Questions

ROUND 1

1.

2 English cathedrals are designated World Heritage sites.  One is Canterbury which is the other?

2.

Which surname is shared by 2 English International Footballers: an Arsenal player of the 1990s and a Chelsea player of the 1980s?

3.

What animal has the scientific name cricetus cricetus?

4.

Who became Prime Minister in 1770 and was PM at the time of the Boston Tea Party?

5.

Who plays the eponymous hero in the current television serialisation of George Eliot’s Daniel Deronda?

6.

According to Greek mythology who was the first woman on earth?

7.

Name the country highlighted in Picture 1

8.

Name the country highlighted in Picture 2

ROUND 2

1.

In astronomy what is the Cassini Division?

2.

Who was England’s top try scorer (with 2) in the recent Rugby Union international against South Africa?

3.

Sr is the chemical symbol for which element?

4.

Which of these flags have the least and most colours: France, Japan, South Africa and the United Arab Republic?

5.

Prior to 1953, the 38th Parallel used to separate which two countries?

6.

Who co-presents BBC's horse racing coverage alongside former jockey Willie Carson?

7.

Who sings the title song in the latest Bond film Die Another Day?

8.

Which designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Lancashire is the closest such area to Manchester?

ROUND 3

1.

Which film won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1969, being the first X-rated film to do so?

2.

How many funnels did the Titanic have?

3.

Who had a No.3 hit in 1967 with Autumn Almanac?

4.

What is the correct term for the muscular tube connecting the mouth to the stomach?

5.

Name the film featured in the poster in Picture 3

6.

Name the film featured in the poster in Picture 4

7.

On whose detective novels is the current ITV series Wire in the Blood based?

8.

Which company owns Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks?

ROUND 4

1.

What is the middle name of Star Trek’s captain James T. Kirk?

2.

Name either of the two countries in South America which do not border Brazil.

3.

Which Manchester University lecturer became the first President of Israel?

4.

Which was the first and only, non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drug licensed for over-the-counter sales in the UK?

5.

In the Lake District which Lake is directly west of Skiddaw?

6.

Who invented the Thermos flask?

7.

Of what sort of foodstuff are Banon, Mimolette and Samso varieties?

8.

Noctule, Serotine, Pipistrelle, and Bechstein are all species of what?

ROUND 5

1.

One of the designated World Heritage sites is in West Yorkshire.  Which?

2.

Which surname is shared by 2 English International Footballers: an Arsenal player of the 1990s and an Ipswich player of the late 1990s/2000/2001?

3.

Name the dance step depicted in Picture 5 (female partner shown)

4.

Name the dance step illustrated in Picture 6 (both partners shown)

5.

Who plays Lara in the current TV serialisation of Boris Pasternak’s Dr Zhivago?

6.

According to legend who was the second wife of Priam and mother of Hector, Paris and Cassandra?

7.

What was the former name of the airline division of the travel company My Travel?

8.

The following are the first three lines of the second verse of which piece of music: O Lord our God, arise, / Scatter our enemies, / And make them fall?

ROUND 6

1.

Fred Hoyle put forward a theory of creation. What did he call it?

2.

Who captained England to victory in the recent Rugby League international against New Zealand?

3.

At is the chemical symbol for which element?

4.

Which of these flags has the least and most colours: Kuwait, Libya, Norway, San Marino?

5.

Prior to 1976, the 17th Parallel used to separate which two countries?

6.

Everyone knows that Kenneth Wolstenholme was the BBC commentator for the 1966 World Cup Final, but who was the ITV commentator at this final?

7.

Who has sung the most Bond film title songs (i.e. 3 of them)?

8.

Which designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Staffordshire is the closest such area to Birmingham?

ROUND 7

1.

In which city is the bridge shown in Picture 7?

2.

Which London bridge is shown in Picture 8?

3.

Who had a U.K. No.1 hit in 1975 with a song entitled January?

4.

Which part of the human body has cones and rods?

5.

Who carved the tomb of Oscar Wilde in Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris?

6.

What is Tiger Wood’s real first name?

7.

Who wrote the novels: The Last Bus to Woodstock and The Dead of Jericho?

8.

Of which multi-national business, until recently, was Jean-Marie Messier boss?

ROUND 8

1.

In One Foot in the Grave, what was Victor Meldrew’s wife’s first name?

2.

Which is the only English speaking country in South America?

3.

Which famous scientist was offered the position of first President of Israel, but turned it down saying that he had no head for problems?

4.

The drug MDMA is more commonly known as what?

5.

In the Lake District which Lake is directly west of Helvellyn?

6.

Who is reputed to have invented scissors?

7.

What vegetable has varieties called Aquadulce, Red Epicure and Relon?

8.

Sika, Muntjac, Chinese Water and Axis are all species of what?

SPARES

1.

What animal is linked to: the highest order of knighthood in Denmark, a paper size and the Hindu god of wisdom and success?

2.

In 1901 Alberto Santos-Dumont won 100,000 francs for a flying achievement. What was it?

3.

Which country was the first to open a scheduled passenger air service?

4.

Born in 1596, died in 1650, he was considered (by Bertrand Russell and others) to be the founder of modern philosophy. Who was he?

5.

Born in 1685, died in 1753, this Irish philosopher famously denied the existence of matter. Who was he?

6.

How is the literary character John Clayton better known?

7.

What did the Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli claim to have seen in 1877?

8.

Papua New Guinea is the only country in the world to have what, as its national sport?

Answers

ROUND 1

1.

Durham

2.

Dixon (Lee & Kerry)

3.

Hamster (Common Hamster)

4.

Lord North

5.

Hugh Dancy

6.

Pandora

7.

Central African Republic

8.

Benin

ROUND 2

1.

The gap between Saturn’s rings

2.

Will Greenwood

3.

Strontium

4.

Least : Japan 2  Most : S. Africa 7

5.

North and South Korea

6.

Claire Balding

7.

Madonna

8.

The Forest of Bowland

ROUND 3

1.

Midnight Cowboy

2.

4

3.

The Kinks

4.

Oesophagus

5.

Network

6.

Withnail and I

7.

Val McDermid

8.

National Australia Bank

ROUND 4

1.

Tiberius

2.

Chile or Ecuador

3.

Chaim Weizmann

4.

Ibuprofen

5.

Bassenthwaite Lake

6.

Sir James Dewar

7.

Cheese

8.

Bats

ROUND 5

1.

Saltaire

2.

Wright (Ian & Richard)

3.

Cha-cha

4.

Tango

5.

Kiera Knightley

6.

Hecuba

7.

Airtours

8.

God Save the Queen (Hymns Ancient & Modern 577)

ROUND 6

1.

The Steady State theory

2.

Andy Farrell

3.

Astatine

4.

Least: Libya 1    Most: Kuwait 4

5.

North and South Vietnam

6.

Hugh Johns

7.

Shirley Bassey

8.

Cannock Chase

ROUND 7

1.

Florence (Ponte Vecchio)

2.

Hammersmith

3.

Pilot

4.

The Eye

5.

Jacob Epstein

6.

Eldrick

7.

Colin Dexter (of Inspector Morse fame)

8.

Vivendi

ROUND 8

1.

Margaret

2.

Guyana

3.

Albert Einstein

4.

Ecstasy

5.

Thirlmere

6.

Leonardo da Vinci

7.

Broad Beans

8.

Deer

SPARES

1.

Elephant

2.

Flying round the Eiffel Tower (in an airship)

3.

Holland (in 1920)

4.

Rene Descartes

5.

Bishop George Berkeley

6.

Lord Greystoke or Tarzan

7.

Channels (or canals) on Mars

8.

Rugby League