ROUND 1 - Hidden theme

1.

Which Cambridge College, named after the philanthropist who donated £17 million to establish it in 1977, is unique in being the only one intended from its inception for undergraduates and graduates of both sexes?

2.

Which local politician has Andy Burnham appointed as deputy mayor responsible for business and economy?

3.

This suave English character actor was born in 1903 at Bourton-in-the-Water and died in California in 1991.  He appeared in countless films including North West Frontier, Two Way Stretch and My Fair Lady.  Who was he?

4.

Which London landmark, designed by John Nash, was relocated from outside Buckingham Palace to its present location in 1851?  It has an eponymous tube station on the central line.

5.

Which Australian Prime Minister disappeared while swimming in December 1967 having gone to see Sir Alec Rose sail through Port Phillip Heads?

6.

The generic name given to a number of coarse grained sandstones of the Carboniferous age reflects the use to which it was usually put in earlier times.  What is it called?

7.

This Parliamentary Constituency was abolished in 2010 and its last MP was David Blunkett.  What was it called?

8.

With over 1.5 million inhabitants this city is the fifth largest in the USA and the most populous state capital. What is its name?

Sp

This 1954 musical film set in Oregon was nominated for best picture, losing out to On the Waterfront.  It starred Howard Keel and Jane Powell among others.  What was its title?

Go to Round 1 questions with answers

ROUND 2 - Namesakes

The answer to each question is a name (given name and surname) shared by two people (real or fictional) - there may be sound-alikes and slight spelling differences

1.

This character has been played on stage or screen by Mrs. Patrick Campbell, Wendy Hiller, Julie Andrews and Martine McCutcheon.

This singer’s real surname is Caird.  Her second album featured the single Big When I Was Little.

2.

Led Zeppelin’s bass player.

Sometimes referred to as the 'Father of the American Navy'.  In 1999, he was given an honorary pardon by the Port of Whitehaven for his raid on the town.

3.

Born Chaim Witz, he is the bass guitarist and co-lead singer of a rock band he co-founded with rhythm guitarist Paul Stanley in the early 1970s.

She played the young Estella in David Lean's version of Great Expectations and Miss Havisham in a 6-part adaptation of the same book broadcast on ITV in 1991.

4.

This person’s home is a tourist attraction in the village of Shottery, Warwickshire.

This person’s debut film role was in The Princess Diaries in 2001 and they also appeared in a skin tight outfit in the film The Dark Knight Rises.

5.

This revolutionary leader is mentioned in Chaucer’s Nun's Priest's Tale.

This person is one of only three individuals to have served in Cabinet continuously under the Labour government from 1997 to 2010, the others being Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling.

6.

This film director has also won a Turner Prize.

This actor was an avid motorcycle and race car enthusiast and performed many of his own stunts.  Archive footage was used to digitally superimpose him in a Ford commercial shot in San Francisco.

7.

This historical character has been played on screen by Anne Stallybrass, Jane Asher and Emilia Fox.

Born Joyce Frankenberg, this actress has played the part of Solitaire and Dr Quinn.

8.

This artist’s breakthrough work is the 1944 Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion.

This person wrote the philosophical work Novum Organum Scientiarum (New Instrument of Science) published in 1620.

Go to Round 2 questions with answers

ROUND 3 - Spoonerisms

Each question is in two parts where the answer to the second part is a spoonerism of the answer to the first

1.

In 1959, he was the first West Indian cricketer to take a hat trick in a test match.  From 1960, he played three seasons for Accrington in the Lancashire League.

This town in Merseyside is the birth place of Ian Botham and John Peel.

2.

The full name of the character played by Billy Crystal in a 1989 film whose tag line is: 'Can men and women be friends or does sex always get in the way?'.

Answer to question: 'Whose promotions company is called Matchroom Sport?'.

3.

Brangelina’s first biological child, born in 2006. (first name and father’s surname required)

From the film Jurassic Park, complete what Dr Ian Malcom (played by Jeff Goldblum) said upon encountering a mound of dinosaur droppings: “That is one big - - -“ (3 words).

4.

Named after the Scottish Gaelic for 'great mountain', this is the only Munro on the isle of Mull.

The two words missing from this Mark Twain quotation: "If - - children, there would only be one born in each family".

5.

The surname of the character played by Ade Edmondson, whose forenames are Edward Didgeridoo, in a sitcom of 1987 that also featured Nigel Planer as Ralph, and Rik Mayall as Gertrude.

Called a 'bunnet' In Scotland, this is sported by Del Boy, Fred Dibnah and the Peaky Blinders?

6.

Shakespeare play featuring Katherina and Bianca and their suitors Petruchio and Hortensio.

The title of the rock opera by Kevin Gilbert, released posthumously in 2000, that charts the rise and fall of a singer/musician named Johnny Virgil.

7.

(Cryptic) A false report that a half-time fight over insufficient food at a football match was due to a - - - (3 words).

.....was revealed to be a - - - (3 words).

8.

(Cryptic) Fill in the 2 words to complete this sentence: A 'Murder - - Night' may be the choice for a bride-to-be’s gathering.

This quiz team is unlikely to get an invitation to the above.

Go to Round 3 questions with answers

ROUND 4 - Pairs

1.

In which decade were the following composed: Mahler's 5th Symphony, Puccini's Madame Butterfly and Rachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto?

2.

In which decade were the following composed: Barber's Adagio for Strings, Shostakovich's 5th Symphony and Orff's Carmina Burana?

3.

Identify the decade in which both of the following were alive: John Ruskin and Ho Chi Minh?

4.

Name the decade between the death of one of the following and the birth of the other: Emile Zola and Simón Bolívar.

5.

What will come next in this sequence: V TESB, VI ROTJ, VII TFA...?

6.

What will come next in this sequence: 3 ASOS, 4 AFFC, 5 ADWD…?

7.

What connects the following: Pierre & Marie Curie, Concorde, George V and Stalingrad?

8.

What connects the following: Spider, Montreal, Giulietta and Mito?

Go to Round 4 questions with answers

ROUND 5 - Hidden theme

1.

Which Hollywood actor appeared in the 1968 film The Swimmer in which he swims across several gardens in a small town in Connecticut in order to get home?

2.

Who performed the first person-to-person heart transplant surgery in 1967?

3.

Which heavy metal band, formed by bassist Steve Harris, released the album The Number of the Beast in 1982?

4.

Which rodent has two species both of the genus Castor?

5.

A Beautiful Mind won an Oscar for the Best Film in 2001.  Who won the Oscar for Best Director for directing this film?

6.

Which light machine gun was designed in the United States in 1911 but was never adopted for use by the US Army?  It was predominantly used by the British Army between 1913 and 1953.

7.

Which female American singer born in 1940 is second only to Aretha Franklin in the number of Billboard hot 100 hits, having achieved 56 of them between 1962 and 1998?

8.

Which Sir Walter Scott novel relates the events surrounding the secret marriage between the Earl of Leicester and Amy Robsart?

Sp1

The third busiest railway station in the UK outside London has the same name as the only club to be expelled from the football league during a season, in this case the 1919-1920 season.  What is the name of the railway station/football team.

Sp2

Which white hard British cheese with a crumbly texture was originally made for the coalminers who lived in the area? 

Go to Round 5 questions with answers

ROUND 6 - Pairs

1.

Which battle between German forces and British forces is known in Germany as the Battle of Skagerrak?

2.

Which battle between a coalition of forces led by the French, and a victorious coalition of forces led by the British, is known in France as the Battle of Höchstädt?

3.

To which monastic order do the monks at Buckfast monastery belong?

4.

To which monastic order did the monks at Fountains Abbey belong?

5.

In British horseracing there are 7 grades of going describing the amount of moisture in the course ranging from 'hard', which is the driest, to 'heavy', which is the most moist.  What is the next grade after 'hard'?

6.

In British horseracing the shortest distance by which a horse may win a race is a 'nose'.  What is the next shortest winning margin?

7.

Which German physicist explained the shape of blackbody radiation by postulating that energy was quantised?

8.

Which Austrian physicist was instrumental in the development of statistical mechanics and thermodynamics and has a constant named after him?

Go to Round 6 questions with answers

ROUND 7 - The 'Workout Round'

All the answers contain words that can be placed after the word 'work'

1.

Who wrote the novel on which the film Jaws is based?

2.

How are the images portraying 'The Way of Sorrows' better known?

3.

Based on a novel that had just been written what was the name of the 1959 film starring Laurence Harvey and Simone Signoret for which Signoret won the Oscar for leading actress?

4.

Which Shakespearian character said: "... but I will not eat with you, drink with you or pray with you"?

5.

Who was the last Manchester city player to win the professional football writers player of the year award?  It happened quite some time ago!

6.

Which novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, set during the 1745 Jacobite uprising, concerns the fate of the Durie family?

7.

Which high-street chain is owned by Sir Philip Green's Arcadia group and was started originally in 1964 as a offshoot of the Peter Robinson chain?

8.

Which social networking website was purchased by News Corporation in 2005 for $580 million and was jointly purchased by Justin Timberlake in 2011 for $35 million after the majority of its users deserted to Facebook?

Sp1

For the British version of the film Alfie Cilla Black sang the title song.  Who sang the song for the American version of the film?

Sp2

For what is the dyne the CGS unit?

Go to Round 7 questions with answers

ROUND 8 - Pairs

1.

Which European political figure's surname derives from the Catalan word for 'summit'?

2.

Which European political figure's surname derives from the Breton or Celtic word for ‘head’ or ‘chief’?

3.

Which actor plays Spock in the rebooted Star Trek movies?

4.

What is the name of the new Star Trek TV series that has just started on Netflix?

5.

On what matter of principle did NHS founder Nye Bevan resign from the Labour government in 1951?

6.

The current prescription charge is £8.60, but how much was it when first introduced in 1952?

7.

This weekend Roger Federer won his 95th ranking event to move into second place in the list of all time male tennis ranking event winners.  Who is first with 109?

8.

This weekend Ronnie O’Sullivan won his 29th ranking event to move to joint second place in the list of all time ranking event wins.  Stephen Hendry is first on 36.  Who is joint second with Ronnie?

Sp

Lewis Hamilton has just won his 4th F1 World Title.  Schumacher won 7; Fangio won 5.  Who are the other 2 drivers who have won exactly 4 titles?

Go to Round 8 questions with answers

Spares

1.

Who was the Roman goddess of wisdom?

2.

In both Greek and Roman mythology who was the God of Poetry?

3.

Which American won the 2017 US Open Women's Tennis final?

4.

Which American golfer won the 2017 US Open Golf tournament?

5.

Go to Spares questions with answers

ROUND 1 - Hidden theme

1.

Which Cambridge College, named after the philanthropist who donated £17 million to establish it in 1977, is unique in being the only one intended from its inception for undergraduates and graduates of both sexes?

Robinson

2.

Which local politician has Andy Burnham appointed as deputy mayor responsible for business and economy?

Sir Richard Leese

3.

This suave English character actor was born in 1903 at Bourton-in-the-Water and died in California in 1991.  He appeared in countless films including North West Frontier, Two Way Stretch and My Fair Lady.  Who was he?

Wilfred Hyde White

4.

Which London landmark, designed by John Nash, was relocated from outside Buckingham Palace to its present location in 1851?  It has an eponymous tube station on the central line.

Marble Arch

5.

Which Australian Prime Minister disappeared while swimming in December 1967 having gone to see Sir Alec Rose sail through Port Phillip Heads?

Harold Holt

6.

The generic name given to a number of coarse grained sandstones of the Carboniferous age reflects the use to which it was usually put in earlier times.  What is it called?

Millstone Grit

7.

This Parliamentary Constituency was abolished in 2010 and its last MP was David Blunkett.  What was it called?

Sheffield Brightside

8.

With over 1.5 million inhabitants this city is the fifth largest in the USA and the most populous state capital. What is its name?

Phoenix

Sp

This 1954 musical film set in Oregon was nominated for best picture, losing out to On the Waterfront.  It starred Howard Keel and Jane Powell among others.  What was its title?

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Theme: The names of Greater Manchester breweries

ROUND 2 - Namesakes

The answer to each question is a name (given name and surname) shared by two people (real or fictional) - there may be sound-alikes and slight spelling differences

1.

This character has been played on stage or screen by Mrs. Patrick Campbell, Wendy Hiller, Julie Andrews and Martine McCutcheon.

This singer’s real surname is Caird.  Her second album featured the single Big When I Was Little.

Eliza Doolittle

2.

Led Zeppelin’s bass player.

Sometimes referred to as the 'Father of the American Navy'.  In 1999, he was given an honorary pardon by the Port of Whitehaven for his raid on the town.

John Paul Jones

3.

Born Chaim Witz, he is the bass guitarist and co-lead singer of a rock band he co-founded with rhythm guitarist Paul Stanley in the early 1970s.

She played the young Estella in David Lean's version of Great Expectations and Miss Havisham in a 6-part adaptation of the same book broadcast on ITV in 1991.

Gene/Jean Simmons

4.

This person’s home is a tourist attraction in the village of Shottery, Warwickshire.

This person’s debut film role was in The Princess Diaries in 2001 and they also appeared in a skin tight outfit in the film The Dark Knight Rises.

Anne Hathaway

5.

This revolutionary leader is mentioned in Chaucer’s Nun's Priest's Tale.

This person is one of only three individuals to have served in Cabinet continuously under the Labour government from 1997 to 2010, the others being Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling.

Jack Straw

6.

This film director has also won a Turner Prize.

This actor was an avid motorcycle and race car enthusiast and performed many of his own stunts.  Archive footage was used to digitally superimpose him in a Ford commercial shot in San Francisco.

Steve McQueen

7.

This historical character has been played on screen by Anne Stallybrass, Jane Asher and Emilia Fox.

Born Joyce Frankenberg, this actress has played the part of Solitaire and Dr Quinn.

Jane Seymour

8.

This artist’s breakthrough work is the 1944 Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion.

This person wrote the philosophical work Novum Organum Scientiarum (New Instrument of Science) published in 1620.

Francis Bacon

Go back to Round 2 questions without answers

ROUND 3 - Spoonerisms

Each question is in two parts where the answer to the second part is a spoonerism of the answer to the first

1.

In 1959, he was the first West Indian cricketer to take a hat trick in a test match.  From 1960, he played three seasons for Accrington in the Lancashire League.

This town in Merseyside is the birth place of Ian Botham and John Peel.

Wes Hall / Heswall

2.

The full name of the character played by Billy Crystal in a 1989 film whose tag line is: 'Can men and women be friends or does sex always get in the way?'.

Answer to question: 'Whose promotions company is called Matchroom Sport?'.

Harry Burns (in When Harry Met Sally) / Barry Hearn’s

3.

Brangelina’s first biological child, born in 2006. (first name and father’s surname required)

From the film Jurassic Park, complete what Dr Ian Malcom (played by Jeff Goldblum) said upon encountering a mound of dinosaur droppings: “That is one big - - -“ (3 words).

Shiloh Pitt / pile o’ shit

4.

Named after the Scottish Gaelic for 'great mountain', this is the only Munro on the isle of Mull.

The two words missing from this Mark Twain quotation: "If - - children, there would only be one born in each family".

Ben More / men bore

5.

The surname of the character played by Ade Edmondson, whose forenames are Edward Didgeridoo, in a sitcom of 1987 that also featured Nigel Planer as Ralph, and Rik Mayall as Gertrude.

Called a 'bunnet' In Scotland, this is sported by Del Boy, Fred Dibnah and the Peaky Blinders?

Catflap (in Filthy Rich & Catflap) / flat cap

6.

Shakespeare play featuring Katherina and Bianca and their suitors Petruchio and Hortensio.

The title of the rock opera by Kevin Gilbert, released posthumously in 2000, that charts the rise and fall of a singer/musician named Johnny Virgil.

The Taming of the Shrew / The Shaming of the True

7.

(Cryptic) A false report that a half-time fight over insufficient food at a football match was due to a - - - (3 words).

.....was revealed to be a - - - (3 words).

lack of pies / pack of lies

8.

(Cryptic) Fill in the 2 words to complete this sentence: A 'Murder - - Night' may be the choice for a bride-to-be’s gathering.

This quiz team is unlikely to get an invitation to the above.

Mystery Hen / History Men

Go back to Round 3 questions without answers

ROUND 4 - Pairs

1.

In which decade were the following composed: Mahler's 5th Symphony, Puccini's Madame Butterfly and Rachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto?

1900s

2.

In which decade were the following composed: Barber's Adagio for Strings, Shostakovich's 5th Symphony and Orff's Carmina Burana?

1930s

3.

Identify the decade in which both of the following were alive: John Ruskin and Ho Chi Minh?

1890s

(JR 1819-1900; Ho Chi Min 1890-1969)

4.

Name the decade between the death of one of the following and the birth of the other: Emile Zola and Simón Bolívar.

1830s

(SB 1783-1830; EZ 1840-1902)

5.

What will come next in this sequence: V TESB, VI ROTJ, VII TFA...?

VIII TLJ

(The Last Jedi following The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens in the Star Wars chronology)

6.

What will come next in this sequence: 3 ASOS, 4 AFFC, 5 ADWD…?

6 TWOW

(The Winds of Winter following A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons in the Song of Ice and Fire chronology of George RR Martin’s Game of Thrones)

7.

What connects the following: Pierre & Marie Curie, Concorde, George V and Stalingrad?

They are stations on the Paris metro

8.

What connects the following: Spider, Montreal, Giulietta and Mito?

They are, or have been, Alfa Romeo models

Go back to Round 4 questions without answers

ROUND 5 - Hidden theme

1.

Which Hollywood actor appeared in the 1968 film The Swimmer in which he swims across several gardens in a small town in Connecticut in order to get home?

Burt Lancaster

2.

Who performed the first person-to-person heart transplant surgery in 1967?

(Christiaan) Barnard

3.

Which heavy metal band, formed by bassist Steve Harris, released the album The Number of the Beast in 1982?

Iron Maiden

4.

Which rodent has two species both of the genus Castor?

Beaver

5.

A Beautiful Mind won an Oscar for the Best Film in 2001.  Who won the Oscar for Best Director for directing this film?

Ron Howard

6.

Which light machine gun was designed in the United States in 1911 but was never adopted for use by the US Army?  It was predominantly used by the British Army between 1913 and 1953.

Lewis gun

7.

Which female American singer born in 1940 is second only to Aretha Franklin in the number of Billboard hot 100 hits, having achieved 56 of them between 1962 and 1998?

Dionne Warwick

8.

Which Sir Walter Scott novel relates the events surrounding the secret marriage between the Earl of Leicester and Amy Robsart?

Kenilworth

Sp1

The third busiest railway station in the UK outside London has the same name as the only club to be expelled from the football league during a season, in this case the 1919-1920 season.  What is the name of the railway station/football team.

Leeds City

Sp2

Which white hard British cheese with a crumbly texture was originally made for the coalminers who lived in the area? 

Caerphilly

Theme: English and Welsh castles (N.B. 'Beaver' = Belvoir)

Go back to Round 5 questions without answers

ROUND 6 - Pairs

1.

Which battle between German forces and British forces is known in Germany as the Battle of Skagerrak?

Battle of Jutland

2.

Which battle between a coalition of forces led by the French, and a victorious coalition of forces led by the British, is known in France as the Battle of Höchstädt?

Battle of Blenheim

3.

To which monastic order do the monks at Buckfast monastery belong?

Benedictine

4.

To which monastic order did the monks at Fountains Abbey belong?

Cistercian

5.

In British horseracing there are 7 grades of going describing the amount of moisture in the course ranging from 'hard', which is the driest, to 'heavy', which is the most moist.  What is the next grade after 'hard'?

'Firm'

6.

In British horseracing the shortest distance by which a horse may win a race is a 'nose'.  What is the next shortest winning margin?

'Short head'

7.

Which German physicist explained the shape of blackbody radiation by postulating that energy was quantised?

(Max) Planck

8.

Which Austrian physicist was instrumental in the development of statistical mechanics and thermodynamics and has a constant named after him?

(Ludwig) Boltzmann

Go back to Round 6 questions without answers

ROUND 7 - The 'Workout Round'

All the answers contain words that can be placed after the word 'work'

1.

Who wrote the novel on which the film Jaws is based?

Peter Benchley

(both names are needed to differentiate him from his novelist father)

2.

How are the images portraying 'The Way of Sorrows' better known?

(the 14) Stations of the Cross

3.

Based on a novel that had just been written what was the name of the 1959 film starring Laurence Harvey and Simone Signoret for which Signoret won the Oscar for leading actress?

Room at the Top

4.

Which Shakespearian character said: "... but I will not eat with you, drink with you or pray with you"?

Shylock

5.

Who was the last Manchester city player to win the professional football writers player of the year award?  It happened quite some time ago!

Tony Book

6.

Which novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, set during the 1745 Jacobite uprising, concerns the fate of the Durie family?

The Master of Ballantrae

7.

Which high-street chain is owned by Sir Philip Green's Arcadia group and was started originally in 1964 as a offshoot of the Peter Robinson chain?

Topshop

8.

Which social networking website was purchased by News Corporation in 2005 for $580 million and was jointly purchased by Justin Timberlake in 2011 for $35 million after the majority of its users deserted to Facebook?

MySpace

Sp1

For the British version of the film Alfie Cilla Black sang the title song.  Who sang the song for the American version of the film?

Cher

Sp2

For what is the dyne the CGS unit?

Force

Go back to Round 7 questions without answers

ROUND 8 - Pairs

1.

Which European political figure's surname derives from the Catalan word for 'summit'?

Carles Puigdemont (pronounced Puj-duh-mon)

2.

Which European political figure's surname derives from the Breton or Celtic word for ‘head’ or ‘chief’?

Le Pen

(Marine, Jean-Marie, or any of their clan)

3.

Which actor plays Spock in the rebooted Star Trek movies?

Zachary Quinto

4.

What is the name of the new Star Trek TV series that has just started on Netflix?

Star Trek Discovery

5.

On what matter of principle did NHS founder Nye Bevan resign from the Labour government in 1951?

The proposed introduction of prescription charges

(for dental care and spectacles)

6.

The current prescription charge is £8.60, but how much was it when first introduced in 1952?

One shilling

7.

This weekend Roger Federer won his 95th ranking event to move into second place in the list of all time male tennis ranking event winners.  Who is first with 109?

8.

This weekend Ronnie O’Sullivan won his 29th ranking event to move to joint second place in the list of all time ranking event wins.  Stephen Hendry is first on 36.  Who is joint second with Ronnie?

John Higgins

Sp

Lewis Hamilton has just won his 4th F1 World Title.  Schumacher won 7; Fangio won 5.  Who are the other 2 drivers who have won exactly 4 titles?

Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettell

Go back to Round 8 questions without answers