ROUND 1 - Pairs

1.

The steamship Ellan Vannin was lost with all hands on 3 December 1909 and was remembered in a folk song of the same name.  With which part of the British Isles is this song closely associated?

2.

The song Old Folks at Home, also known as Swanee River, is the official state song for which American state (in which the Swannee River is found)?

3.

Which series of books features the character Lisbeth Salander, based according to the author on the children’s book character Pippi Longstocking?

4.

Which 'Nordic Noir' author created the popular detective Kurt Wallander?

5.

Which 3-dimentional shape, commonly seen in engineering and architecture and also in fundamental in biology, can be described by the formulae x=sin(z) and y=cos(z)?

6.

In a right-angled triangle where the shortest side measures 1 and the longest side measures 2, how long is the third side?

7.

Which substance was first propounded in 1667 by Johann Joachim and was described as a substance without colour, odour, taste or mass, and is liberated in burning?

8.

Sir Isaac Newton wrote widely on mathematics, astronomy, optics and religion among other subjects, but on what subject did he write most extensively?

ROUND 2 - Hidden theme

1.

Which 1989 novel by Martin Amis is narrated by the character of Samson Young, an American writer who has had writer's block for 20 years and is now terminally ill?

2.

Which 1933 Hollywood musical first featured the pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers?

3.

Under what assumed name did the comic actor born Solomon Joel Cohen later become famous in British comedy films and TV?

4.

Which award-winning Russian song first composed in 1955 later became a hit song in Britain and elsewhere for the British jazz group Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen?

5.

Under what title was Victor Hugo's novel about the hunchbacked bell-ringer Quasimodo originally published in 1831?

6.

Fill in the missing word from this notorious quotation from a speech given by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Yugoslavia in 1963:

"--------- is the testicle of the West.  When I want the West to scream, I squeeze on ------"

7.

Which popular US legal drama created by Steven Bochco was based around the law firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak and ran on TV from 1986 to 1994.

8.

Which foreign title did Napoleon Bonaparte bestow on his only son (also called Napoleon) after his birth in 1811?

1.

FILMS

Which actor starred in the films 28 Days Later, Dark Knight and The Wind that Shakes the Barley?

2.

HISTORY

Which King was nicknamed Curtmantle ?

3.

LYRICS (1973)

Of which song is this the opening  lyric: “Fear me you lords and lady preachers, I descend upon your Earth from the skies“?

4.

WORDS

Used by blacksmiths and miners, what was a Billycock?

5.

NATURAL WORLD

Which is the smallest mammal in the British Isles?

6.

ARTHURIAN LEGEND

Who was the nephew of King Mark of Cornwall who was tricked  into a romance with his uncle's betrothed?

7.

NAVAL HISTORY

What was the fate of the USS Phoenix which escaped being sunk at Pearl Harbour?

8.

BOOKS

Which comedian / actor has had success with his children’s books Gangsta Granny and The Stink? 

9.

LYRICS

From which award winning song is this a lyric: “Come out upon my  seas, curse missed opportunities, am I part of the cure, or am I part of the disease”?

10.

HISTORY

Which famous General had the middle name Tecumseh?

11.

FILM

What is the name of the  George Clooney film, on current release, starring himself and Ryan Gosling?

12.

NATURAL WORLD

Blenny, Gurnard and Lumpsucker are all types of what?

13.

NAVAL HISTORY

Who took command of the British fleet when Nelson was killed at Trafalgar?

14.

WORDS

Which three consecutive words have the following meanings:

a. corrupt or rotten

b. a sudden attempt to overthrow a government

c. a strip of cloth wound round the leg between knee and ankle for protection?

15.

BOOKS

Which comedian currently has a book out called May I Have Your Attention Please?

16.

ARTHURIAN LEGEND

What was the name of the Nymph who enchanted Merlin and trapped him under a rock?

17.

GEOGRAPHY

Of which country did Naypyidaw become the official capital in 2006?

18.

WORDS

Which three consecutive words have the following meanings:

a. lacking style

b. a round rod for attaching two sections  together

c. a portion of a man’s estate left to his widow for her lifetime?

ROUND 5 - Pairs

1.

In the recently released historical film Anonymous who is portrayed as the true author of Shakespeare's plays?

2.

Which noted Shakespearian actor delivers a prologue at the beginning of the film Anonymous before the action unfolds?

3.

In 1530, which European ruler ceded the island of Malta to the Knights of St John of Jerusalem, which then became their home for the next 268 years?

4.

In 1798, which European ruler ordered the eviction of the Knights of Malta from the island of Malta and sent them into permanent exile?

5.

Which city is the setting for the 1957 novel On the Beach by Nevil Shute which depicts the final days of the last few survivors of a worldwide nuclear war?  In 1959 it was made into a film of the same name starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardiner.

6.

Who wrote the lines: "This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with a whimper" at the conclusion of the poem The Hollow Men?

7.

By area, which is the largest landlocked country in the world?

8.

By area, which is the largest landlocked country in Europe?

ROUND 6 - Hidden theme

Should be easy enough to detect and wrap up long before you get to question 8

1.

In Britain this is a common name for the honeysuckle but in the USA it refers to the clematis virginiana.  What is it?

2.

Which dukedom was created by Queen Anne in 1702 and first conferred on John Churchill?

3.

In Tudor England what name was given to groups of actors who toured the country performing popular dramas?

4.

Which football club had a famous giant-killing run in the FA Cup in 1997 and then eventually lost to Middlesbrough in a semi-final replay?

5.

What is defined in the dictionary as: a machine with a drum that rotates around a vertical spindle which is turned by a motor or lever; and is used for hauling heavy ropes etc.?

6.

A zamburak was a gun mounted on a what?

7.

Sales of which popular magazine reached their peak with the serialized publication of Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles?

8.

Which product is sold with the slogan: “We hug trees so you don't have to”?

ROUNDS 7 & 8 - Bingo Blockbuster

Pick a question based on the initial letter(s) of the answer

1.

S

Village in Luxembourg that gave its name to the 1990 EU convention that abolished border controls between participating countries.

2.

TDOF

Opera by Berlioz that features the Rakoczi March.

3.

DRK

In 1964 he became a  long running TV fugitive.

4.

RH

The inquiry into the 1987 King's Cross station fire in London found that the area beneath the escalators had not been cleaned since the 1940s.  This caused a build up of highly inflammable materials including this substance.

5.

JM

In 1959 she flew over from the USA to open the Chiswick flyover in London and switch on the Blackpool lights.

6.

BTW

Fondly referred to in Scotland as 'wreck the hoose juice'.

7.

TSHQ

According to Lord Palmerston only three people ever understood this: Prince Albert who had died, a German professor who went mad, and himself who soon forgot about it.

8.

OVJ

Chilling three words spoken during the blinding of Gloucester in Shakespeare's King Lear.

9.

B

Frozen food discount retailing chain whose shops graced Britain's high streets from 1968 until 1989 when they were bought out by their rivals, Iceland.

10.

TAGTOTAG

Cruel but witty Celtic supporters' football chant in the 1990s when it was made public that the Rangers goalkeeper was being treated for schizophrenia.          

11.

L

Varieties of which include the harlequin, the bryony, the 7-spot and the 22-spot.

12.

C,C

The two countries other than Canada that currently  belong to the Commonwealth and begin with a  'C'.

13.

BW

Religious name taken by Co Sligo-born Andrew Kerins when he joined the Marist order and under which in 1888 he founded Glasgow Celtic FC.

14.

TPM

The event that inspired Shelley to write his poem The Mask of Anarchy.

15.

SM

How Mrs Avery is referred to in the title of a 1972 top ten pop song.

16.

 S; L; F

In 1949 Area Severn was divided up into these three shipping forecast areas.

17.

DHS

According to the lyrics of Eleanor Rigby what Father McKenzie is seen doing  "in the night when there's nobody there”.

18.

PLF

British travel writer who died in 2011 aged 96.  His wartime exploits in Crete were dramatised in the film Ill Met by Moonlight.

19.

T

Word contained in the title of both the 1987 and the 2008 Booker prize winning novels.

20.

P

It can mean the indentation in the bottom of a wine bottle, or it might be a bet, a shallow boat or a kick.

ROUND 1 - Pairs

1.

The steamship Ellan Vannin was lost with all hands on 3 December 1909 and was remembered in a folk song of the same name.  With which part of the British Isles is this song closely associated?

The Isle of Man

(where it is recognised as the alternative national anthem)

2.

The song Old Folks at Home, also known as Swanee River, is the official state song for which American state (in which the Swannee River is found)?

Florida

3.

Which series of books features the character Lisbeth Salander, based according to the author on the children’s book character Pippi Longstocking?

The Millennium Series

(by Stieg Larsson)

4.

Which 'Nordic Noir' author created the popular detective Kurt Wallander?

Henning Mankell

5.

Which 3-dimentional shape, commonly seen in engineering and architecture and also in fundamental in biology, can be described by the formulae x=sin(z) and y=cos(z)?

A helix

6.

In a right-angled triangle where the shortest side measures 1 and the longest side measures 2, how long is the third side?

√3

(approx 1.732)

7.

Which substance was first propounded in 1667 by Johann Joachim and was described as a substance without colour, odour, taste or mass, and is liberated in burning?

Phlogiston

8.

Sir Isaac Newton wrote widely on mathematics, astronomy, optics and religion among other subjects, but on what subject did he write most extensively?

Alchemy

ROUND 2 - Hidden theme

1.

Which 1989 novel by Martin Amis is narrated by the character of Samson Young, an American writer who has had writer's block for 20 years and is now terminally ill?

London Fields

2.

Which 1933 Hollywood musical first featured the pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers?

Flying Down To Rio

3.

Under what assumed name did the comic actor born Solomon Joel Cohen later become famous in British comedy films and TV?

Sidney (Sid) James

4.

Which award-winning Russian song first composed in 1955 later became a hit song in Britain and elsewhere for the British jazz group Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen?

Midnight in Moscow

5.

Under what title was Victor Hugo's novel about the hunchbacked bell-ringer Quasimodo originally published in 1831?

Notre Dame de Paris

6.

Fill in the missing word from this notorious quotation from a speech given by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Yugoslavia in 1963:

"--------- is the testicle of the West.  When I want the West to scream, I squeeze on ------"

Berlin

7.

Which popular US legal drama created by Steven Bochco was based around the law firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak and ran on TV from 1986 to 1994.

LA (Los Angeles) Law

8.

Which foreign title did Napoleon Bonaparte bestow on his only son (also called Napoleon) after his birth in 1811?

King of Rome

Theme: Each answer contains the name of a city which has already, or are scheduled to, host the Olympic Games

1.

FILMS

Which actor starred in the films 28 Days Later, Dark Knight and The Wind that Shakes the Barley?

Cillian Murphy

2.

HISTORY

Which King was nicknamed Curtmantle ?

Henry the Second

3.

LYRICS (1973)

Of which song is this the opening  lyric: “Fear me you lords and lady preachers, I descend upon your Earth from the skies“?

The Seven Seas of  Rhye

(by Queen)

4.

WORDS

Used by blacksmiths and miners, what was a Billycock?

A hat like a bowler but smaller and flatter

5.

NATURAL WORLD

Which is the smallest mammal in the British Isles?

Pygmy Shrew

6.

ARTHURIAN LEGEND

Who was the nephew of King Mark of Cornwall who was tricked  into a romance with his uncle's betrothed?

Tristan

7.

NAVAL HISTORY

What was the fate of the USS Phoenix which escaped being sunk at Pearl Harbour?

It was sold to the Argentines and renamed The Belgrano only to be sunk in the Falkland War

8.

BOOKS

Which comedian / actor has had success with his children’s books Gangsta Granny and The Stink? 

David Walliams

9.

LYRICS

From which award winning song is this a lyric: “Come out upon my  seas, curse missed opportunities, am I part of the cure, or am I part of the disease”?

Clocks

(by Coldplay)

10.

HISTORY

Which famous General had the middle name Tecumseh?

William Sherman

11.

FILM

What is the name of the  George Clooney film, on current release, starring himself and Ryan Gosling?

The Ides of March

12.

NATURAL WORLD

Blenny, Gurnard and Lumpsucker are all types of what?

Fish

13.

NAVAL HISTORY

Who took command of the British fleet when Nelson was killed at Trafalgar?

Cuthbert Collingwood

14.

WORDS

Which three consecutive words have the following meanings:

a. corrupt or rotten

b. a sudden attempt to overthrow a government

c. a strip of cloth wound round the leg between knee and ankle for protection?

Putrid,

Putsch,

Puttee

15.

BOOKS

Which comedian currently has a book out called May I Have Your Attention Please?

James  Corden

16.

ARTHURIAN LEGEND

What was the name of the Nymph who enchanted Merlin and trapped him under a rock?

Nimue

17.

GEOGRAPHY

Of which country did Naypyidaw become the official capital in 2006?

Burma or Myanmar

18.

WORDS

Which three consecutive words have the following meanings:

a. lacking style

b. a round rod for attaching two sections  together

c. a portion of a man’s estate left to his widow for her lifetime?

Dowdy,

Dowel,

Dower

ROUND 5 - Pairs

1.

In the recently released historical film Anonymous who is portrayed as the true author of Shakespeare's plays?

The Earl of Oxford

(Edward de Vere)

2.

Which noted Shakespearian actor delivers a prologue at the beginning of the film Anonymous before the action unfolds?

(Sir) Derek Jacobi

3.

In 1530, which European ruler ceded the island of Malta to the Knights of St John of Jerusalem, which then became their home for the next 268 years?

Emperor Charles V

(or Charles I of Spain)

4.

In 1798, which European ruler ordered the eviction of the Knights of Malta from the island of Malta and sent them into permanent exile?

Napoleon

5.

Which city is the setting for the 1957 novel On the Beach by Nevil Shute which depicts the final days of the last few survivors of a worldwide nuclear war?  In 1959 it was made into a film of the same name starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardiner.

Melbourne

(Australia)

6.

Who wrote the lines: "This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with a whimper" at the conclusion of the poem The Hollow Men?

T S Eliot

(the poem also contained the line "Gathered on this beach of the tumid river" from which Nevil Shute took the inspiration for the title of his novel)

7.

By area, which is the largest landlocked country in the world?

Kazakhstan

(at 2,737,300 sq. kilometres or 1,053,000 sq. miles)

8.

By area, which is the largest landlocked country in Europe?

Belarus

(207,600 sq. kilometres or 80,200 sq. miles)

ROUND 6 - Hidden theme

Should be easy enough to detect and wrap up long before you get to question 8e the popularity of their stylish 1959 TV advert)

1.

In Britain this is a common name for the honeysuckle but in the USA it refers to the clematis virginiana.  What is it?

Woodbine

2.

Which dukedom was created by Queen Anne in 1702 and first conferred on John Churchill?

(Duke of) Marlborough

3.

In Tudor England what name was given to groups of actors who toured the country performing popular dramas?

Strolling players

4.

Which football club had a famous giant-killing run in the FA Cup in 1997 and then eventually lost to Middlesbrough in a semi-final replay?

Chesterfield

5.

What is defined in the dictionary as: a machine with a drum that rotates around a vertical spindle which is turned by a motor or lever; and is used for hauling heavy ropes etc.?

Capstan

6.

A zamburak was a gun mounted on a what?

A camel

7.

Sales of which popular magazine reached their peak with the serialized publication of Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles?

Strand Magazine

8.

Which product is sold with the slogan: “We hug trees so you don't have to”?

Rizla+ cigarette papers

Theme: Cigarettes

(Strand cigarettes only became famous for not selling despite the popularity of their stylish 1959 TV advert)

ROUNDS 7 & 8 - Bingo Blockbuster

Pick a question based on the initial letter(s) of the answer

1.

S

Village in Luxembourg that gave its name to the 1990 EU convention that abolished border controls between participating countries.

Schengen

2.

TDOF

Opera by Berlioz that features the Rakoczi March.

The Damnation of Faust

3.

DRK

In 1964 he became a  long running TV fugitive.

Dr  Richard Kimble

4.

RH

The inquiry into the 1987 King's Cross station fire in London found that the area beneath the escalators had not been cleaned since the 1940s.  This caused a build up of highly inflammable materials including this substance.

Rat hairs

5.

JM

In 1959 she flew over from the USA to open the Chiswick flyover in London and switch on the Blackpool lights.

Jayne Mansfield

6.

BTW

Fondly referred to in Scotland as 'wreck the hoose juice'.

Buckfast Tonic Wine

7.

TSHQ

According to Lord Palmerston only three people ever understood this: Prince Albert who had died, a German professor who went mad, and himself who soon forgot about it.

The Schleswig-Holstein Question

8.

OVJ

Chilling three words spoken during the blinding of Gloucester in Shakespeare's King Lear.

"Out, vile jelly"

9.

B

Frozen food discount retailing chain whose shops graced Britain's high streets from 1968 until 1989 when they were bought out by their rivals, Iceland.

Bejam

10.

TAGTOTAG

Cruel but witty Celtic supporters' football chant in the 1990s when it was made public that the Rangers goalkeeper was being treated for schizophrenia.          

"Two Andy Gorams, there's only two Andy Gorams"

11.

L

Varieties of which include the harlequin, the bryony, the 7-spot and the 22-spot.

Ladybird

12.

C,C

The two countries other than Canada that currently  belong to the Commonwealth and begin with a  'C'.

Cyprus, Cameroon

13.

BW

Religious name taken by Co Sligo-born Andrew Kerins when he joined the Marist order and under which in 1888 he founded Glasgow Celtic FC.

Brother Walfrid

14.

TPM

The event that inspired Shelley to write his poem The Mask of Anarchy.

The Peterloo Massacre

15.

SM

How Mrs Avery is referred to in the title of a 1972 top ten pop song.

Sylvia's Mother

16.

 S; L; F

In 1949 Area Severn was divided up into these three shipping forecast areas.

Sole; Lundy; Fastnet

17.

DHS

According to the lyrics of Eleanor Rigby what Father McKenzie is seen doing  "in the night when there's nobody there”.

Darning His Socks

18.

PLF

British travel writer who died in 2011 aged 96.  His wartime exploits in Crete were dramatised in the film Ill Met by Moonlight.

Patrick Leigh Fermor

19.

T

Word contained in the title of both the 1987 and the 2008 Booker prize winning novels.

Tiger

(Moon Tiger and The White Tiger)

20.

P

It can mean the indentation in the bottom of a wine bottle, or it might be a bet, a shallow boat or a kick.

Punt