Geography 43

From the quiz on 8/8/17.

1. What is the capital of Iran? Tehran

2. Which European country’s flag consists of three equal horizontal bands of red, white and red (top to bottom)? Austria

3. Which US city is known as both The Crescent City and The Big Easy? New Orleans

4. Which Asian country has Dzongkha as its sole official language and is ruled by the Druk Gyalpo (“Dragon King”)? Bhutan

5. Which town in Buckinghamshire is renowned for its so-called “four Bs”: boots, beer, brushes and Baptists? Chesham

6. In which city is the Turning Torso, which is the world’s first twisted skyscraper and (as of 2017) the tallest building in Scandinavia? Malmö

7. What informal term for England or Britain is derived from the Hindi for “foreign country”? Blighty

8. Ojos del Salado and Llullaillaco, the two highest active volcanoes in the world, are both on the border between which two countries? Argentina and Chile

9. Inhabitants of which Australian state are known colloquially as “crow-eaters”? South Australia

10. Musala, the highest peak in the Balkans, is located in Rila, the largest national park in which European country? Bulgaria

Musical excerpts 141

From the quiz on 8/8/17. Download here.

1. Queen – Don’t Stop Me Now
2. Santana (featuring Rob Thomas) – Smooth
3. Ellie Goulding – Love Me Like You Do
4. The Jesus and Mary Chain – Just Like Honey
5. Craig David – Fill Me In
6. Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 in C minor (Op. 67) (1st movement)
7. Florence + The Machine – Shake It Out
8. Eminem (featuring Rihanna) – Love the Way You Lie
9. Simon & Garfunkel – The Boxer
10. Linkin Park – In the End

Entertainment 62

From the quiz on 8/8/17.

1. Poppy Honey Rosie, Daisy Boo Pamela, Petal Blossom Rainbow, Buddy Bear Maurice and River Rocket are children of which celebrity chef? Jamie Oliver

2. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) was the directorial début of which American actor? George Clooney

3. For what does the name of the US TV network HBO stand? Home Box Office

4. Which American actor’s many film roles include Tony Carlson in Foul Play, Dusty Bottoms in ¡Three Amigos!, Nick Halloway in Memoirs of an Invisible Man and Ty Webb in Caddyshack? Chevy Chase

5. In Rick and Morty, what is the name of Rick’s daughter, who works as an equine cardiac surgeon? Beth (Smith)

6. Which video game title characters are alien rappers from the planet Funkotron? ToeJam & Earl

7. “One morning I shot an elephant in my pyjamas. How he got in my pyjamas, I don’t know” is a famous line delivered by Groucho Marx in which 1930 Marx Brothers film? Animal Crackers

8. Which Pirates of the Caribbean film followed Dead Man’s Chest but preceded On Stranger Tides? At World’s End

9. What family relation is Janet Leigh to Jamie Lee Curtis? Mother

10. “One eternity later”, “16 paranoia filled days later” and “So much later that the old narrator got tired of waiting and they had to hire a new one” are some of the many time cards used in which Nickolodeon animated TV series? SpongeBob SquarePants

General knowledge 141

From the quiz on 8/8/17.

1. How many US cents make one nickel? 5

2. Which Beatles song opens with John Lennon singing the lines “Picture yourself in a boat on a river / With tangerine trees and marmalade skies”? Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

3. In which religion do the Four Heavenly Kings guard the four cardinal directions? Buddhism

4. What name, from the Greek for “stretching under”, is given to the longest side of a right-angled triangle? Hypotenuse

5. Which English football team are nicknamed The Superwhites and play their home games at Prenton Park? Tranmere Rovers

6. Which German city lends its name to a legal defence in which a defendant protests innocence because they were merely following orders? Nuremberg

7. In order to be classified as hypersonic, an object must be moving at a speed at least how many times the speed of sound? 5×

8. Which European country’s Formula One Grand Prix is currently held at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps? Belgium

9. In firefighting, what name is given to the sudden explosion of a fire caused by the reintroduction of oxygen to an oxygen-depleted environment, typically by opening a door or window? Backdraught

10. In 2009, which British rapper reached number one on the UK Singles Chart with a song actually called Number 1? Tinchy Stryder

Specialist: first-person shooters

From the quiz on 1/8/17. Download the audio for Q2 and Q4 here.

1. Genji, Tracer, Zenyatta, Symmetra, Junkrat and D. Va are playable heroes in which team-based FPS released by Blizzard in 2016? Overwatch

2. **This is a medley of music from which FPS first released for PC in 1999? Unreal Tournament

3. Which American company created and develops the Call of Duty series of FPS games? Infinity Ward

4. **This is a medley of sound effects from which FPS first released for PC in 1999? Quake III Arena

5. Lo Wang, a katana-wielding assassin who works for Orochi Zilla, is the protagonist of which series of FPSes originally created by 3D Realms in 1997 but rebooted by Flying Wild Hog in 2013? Shadow Warrior

Specialist: Royal Shrovetide Football (Ashbourne)

From the quiz on 1/8/17.

1. The two teams, the Up’ards and Down’ards, are determined by birthplace relative to Henmore Brook, a tributary of which river in the Peak District? Dove

2. Which English footballer, who managed Derby County from 1967 to 1973, turned up the ball (started the game by throwing the ball into the air) in 1975? Brian Clough

3. In order to score a goal, the ball must be tapped against a millstone how many times in succession? 3

4. The game was cancelled in 1968 and 2001 because of outbreaks of which disease? Foot-and-mouth

5. Royal Shrovetide Football officially received its Royal designation in 1928 after which future king turned up the ball? Edward VIII

Trivia snake 37

From the quiz on 1/8/17.

1. What term for a castrated man comes from the Greek for “bed” and “guard”, and originally referred to such a person employed to guard the women’s living quarters in an oriental court? Eunuch

2. Which Englishman composed the themes to the TV programmes Blackadder, Mr. Bean, Red Dwarf, The Catherine Tate Show, The Vicar of Dibley and QI? Howard Goodall

3. What alternative name for common heather can also refer to a cod-like fish and a suffix for forming English diminutives? Ling

4. Which 2002 Martin Scorsese film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Daniel Day-Lewis as the respective leaders of the Dead Rabbits and the Natives? Gangs of New York

5. Which human organ is composed of basic specialized units called nephrons? Kidney

6. In which Japanese city was the final of the 2002 FIFA World Cup held? Yokohama

7. Disco Volante, Sportivo, Spider and Giulietta are car models manufactured by which Italian company? Alfa Romeo

8. Which Hawaiian island is the third largest but the most populous? Oahu

9. According to the popular advert, which soft drink was made “way down deep in the middle of the Congo” when “a hippo took an apricot, a guava and a mango”, “stuck it with the others” and “danced a dainty tango”? Um Bongo

10. Which American won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for Midnight Express and Best Director Oscars for both Born on the Fourth of July and Platoon? Oliver Stone

Art & literature 39

From the quiz on 1/8/17.

1. What middle initial does Iain Banks add to his name when writing science fiction? M

2. In which US city are 16 of the 19 Smithsonian museums? Washington DC

3. Which Charles Dickens character is variously referred to as the old man, the merry old gentleman, and the Jew? Fagin

4. Which American author wrote the novels Mildred Pierce, The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity? James M. Cain

5. Which Dutch artist painted the portrait of Oliver Cromwell that allegedly spawned the English phrase “warts and all”? Peter Lely

6. Which American author coined and espoused the so-called Iceberg Theory, in which sub-surface details are not written explicitly but are instead left to the reader? Ernest Hemingway

7. The 1896 cycle A Shropshire Lad is the best-known work by which English poet? A. E. Housman

8. Qinghua is a popular style of Chinese pottery decorated solely in which two colours? Blue and white

9. Which American author won Pulitzer Prizes for The Armies of the Night (1968) and The Executioner’s Song (1979), and co-founded the newspaper The Village Voice in 1955? Norman Mailer

10. The Wilton Diptych, painted in the late 14th century, depicts which King of England being presented to Mary and Jesus by three saints? Richard II

Musical excerpts 140

From the quiz on 1/8/17. Download here.

1. Bee Gees – Stayin’ Alive
2. MC Hammer – U Can’t Touch This
3. The Black Eyed Peas – Boom Boom Pow
4. The Weather Girls – It’s Raining Men
5. Pitbull – I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
6. KISS – Rock and Roll All Nite
7. Imagine Dragons – Demons
8. Kirsty MacColl – There’s a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis
9. Crystal Castles vs Health – Crimewave
10. The Beach Boys – California Girls

Sport & games 42

From the quiz on 1/8/17.

1. Which netball position is commonly abbreviated GS? Goal shooter

2. Which team beat Arsenal on penalties to win the 2000 UEFA Cup? Galatasaray

3. Golf, Association and Garden are the three main forms of which sport as played in the UK? Croquet

4. Ron Howard’s 2013 film Rush centres on the rivalry between which two F1 drivers during the 1976 racing season? James Hunt and Niki Lauda [½ each]

5. What sport is played by Richmond, Jersey Reds, Doncaster Knights, Ealing Trailfinders and Yorkshire Carnegie? Rugby union

6. As of 2016, which country has hosted the most Olympic Games, with four Summer and four Winter? USA

7. Which Australian state is home to professional cricket teams known as Bulls, Heat and Fire? Queensland

8. Against which team were Manchester United playing when Eric Cantona infamously “kung-fu kicked” a heckling fan in 1995? Crystal Palace

9. In 1984, which English darts player, nicknamed Old Stoneface, achieved the very first televised nine-dart finish? John Lowe

10. The Swaythling Cup, Marcel Corbillon Cup, St Bride Vase, G. Geist Prize, Iran Cup, W. J. Pope Trophy and Heydusek Prize are the seven trophies awarded at which sport’s World Championships? Table tennis