |
The cave art site of Altamira lies in which mountain range? | Cantabrian |
Which Russian artist provided the set and costumes for the Rimsky-Korsakov opera "The Golden Cockerel" when it premiered in 1909? | Natalya Goncharova |
Which avant-garde composer wrote "Imaginary Landscape No. 1" for two variable-speed gramophone turntables, a muted piano and cymbals, one of the first musical works that was indeterminate? | John Cage |
Where was Andy Warhol when he was shot and very nearly killed in 1968? | His Factory studio |
In 1840 thirteen notable members of the Jewish community of which city were arrested and accused of murdering a Christian monk for ritual purposes - the story becoming an international incident and cause celebre? | Damascus |
A Hebrew essayist, one of the foremost pre-state Zionist thinkers, and known as the founder of cultural Zionism for promoting a secular state of Israel, by what pen name was Asher Ginzberg (1856-1927) better known? | Ahad Ha'am |
Which sect of Judaism arose as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine during the 18th Century and spread rapidly through Eastern Europe? | Hasidic Judaism |
In the Jewish calendar, for what does AM stand? | Anno mundi |
The Jewish calendar begins in which year of the Western calendar, believed to have been the time of Adam and Eve? | 3760BCE |
What name is given to a Jewish institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study? | Yeshiva (plural yeshivot) |
Born Joseph ben Matityahu (37-100CE) how is the Roman scholar and historian who wrote "The Jewish War" and "Jewish Antiquities" better known? | Josephus or Flavius Josephus |
The sect of Jews known as the Samaritans, who existed in Roman times, had their own temple located on which mountain - 90% of remaining Samaritans still live in close proximity? | Mount Gerizim |
The ancient city of Antioch is now located in which modern-day country? | Turkey |
Four men are named as 'brothers of Jesus' in the New Testament, although the Catholic church and Anglican church, among others deny that they were his biological siblings. Who are they? | James, Joseph (Joses), Judas (Jude) and Simon |
Who published 'The Pencil of Nature' in 1844 in order to showcase his early photographic techniques? | William Henry Fox Talbot |
Taking their name from the Greek for 'shadow', what contraption was used from around 1780 to 1850 to produce an accurate silhouette of a sitter? | Skiagram |
The Disruption of 1843 was a schism within which church? | Church of Scotland |
Scoring for Fulham against Cardiff city in 2016, who was the first football player born in the 2000s to score a goal in the English football leagues? | Ryan Sessegnon |
Called "the most important French photographer of the nineteenth century" because of his technical innovations in the still new medium of photography, whose photos command high prices at auction - a photo of his held the world record 1999-2003? | Gustave Le Gray |
In which city is Allinari Fratelli based, the oldest photography firm in the world? | Florence |
In the 1840s David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson produced an early photographic record of the people of which nation? | Scotland |
Born in Chesterfield, which English photographer's images of the Middle East, including a trip to Egypt in 1856, are credited with helping stimulate an interest in travel? | Francis Frith |
Which French author travelled to the Middle East with early photographer Maxime Du Camp from 1849-51, helping to document the monuments there? | Flaubert |
In which US state is the National Monument of Canyon de Chelley? | New Mexico |
Who published 'The Pencil of Nature' in 1844 in order to showcase his early photographic techniques? | William Henry Fox Talbot |
Taking their name from the Greek for 'shadow', what contraption was used from around 1780 to 1850 to produce an accurate silhouette of a sitter? | Skiagram |
The Disruption of 1843 was a schism within which church? | Church of Scotland |
Scoring for Fulham against Cardiff city in 2016, who was the first football player born in the 2000s to score a goal in the English football leagues? | Ryan Sessegnon |
Called "the most important French photographer of the nineteenth century" because of his technical innovations in the still new medium of photography, whose photos command high prices at auction - a photo of his held the world record 1999-2003? | Gustave Le Gray |
In which city is Allinari Fratelli based, the oldest photography firm in the world? | Florence |
In the 1840s David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson produced an early photographic record of the people of which nation? | Scotland |
Born in Chesterfield, which English photographer's images of the Middle East, including a trip to Egypt in 1856, are credited with helping stimulate an interest in travel? | Francis Frith |
Which French author travelled to the Middle East with early photographer Maxime Du Camp from 1849-51, helping to document the monuments there? | Flaubert |
In which US state is the National Monument of Canyon de Chelley? | New Mexico |
Which cat species, felis viverrina, has webbed feet and extended claws? | Fishing cat |
Which cat, also called the eyra cat, is a small wild cat native to Central and South America - it has short legs, an elongated body, a long tail and ears that are short and rounded, with a coat of a uniform colour? | Jaguarundi |
Which wildcat 'felis silvestris lybida' is the ancestor of all domestic cats? | Arabian wildcat |
Chengdu is the capital and largest city of which Chinese province? | Sichuan |
Which state of Western India with a coastline of 1,600 km (990 mi), most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula, and a population in excess of 60 million has a capital at Gandhinagar, but its largest city is Ahmedabad? | Gujarat |
What is the capital of the Indian state of Punjab? | Chandigarh |
What is the capital of the Pakistani state of Punjab? | Lahore |
What is the capital of the Indian state of Rajasthan? | Jaipur |
The Aston Villa player Leandro Bacuna was the first player to play in the English Premier League who represented which national team? | Curaçao |
Where was the Qadan culture (13,000-9,000 BC) based? | Southern Egypt |
Who was the last Sumerian king(reigned reigned c. 2294 - 2270 BC) before Sumer was conquered by Sargon of Akkad? | Lugalzagesi |
The solar deity in ancient Semitic religion, corresponding to the Sumerian god Utu, and the god of justice in Babylonia and Assyria, who is depicted on the famous stela giving the law-code of Hammurabi? | Shamash |
The Bronze Age settlement of Akrotiri is located on which island? | Santorini |
Which pharaoh took the name Akhenaten? | Amenhotep IV |
Who was the wife of Akhenaten, the 'heretic' pharaoh? | Nefertiti |
To which ancient Egyptian town did Akhenaten briefly move the capital? | Amarna (Tell-el-Amarna) |
To which of Ancient Egypt's dynasties did Akhenaten belong? | Eighteenth |
Ramses II started his long reign as Egyptian pharaoh upon the death of who, the founder of the 19th dynasty? | Seti I |
Against whom did the armies of Ramses II fight at Kadesh in 1275BCE? | Hittites |
What was the final Biblical plague of Egypt that affected every home except those pre-marked by the Hebrews with blood from a sacrificial lamb which were 'passed over' - hence the Passover festival? | Death of the first-born son |
Known in the Bible as Pul, which Assyrian king (ruled 745–727 BCE) subjugated much of the Near East region? | Tiglath-Pileser III |
Reigning 559–530 BC, which Persian king his empire by conquering first the Median Empire, then the Lydian Empire and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire, and allowed the Jews to return to Judah from their Babylonian exile? | Cyrus the Great |
Which Nepalese town is held to have been the birthplace of the Buddha? | Lumbini |
Dying at Pawapuri in 527BCE, which religious leader of ancient india is considered to have been the last of the 24 tirthankars or saints? | Mahavira |
Traditionally the warrior elite, which word from "rule" or "authority" refers to one of the four social orders of Hindu society? | Kshatriya |
Who was the seventh and last King of Rome, overthrown in 510BCE? | Tarquinius Superbus |
The alleged rape of who by the monarch's son Sextus led to the overthrow of ancient Rome's monarchy in 510BCE? | Lucretia |
Who was the legendary sixth king of Rome, according to Livy murdered by his daughter Tullia and son-in-law Tarquinius Superbus? | Servius Tullius |
Which noble Athenian, sometimes called "the father of Athenian democracy" is credited with reforming the constitution of ancient Athens and setting it on a democratic footing in 508/7?BC | Cleisthenes |
In which play did Shakespeare speak of the 'seven ages of man'? | As You Like It |
Which singer had US #1 albums with Curious George (Soundtrack) in 2006, Sleep Through The Static in 2008, To the Sea in 2010, and From Here to Now to You in 2013 - 2014? | Jack Johnson |
What is the holy book of Sikhism? | Guru Granth Sahib (accept Adi Granth) |
In Greco-Roman myth, the anemone sprang from the blood of who when Venus sprinkled nectar on it? | Adonis |
What is the core belief of Adventism? | The imminent Second Coming (or "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. |
How is an Aeolian harp played? | By the wind alone |
Who wrote the lyrics and music of "A Little Night Music"? | Sondheim |
Who wrote the lyrics and music of musical "High Society"? | Cole Porter |
'High Society' the musical was based on which Philip Barry play? | Philadelphia Story |
Who wrote the operas "The Queen of Spades" and "The Maid of Orleans"? | Tchaikovsky |
Which band originally released the Tiffany hit "I Think We're Alone Now"? | Tommy James and the Shondells |
What name is given to a list of tables that gives the positions of naturally occurring astronomical objects as well as artificial satellites in the sky at a given time or times? | Ephemeris |
The Doolittle Raid of 1942 was an attack on which capital city? | Tokyo |
From which US aircraft carrier did WW2 bombers take off on the 1942 Doolittle Raid? | Hornet |
Which geologist gave the first scientific name to a dinosaur, megalosaurus? | William Buckland |
How are 'gricers' better known? | Trainspotters |
Which English quarter day falls on September 29th? | Michaelmas |
What is the medical term for a gap between any, but particularly the two front, teeth? | Diastema |
Which layer of the atmosphere lies directly above the stratosphere? | Mesosphere |
In the legal calendar, which is the first law term of the year? | Hilary term |
Which heraldic term would signify a red diagonal cross? | Saltire gules |
Which wedding anniversary is an 'emerald' one? | 55th |
Which wedding anniversary is a 'coral' one? | 35th |
What name is given to a fledgling grouse? | Poult |
How many tentacles does a squid possess? | Ten |
Which astronaut said the famous line "Houston, we have a problem" aboard Apollo 13? | Jack Swigert |
In 1910 Claude Grahame-White achieved which aviation first? | First night flight |
Which disease was it once believed could be cured by the monarch's touch? | Scrofula |
Which English physicist who, in 1745, discovered a process for creating strongly magnetized steel, served as the first principal librarian of the British Museum? | Gowin Knight |
Which isotope of carbon is used in carbon dating? | Carbon-14 |
Which degree is traditionally awarded to someone who is too ill to sit their exams? | Aegrotat Degree |
What was the pen-name adopted by the French novelist Henri-Marie Beyle? | Stendahl |
What type of pasta takes its name from the Italian for a 'three-cornered hat'? | Capelletti |
Which ancient country, conquered by the Roman Emperor Diocletian in the 3rd Century, covered parts of present-day Serbia, Macedonia and Albania and had its capital at Damastioni and, later, at Naissus? | Dardania |
Which was the final battle of King Arthur, at which he was mortally wounded? | Battle of Camlann |
Who was the President of the USA when the Statue of Liberty was assembled in 1886? | Grover Cleveland |
Which indie group achieved their best British chart position in March 1996 when their song 'Being Brave' reached number 10? | Menswear |
Who was the Hungarian-born American physicist, who died in 2003, who is known as the 'father of the hydrogen bomb'? | Edward Teller |
Who became the first £1,000 footballer when he was transferred from Sunderland to Middlesbrough in 1905? | Alf Common |
In the Popeye cartoons, what is the name of Olive Oyl’s brother? | Castor |
In Jonthan Swift's 'Gulliver's Travels' what is the name of the island that is eternally at war with Lilliput? | Blefuscu |
By what name was the Venezuelan city Ciudad Bolívar known prior to 1846? | Angostura |
According to the Bible, in which ancient city, in modern day Turkey, was Saint Paul the Apostle born? | Tarsus |
Which scientist was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1922 for his application of quantum theory to the problem of atomic and molecular structure? | Niels Bohr |
In which year was Fritz Lang's film "Metropolis" set - 100 years after its release date? | 2027 |
Accepted by the IAU as a dwarf planet on September 17, 2008, which dwarf planet is named after the matron goddess of the island of Hawaiʻi? | Haumea |
Which is the only dwarf planet in the Asteroid Belt? | Ceres |
Which dwarf planet is perhaps the largest Kuiper belt object in the classical population, with a diameter approximately two thirds that of Pluto - it is named for the creator of humanity and god of fertility in the mythos of the Rapa Nui? | Makemake |
Which artist, born in Paris in 1771 and star pupil of Jacques-Louis David, was appointed as official war painter by Napoleon? | Antoine-jean (Baron) Gros |
How many ordinary wine bottles make up a melchior of Champagne? | 24 |
What was the name of the language spoken by the Incas? | Quechua |
Taking its name from a figure in mythology, which type of intrusive igneous rocks, such as granite, are created at greater depths within the crust? | Plutonic |
What name is given to igneous rocks with a silica content greater than 65%? | Felsic |
What name is given to igneous rocks with a silica content less than 55%? | Mafic or ultramafic (if less than 45%) |
The Devil's Tower National Monument is in which of the US States? | Wyoming |
Fifty Million Frenchmen, DuBarry Was a Lady, Anything Goes, Can-Can and Silk Stockings are all musicals by which composer? | Cole Porter |
What is the traditional name of the transcripts of Parliamentary Debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries, named for a 19th century printer and publisher? | Hansard |
William Rees-Mogg, Charles Douglas-Home and John Witherow have all served as editors of which newspaper? | The Times |
How many ministers did Harold MacMillan eject from his cabinet in 1962's "Night of the Long Knives"? | Seven |
Which politician said that being attacked by Geoffrey Howe was like being "mauled by a dead sheep"? | Denis Healey |
In which year was George Osborne's October budget memorably referred to as an 'omnishambles'? | 2012 |
Which poet's first wife was Vivien Haigh-Wood? | TS Eliot |
Who wrote the poem "Hugh Selwyn Mauberly" in 1920? | Ezra Pound |
Which character in Ulysses is a young artist whose creative impulses have dried up? | Stephen Dedalus |
Which English-language poet received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923? | WB Yeats |
In 1938, which sociologist and writer wrote "The Culture of Cities"? | Lewis Mumford |
The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade took place in which century? | 13th (1209-29) |
A member of the Annales school of French historians, who wrote "The Structures of Everyday Life"? | Fernand Braudel |
The origin of the place name Zanzibar, which word was used by medieval Muslim geographers to refer to both a certain portion of Southeast Africa (primarily the Swahili Coast), and to the area's Bantu inhabitants? | Zanj |
Which Empire dominated the western Sahel in the 15th and 16th century - at its peak, it was one of the largest states in African history? | Songhai Empire |
Engaruka is an abandoned system of ruins in which African nation? | Tanzania |
Which pre-colonial state in Southern Africa was located at the confluence of the Shashe and Limpopo rivers, south of Great Zimbabwe from 1075-1220? | Mapungubwe |
What was the former, colonial name of Harare? | Salisbury |
Pierre Boulez was a one-time pupil of which French composer, organist, and ornithologist (1908-92), who used modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations? | Olivier Messiaen |
Which term refers to Christian and Jewish people whose families had migrated from all parts of the Mediterranean to French Algeria, Morocco, or the French protectorate of Tunisia, who were expelled at the end of French rule in North Africa? | Pied-noir |
Who wrote 1942's "The Myth of Sisyphus", a philosophical tract? | Albert Camus |
Nosemosis, or nosema, is a disease that affects which creatures? | Honey bees |
While imprisoned in solitary confinement Martin Luther King wrote "Letter from a _______ Jail"- which city completes the blank? | Birmingham |
In which month and year was the civil rights march on Washington that culminated in Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech? | (28th) August 1963 |
Joy and George Adamson famously raised a female lion from a cub - what was her name? | Elsa |
What is HUGO, founded in April 1988? | Human Genome Organisation |
Who directed "Wings" the first Best Picture Oscar winner? | William A Wellman |
The first Best Actor Oscar winner Emil Jannings won his award for two films - name either. | The Way of All Flesh, The Last Command |
Who won the first Academy Award for Best Actress? | Janet Gaynor |
Which was the first musical to win a Best Picture Academy Award? | Broadway Melody |
Who won the very first Academy Award for Best Director? | Frank Borzage |
Who was the final director to work on the 1939 film "Gone With The Wind"? | Victor Fleming |
Who was the first black winner of an Academy Award? | Hattie McDaniel |
What was Clark Gable's real first name? | William |
For which film did Robert Donat win his Best Actor Academy Award? | Goodbye Mr Chips |
For which film did Frank Capra win his first Academy Award for Best Director? | It Happened One Night |
Give either of the popular nicknames of actress Mary Pickford. | The girl with the curls, America's sweetheart |
For which movie did Mary Pickford win an Academy Award for Best Actress? | Coquette |
Who played Egon Spengler in the original "Ghostbusters" films? | Harold Ramis |
Syndrome was the name of the villain in which animated film? | The Incredibles |
In which movie does Johnny Depp play the role of Ichabod Crane? | Sleepy Hollow |
In March 2014, which star of "High School Musical" and "17 Again" engaged in a fight with a homeless man in Skid Row? | Zac Efron |
In which year was the Star Trek TV series first broadcast in the US? | 1966 |
Who directed and produced Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Legal Eagles (1986), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), and Kindergarten Cop (1990)? | Ivan Reitman |
What was Charlie Chaplin's middle name? | Spencer |
Which Radio 4 poetry show that has run weekly since 1979 was first presented by Frank Delaney, and then by the poet Roger McGough? | Poetry Please |
The newscaster George Alagiah was born in which country? | Sri Lanka |
Whose very popular poem is "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"? | Robert Frost |
In the 1935 film "Mutiny on the Bounty", who played Captain Bligh to Clark Gable's Fletcher Christian? | Charles Laughton |
Which film first paired Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers together? | Flying Down To Rio |
Which fictional town is the setting for the soap Coronation Street? | Weatherfield |
"The Man Trap" was the first broadcast episode of which very popular TV series? | Star Trek |
What was the name of Blue Peter's first pet dog? | Petra |
In which US state was the 1954 musical film "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" set? | Oregon |
Which UK TV show was won in 2009 by Chris Hollins? | Strictly Come Dancing |
Who played Freddy Eynsford-Hill, the character who sings "On The Street Where You Live" in the 1964 film version of "My Fair Lady", although another actor actually supplied Freddy's singing voice? | Jeremy Brett |
In terms of area what is second to the British Antarctic Territory as the UK's largest Overseas Territory? | Falkland Islands |
What is the capital of Martinique? | Fort-de-France |
What was the capital of Burma from 1857-85? | Mandalay |
What is the capital of Mauritius? | Port Louis |
What was Australia's capital immediately prior to Canberra, from 1901 to 1927? | Melbourne |
Which city was famously designed in the shape of an aeroplane? | Brasilia |
What is the capital of New Zealand? | Wellington |
Doha is the capital of which country? | Qatar |
What is the capital of Reunion? | Saint Denis |
What is the largest city lying within the Arctic circle? | Murmansk |
What is the capital of the Seychelles? | Victoria |
Brasilia took over as Brazil's capital from which city? | Rio de Janeiro |
Known as a "Waterfront Wonderland", with over 400 mi (640 km) of navigable waterways, which Florida city has more miles of canals than any other city in the world? | Cape Coral |
Which British city famously claims to have "more canals than Venice"? | Birmingham |
What is the capital of Sikkim? | Gangtok |
What is the capital of Sri Lanka? | Colombo |
What is the world's highest capital city? | La Paz |
Dushanbe is the capital of which nation? | Tajikistan |
What is the world's most northerly capital city? | Reykjavik |
What is the capital of Tonga? | Nuku'alofa |
In rugby union, the term 'stand off' is almost interchangeable with what other name for the position? | Fly-half |
In which class of sailing did Ben Ainslie win golds at the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympics? | Finn |
Now a discipline in freestyle skiing, which winter sport sees athletes ski or snowboard down a course including a variety of obstacles including rails, jumps and othe features, with points scored for amplitude, originality and quality of tricks? | Slopestyle |
Which English sportswoman won a silver medal in rowing at the 2004 Olympics, and a gold in cycling in 2008 - the first British woman ever to compete in two different sports at the Olympic Games? | Rebecca Romero |
The first woman to ever win medals at two different sports, who won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympics in the swimming 4×100m freestyle relay, then won a silver and a bronze medal with East German teams at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics? | Roswitha Krause |
Tim Brabants is a British former Olympic champion in which sport? | Kayaking/canoeing |
Who won Team GB's only track and field gold medal at the 2008 Olympics? | Christine Ohuruogu |
What name is given to the place where a batter starts in a game of rounders? | Post |
Joining in 2017, who are the first NHL expansion team since 2000? | Vegas Golden Knights |
In 1954, the Tour de France started abroad for the first time - in which city? | Amsterdam |
What is a sumo wrestling tournament called? | Basho (accept Honbasho - the official tournaments) |
Which cricketer was Australia's test captain from 1984 to 1994? | Allan Border |
Which synchronised event was introduced at the 2000 Olympics? | Synchronised Diving |
To win, which part of a sprinter's body must cross the finish line first? | Their chest/torso |
In rowing, what term refers to the turning of an oar parallel to the water between strokes? | Feather |
What is the nickname of New Zealand's national cricket team? | Black caps |
What one-word name refers to a vinyl record collector? | Discophile |
The New Zealand national women's rugby union, basketball, ice hockey and cricket teams all have nicknames that incorporate which word? | Ferns |
Which boxer was nicknamed "Smokin' Joe"? | Joe Frazier |
What term refers to adjusting a yachy's sails to either fill or empty them of wind? | Trimming |
What was the second movie, after "It Happened One Night" to win Oscars for all of Best Actor, Actress, Screenplay, Director and Picture? | One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest |
What was the third movie, chronologically, to win Oscars for all of Best Actor, Actress, Screenplay, Director and Picture? | The Silence of the Lambs |
Which filmstar, born in 1911, was often nicknamed the "Blond Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde"? | Jean Harlow |
What was actress Bette Davis's real first name? | Ruth |
Bette Davis and Joan Crawford appeared together in which 1962 film, where they played the Hudson sisters? | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? |
As of 2017, how many Academy Awards has Meryl Streep won? | Three (Kramer vs Kramer; Sophie's Choice; The Iron Lady) |
How many Best Actress Oscars did Katherine Hepburn win in her career? | Four |
The film "Shadowlands" depicts CS Lewis's affair with which US poet? | Joy Gresham |
What was Kenny Everett's real name? | Maurice Cole |
Which 1969 film's last line is "Come and see a fat old man sometime"? | True Grit |
Which is the largest city by population on the Caspian Sea? | Baku |
In which country are the Mayan ruins at Copan? | Honduras |
Toronto stands on which of the Great Lakes? | Ontario |
Which river does the Belgian city of Antwerp lie on? | River Scheldt |
What did Benjamin Disraeli refer to as the "gondola of London"? | The Hansom Cab |
What is the literal translation of Costa Dorada? | Golden Coast |
Jamaica is divided into which three counties, all sharing a name with English counterparts? | Cornwall, Sussex, Surrey |
Mount Whitney is the highest point in which of the US states? | California |
Shiraz is a major city in which country? | Iran |
What is the largest town on the Scottish island of Lewis? | Stornoway |
Which 19th Century French composer, best remembered for his 'Ave Maria', wrote the national anthem of the Vatican City? | Charles Gounod |
Which mural by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel was the cause of a dispute between the artist and the cardinal Oliviero Carafa after the latter had accused the former of obscenity because the artist had painted nude figures with their genitals exposed? | The Last Judgement |
What is the Basque name for Vitoria, the capital city of the Basque Country? | Gasteiz |
Dying in November 511 AD, who was the first King of the Franks to unite all of the Frankish tribes under one ruler thus being considered as the founder of both France and the Merovingian Dynasty? | Clovis I |
In Greek mythology, what was the name of the beautiful shepherd boy of Asia Minor, beloved of the goddess Selene, who put him into a deep sleep so that she may embrace him eternally? | Endymion |
Which French President was assassinated by the mentally unstable Russian émigré Paul Gorguloff in 1932? | Paul Doumer |
Which song, released in December 1963, was the Beatles' best-selling single worldwide? | I Want To Hold Your Hand |
What was the first name of the Austrian paediatrician after whom Asperger's Syndrome is named? | Hans |
At the 1976 Olympics, which Cuban athlete became the first person to win both the 400m and the 800m? | Alberto Juantarena |
What was the name of the real-life boxer played by Denzel Washington in the 1999 film 'The Hurricane'? | Rubin Carter |
Founded by Johann Friedrich Overbeck and Franz Pforr among others, what name was adopted by a group of early 19th Century German Romantic painters who aimed to revive honesty and spirituality in Christian art? | Nazarenes |
What is the name of the Norwegian princess who shocked her nation in July 2007 when she announced that she was clairvoyant and wanted to teach her people how to talk to angels? | Martha Louise |
Nicknamed 'The Wee County', which is the smallest county in Scotland? | Clackmannanshire |
Nicknamed 'The Dragon of Albania' and remembered for his struggles against the Ottoman Empire, by what name is the prominent Albanian national hero Gjergj Kastrioti better known? | Skanderbeg |
According to the Books of Samuel, who was the first King of Ancient Israel? | Saul |
The Orange Bowl is a famous American football stadium located in which US city? | Miami |
The German television station ZDF sparked controversy in July 2007 when it cancelled which long-running music show? | Volksmusic |
In Aldous Huxley's novel 'Brave New World', what is the name of the happiness-inducing drug that replaced religion and alcohol as the 'opium of the masses'? | Soma |
The only player in Major League history to have the initials U.U.U., which former Major League Baseball relief pitcher, who won the World Series in 2003 with the Florida Marlins, was sentenced to 14 years in prison for attempted murder in March 2007? | Ugueth Urtain Urbina |
In which South American country is the Sechura Desert? | Peru |
Named after a place in the Dordogne, which archaeological industry of the European Upper Paleolithic era, is characterized by a stone-tool industry with small pointed blades and by the famous 'Venus figurines', most of which were made in this era? | Gravettian |
The Venus of Hohle Fels, the earliest known prehistoric Venus figurine, was found in which country? | Germany |
Venus of Willendorf, now known in academia as the Woman of Willendorf, one of the first examples of human sculpture, estimated to have been made between about 28,000 and 25,000 BCE, was found in which country? | Austria |
What three word name is given to the last period in the Earth's climate history during the last glacial period when ice sheets were at their greatest extension, maximally around 21000-18000BCE? | Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) |
Named after a a rock shelter located in the Vézère valley, which Western European Upper Paleolithic culture of around 18,000-12,000BCE is associated with both reindeer hunting and cave art at Altamira and Lascaux? | Magdalenian |
What is an atlatl used for? | Spear or dart throwing |
None were found in the wild in a 2013 survey - what is the alternative name of the Mexican walking fish? | Axolotl |
Which cold, low-salinity ocean current that flows north along the west coast of South America from the southern tip of Chile to northern Peru? | Humboldt Current |
The site of the first known human mummification around 5000BCE, in which country is Chinchorro? | Chile |
Named after an Alpine wildflower, which geological period from c. 12,900 to c. 11,700 calendar years ago saw a cold period caused by melting ice sheets? | Younger Dryas |
What general name is given to colder phases within the quaternary period, i.e the last 2.6million years? | Stadials |
What was the predominant cereal crop of the prehistoric Americas? | Maize |
Also called manioc, what is the third largest source of food carbohydrates in the tropics, after rice and maize? | Cassava |
What is the common name for some plant species in the genus Dioscorea (family Dioscoreaceae) that form edible tubers, often used in African cuisine? | Yams |
Used in luxury fabrics, which llama-like animal of South America has four times as many red blood cells per unit volume as humans, is classified as 'vulnerable' and is named from a Quechua word? | Guanaco |
Which South American species is believed to have been the wild ancestor of alpacas, and appears in the Peruvian coat of arms? | Vicuña |
Which very large Neolithic and Chalcolithic proto-city settlement and UNESCO World Heritage Site in southern Anatolia , existed from approximately 7500 BC to 5700 BC? | Çatalhöyük |
Sometimes known as indicine cattle or humped cattle, which species or subspecies of domestic cattle originating in South Asia is characterised by a fatty hump on their shoulders? | Zebu |
Which ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates river, on the dried-up, ancient channel of the Euphrates River, some 30km east of modern As-Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq is sometimes called the "first city"? | Uruk |
From 1988 to 2002, Prince Albert of Monaco competed at every Winter Olympics in which sport? | Bobsled |
What is the name of the great-granddaughter of the composer Richard Wagner who caused controversy at the 2007 Bayreuth Festival with her direction of 'Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg' that included nudity, giant plastic phalluses and ‘raining’ shoes? | Katherina Wagner |
Located in the Baltic Sea, to which country do the islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa belong? | Estonia |
The musical play 'Mother of All the Peoples' dramatised the life of which female Scottish missionary to Nigeria? | Mary Slessor |
Who was the Roman goddess of strife? | Discordia |
In which British city was the Israeli President Chaim Herzog born in 1918? | Belfast |
Deriving from the Sanskrit for ‘Man of the forest’, what is the name of the legendary bipedal primate said to inhabit the mountainous regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan? | Barmanou |
Which small, herbivorous mammal, native to Africa and the Middle East, looks similar to a rabbit but is often said to be the closest living terrestrial relative of the elephant? | Hyrax |
Who was the 19th Century English essayist who wrote 'The Spirit of the Age' and 'On the Pleasure of Hating'? | William Hazlitt |
Zheng Xiaoyu, director of the State Food and Drug Administration of the People's Republic of China, was executed in July 2007 after he was held responsible for the deaths of forty people in which country? | Panama |
Which town in Alaska is the terminus of the Pan-American Highway? | Fairbanks |
Which word is both a swimming stroke and a term in bell-ringing? | Backstroke |
Who captained Europe at the 2002 Ryder Cup - his best ever result at a major was 5th at the 1981 Open? | Sam Torrance |
In horse racing, what name is given to a horse that has yet to win a race? | Novice |
Who is the only golfer from Europe or the United States to have won two majors without making a Ryder Cup appearance? | John Daly |
Founded 1912, what is the international governing body for the sport of athletics? | IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) |
Which US athlete was famously tripped by Zola Budd at the 1984 Olympics? | Mary Decker-Slaney |
Who was England cricket captain when her team won the inaugural 1973 Women's Cricket World Cup and the first female cricketer to hit a six in a Test match? | Rachel Heyhoe Flint |
Who rode Aldaniti to victory at the 1981 Grand National? | Bob Champion |
In which sport might you try to catch a fly ball? | Baseball |
Sandown Park racecourse is located in which English county? | Surrey |
What term refers to the narrower side of the pitch relative to the position of a rugby scrum? | Blindside |
Which sport takes its name from the French for a stick curved at the end eg a Bishop's crozier? | Lacrosse |
How many times was John Francome champion jockey? | Seven |
Cricket's Wanderers Stadium, used for Test matches, is in which city? | Johannesburg |
Which Dutch yachtswoman completed a solo RTW navigation at age 16 in 2011, having been denied the opportunity aged 14? | Laura Dekker |
Which US baseball player, nicknamed The Millville Meteor, was the American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2014 and 2016 (finished second in 2012, 2013 and 2015)? | Mike Trout |
In baseball, what does WAR stand for? | Wins above replacement |
What name is given to the empirical analysis of baseball, especially baseball statistics that measure in-game activity? | Sabermetrics |
Including doubles, how many Wimbledon titles were won by Billie Jean King? | Twenty |
What are the two minor suits in Bridge? | Clubs, Diamonds |
Which term did Guillaume Apollinaire coin in 1917 to describe the works of Erik Satie? | Surrealism |
Give a year in the life of James Boswell. | 1740-95 |
In which modern day country is the birthplace of Marc Chagall? | Belarus |
Prior to Donald Trump, who was the last US President to have a parent who was born in the UK? | Woodrow Wilson |
Who was nicknamed "The Sage of Cheyne Road"? | Thomas Carlyle |
Who wrote 1892's "La Debacle"? | Emile Zola |
Which novel cycle was subtitled Histoire naturelle et sociale d'une famille sous le Second Empire (Natural and social history of a family under the Second Empire)? | La Rougon-Macquart (Zola) |
Dorothea Brooke is the heroine of which classic novel? | Middlemarch |
Give a year in the life of Alexander Pope. | 1688-1744 |
Who wrote the poems "Mt Zion" and "New Bats in Old Belfries"? | John Betjeman |
In the fairly tale, from what item did Thumbelina grow? | A Barleycorn |
What name can apply to both unglazed porcelain and a foodstuff? | Biscuit |
Who wrote "The Lost Horizon" in 1933? | James Hilton |
Who wrote the 1870 novel "Lothair", about a wealthy young orphaned Scottish nobleman ? | Benjamin Disraeli |
If articles are included, how many parts of speech are there in English? | Nine |
Belleek Pottery comes from which country? | Northern Ireland (accept UK, grudgingly) |
Who wrote "The Lovesong of J Alfred Prulock"? | TS Eliot |
To which actor was Bram Stoker a secretary? | Henry Irving |
From which city was Dante Alighieri exiled for the last 20 years of his life? | Florence |
On what charge was O Henry once jailed? | Embezzlement |
The College Historical Society (CHS) – popularly referred to as The Hist is often cited as the world's oldest undergraduate student society is based at which higher education establishment? | Trinity College Dublin |
A Vindication of Natural Society: A View of the Miseries and Evils Arising to Mankind, appearing in Spring 1756, was whose first work? | Edmund Burke |
For which novel did US novelist Paul Beatty win the Man Booker prize? | The Sellout |
Who won a Best Actress Oscar for Terms of Endearment (1983)? | Shirley MacLaine |
The Star Spangled Banner was written in 1814 during the bombardment of which fort? | Fort McHenry |
Monterey Bay is off the coast of which US state? | California |
Which monarch won 1461's Battle of Mortimer's Cross? | Edward IV |
What name is given to an atmospheric phenomenon that consists of a bright spot to the left and/or right of the Sun, when the Sun is near the horizon? | Sun dog or parhelion |
Who painted the "Grande Odalisque" of 1814? | Ingres |
Which author was born John Griffith Chaney? | Jack London |
What name is given to the combined mass of water found on, under, and above the surface of a planet, minor planet or natural satellite? | Hydrosphere |
Which sea is sometimes given the historical name the Euxine Sea? | Black Sea |
Saguaro National Park is located in which US state? | Arizona |
A symbol representing a clove of nutmeg appears in which country's national flag? | Grenada |
In 1589, Jacques Clément, a Catholic fanatic, murdered which French king? | Henry III |
John of Gaunt was a son of which English monarch? | Edward III |
Timbuktu and Djenné, were conquered in 1468 and 1475 respectively, by which Empire? | Songhai |
The city of Cesena is in which Italian region? | Emilia-Romagna |
Milwaukee is the largest city in which US state? | Wisconsin |
Who first proposed that energy levels of electrons are discrete and that the electrons revolve in stable orbits around the atomic nucleus but can jump from one energy level (or orbit) to another? | Nils Bohr |
What is the name of the Babylonian creation myth? | Enuma Elish |
Emerging from an egg, who was the first living being in Chinese myth? | Pangu |
What name was given to the creator in Platonic philosophy? | Demiurge |
Which century did the astronomer Ptolemy, author of the Almagest, live in? | Second century CE |
Thomas Aquinas lived in which century? | Thirteenth |
Give a year in the life of Johannes Kepler. | 1571-1630 |
Which Dutch mathematician and astronomer (1872 - 1934) was instrumental in determining the shape of the universe from the cosmological data? | Willem De Sitter |
Which two men discovered the cosmic background radiation in 1965, and thus shared a 1978 Nobel Prize? | Penzias and Wilson |
In which city was Albert Einstein born? | Ulm |
Sometimes referred to as the Princeps mathematicorum (Latin, "the foremost of mathematicians") and "greatest mathematician since antiquity", which mathematician lived 1777-1855? | Gauss |
The existence of which object was perhaps first proposed by John Michell in 1783? | Black holes |
What name is given to the radius of a sphere such that, if all the mass of an object were to be compressed within that sphere, the escape velocity from the surface of the sphere would equal the speed of light? | Schearzchild radius |
The principle that we do not live in a special place in the universe is named after who? | Copernicus (Copernical Principle) |
Which Russian scientist, who died in 1925, devised a mathematical model of an expanding universe during the siege of St Petersburg? | Alexander Friedmann |
Which famous man was made Baron and Marquess of Douro in the early 19th century? | Duke of Wellington |
Which country did France invade in the 1st Franco-Hova War (1883)? | Madagascar |
Historically, who were the BAOR? | British Army on the Rhine |
In which year was the Berlin Wall built? | 1961 |
In which year was Hitler's failed Beer Hall Putsch? | 1923 |
Beloved by conspiracy theorists, which group is named after the hotel in the Netherlands in 1954 where the first conference was held? | Bilderberg |
What nickname was given to the Royal Irish Constabulary Special Reserve was a force of Temporary Constables recruited to assist the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) during the Irish War of Independence? | Black and Tans |
What position was held by Siraj ud-Daulah, whose troops were responsible for the 'Black Hole of Calcutta'? | Nawab of Bengal |
In which country did blackshirts originate? | Italy |
What is the literal translation of 'Bolsheviks'? | Majority men |
Which Chinese society gave its name to the Boxer rebellion? | Society of Harmonious Fists |
Which peace agreement was signed in 1978 between Israel and Egypt? | Camp David agreement |
Which alleged plot of 65CE (although its veracity is disputed by historians) to murder consuls was part foiled by Cicero? | First Catilinian Conspiracy |
In which decade was Comintern, or the third international, dissolved? | 1940s (1943) |
Which congress was held between September 1814 and June 1815 in the wake of Napoleon's defeat? | Congress of Vienna |
Manuel Noriega was a former head of state of which country? | Panama |
Which French king died in a tournament in 1559? | Henry II |
Married to Ferdinand in 1489, Isabella of Spain was originally queen of where? | Castile |
Married to Isabella in 1489, Ferdinand of Spain was originally king of which region? | Aragon |
Reigning 1957 to 1991 who was on Norway's throne immediately before Harald V? | Olav V |
Reigning 1948 to 1990, who was Netherlands' monarch immediately before Beatrix? | Juliana |
Which dynasty was on the throne in Portugal from 17th to 20th century? | Braganza |
Which grain is also called maize? | Mealie |
Whose albums include "Another Time, Another Place", "Bete Noire" and "In Your Mind"? | Bryan Ferry |
Which jazz singer (1924-1990) was nicknamed "The Divine One"? | Sarah Vaughan |
Which spirit is the base of cocktail Hula Hula? | Gin |
Mozart's Symphony No 38 is nicknamed after which city? | Prague |
"Empty Chairs and Empty Tables" is a song from which musical? | Les Miserables |
What nickname is given to Mendelssohn's Fifth Symphony? | Reformation |
What spirit is the base of a 'trouser rouser' cocktail? | Whisky |
Which character in a musical had the objective "to let the punishment fit the crime"? | The Mikado |
In the Bible, who were the two wives of Jacob? | Leah, Rachel |
Which operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan is also called "Castle Adamant"? | Princess Ida |
Who was the sister of Moses in the Bible? | Miriam |
Which Gilbert and Sullivan operetta has the alternate titled "The Peer and The Peri"? | Iolanthe |
Which female singer had, at one point in 1955, 5 records in the Top 20? | Ruby Murray |
Located on the slopes of Mount Carmel in Haifa, which building houses the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith? | Universal House of Justice |
Which two New York City boroughs are located on Long Island? | Queens and Brooklyn |
The only person ever to win medals in a single event in six consecutive Winter Olympics (1994-2014), which Italian luger was nicknamed Il Cannibale (The Cannibal)? | Armin Zöggeler |
In later life he was charged with impiety, and went into exile in Lampsacus. Which pre-Socratic philosopher - who introduced the concept of nous as an ordering force - was the first person to bring philosophy to Athens? | Anaxagoras |
Which poet was employed as a stamp distributor in Westmorland? | Wordsworth |
Who was the master of the Bluebell in "The Admirable Crichton"? | Lord Loam |
Which Italian Mannerist (1509 or 12 -1571) painted "The Rape of Prosperine"? | Niccolò dell'Abbate |
Christopher Sly appears in which Shakespeare play? | The Taming Of The Shrew |
Which Shakespeare play features the Seven Ages of Man? | As You Like It |
Bertram & Helena feature in which Shakespeare play? | All's Well That Ends Well |
"My Own Private Idaho" is based on which play? | Henry VI |
Which Shakespeare character is prince of Tyre? | Pericles |
Which Shakespeare play has the line "age cannot wither her"? | Antony & Cleopatra |
What nationality was artist Piet Mondrian? | Dutch |
What nationality was artist Paul Klee? | Swiss |
Who painted "Dream Birds" and "The Ghost Vanishes"? | Klee |
Who painted both "The Scream" and "The Kiss"? | Munch |
Who painted "Self portrait With Seven Fingers" and "White Crucifixition"? | Chagall |
Vassily Kandinsky is associated with which painting style? | Expressionism |
Give a year in the life of El Greco. | 1541-1614 |
Which author became an American citizen in 1955, because of controversy that arose after he made five radio broadcasts from Germany during World War II, where he had been interned by the Germans for a year? | PG Wodehouse |
Whose autobiography was entitled "Dear Me"? | Peter Ustinov |
Whose autobiography was entitled "Coal Miner's Daughter"? | Loretta Lynn |
Where was Dickens' father imprisoned for debt? | Marshalsea |
Whose autobiography was entitled "Chronicles of Wasted Time"? | Muggeridge |
Who wrote "Brief Lives" in the last decades of the seventeenth century? | John Aubrey |
Whose autobiography was "Bound For Glory"? | Woody Guthrie |
Who wrote "The Autobiography of Alice B Toklas"? | Gertrude Stein |
What is Shakespeare's shortest play? | The Comedy of Errors |
By what pseudonym was Hablot Knight Browne, Dickens' illustrator, known? | Phiz |
Which author, real name Amantine-Lucile-Aurore Dupin, shocked society by wearing trousers? | George Sand |
Which Roman writer was forced to commit suicide by Nero? | Seneca |
Which writer, born 2nd June 1840, was believed stillborn? | Thomas Hardy |
Which author, real name Charles Hamilton, typically wore a skullcap and bicycle clips when writing? | Frank Richards |
Who wrote the plays "On The Piste" and "The Office Party"? | Godber |
St Malo is in which French region? | Brittany |
Which two UK national parks are International Dark Sky Parks? | Galloway Forest Park and Northumberland National Park |
Which eminent German Lutheran theologian wrote the famous work "The Idea Of The Holy"? | Rudolf Otto |
Which neologism, coined by Australian Glenn Albrecht in 2003, describes a form of psychic or existential distress to people in their home environment caused by environmental change, such as mining or climate change? | Solastalgia |
Aldo Leopold, author of A Sand County Almanac (1949), is sometimes called the 'Father of' which discipline? | Ecology/conservation |
Which 16th Century Spanish mystic popularised the phrase "dark night of the soul"? | St John Of The Cross |
Pueblo Bonito and Casa Rinconata are ruins in which US National Park? | Chaco Culture National Historical Park |
The European Commission, applying pre-Brexit, set guideline levels for night-time noise at how many decibels? | 40 |
What is the executive body of the European Union responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and day-to-day running of the EU? | European Commission |
The Kaibab Plateau is located in which US state? | Arizona (it forms part of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon) |
Which Romantic poet penned 1819's "Ode On Melancholy"? | Keats |
Which Japanese author (1886-1965) wrote 'Naomi', 'In Praise of Shadows' and 'Quicksand'? | Tanizaki |
Which 4 US states meet at the 'Four Corners'? | New Mexico, Utah, Arizona, Colorado |
In which US state is the Chaco Culture National Historical Park? | New Mexico |
Which aircraft company made the F-14 Tomcat? | Grumman |
Which aircraft manufacturer built WW2 figher 'The Mustang'? | North American Aviation |
Which engineer built the Menai tubular bridge? | Stephenson |
Which engineer designed the first prefab hospital? | Brunel |
What fuse rating does a household lighting circuit have? | Five Amps |
What in 1971, was Russia's first space station? | Salyut |
What was Gagarin's craft that made him the first man in space? | Vostok 1 |
What do Americans term a British ton? | A long ton |
Which car company's slogan was 'Createur D'Automobiles'? | Renault |
What is the pounds difference between UK & US hundredweights? | 12 (UK 112 US 100) |
Which aid to comfort did Schuyer Williams invent in 1882? | Electric fan |
Which device did Henry Seely invent in 1882? | Flat iron |
Which company's slogan was 'innovations beyond petroleum'? | BP |
Freesias originate from which continent? | Africa |
Which people are 'NEET'? | Not in employment, education or training |
Matches are largely made from the wood of which tree? | Poplar |
What is the most reactive gaseous element? | Fluorine |
Calcium and which other element form hard water? | Magnesium |
Milton Friedman espoused which economic doctrine in the 1980s? | Monetarism |
In transport, what is a 'Croydon'? | Two-wheeled gig |
What powers an ornithopter? | The aviator himself |
With what is Kime's Directory concerned? | International Law |
What was the use of dunnage in ships? | Protecting cargo |
Which country was the origin of Lassa Fever? | Nigeria |
What is the world's largest reptile? | Saltwater Crocodile |
What is a diaphone more commonly known as? | Foghorn |
What type of oil is typically used in oil paints? | Linseed |
Which child is "loving and giving" in the nursery rhyme? | Friday |
What type of knot is used in a lasso? | Honda |
ISO stands for what in terms of camera film speed? | International Standards Organisation |
What is a 'Campbell-Stokes Recorder' used to record? | Hours of Sunshine |
What does a brannock device measure? | Shoe size |
What is 'foliomancy'? | Prediction Using Tea Leaves |
Which distress signal did SOS replace? | CQD |
What do the crew call "George" on an aircraft? | Automatic Pilot |
How many engines did a Vickers Viscount plane have? | Four |
What is the correct compound name for 'fools gold'? | Iron pyrites |
How is hydrocyanic acid better known? | Prussic acid |
How is spirits of salt better known? | Hydrochloric Acid |
How is hydrated aluminium silicate better known? | China clay |
What is ethylene glycol better known as? | Antifreeze |
Which engineer first used the term 'horsepower'? | Watt |
Commanded by a Lt Colonel, which military unit is made up of 4 or 5 companies? | Battalion |
Which company used the slogan "don't ask the price, it's a penny"? | Marks & Spencer |
What is the correct name for the 'heads' side of a coin? | Obverse |
Which Greek physician was the first person known to use the pulse in diagnosis? | Galen |
Which ancient Greek, an early obstetrician wrote "On Midwifery and The Diseases Of Women"? | Soranus of Ephesus |
What is the highest rank in the British fire service? | Chief Officer |
What is the correct name for Japanese ritual suicide? | Seppuku |
Which halogen has the lowest atomic number? | Fluorine |
Pennine Ginger & Talbot Parade are varieties of which perennial? | Chrysanthemum |
Which company manufactured the long-distance aircraft 'Hercules'? | Lockheed |
Which sea creature is most closely related to elephants? | Manatees |
Which farmed animal is a Beltville? | Turkey |
Which chemical element takes its name from the Latin for red? | Rubidium |
Which type of glass, used for decorative tableware, contains litharge? | Lead Crystal |
The Virgin Islands belongs to which group? | Leeward |
Unst is an island that belongs to which group? | Shetlands |
North & South Uist belong to which island group? | Outer Hebrides |
What is the main island of Hawaii called, on which Honolulu is situated? | Oahu |
The Dry Tortugas are a group of islands off the coast of which US state? | Florida |
Naxos, Paros and Santorini belong to which island group? | Cyclades |
The Simplon Pass connects which two countries? | Switzerland, Italy |
Of the coast of which country do the Laccadive Islands lie? | India |
In which ocean are the Juan Fernandez Islands? | Pacific |
Which is the largest of the Ryuku islands? | Okinawa |
In which country is Lake Disappointment? | Australia |
What is the official language of Jersey? | French |
Which Scandinavian country once owned the Isle of Man? | Norway |
In which US State is Crater Lake, the country's deepest? | Oregon |
What is the German name for what we call Lake Constance? | Bodensee |
Which is the world's largest freshwater lake? | Superior |
What is Europe's largest lake by area? | Lake Ladoga |
What is the largest lake by area in the UK? | Lough Neagh |
What is the largest lake by area on the island of Britain? | Loch Lomond |
What is England's largest lake by area? | Windermere |
What is Africa's largest lake by area? | Victoria |
Which is the largest of the Leeward islands? | Antigua |
In which country are the Bitter Lakes located? | Egypt |
Which Great Lake is wholly in the USA? | Michigan |
What is the world's deepest lake? | Lake Baikal |
What is the USA's deepest lake? | Crater Lake |
What is England's deepest lake? | Wastwater |
What is Britain's deepest lake? | Loch Morar |
What did Dutch Admiral Jacob Roggeven discover in 1722? | Easter Island |
To whom does the Sulu Archipelago belong? | Philippines |
In which river are the 'Thousand Islands'? | St Lawrence |
Which river flows through Preston? | Ribble |
Which river flows through Manchester? | Irwell |
Which river flows through Lincoln? | Witham |
Which river flows through Derby? | Derwent |
Who composed opera 'Manon Lescaut', first perfomed 1893? | Puccini |
Who composed opera 'The Force of Destiny'? | Verdi |
Who is the villain of 'The Barber of Seville'? | Bartolo |
In the opera, who are both Aida, and her mistress Amheris in love with? | General Radames |
Whose first UK number 1 was "Mama Do (Uh Oh Uh Oh)"? | Pixie Lott |
Which law states: the volume of a quantity of gas varies inversely with the pressure at a fixed temperature? | Boyle's |
Madame Butterfly is set in which city? | Nagasaki |
Who composed the opera "Gianni Schicchi"? | Puccini |
What name is given to Mohammed's 622AD flight from Mecca to Medina? | Hegira/hejira |
In Jewish tradition, the Torah contains how many mitzvot, or commandments? | 613 |
"Shoulder the sky, my lad, and drink your ale" is a quote from a poem by who? | Housman |
Earl Browder led which political party in the 1930s and early 1940s? | Communist Party of the USA |
In 1972, the Presbyterian and Congregational churches became what single organisation? | United Reform Church |
Who had a hit with 'International Bright Young Thing'? | Jesus Jones |
John Knox is associated with which church? | Presbyterian |
First made around 7000BC, what was the Chinese drink 'kui'? | Rice beer |
From which ore was vermilion pigment originally made? | Cinnabar |
In which modern-day country was paper money first seen, in the 11th Century? | China |
Currency with its own intrinsic value (i.e. where the currency is not tied to the value of gold or another item) is called what? | Fiat currency/money |
Which pre-Socratic said "No man ever steps in the same river twice"? | Heraclitus |
Made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2012, what is the world's best-preserved Neolithic town - it overlooks the Konya plateau? | Çatalhöyük, Turkey |
What is the more common name for the disease 'vareola'? | Smallpox |
What is the more common name for the disease 'rubeola'? | Measles |
Which American adventurer and balloonist's plane went missing in 2007, with his body being discovered only in 2008? | Steve Fossett |
Which company owned the Flixborough works at the centre of the 1974 disaster? | Nypro |
What is Wallace Carothers credited with inventing? | Nylon |
'Hypersonic' refers to values above which Mach number? | Five |
What is the study of mosses called? | Bryology |
What was the first name of the Titanic's 'Captain Smith'? | Edward |
Which ocean was Richard Branson the first to cross in a hot air balloon? | Atlantic |
Keratitis affects which part of the body? | The eye |
What is Hungary's currency? | Forint |
What is Romania's currency? | Leu |
What is the Czech Republic's currency? | Koruna |
Which five words appear on Karl Marx's tomb in Highgate cemetery? | Workers Of All Lands Unite |
Which three English monarchs were excommunicated by Popes? | John, Henry VIII, Elizabeth I |
Who did the Florentines defeat in 1441's Battle of Anghiari? | Milanese |
Lysurgus was an early founder of where? | Sparta |
What was an Ancient Greek foot soldier called? | Hoplite |
n which ship did Ian Smith and Harold Wilson discuss Rhodesia's unilateral declaration of independence in 1966? | HMS Tiger |
What is the state nickname of Colorado? | Centennial State |
What is the state nickname of Arizona? | Grand Canyon State |
Who is the lead singer of the Arctic Monkeys? | Alex Turner |
Which Jewish festival is also called 'The Festival Of The Tabernacles'? | Sukkot |
How was Ferdinand Joseph La Menthe better known? | Jelly Roll Morton |
What is the name of 'The Barber of Seville'? | Figaro |
Who wrote "D'Alembert's Dream"? | Diderot |
Jewish text, the Gemara, part of the Talmud, exists in two versions - the Jerusalem (or Palestinian), and which other? | Babylonian |
Whose birth name was Francois-Marie Arouet? | Voltaire |
14 of the letters, or epistles, in the New Testament are attributed to who? | Paul |
What name is given to the oldest complete copy of the New Testament, found in the mid-19th Century at St Catherine's monastery by Konstantine von Tischendorf? | Codex Sinaiticus |
Which is generally believed to be the oldest gospel, acting as a source for at least two others? | Mark |
What is the traditional symbol of the gospel author Luke? | Winged ox |
How many books comprise the New Testament? | 27 |
Walden Pond, site of Thoreau's book, is in which US state? | Massachussetts |
Roughly 60% of what type of animal (a commonly used term, albeit one that is almost useless for taxonomic purposes) are nocturnal? | Invertebrate |
Who was the father of the builder of the Great Pyramid Khufu (or Cheops)? | Snofru |
The Temple of Karnak lies 3km NE of which Egyptian city? | Luxor |
What name is given to monumental gateway of an Egyptian temple, consisting of two tapering towers, each surmounted by a cornice, joined by a less elevated section which enclosed the entrance between them? | Pylon |
The Glagolitic alphabet is the earliest known alphabet of who? | Slavs |
Basil II, Byzantine Emperor 976-1025 had what nickname due to his final and decisive subjugation of a formerly troublesome peoples? | "The Bulgar-Slayer" |
Which two brothers, later made saints, of the 9th Century were the principal Christian missionaries among the Slavic peoples? | St Cyril and St Methodius |
What name was given by Greeks and Slavs to the Vikings who controlled medieval Rus from the 9th to 11th centuries? | Varangians |
Kiev lies on which river? | Dniepr |
Bodhgaya, where Buddha supposedly achieved Enlightenment, is in which Indian state? | Bihar |
What is the state nickname of Connecticut? | Constitution State |
What is the state nickname of Alabama? | Cotton State |
Moses' death is recorded in which book of the Bible? | Deuteronomy |
Which Jewish month occurs only 7 times in a 19 year cycle? | Ve-Adar |
Which French hors d'oeuvres consists of sliced, raw vegetables? | Crudites |
What is an iconostasis? | A wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a church, or a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere within a church |
Which Gilbert & Sullivan operetta has the alternate title "The Lass Who Loved A Sailor"? | HMS Pinafore |
Who composed the ballet 'Cinderella', first performed in 1948? | Prokofiev |
Marlborough wines originate in which country? | New Zealand |
Which Roy Orbison UK No. 1 begins with the line "Golden days until they end..."? | It's Over |
Which Everly Brothers UK No. 1 begins with the line "Don't want your love anymore..."? | Cathy's Clown |
Who wrote the 1930s best-seller (more than 30m copies sold worldwide) "Think And Grow Rich"? | Napoleon Hill |
In what type of argument does the truth of the premises guarantee the truth of the conclusion? | Deductive or valid |
What is the currency of Lithuania? | Lita |
What is the state capital of Alaska? | Juneau |
Which river flows through Colchester? | Colne |
Which river flows through Rochester? | Medway |
Who had a 1974 hit, with Odia Coates, entitled "You're Having My Baby"? | Paul Anka |
Captain Sensible fronted which band? | The Damned |
Cassis is a syrup made from which fruit? | Blackcurrant |
What does a 'Black Russian' cocktail contain? | Vodka, Kahlua |
What was founded in London in 1688 as a coffee shop, shortly after specialising in marine insurance, and still existing today as a unique insurance market? | Lloyd's of London |
Which Enlightenment-era English author wrote "A Sentimental Journey"? | Sterne |
Who wrote "The Persian Letters", a hugely popular 18th Century work? | Montesquieu |
What name, meaning 'blank slate' in Latin, is used for an epistemological theory that individuals are born without built-in mental content and that all of their knowledge comes from experience and perception? | Tabula Rasa |
The New Testament was first written almost entirely in which language? | Greek |
What name is given, in Judaism, to the writings or hagiographies of the Hebrew Bible? | Ketuvim |
What name was given to a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to Government? | Tithe |
What is the vice of venality? | Being open to bribery |
What name is given to a large, bright, gaseous feature extending outward from the Sun's surface, often in a loop shape; they contain plasma that is much cooler (relatively!) than that of the corona? | Prominence |
Into what larger structure are a collection of galaxies grouped? | Cluster |
What name is given to the boundary of the observable universe? | Particle horizon or cosmic light horizon |
Which Swiss artist (1767-1849) moved to England in 1800 where he achieved considerable success painting exotic animals (eg 'The Nubian Giraffe'), sporting scenes & gentlemen on horseback? | Agasse |
What nickname did the French King Louis-Philippe, overthrown in 1848, go by? | Citizen King |
Why was Russian Tsar Alexander II called the 'liberator'? | Emancipating serfs |
Alessandro Algardi (1595-1654) was a famous name in which field? | Sculpture |
Which German-born, US-based artist (1888-1976) painted 'Homage To The Square'? | Josef Albers |
Who won the 1929 Nobel Prize for Literature? | Thomas Mann |
Which bog of quicksand features in 'The Hound of The Baskervilles'? | Grimpen Mire |
In art, how is Master Jonathan Buttall better known? | The Blue Boy |
Trevor Kavanagh and George Pascoe-Watson have both held which position at The Sun newspaper? | Political Editor |
What was Glenn Miller's real first name? | Alton |
What was Roy Orbison's first UK number 1 single? | Only the Lonely |
In the Bible, who was David's father? | Jesse |
What was the musical based on Take That called? | Never Forget |
Which brewery makes 'Spitfire' ale? | Shepherd Neame |
Who had a 1974 hit with 'Never Can Say Goodbye'? | Gloria Gaynor |
Who was Hector's wife, and mother of Astyanax in myth? | Andromache |
Whose autobiography was "My Life, My Way"? | Cliff Richard |
In which ballet does the lilac fairy appear? | Sleeping Beauty (Tchaikovsky) |
In which century was Beijing's 'Temple of Heaven' constructed? | 15th |
Which short-lived Chinese dynasty immediately preceded the T'ang? | Sui Dynasty (581-618AD) |
What is South India's Eastern coast called? | Coromandel coast |
What is South India's Western coast called? | Malabar coast |
In which year was the East India Company founded? | 1600 (on 31st Dec) |
What does 'Bhagavad Gita' mean? | Song of the Lord/Holy Being |
Kandahar was named after who? | Alexander The Great |
Which city was the capital of the Mauryan and Gupta Empires, and was called Pataliputra? | Patna |
Which is the capital of, and largest city in, the Indian state of Karnataka? | Bangalore |
Mysore is in which Indian state? | Karnataka |
Great Basin National Park is in which US state? | Nevada |
Which mistress of Louis XV gave her name to a man's hairstyle? | Pompadour |
Who is the only member of the Nazi Party buried on Mt Zion in Jerusalem? | Schindler |
In which city did Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrender in January 1943? | Stalingrad |
Through which king were Mary Tudor and Mary Queen of Scots related? | Henry VII |
What does the Bortle scale measure? | Brightness of the night sky |
Mizar-Alcol is an apparent double star (actually a sextuple system) in which constellation? | Ursa Minor |
Which American naturalist and nature essayist (1837-1921) wrote the essay collection Wake-robin? | John Burroughs |
Both dawn starts and dusk ends when the Sun is how many degrees below the horizon? | Eighteen |
What time of day is divided into 'civil', 'nautical' and 'astronomical'? | Twilight |
Who created 'Popeye'? | Elzie Crisler Segar |
In which comic, the world's most expensive, did Superman first appear? | Action Comics #1 |
Sarah Gamp, a character in 'Martin Chuzzlewit' has given her name to what item in real-life? | Umbrella (a 'gamp') |
Whose autobiography was entitled "Where's The Rest Of Me"? | Ronald Reagan |
With whom did Henry VIII's fifth wife, Catherine Howard, supposedly have an affair? | Culpeper |