ROUND 1 - Pot pourri

1.

In David Hockney's painting Mr & Mrs Clark & Percy who or what is Percy?

2.

Which Hindu deity has the head of an elephant?

3.

What kind of bird is stuffed and displayed in the MCC museum at Lords?

4.

Which British city is served by Rhoose airport?

5.

What was the capital of Tamurlane's empire ?

6.

Which Shakespeare character advises his son “neither a borrower nor a lender be”?

7.

The islands of Mindanao and Samar are part of which country?

8.

In 1931 the BBC made its first broadcast of a sporting event; which event?

Go to Round 1 questions with answers

ROUND 2 - Pot pourri

1.

What does an orrery demonstrate?

2.

In traditional Japanese dress what is an obi ?

3.

Published in 1911, what was D H Lawrence's first novel?

4.

What is the name of the Pope's official summer residence?

5.

In which film of 1949 did Alec Guinness play 8 parts?

6.

What name is given to a triangle with no equal sides?

7.

Which agricultural crop is attacked by the Colorado Beetle?

8.

What does a mycologist study?

Go to Round 2 questions with answers

ROUND 3 - Pot pourri

1.

What is the meaning of the word 'bolshoi' in the Bolshoi Ballet?

2.

What is the name of Britain's only wild parrot?

3.

 Which Welsh actor, who played 'Q' in 17 Bond films, died in a road accident in 1999?

4.

In a sporting context, what colour completes this sequence and why: Red; Blue; White; Black; Orange; Black & White;....?

5.

A pantry was originally used to store which foodstuff?

6.

In Shakespeare's Antony & Cleopatra which game did Cleopatra prefer to listening to music?

7.

Which cartoon character has a dog named Gnasher?

8.

Who was the first Women's World Chess Champion, from 1927 to 1944?

Go to Round 3 questions with answers

ROUND 4 - Pot pourri

1.

Which footballer was the first for whom an English club paid a £1million pound transfer fee?

2.

Which was Britain's first winning entry in the Eurovision Song Contest?

3.

What is the name of the Inuit territory created from the North West Territories of Canada in 1999?

4.

What ancient measure of length was taken from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger?

5.

What is the third letter of the Hebrew alphabet?

6.

In May 198 a volcanic eruption caused great damage in Washington state.  Which volcano?

7.

What is added to rubber when it is vulcanised?

8.

By what name was the 16th Century Italian painter Jacopo Robusti better known?

Go to Round 4 questions with answers

ROUND 5 - Pot pourri

1.

Between 1620 and 1624 the Dutch inventor Cornelius van Drabel built and tested (on the river Thames) the first what?

2.

The 'carat' is the standard unit of weight for gems; what is the equivalent of a carat in grams?

3.

In which novel by Dickens does Sarah Gamp appear?

4.

Which Roman road runs from Lincoln to Axemouth on the coast of Devon?

5.

What is the distinguishing feature of an animal described as 'ungulate'? 

6.

Which king of the Iceni tribe was the husband of Boudicca?

7.

How many gold medals did the US athlete Jesse Owens win at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?

8.

Which Australian was the only golfer to win the Open 3 times in succession in the 20th century?

Go to Round 5 questions with answers

ROUND 6 - Pot pourri

1.

What is the name of the highest point on the Isle of Man?

2.

Who was the Norse god of mischief?

3.

In 1630 which clergyman calculated that the earth was created in October 4004 BC?

4.

3 rivers in England, 3 in Scotland and 2 in Wales have the same name; what is it?

5.

Which large-leaved houseplant features in the title of a work by George Orwell?

6.

What is the 9th month of the Muslim calendar?

7.

Marilyn Monroe once said (in answer to a journalist's question) “the only thing I wear in bed is …..” what?

8.

The 1908 Olympic games, originally scheduled for Rome, were moved to London.  Why?

Go to Round 6 questions with answers

ROUND 7 - Pot pourri

1.

Beethoven originally named one of his symphonies Bonaparte.  He deleted this dedication when Napoleon declared himself Emperor; what new name did he give the work?

2.

In heraldry what is an animal doing if it is described as 'urinant'?

3.

The first line of the London Underground opened in 1863, between Farringdon and where?

4.

What name is given to the larva of a crane-fly (a.k.a. daddy-long-legs)?

5.

Which British group, formed in 1977, took its name from the Nazi slang for a military brothel?

6.

Who wrote the play St Joan in 1934?

7.

Hibernation means dormancy during winter; what word means summer dormancy?

8.

At the equator, how many degrees of longitude represent an hour's difference in time?

Go to Round 7 questions with answers

ROUND 8 - Pot pourri

1.

Taphephobia is the fear of what?

2.

In Holst's Planet suite, which planet is subtitled 'the Magician'?

3.

Which Phoenician town was destroyed by the Romans in 146BC at the end of the 3rd Punic war?

4.

The city of Sheffield stands at the confluence of the river Don and which other river?

5.

In the symbols used on clothing labels what is meant by a crossed-out triangle?

6.

'Float glass' is made by floating molten glass upon molten metal; which metal is used?

7.

Which British PM introduced Income Tax in 1798, to pay for the Napoleonic Wars?

8.

In a suit of armour which part of the body is protected by a 'greave'? 

Go to Round 8 questions with answers

Spares

1.

Which king of England got married in Cyprus?

2.

Which opera is set in Catfish Row, Charleston in the 1920s?

3.

What is the common name for allergic rhinitis?

4.

What is the legal term for a document which modifies a will?

5.

What is the meaning of the Latin phrase 'caveat emptor'?

6.

Which mammals belong to the order lagomorpha?

7.

If a dish is described as 'à la Florentine' what does it feature?

8.

Which BBC radio programme was presented by Alistair Cooke from March 1946 to February 2004, a total of 2869 episodes?

Go to Spares questions with answers

ROUND 1 - Pot pourri

1.

In David Hockney's painting Mr & Mrs Clark & Percy who or what is Percy?

a cat

2.

Which Hindu deity has the head of an elephant?

Ganesha

3.

What kind of bird is stuffed and displayed in the MCC museum at Lords?

a sparrow

(killed in mid air 3.July 1936 by a ball from Jahangir Khan; it is mounted on the fatal ball)

4.

Which British city is served by Rhoose airport?

Cardiff

5.

What was the capital of Tamurlane's empire ?

Samarkand

6.

Which Shakespeare character advises his son “neither a borrower nor a lender be”?

Polonius

(Hamlet Act1 sc3)

7.

The islands of Mindanao and Samar are part of which country?

Philippines

8.

In 1931 the BBC made its first broadcast of a sporting event; which event?

The Derby

ROUND 2 - Pot pourri

1.

What does an orrery demonstrate?

Movement of the planets in the solar system

(originally made in 1713 by the watchmaker George Graham for Charles Boyle, 4th Earl of Orrery; hence its name)

2.

In traditional Japanese dress what is an obi ?

a wide sash or belt

3.

Published in 1911, what was D H Lawrence's first novel?

The White Peacock

4.

What is the name of the Pope's official summer residence?

Castel Gandolfo

5.

In which film of 1949 did Alec Guinness play 8 parts?

Kind Hearts and Coronets

6.

What name is given to a triangle with no equal sides?

Scalene

7.

Which agricultural crop is attacked by the Colorado Beetle?

Potatoes

8.

What does a mycologist study?

Fungi

Go back to Round 2 questions without answers

ROUND 3 - Pot pourri

1.

What is the meaning of the word 'bolshoi' in the Bolshoi Ballet?

Great or big

2.

What is the name of Britain's only wild parrot?

Ring-necked) or rose-necked) parakeet

(there is an established population around London, based on escapees from aviaries and their descendants)

3.

 Which Welsh actor, who played 'Q' in 17 Bond films, died in a road accident in 1999?

Desmond Llewellyn

4.

In a sporting context, what colour completes this sequence and why: Red; Blue; White; Black; Orange; Black & White;....?

Green

(the colours worn by racing greyhounds from trap 1 to trap 7)

5.

A pantry was originally used to store which foodstuff?

Bread

(from Latin 'panis' for bread, via the Old French 'panetrie' for bread-basket)

6.

In Shakespeare's Antony & Cleopatra which game did Cleopatra prefer to listening to music?

Billiards

(Act2 sc5)

7.

Which cartoon character has a dog named Gnasher?

Dennis the Menace

8.

Who was the first Women's World Chess Champion, from 1927 to 1944?

Vera Menchik (-Stevenson)

(killed in a London air-raid in 1944, while holding the title; married name 'Stevenson' is  not necessary for the points)

Go back to Round 3 questions without answers

ROUND 4 - Pot pourri

1.

Which footballer was the first for whom an English club paid a £1million pound transfer fee?

Trevor Francis

(1979 from Birmingham City to Notts Forest)

2.

Which was Britain's first winning entry in the Eurovision Song Contest?

Puppet on a String

(Sandie Shaw, 1967)

3.

What is the name of the Inuit territory created from the North West Territories of Canada in 1999?

Nunavut

4.

What ancient measure of length was taken from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger?

Cubit

5.

What is the third letter of the Hebrew alphabet?

Gimel

6.

In May 198 a volcanic eruption caused great damage in Washington state.  Which volcano?

Mt St Helens

7.

What is added to rubber when it is vulcanised?

Sulphur

(modern process may use MgO, ZnO or Silicon; accept any of these)

8.

By what name was the 16th Century Italian painter Jacopo Robusti better known?

Tintoretto

(his father was a dyer = 'tintore'; Jacopo was nicknamed 'the little dyer' = tintoretto)

Go back to Round 4 questions without answers

ROUND 5 - Pot pourri

1.

Between 1620 and 1624 the Dutch inventor Cornelius van Drabel built and tested (on the river Thames) the first what?

Submarine

2.

The 'carat' is the standard unit of weight for gems; what is the equivalent of a carat in grams?

0.2gms

3.

In which novel by Dickens does Sarah Gamp appear?

Martin Chuzzlewit

4.

Which Roman road runs from Lincoln to Axemouth on the coast of Devon?

Fosse Way

5.

What is the distinguishing feature of an animal described as 'ungulate'? 

It has hooves

6.

Which king of the Iceni tribe was the husband of Boudicca?

Prasutagus

7.

How many gold medals did the US athlete Jesse Owens win at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?

4

(100M; 200M; Long jump; 4x100M relay)

8.

Which Australian was the only golfer to win the Open 3 times in succession in the 20th century?

Peter Thomson

(1954/5/6)

Go back to Round 5 questions without answers

ROUND 6 - Pot pourri

1.

What is the name of the highest point on the Isle of Man?

Snaefell

2.

Who was the Norse god of mischief?

Loki

3.

In 1630 which clergyman calculated that the earth was created in October 4004 BC?

Archbishop James Ussher

4.

3 rivers in England, 3 in Scotland and 2 in Wales have the same name; what is it?

Avon

(from the Celtic word 'abona' = river)

5.

Which large-leaved houseplant features in the title of a work by George Orwell?

Aspidistra

(Keep the Aspidistra Flying, 1936)

6.

What is the 9th month of the Muslim calendar?

Ramadan

7.

Marilyn Monroe once said (in answer to a journalist's question) “the only thing I wear in bed is …..” what?

Chanel No. 5

8.

The 1908 Olympic games, originally scheduled for Rome, were moved to London.  Why?

Vesuvius erupted in 1906 so the funds intended for the games were diverted to reconstruction

Go back to Round 6 questions without answers

ROUND 7 - Pot pourri

1.

Beethoven originally named one of his symphonies Bonaparte.  He deleted this dedication when Napoleon declared himself Emperor; what new name did he give the work?

Eroica

(Symphony no 3)

2.

In heraldry what is an animal doing if it is described as 'urinant'?

Diving

(usually of a fish - from the Latin urinare = to dive)

3.

The first line of the London Underground opened in 1863, between Farringdon and where?

Paddington

4.

What name is given to the larva of a crane-fly (a.k.a. daddy-long-legs)?

Leather-jacket

5.

Which British group, formed in 1977, took its name from the Nazi slang for a military brothel?

Joy Division

6.

Who wrote the play St Joan in 1934?

George Bernard Shaw

7.

Hibernation means dormancy during winter; what word means summer dormancy?

Aestivation

8.

At the equator, how many degrees of longitude represent an hour's difference in time?

15

(360/24 = 15)

Go back to Round 7 questions without answers

ROUND 8 - Pot pourri

1.

Taphephobia is the fear of what?

Being buried alive

(Greek 'taphos' = tomb or grave)

2.

In Holst's Planet suite, which planet is subtitled 'the Magician'?

Uranus

3.

Which Phoenician town was destroyed by the Romans in 146BC at the end of the 3rd Punic war?

Carthage

4.

The city of Sheffield stands at the confluence of the river Don and which other river?

Sheaf

(thus the name 'Sheffield')

5.

In the symbols used on clothing labels what is meant by a crossed-out triangle?

Do not bleach

6.

'Float glass' is made by floating molten glass upon molten metal; which metal is used?

Tin

7.

Which British PM introduced Income Tax in 1798, to pay for the Napoleonic Wars?

William Pitt the Younger

8.

In a suit of armour which part of the body is protected by a 'greave'? 

Shin or lower leg

Go back to Round 8 questions without answers

Spares

1.

Which king of England got married in Cyprus?

Richard I

(known as 'Lionheart'; married Berengaria of Navarre in Limassol, 1191)

2.

Which opera is set in Catfish Row, Charleston in the 1920s?

Porgy and Bess

3.

What is the common name for allergic rhinitis?

Hay fever

4.

What is the legal term for a document which modifies a will?

Codicil

5.

What is the meaning of the Latin phrase 'caveat emptor'?

(Let the) Buyer beware

6.

Which mammals belong to the order lagomorpha?

Rabbits or hares or pikas

(accept any of these)

7.

If a dish is described as 'à la Florentine' what does it feature?

Spinach

8.

Which BBC radio programme was presented by Alistair Cooke from March 1946 to February 2004, a total of 2869 episodes?

Letter from America

Go back to Spares questions without answers