ROUND 1 - 'Following the Leader'

A set of questions on leaders, though this week we are boycotting Trump - the increasing desperation of the times is reflected in the sound-alikes

1.

Which Great Leader also went under the titles 'Brilliant Genius of Humanity' and 'Gardener of Human Happiness'?

2.

Loss leader marketing is often (wrongly) associated with the 'Give 'em a razor; sell 'em the blades' freebie marketing of which American inventor of the safety razor?

3.

The Leader is a track on a 1980 album by The Clash which also shares its name with a Manchester drinking establishment just off Saint Ann’s Square.  Which album?

4.

Die Schone Mullerin is a collection of Lieder based on poems by Wilhelm Muller set to music in 1823 by which composer?

5.

Which Guardian leader writer is currently vice-president of the British Humanist Association, having previously served as President from 2007 to 2012?

6.

Lydia of Thyatira is important to Christianity, and particularly to the Orthodox Church where she holds the title 'Equal to the Apostles'.  For what reason is she so highly regarded?

7.

Lederhosen are part of the traditional Tracht for Bavarian and Austrian boys.  What is the name for the equivalent traditional dress for girls?

8.

For what purpose was LIDAR first successfully used in 1962 by a US team at MIT and a Soviet team in Crimea? Results were improved thanks to further US and Soviet efforts during the period 1969 to 1973.

Sp

Which ex-Galactic President was voted “worst-dressed sentient being in the known universe” seven consecutive times and also owns the hippest place in the universe?

Go to Round 1 questions with answers

ROUND 2 - 'Four letters'

Each answer is a four-letter name, term, suffix or acronym - no more, no less

1.

At 3,169 feet in height, Ben More is the highest mountain on which Scottish island?  Its settlements include Calgary and Craignure.

2.

 What four-letter suffix links the northernmost towns of both England and Scotland?

3.

In Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey, what word does John Thorpe use to describe his mother’s hat, implying that it is an oddity?  In present-day usage, the same word denotes a wholesome and improving leisure activity and has an unusually high value in the board game, Scrabble.

4.

Which four-letter word can be a garden flower, a part of the eye, or the Greek goddess of the rainbow?

5.

South of Kyoto and east of Osaka, which city was the capital of Japan from 710 to 794?

6.

The terracotta warriors were discovered in 1974 near which former Chinese capital, the capital of present-day Shaanxi (pronounced 'Shan-shee') province?

7.

Meanings of what four-letter homograph include: the SI base unit of amount of substance, a mammal of the family talpidae, and a massive breakwater or berthing facility?

8.

What four-letter word is formed by concatenating the symbols of the SI units of length, current, time and thermodynamic temperature?

Sp1

What four-letter acronym is used for the compulsory notification required by the DVLA that a registered vehicle is not using the public roads?

Sp2

In Greek philosophy, what term denotes the highest form of rationality that is capable of grasping the fundamental principles of reality?  In present-day usage, it simply means ‘common sense’.

Go to Round 2 questions with answers

ROUND 3 - Pairs

1.

Which Canadian pop star recorded the 2011 international hit single Call Me Maybe, which became something of an internet sensation, and the 2015 UK top five single I Really Like You?

2.

Canadian twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quinn recorded which Oscar-nominated song which featured on the soundtrack of 2014’s The Lego Movie?

3.

Which stage musical, written by Cyndi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein, is set in a struggling shoe factory and is based on a 2005 film of the same name?

4.

Which Motown-inspired musical, which tells the story of an aspiring 1960s girl band, was made into a 2006 film starring Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson?

5.

Holding the position for just 31 days, which US president was the first to die in office, when he succumbed to pneumonia in 1841?

6.

Which Tory British prime minister set the record for the shortest tenure in that office when he died in 1827 after a mere four months in the job?

7.

What were the surnames of the bungling detectives, Thomson and Thompson, in the original French Tintin comic books?

8.

What is the name of Babar the Elephant’s wife in the children’s books by Jean de Brunhoff?

Go to Round 3 questions with answers

ROUND 4 - Arts pairs

1.

Which US television series, focusing on the lives of Lorelai and Rory in Stars Hollow, was revamped for a 4-part sequel by Netflix and released in November 2016?

2.

Which current television series, a collaboration between Sky Atlantic, HBO and Canal +, sees Jude Law playing the title character and was mainly filmed in Italy?

3.

Tristram Hunt has been in the headlines this past week for taking up a job at the V&A.  In which constituency is this causing a by-election?

4.

Who has been confirmed as the new director of the Tate this past week?  She is currently director of the Whitworth Art Gallery and Manchester City Galleries.

5.

La La Land set a record for the most awards won by a film at the 74th Golden Globe Awards.  Emma Stone won one of them for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.  For which film, a teen comedy based loosely around The Scarlet Letter, was Stone previously nominated for this award in 2011?

6.

Ryan Gosling, Stone’s co-star in La La Land, won another of the film’s awards for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.  For which 2007 film, where he plays the socially inept title character who develops a romantic relationship with a sex doll, was he first nominated for this award?

7.

What is the title of the choreographer Matthew Bourne’s most recent ballet?  It is based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale of the same name.

8.

Another work of Matthew Bourne’s is a contemporary dance adaptation of the 1990 film with the tagline:  "His story will touch you, even though he can’t”.  What is the film?

Sp1

2017 marks 200 years since Jane Austen’s last novel was published.  What its the title?

Sp2

Which ‘diarist’ will celebrate his 50th birthday in April 2017?  We last heard from him in 2009, when he acquainted us with his prostate troubles.

Go to Round 4 questions with answers

ROUND 5 - Science pairs

1.

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize in Physics twice?  He was awarded the 1956 prize with William Shockley and Walter Brattain “for their researches on semiconductors and their discovery of the transistor effect.”  And he was awarded the 1972 prize with Leon Cooper and John Schrieffer “for their jointly developed theory of superconductivity.” (only surname required)

2.

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice?  He was awarded the 1958 prize “for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin,” and the 1980 prize with Paul Berg and Walter Gilbert for his “contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids.” (only surname required)

3.

Which rodents belong to the genus Castor?  There are two species of this rodent, the North American and Eurasian species, the latter of which was hunted to extinction in the UK in the 16th century, but since the turn of the century has been reintroduced into the wild in Scotland.

4.

By what name are the rodents that belong to the genus Cavia better known as?  In the 16th century they were brought to Europe from South America as exotic pets, and one of these rodents featured in an Elizabethan portrait that went on display in the National Portrait Gallery in 2013.

5.

Ascorbic acid is another name for which vitamin?

6.

Which vitamin is also known as retinol?

7.

Which letter of the Latin alphabet is used, in mathematics, to represent the set of integers?  In chemistry the letter is also used to represent the proton, or atomic, number of an element.

8.

In mathematics which letter of the Latin alphabet is used to represent the set of rational numbers?  In electromagnetism, the letter is also used to denote the total electric charge of a particle or a system, and in thermodynamics it is used to represent heat.

Sp1

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry and the Nobel Peace Prize, winning the former prize in 1954 and the latter in 1962?

Sp2

Riboflavin is another name for which vitamin?

Go to Round 5 questions with answers

ROUND 6 - 'Local Derby'

This round is on locality names, mostly towns and villages, that are in, or within two miles of, the Peak District National Park - in each case, simply give the locality name from the clue

1.

According to Francis Bacon, this is "a good breakfast, but… a poor supper".

2.

Change the third letter of its name and this Derbyshire village becomes a railway terminus a few miles north.

3.

The first word of this locality name resembles both a former Cistercian abbey near Clitheroe, and an elusive illustrated character created by Martin Handford.

4.

Part of this locality name appears in a former name of Bolton, and in the town that is home to Durham County Cricket Club.

5.

The name of this village evokes a DC Comics character who first appeared in 1940.  His alternative identities have included Jay Garrick and Barry Allen.

6.

The second word of this small settlement’s name is the surname of a locally-born artist.  Nominated for the Turner Prize in 2013, he later designed ‘Kingsley’, the mascot of Partick Thistle FC.

7.

This is the surname of an illiterate 18th-century farm labourer who was able to calculate mentally ‘the product of a farthing doubled 139 times’.  It is also the surname of one half of the comedy duo Adam and Joe.

8.

This village is the surname of the founder of a major manufacture of heavy equipment.  The firm in question has its headquarters a few miles south of the southern boundary of the Peak District national park.

Sp1

This civil parish in Staffordshire shares its name with the actor whose roles have included David Frost, Brian Clough and Tony Blair.

Sp2

This village shares its name with the road that is the location of the Victoria Baths.

Go to Round 6 questions with answers

ROUND 7 - 'The Hipster'

Definition of a hipster: "A person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream"

All these questions are related to characteristics associated with hipsters

1.

Hipsters like fancy coffee.  What type of coffee would you be drinking if it contained an espresso with a dash of foamed milk?  Its name literally translates as 'stained coffee'.

2.

Hipsters like craft beer.  Which Manchester brewery was established in 2012 and now has a tap house at The Smithfield Market Tavern on Swan Street?

3.

Some hipsters have beards.  Who was the last American president to sport facial hair - he was born in 1857?

4.

Some hipsters have man buns.  Which footballer currently sports a man bun?   Although undisclosed at the time, it has since emerged that his 2013 move to Real Madrid was for an, at the time, world record transfer fee of €100.8 million.

5.

Hipsters go wild for all things Scandinavian.  Which Danish word was runner up for the Collins English Dictionary 2016 Word of the Year?  It is the concept of creating cosy atmospheres that promote wellbeing.

6.

Hipsters love anything to do with bikes.  Who is the currently the General Manager of the cycling Team Sky?  An investigation is currently underway on his time as Performance Director at British Cycling from 2003 to 2014.

7.

Hipsters get very excited about food crazes.  What portmanteau food craze was first created by Dominque Ansel in his New York bakery in 2013?  TIME magazine names it as one of the best inventions of the year.

8.

Another odd hipster food craze....What was the unique selling point of the Brick Lane café that made the headlines when it was attacked during anti-gentrification protests in September 2015?

Sp1

Arguably the USA hub of hipsters is the neighbourhood Williamsburg.  Which New York borough is it in?

Sp2

Arguably the birth place of hispterfication in the UK is the district of Shoreditch.  Which London borough is it in?

Go to Round 7 questions with answers

ROUND 8 - Hidden theme

1.

Which American city, founded in 1796 and located on the banks of the Cuyahoga river, is home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?

2.

Which family of birds, which has the binomial name Psittacidae, includes lovebirds, conures and the kakapo?

3.

Which American director, whose films include The Wild Bunch and Straw Dogs, was noted for the ultraviolent nature of his works? (first name and surname required)

4.

Roald Dahl’s dislike of beards is at least partly considered to be the inspiration for which of his books, published in 1980?

5.

What word links the title of a song on Johnny Cash’s 1960 album Ride This Train, a colloquial name for a hearty breakfast in Canada and the USA, and a type professional wrestling match in which the ring is surrounded by wrestlers for the duration of a match?

6.

Which two-word term did Denis Healey adopt as a catchphrase only after the impressionist Mike Yarwood started using it in his impressions of the Labour politician?

7.

What is the surname of the brothers Bob and Mike, who have won 16 men’s grand slam doubles titles together?

8.

Which Canadian broadcaster, best known as the host of the game show Let’s Make A Deal, gives his name to a problem in probability theory concerning three doors that each conceal either a goat or a car? (first name and surname required)

Sp1

Which venue in Purfleet, Essex, hosted the PDC World Darts Championship until 2007, after which it moved to Alexandra Palace?

Sp2

Which judicial institution, led in its infancy by Tomas de Torquemada, was only abolished in 1834?

Sp3

Guido van Rossum was the author of which programming language?

Go to Round 8 questions with answers

ROUND 1 - 'Following the Leader'

A set of questions on leaders, though this week we are boycotting Trump - the increasing desperation of the times is reflected in the sound-alikes

1.

Which Great Leader also went under the titles 'Brilliant Genius of Humanity' and 'Gardener of Human Happiness'?

Stalin

2.

Loss leader marketing is often (wrongly) associated with the 'Give 'em a razor; sell 'em the blades' freebie marketing of which American inventor of the safety razor?

(King Camp) Gillette

3.

The Leader is a track on a 1980 album by The Clash which also shares its name with a Manchester drinking establishment just off Saint Ann’s Square.  Which album?

Sandinista!

4.

Die Schone Mullerin is a collection of Lieder based on poems by Wilhelm Muller set to music in 1823 by which composer?

Schubert

5.

Which Guardian leader writer is currently vice-president of the British Humanist Association, having previously served as President from 2007 to 2012?

Polly Toynbee

6.

Lydia of Thyatira is important to Christianity, and particularly to the Orthodox Church where she holds the title 'Equal to the Apostles'.  For what reason is she so highly regarded?

She is considered the first convert to Christianity in Europe

7.

Lederhosen are part of the traditional Tracht for Bavarian and Austrian boys.  What is the name for the equivalent traditional dress for girls?

Dirndl

8.

For what purpose was LIDAR first successfully used in 1962 by a US team at MIT and a Soviet team in Crimea? Results were improved thanks to further US and Soviet efforts during the period 1969 to 1973.

Measuring the distance to the Moon

Sp

Which ex-Galactic President was voted “worst-dressed sentient being in the known universe” seven consecutive times and also owns the hippest place in the universe?

Zaphod Beeblebrox

(the 'hippest place in the Universe' is his own left-cranium)

ROUND 2 - 'Four letters'

Each answer is a four-letter name, term, suffix or acronym - no more, no less

1.

At 3,169 feet in height, Ben More is the highest mountain on which Scottish island?  Its settlements include Calgary and Craignure.

Mull

2.

 What four-letter suffix links the northernmost towns of both England and Scotland?

–wick

(Berwick and Lerwick)

3.

In Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey, what word does John Thorpe use to describe his mother’s hat, implying that it is an oddity?  In present-day usage, the same word denotes a wholesome and improving leisure activity and has an unusually high value in the board game, Scrabble.

Quiz

4.

Which four-letter word can be a garden flower, a part of the eye, or the Greek goddess of the rainbow?

Iris

5.

South of Kyoto and east of Osaka, which city was the capital of Japan from 710 to 794?

Nara

6.

The terracotta warriors were discovered in 1974 near which former Chinese capital, the capital of present-day Shaanxi (pronounced 'Shan-shee') province?

Xi’an

(pronounced 'Shee-An')

7.

Meanings of what four-letter homograph include: the SI base unit of amount of substance, a mammal of the family talpidae, and a massive breakwater or berthing facility?

Mole

8.

What four-letter word is formed by concatenating the symbols of the SI units of length, current, time and thermodynamic temperature?

Mask

Sp1

What four-letter acronym is used for the compulsory notification required by the DVLA that a registered vehicle is not using the public roads?

Sp2

In Greek philosophy, what term denotes the highest form of rationality that is capable of grasping the fundamental principles of reality?  In present-day usage, it simply means ‘common sense’.

Nous

Go back to Round 2 questions without answers

ROUND 3 - Pairs

1.

Which Canadian pop star recorded the 2011 international hit single Call Me Maybe, which became something of an internet sensation, and the 2015 UK top five single I Really Like You?

Carly Rae Jepsen

2.

Canadian twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quinn recorded which Oscar-nominated song which featured on the soundtrack of 2014’s The Lego Movie?

Everything is Awesome

3.

Which stage musical, written by Cyndi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein, is set in a struggling shoe factory and is based on a 2005 film of the same name?

Kinky Boots

4.

Which Motown-inspired musical, which tells the story of an aspiring 1960s girl band, was made into a 2006 film starring Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson?

Dreamgirls

5.

Holding the position for just 31 days, which US president was the first to die in office, when he succumbed to pneumonia in 1841?

William Henry Harrison

6.

Which Tory British prime minister set the record for the shortest tenure in that office when he died in 1827 after a mere four months in the job?

George Canning

7.

What were the surnames of the bungling detectives, Thomson and Thompson, in the original French Tintin comic books?

Dupont and Dupond

8.

What is the name of Babar the Elephant’s wife in the children’s books by Jean de Brunhoff?

Celeste

Go back to Round 3 questions without answers

ROUND 4 - Arts pairs

1.

Which US television series, focusing on the lives of Lorelai and Rory in Stars Hollow, was revamped for a 4-part sequel by Netflix and released in November 2016?

Gilmore Girls

2.

Which current television series, a collaboration between Sky Atlantic, HBO and Canal +, sees Jude Law playing the title character and was mainly filmed in Italy?

The Young Pope

3.

Tristram Hunt has been in the headlines this past week for taking up a job at the V&A.  In which constituency is this causing a by-election?

Stoke-on-Trent Central

4.

Who has been confirmed as the new director of the Tate this past week?  She is currently director of the Whitworth Art Gallery and Manchester City Galleries.

Dr Maria Balshaw

5.

La La Land set a record for the most awards won by a film at the 74th Golden Globe Awards.  Emma Stone won one of them for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.  For which film, a teen comedy based loosely around The Scarlet Letter, was Stone previously nominated for this award in 2011?

Easy A

6.

Ryan Gosling, Stone’s co-star in La La Land, won another of the film’s awards for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.  For which 2007 film, where he plays the socially inept title character who develops a romantic relationship with a sex doll, was he first nominated for this award?

Lars and the Real Girl

7.

What is the title of the choreographer Matthew Bourne’s most recent ballet?  It is based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale of the same name.

The Red Shoes

8.

Another work of Matthew Bourne’s is a contemporary dance adaptation of the 1990 film with the tagline:  "His story will touch you, even though he can’t”.  What is the film?

Edward Scissorhands

Sp1

2017 marks 200 years since Jane Austen’s last novel was published.  What its the title?

Persuasion

Sp2

Which ‘diarist’ will celebrate his 50th birthday in April 2017?  We last heard from him in 2009, when he acquainted us with his prostate troubles.

Adrian Mole

Go back to Round 4 questions without answers

ROUND 5 - Science pairs

1.

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize in Physics twice?  He was awarded the 1956 prize with William Shockley and Walter Brattain “for their researches on semiconductors and their discovery of the transistor effect.”  And he was awarded the 1972 prize with Leon Cooper and John Schrieffer “for their jointly developed theory of superconductivity.” (only surname required)

John Bardeen

2.

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice?  He was awarded the 1958 prize “for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin,” and the 1980 prize with Paul Berg and Walter Gilbert for his “contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids.” (only surname required)

Frederick Sanger

3.

Which rodents belong to the genus Castor?  There are two species of this rodent, the North American and Eurasian species, the latter of which was hunted to extinction in the UK in the 16th century, but since the turn of the century has been reintroduced into the wild in Scotland.

Beaver

4.

By what name are the rodents that belong to the genus Cavia better known as?  In the 16th century they were brought to Europe from South America as exotic pets, and one of these rodents featured in an Elizabethan portrait that went on display in the National Portrait Gallery in 2013.

Guinea pigs

5.

Ascorbic acid is another name for which vitamin?

Vitamin C

6.

Which vitamin is also known as retinol?

Vitamin A

7.

Which letter of the Latin alphabet is used, in mathematics, to represent the set of integers?  In chemistry the letter is also used to represent the proton, or atomic, number of an element.

Z

8.

In mathematics which letter of the Latin alphabet is used to represent the set of rational numbers?  In electromagnetism, the letter is also used to denote the total electric charge of a particle or a system, and in thermodynamics it is used to represent heat.

Q

Sp1

Who is the only person to have won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry and the Nobel Peace Prize, winning the former prize in 1954 and the latter in 1962?

Linus Pauling

Sp2

Riboflavin is another name for which vitamin?

Vitamin B2

Go back to Round 5 questions without answers

ROUND 6 - 'Local Derby'

This round is on locality names, mostly towns and villages, that are in, or within two miles of, the Peak District National Park - in each case, simply give the locality name from the clue

1.

According to Francis Bacon, this is "a good breakfast, but… a poor supper".

Hope

2.

Change the third letter of its name and this Derbyshire village becomes a railway terminus a few miles north.

Hayfield

(NOT ‘Hadfield’ which is the other place mentioned)

3.

The first word of this locality name resembles both a former Cistercian abbey near Clitheroe, and an elusive illustrated character created by Martin Handford.

Whaley Bridge

(not to be confused with Whalley Abbey and Where’s Wally)

4.

Part of this locality name appears in a former name of Bolton, and in the town that is home to Durham County Cricket Club.

Chapel-en-le-Frith

(the other places referenced are Bolton le Moors and Chester-le-Street)

5.

The name of this village evokes a DC Comics character who first appeared in 1940.  His alternative identities have included Jay Garrick and Barry Allen.

Flash

(‘The Flash’, hence the wording)

6.

The second word of this small settlement’s name is the surname of a locally-born artist.  Nominated for the Turner Prize in 2013, he later designed ‘Kingsley’, the mascot of Partick Thistle FC.

Pott Shrigley

(David Shrigley, born in Macclesfield)

7.

This is the surname of an illiterate 18th-century farm labourer who was able to calculate mentally ‘the product of a farthing doubled 139 times’.  It is also the surname of one half of the comedy duo Adam and Joe.

8.

This village is the surname of the founder of a major manufacture of heavy equipment.  The firm in question has its headquarters a few miles south of the southern boundary of the Peak District national park.

Bamford

(Joseph Cyril Bamford / JCB)

Sp1

This civil parish in Staffordshire shares its name with the actor whose roles have included David Frost, Brian Clough and Tony Blair.

Sheen

Sp2

This village shares its name with the road that is the location of the Victoria Baths.

Hathersage

Go back to Round 6 questions without answers

ROUND 7 - 'The Hipster'

Definition of a hipster: "A person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream"

All these questions are related to characteristics associated with hipsters

1.

Hipsters like fancy coffee.  What type of coffee would you be drinking if it contained an espresso with a dash of foamed milk?  Its name literally translates as 'stained coffee'.

Caffe Macchiato

2.

Hipsters like craft beer.  Which Manchester brewery was established in 2012 and now has a tap house at The Smithfield Market Tavern on Swan Street?

Blackjack

3.

Some hipsters have beards.  Who was the last American president to sport facial hair - he was born in 1857?

William Howard Taft

4.

Some hipsters have man buns.  Which footballer currently sports a man bun?   Although undisclosed at the time, it has since emerged that his 2013 move to Real Madrid was for an, at the time, world record transfer fee of €100.8 million.

Gareth Bale

5.

Hipsters go wild for all things Scandinavian.  Which Danish word was runner up for the Collins English Dictionary 2016 Word of the Year?  It is the concept of creating cosy atmospheres that promote wellbeing.

Hygge

(it you're interested it was pipped at the post by 'Brexit')

6.

Hipsters love anything to do with bikes.  Who is the currently the General Manager of the cycling Team Sky?  An investigation is currently underway on his time as Performance Director at British Cycling from 2003 to 2014.

Sir Dave Brailsford

7.

Hipsters get very excited about food crazes.  What portmanteau food craze was first created by Dominque Ansel in his New York bakery in 2013?  TIME magazine names it as one of the best inventions of the year.

Cronut

(cross between a croissant and a doughnut)

8.

Another odd hipster food craze....What was the unique selling point of the Brick Lane café that made the headlines when it was attacked during anti-gentrification protests in September 2015?

It only sold cereal

(it’s called the 'Cereal Killer Café')

Sp1

Arguably the USA hub of hipsters is the neighbourhood Williamsburg.  Which New York borough is it in?

Brooklyn

Sp2

Arguably the birth place of hispterfication in the UK is the district of Shoreditch.  Which London borough is it in?

Hackney

Go back to Round 7 questions without answers

ROUND 8 - Hidden theme

1.

Which American city, founded in 1796 and located on the banks of the Cuyahoga river, is home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?

Cleveland

2.

Which family of birds, which has the binomial name Psittacidae, includes lovebirds, conures and the kakapo?

Parrot

3.

Which American director, whose films include The Wild Bunch and Straw Dogs, was noted for the ultraviolent nature of his works? (first name and surname required)

Sam Peckinpah

4.

Roald Dahl’s dislike of beards is at least partly considered to be the inspiration for which of his books, published in 1980?

The Twits

5.

What word links the title of a song on Johnny Cash’s 1960 album Ride This Train, a colloquial name for a hearty breakfast in Canada and the USA, and a type professional wrestling match in which the ring is surrounded by wrestlers for the duration of a match?

Lumberjack

6.

Which two-word term did Denis Healey adopt as a catchphrase only after the impressionist Mike Yarwood started using it in his impressions of the Labour politician?

'Silly Billy'

7.

What is the surname of the brothers Bob and Mike, who have won 16 men’s grand slam doubles titles together?

Bryan

8.

Which Canadian broadcaster, best known as the host of the game show Let’s Make A Deal, gives his name to a problem in probability theory concerning three doors that each conceal either a goat or a car? (first name and surname required)

Monty Hall

(accept Monte Halparin, his real name)

Sp1

Which venue in Purfleet, Essex, hosted the PDC World Darts Championship until 2007, after which it moved to Alexandra Palace?

Circus Tavern

Sp2

Which judicial institution, led in its infancy by Tomas de Torquemada, was only abolished in 1834?

The Spanish Inquisition

Sp3

Guido van Rossum was the author of which programming language?

Python

Theme: Each answer contains a reference to Monty Python's Flying Circus......

Carol Cleveland, Dead Parrot sketch, Sam Peckinpah’s Salad Days sketch, Upper Class Twit of the Year sketch, Lumberjack Song, Ministry of Silly Walks, The Life of Brian, Monty, Flying Circus, Spanish Inquisition, Python

Go back to Round 8 questions without answers