ROUND 1 - Hidden theme

1.

During the 2010 Winter Olympics, which resort in British Columbia hosted most of the alpine, Nordic, luge, skeleton, and bobsled events?  It also hosts an annual film festival.

2.

Who played the part of Albert Perks, the station porter in the 1970 film The Railway Children?

3.

Which town is home to the National Horseracing Museum?

4.

Which TV period drama is based on Julia Quinn's novels set in London during the season when debutantes are presented at court?

5.

Which Brazilian racing driver born in 1952 was a three-time world champion in the 1980s?

6.

Which singer-songwriter wrote the song A New England, which became a Top 10 hit for Kirsty MacColl in 1985?

7.

Which comic opera's alternative title is Bunthorne's Bride?

8.

Which German dance group's best known hits are The Power and Rhythm Is a Dancer?

Sp1

What's the name of the character played by Jane Seymour in the Bond film Live and Let Die?

Sp2

What are the first two words of the novel Anna Karenina?

Go to Round 1 questions with answers

ROUND 2 - Pairs

1.

Which British PM married a niece of Winston Churchill?

2.

Tonic water is flavoured with quinine which is extracted from chinchona bark.  Which London-based manufacturer of premium tonic water and other premium drink mixers takes its name from an alternative name for the source of quinine?

3.

Which confectionery company was founded by Hans Riegel in Bonn in 1920?  Mainly famous for other products, they also make Pontefract Cakes at their factory in Pontefract.

4.

Which leader of the Labour Party won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1934?

5.

In Liverpool, where would you find Bertie and Bella?  One looks inland while the other looks to the sea

6.

Which object, inexplicably engraved with “ST. JEAN -1779”, was housed in the Royal Exchange between 1859 and 1928 and, following two further moves, has been housed in Lime Street, London, since 1986?

7.

The largest of its kind occurred in 1875 in North America, measuring 1,800 miles by 110 miles, caused by a Rocky Mountain variety which has not occurred since 1902.  They have been recorded in Ancient Egyptian carvings and The Iliad.  What is this natural phenomenon?

8.

Amongst others of their kind, what were: Tsygan, Dezik, Belka, Strelka, Bars, Lisichka, Muschka, Ugolek, and Veterok?

Sp.

Where is the final resting place of Washington Irving?  He requested that its name be changed from Tarrytown Cemetery to its current, more appropriate, name.

Go to Round 2 questions with answers

ROUND 3 - Hidden theme

1.

2.

The Standard Book Number (SBN) was created in 1965 for which company, the world's first retail chain?

3.

Founded in 1693, which extant club in London was founded by an Italian immigrant named Francesco Bianco as a hot chocolate emporium?

4.

Which US President is the only one to have his portrait on a coin during his lifetime, on the 'Sesquicentennial of American Independence' half dollar?

5.

Which American university is located in Ithaca, New York state?

6.

Earlier this year, who broke Paula Radcliffe's 17-year British record for the 5000m?  (full name required)

7.

Who wrote the book American Psycho?  (full name required)

8.

What's the title of the theme song to the film Beaches, sung by Bette Midler?

Sp.

Which song, first performed in 1925, begins with:

"You can bring Pearl
She's a darn nice girl"?

Go to Round 3 questions with answers

ROUND 4 - Run-ons

All done in the best possible taste.

Usual caveats apply.

1.

1993 film in which the title character is played by Keiko,

&

the author of the musical John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert.

2.

4-word cribbage term for holding the Jack of the same suit as the starter card,

&

the name of a former waste tip which is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Local Nature Reserve near Little Lever and Kearsley.

3.

The highest peak in south Wales, in the Brecon Beacons National Park

&

1944 film, starring Phyllis Calvert as the title character who learns that her family has run a brothel - and the last word is the title of another 1944 film for which Ingrid Bergman won her first Best Actress Oscar.

4.

In the film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, the name of Number 2's girlfriend and secretary, which is a play on the name of a character played by Honor Blackman,

&

1996 play written by Eve Ensler.

5.

Song from West Side Story in which Maria sings about being happy,

&

the only MP for Witham since its creation in 2010.

6.

A sculpture by Gian Lorenzo Bernini depicting a swooning nun and an angel with a spear,

&

the only woman to hold two of the Great Offices of State.

7.

Nursery rhyme character who mislaid their Ovis aries,

&

Channel 4 sitcom which follows the lives of Mark Corrigan and Jez Usborne.

8.

Artist who created a stained-glass window, entitled Peace, for the UN in honour of Dag Hammarskjöld,

&

1964 No.2 hit song by the Kinks that was covered by the Stranglers in 1988.

Sp1

The original name for Peak Cavern in Castleton - its name was changed in order not to cause offence to Queen Victoria during a visit for a concert,

&

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's motto.

Sp2

The name of a vast, remote area of the Australian Outback, as described in Barcroft Boake's poem Where the Dead Men Lie,

&

title of a 1977 album in which an offensive word was claimed to be a legitimate Old English term for a priest.

Go to Round 4 questions with answers

ROUND 5 - Announced theme

Each answer contains a word or words that can be preceded by the word 'green'.

Some of these words are parts of longer words.

1.

Which British actor born in 1959 won a BAFTA award for his role in the BBC TV series Broken and has appeared in the Game of Thrones?

2.

Which literary character first appeared in the book The Happy Return in 1937 and then in a series of books culminating in The Last Encounter in 1967 - and has been portrayed on screen by Gregory Peck, David Buck, Michael Redgrave and most recently by Ioan Gruffudd in a TV series running between 1997 and 2003?

3.

What was the name given to the two treaties signed in Osnabrück and Muenster involving 109 delegations and taking 5 years of negotiations?

4.

What is the name of the Irish composer and pianist who lived between 1782 and 1837 who is widely acknowledged as inventing the nocturne?

5.

Which actor was the only recipient of a posthumous Oscar for his role in the 1976 film Network until Heath Ledger?

6.

...and in memory of Dave Barras...two for the price of one...

Which fiscally conservative political movement was founded in 2009 in opposition to President Obama's universal healthcare and other proposals?

7.

Which controversial poet (1885-1972) wrote the poem Hugh Selwyn Mauberley?

8.

Which 1940 novel tells the story of a 'Whiskey Priest' living in Tabasco?

Go to Round 5 questions with answers

ROUND 6 - Pairs

1.

Which country is known as the 'land of cakes'?

2.

Which country, a popular tourist destination, is known as the 'land of smiles' after a campaign by the country's tourist industry in the 1980s?

3.

In which French ballet is a clog dance performed normally by a man in drag?

4.

In which 18th-century French opera is the ballet music known as The Dance of the Blessed Spirits performed?

5.

Which comedian and actor who died in 2005 used the pseudonym Gerald Wiley when writing material?

6.

Which crime novelist who died in 1976 wrote 6 novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott?

7.

Which Stephen Sondheim musical was based on the 1955 Ingmar Bergman comedy film Smiles of a Summer Night?

8.

For which 1959 musical with a one-word title did Stephen Sondheim write the lyrics in collaboration with the composer Jules Stein as a vehicle for Ethel Merman?

Go to Round 6 questions with answers

ROUND 7 - Announced theme - 'December 1st'

1.

Which king died on this date in 1135?

2.

Probably the best known of the 40 martyrs, who was hanged, drawn and quartered on this day (now his feast day) in 1581?

3.

Who was the author of Tarka the Otter, born on this date in 1895?

4.

Born on this day in 1952 and regarded by many as the inheritor of Dennis Potter’s crown, who was the director of the film Close My Eyes and the TV dramas Perfect Strangers, The Lost Prince and Gideon’s Daughter?

5.

Of which country was Peter, or Pedro, crowned emperor on this day in 1822?

6.

The first underground railway system in the southern hemisphere opened on this day in 1913 iswhich city?

7.

Which country first celebrated its national sovereignty day, Fullveldisdagurinn, on 1st December 1918?

8.

Sp.

First proclaimed by the UN in 1988 December 1st, which international ‘day’ is associated with a symbol chosen for its ‘connection to blood and the idea of passion – not only anger but love, like a valentine'?

Go to Round 7 questions with answers

ROUND 8 - Pairs

1.

Which French wine region, in the hills east of Burgundy, shares its name with a single malt whisky?

2.

Which French wine region in the Dordogne shares its name with a TV detective series?

3.

Lucy Powell was moved to the post of Shadow Culture Secretary yesterday – who is she shadowing?

4.

Prior to that, Lucy Powell was shadowing the Housing brief, and most recently Michael Gove.  But who did Gove replace as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (a department now also charged with ‘Levelling Up’)?

5.

The main two elements in modern pewter alloy (i.e. not poisonous) are adjacent in the periodic table, and their chemical symbols differ by only one letter – what are they?

6.

The main two elements in the alloy electrum are also neighbours in the periodic table and their chemical symbols also differ by only one letter – what are they?

7.

On a German musical score, which instruments are known as Pauken?

8.

On a German musical score, which instruments are known as Bratschen?

Sp1

What links the chow-chow dog, polar bears, giraffes, okapis and impalas?

Sp2

In humans, a blue tongue is distinctly unhealthy – what medical term describes the change in tissue colour caused by the blueness of deoxygenated blood?

Sp3

The Unite union was formed by the merger of Amicus and which other union in 2007?

Sp4

Which union was formed by the merger of NALGO, NUPE and COSHE?

Go to Round 8 questions with answers

ROUND 1 - Hidden theme

1.

During the 2010 Winter Olympics, which resort in British Columbia hosted most of the alpine, Nordic, luge, skeleton, and bobsled events?  It also hosts an annual film festival.

Whistler

2.

Who played the part of Albert Perks, the station porter in the 1970 film The Railway Children?

Bernard Cribbins

3.

Which town is home to the National Horseracing Museum?

Newmarket

4.

Which TV period drama is based on Julia Quinn's novels set in London during the season when debutantes are presented at court?

Bridgerton

5.

Which Brazilian racing driver born in 1952 was a three-time world champion in the 1980s?

Nelson Piquet

6.

Which singer-songwriter wrote the song A New England, which became a Top 10 hit for Kirsty MacColl in 1985?

Billy Bragg

7.

Which comic opera's alternative title is Bunthorne's Bride?

Patience

8.

Which German dance group's best known hits are The Power and Rhythm Is a Dancer?

Snap!

Sp1

What's the name of the character played by Jane Seymour in the Bond film Live and Let Die?

Solitaire

Sp2

What are the first two words of the novel Anna Karenina?

"Happy families"

("...are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.")

Theme: Each answer contains the name of a card game

ROUND 2 - Pairs

1.

Which British PM married a niece of Winston Churchill?

Anthony Eden

(married Clarissa Spencer-Churchill)

2.

Tonic water is flavoured with quinine which is extracted from chinchona bark.  Which London-based manufacturer of premium tonic water and other premium drink mixers takes its name from an alternative name for the source of quinine?

Fever-Tree

3.

Which confectionery company was founded by Hans Riegel in Bonn in 1920?  Mainly famous for other products, they also make Pontefract Cakes at their factory in Pontefract.

Haribo

(an acronym of the first two characters of Hans Riegel Bonn)

4.

Which leader of the Labour Party won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1934?

Arthur Henderson

5.

In Liverpool, where would you find Bertie and Bella?  One looks inland while the other looks to the sea

On top of the Royal Liver Building

(they are the liver birds)

6.

Which object, inexplicably engraved with “ST. JEAN -1779”, was housed in the Royal Exchange between 1859 and 1928 and, following two further moves, has been housed in Lime Street, London, since 1986?

The Lutine Bell

7.

The largest of its kind occurred in 1875 in North America, measuring 1,800 miles by 110 miles, caused by a Rocky Mountain variety which has not occurred since 1902.  They have been recorded in Ancient Egyptian carvings and The Iliad.  What is this natural phenomenon?

Swarm of locusts

8.

Amongst others of their kind, what were: Tsygan, Dezik, Belka, Strelka, Bars, Lisichka, Muschka, Ugolek, and Veterok?

Canine cosmonauts

Sp.

Where is the final resting place of Washington Irving?  He requested that its name be changed from Tarrytown Cemetery to its current, more appropriate, name.

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Go back to Round 2 questions without answers

ROUND 3 - Hidden theme

1.

Me and Mrs Jones

2.

The Standard Book Number (SBN) was created in 1965 for which company, the world's first retail chain?

W H Smith

3.

Founded in 1693, which extant club in London was founded by an Italian immigrant named Francesco Bianco as a hot chocolate emporium?

White's

4.

Which US President is the only one to have his portrait on a coin during his lifetime, on the 'Sesquicentennial of American Independence' half dollar?

Calvin Coolidge

5.

Which American university is located in Ithaca, New York state?

Cornell

6.

Earlier this year, who broke Paula Radcliffe's 17-year British record for the 5000m?  (full name required)

Eilish McColgan

7.

Who wrote the book American Psycho?  (full name required)

Brett Easton Ellis

8.

What's the title of the theme song to the film Beaches, sung by Bette Midler?

Wind Beneath My Wings

Sp.

Which song, first performed in 1925, begins with:

"You can bring Pearl
She's a darn nice girl"?

Don't Bring Lulu

Theme: Each answer contains the surname (or only name) of an artist who has sung the theme to a James Bond film...

Tom Jones, Sam Smith, Jack White, Rita Coolidge, Chris Cornell, Billie Eilish, Sheena Easton, Wings, Lulu

Go back to Round 3 questions without answers

ROUND 4 - Run-ons

All done in the best possible taste.

Each question has two answers - the last part of the answer to the first question is the first part of the answer to the second question.

Give the answer as a continuous sentence.

Usual caveats apply.

1.

1993 film in which the title character is played by Keiko,

&

the author of the musical John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert.

Free WILLY Russell

2.

4-word cribbage term for holding the Jack of the same suit as the starter card,

&

the name of a former waste tip which is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Local Nature Reserve near Little Lever and Kearsley.

One for his NOB End

3.

The highest peak in south Wales, in the Brecon Beacons National Park

&

1944 film, starring Phyllis Calvert as the title character who learns that her family has run a brothel - and the last word is the title of another 1944 film for which Ingrid Bergman won her first Best Actress Oscar.

Pen Y FANny By Gaslight

4.

In the film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, the name of Number 2's girlfriend and secretary, which is a play on the name of a character played by Honor Blackman,

&

1996 play written by Eve Ensler.

Alotta FAGINA/VAGINA Monologues

5.

Song from West Side Story in which Maria sings about being happy,

&

the only MP for Witham since its creation in 2010.

I Feel PRETTY/PRITI Patel

6.

A sculpture by Gian Lorenzo Bernini depicting a swooning nun and an angel with a spear,

&

the only woman to hold two of the Great Offices of State.

The Ecstasy of St THERESA May

7.

Nursery rhyme character who mislaid their Ovis aries,

&

Channel 4 sitcom which follows the lives of Mark Corrigan and Jez Usborne.

Little Bo PEEP Show

8.

Artist who created a stained-glass window, entitled Peace, for the UN in honour of Dag Hammarskjöld,

&

1964 No.2 hit song by the Kinks that was covered by the Stranglers in 1988.

Marc ChagALL Day and All of the Night

Sp1

The original name for Peak Cavern in Castleton - its name was changed in order not to cause offence to Queen Victoria during a visit for a concert,

&

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's motto.

The Devil's ARS(E) Gratia Artis

Sp2

The name of a vast, remote area of the Australian Outback, as described in Barcroft Boake's poem Where the Dead Men Lie,

&

title of a 1977 album in which an offensive word was claimed to be a legitimate Old English term for a priest.

The Never NEVER Mind The Bollocks (Here's the Sex Pistols)

Go back to Round 4 questions without answers

ROUND 5 - Announced theme

Each answer contains a word or words that can be preceded by the word 'green'.

Some of these words are parts of longer words.

1.

Which British actor born in 1959 won a BAFTA award for his role in the BBC TV series Broken and has appeared in the Game of Thrones?

Sean Bean

2.

Which literary character first appeared in the book The Happy Return in 1937 and then in a series of books culminating in The Last Encounter in 1967 - and has been portrayed on screen by Gregory Peck, David Buck, Michael Redgrave and most recently by Ioan Gruffudd in a TV series running between 1997 and 2003?

(Horatio) Hornblower

3.

What was the name given to the two treaties signed in Osnabrück and Muenster involving 109 delegations and taking 5 years of negotiations?

Peace of Westphalia

4.

What is the name of the Irish composer and pianist who lived between 1782 and 1837 who is widely acknowledged as inventing the nocturne?

John Field

5.

Which actor was the only recipient of a posthumous Oscar for his role in the 1976 film Network until Heath Ledger?

Peter Finch

6.

...and in memory of Dave Barras...two for the price of one...

Which fiscally conservative political movement was founded in 2009 in opposition to President Obama's universal healthcare and other proposals?

The Tea Party

7.

Which controversial poet (1885-1972) wrote the poem Hugh Selwyn Mauberley?

Ezra Pound

8.

Which 1940 novel tells the story of a 'Whiskey Priest' living in Tabasco?

The Power and the Glory

Go back to Round 5 questions without answers

ROUND 6 - Pairs

1.

Which country is known as the 'land of cakes'?

Scotland

2.

Which country, a popular tourist destination, is known as the 'land of smiles' after a campaign by the country's tourist industry in the 1980s?

Thailand

3.

In which French ballet is a clog dance performed normally by a man in drag?

La Fille Mal Gardée

4.

In which 18th-century French opera is the ballet music known as The Dance of the Blessed Spirits performed?

Orpheus and Euridice

5.

Which comedian and actor who died in 2005 used the pseudonym Gerald Wiley when writing material?

Ronnie Barker

6.

Which crime novelist who died in 1976 wrote 6 novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott?

Agatha Christie

7.

Which Stephen Sondheim musical was based on the 1955 Ingmar Bergman comedy film Smiles of a Summer Night?

A Little Night Music

8.

For which 1959 musical with a one-word title did Stephen Sondheim write the lyrics in collaboration with the composer Jules Stein as a vehicle for Ethel Merman?

Gypsy

Go back to Round 6 questions without answers

ROUND 7 - Announced theme - 'December 1st'

1.

Which king died on this date in 1135?

2.

Probably the best known of the 40 martyrs, who was hanged, drawn and quartered on this day (now his feast day) in 1581?

3.

Who was the author of Tarka the Otter, born on this date in 1895?

Henry Williamson

4.

Born on this day in 1952 and regarded by many as the inheritor of Dennis Potter’s crown, who was the director of the film Close My Eyes and the TV dramas Perfect Strangers, The Lost Prince and Gideon’s Daughter?

Stephen Poliakoff

5.

Of which country was Peter, or Pedro, crowned emperor on this day in 1822?

Brazil

6.

The first underground railway system in the southern hemisphere opened on this day in 1913 iswhich city?

Buenos Aires

7.

Which country first celebrated its national sovereignty day, Fullveldisdagurinn, on 1st December 1918?

Iceland

8.

Transylvania

Sp.

First proclaimed by the UN in 1988 December 1st, which international ‘day’ is associated with a symbol chosen for its ‘connection to blood and the idea of passion – not only anger but love, like a valentine'?

World AIDS day

Go back to Round 7 questions without answers

ROUND 8 - Pairs

1.

Which French wine region, in the hills east of Burgundy, shares its name with a single malt whisky?

Jura

2.

Which French wine region in the Dordogne shares its name with a TV detective series?

Bergerac

3.

Lucy Powell was moved to the post of Shadow Culture Secretary yesterday – who is she shadowing?

Nadine Dorries

4.

Prior to that, Lucy Powell was shadowing the Housing brief, and most recently Michael Gove.  But who did Gove replace as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (a department now also charged with ‘Levelling Up’)?

Robert Jenrick

5.

The main two elements in modern pewter alloy (i.e. not poisonous) are adjacent in the periodic table, and their chemical symbols differ by only one letter – what are they?

Tin and Antimony

(Sn and Sb)

6.

The main two elements in the alloy electrum are also neighbours in the periodic table and their chemical symbols also differ by only one letter – what are they?

Silver and Gold

(Au and Ag -in this case adjacent vertically)

7.

On a German musical score, which instruments are known as Pauken?

Timpani

8.

On a German musical score, which instruments are known as Bratschen?

Violas

Sp1

What links the chow-chow dog, polar bears, giraffes, okapis and impalas?

Blue or blue/black tongues

Sp2

In humans, a blue tongue is distinctly unhealthy – what medical term describes the change in tissue colour caused by the blueness of deoxygenated blood?

Cyanosis

(accept methaemoglobinaemia)

Lucy Powell's Doctor writes...

"There is a rare genetic condition, familial methaemoglobinaemia which famously affected the ‘Blue Men of Lurgan’ and the ‘Blue Fugates of Kentucky’ - too many amyl nitrate poppers can do the same thing in Manchester…"

Sp3

The Unite union was formed by the merger of Amicus and which other union in 2007?

TGWU

Sp4

Which union was formed by the merger of NALGO, NUPE and COSHE?

Unison

Go back to Round 8 questions without answers