ROUND 1

1.

What was the capital city of the US Confederacy?

Richmond, Virginia

2.

How old was Wilfrid Rhodes when he last played Cricket for England?

52

3.

Who knocked out Dionigi Tettamanzi to win one of 2005’s most eminent titles?

Joseph Ratzinger (to become Pope Benedict XVI)

4.

Which 5 countries have a coastline on the Caspian Sea?

Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan

5.

What is the name of the OU Professor who led the Beagle 2 mission?

Colin Pillinger

6.

Which country has the Bolivar as its currency?

Venezuela

7.

Who was Ken Barlow’s uncle in Coronation Street?

Albert Tatlock

8.

In which island group is Guadalcanal?

Solomon Islands

ROUND 2

1.

Which Dickens character said: “If the law supposes that, the law is an ass”?

Mr Bumble (in Oliver Twist)

2.

Who was Virginia Dare?

The first child born of English parents in the Americas

3.

The Wallace Collection is located in Manchester Square, London W1.  It includes one of the nation’s most famous paintings.  Which one?

The Laughing Cavalier

4.

Who did Andrew Flintoff console with a hand on his shoulder after Second Test in last summer’s Ashes series at Edgbaston?

Brett Lee

5.

Which six countries have a coastline on the Black Sea?

Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Rumania, Bulgaria, Turkey

6.

Which US politician wrote about global warming in the book Earth in the Balance?

Al Gore

7.

Who was the famous husband of actress, Elsa Lanchester?

Charles Laughton

8.

Who composed The Harmonious Blacksmith?

Handel

ROUND 3

1.

Who explored the aesthetic merits of elephant dung in 1998?

Chris Ofili

2.

England’s future could be dependent on Branwen, Hugine, Munin, Gwyllum, Thor and Baldrick moving indoors for their health.  Why?

They are the ravens at the Tower of London and they have been taken indoors to protect them from bird flu

3.

What was the previous name of Hawaii?

Sandwich Islands

4.

Which US State has a Manchester-By-The-Sea?

Massachusetts

5.

What are Ricky Wilson, Andrew White, Simon Rix, Nick Hodgson and Nick Baines collectively known as?

Kaiser Chiefs

6.

Who wrote Exodus?

Leon Uris

7.

Who wrote The Lotus Eaters?

Alfred Lord Tennyson

8.

The Entertainer was the theme tune for which film?

The Sting

ROUND 4

1.

What was Stalingrad called before it got that name?

Tsaritzn

2.

Who designed the dome which tops the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore?

Brunelleschi

3.

Who recorded the song Stay With Me Till Dawn?

Judie Tzuke

4.

What were Federal Troops called upon to do in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957?

Enforce the schools integration policy

5.

In which year was Manchester University founded?

1851

6.

Who last month decided to “put his family first” and so stepped down as the Welsh Rugby Union coach?

Mike Ruddock

7.

What are Alex Turner, Jamie Cook, Andy Nicholson and Matt Helders collectively known as?

Arctic Monkeys

8.

Why might Richard Leigh and Michael Baigent cause a Hollywood hold-up?

They’re accusing Dan Brown of plagiarism thus tholding up the release of the film version of The Da Vinci Code

ROUND 5

1.

Who stopped Larry Holmes from equaling Rocky Marciano’s record?

Michael Spinks

2.

In which region of Italy is Naples?

Campania

3.

Bramanti made the first design for it, and Sangallo modified it, but whose design of 1646 finally topped out the Basilica di San Pietro in the Vatican?

Michelangelo

4.

What is Ian Botham’s middle name?

Terence

5.

Which was the last state to abolish slavery?

Mississippi

6.

What is unique about Manchester cathedral?

It has the widest nave in England (114 feet)

7.

Name the four countries through which the Mekong river flows.

Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam

8.

Which team has appeared most times in the Final of the European Football Championship since its inception in 1960?

Russia

ROUND 6 

1.

Who recorded I’m Mandy, Fly Me?

10cc

2.

What is the snow white variety of gypsum (calcium sulphate) better known as?

Alabaster

3.

What was the dog called in Hart to Hart?

Freeway

4.

Who won the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature?

Harold Pinter

5.

Name the 4 countries through which the Zambezi river flows.

Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique

6.

Which 1966 World Cup hero played county cricket?

Geoff Hurst (for Essex)

7.

Whose band had albums called Ole, My Favourite Things and Blue Train?

John Coltrane (though Miles Davis was the answer given in the original paper)

8.

If Bruce Wayne was Batman and Clarke Kent was Superman, who was Eric Twinge?

Bananaman

ROUND 7

1.

What is Peter Mandelson’s correct job title?

European Union Commissioner for Trade

2.

Who recorded Ball of Confusion?

The Temptations

3.

Who directed the films MASH and Brewster McCloud?

Robert Altman

4.

Which main road runs from London to Fishguard?

A40

5.

Who won the 2005 Booker Prize for his novel The Sea?

John Banville

6.

Which sporting event was Susan Brown the first woman to take part in?

The Boat Race

7.

Which county cricket club plays at Eaton Road?

Sussex (in Hove)

8.

Which  Manchester public house eponymously commemorates the unfortunate victor of the Battle of Alexandria in 1801?

The Abercrombie (Sir Ralph Abercrombie was the General who was killed whilst his army won the victory over the French)

ROUND 8

1.

In 2005 who won £25,000 for turning a boat into a shed?

Simon Starling (in the 2005 Turner Prize)

2.

From which island did Enola Gay take off en route to dropping the A-Bomb on Hiroshima?

Tinian

3.

Who wrote the tune Maple Leaf Rag?

Scott Joplin

4.

What in art is a nimbus?

Halo of Lights round a holy figure

5.

Where are the Thousand Islands?

In the St Lawrence River

6.

One half of a celebrity couple who tied the knot in 2005 insisted their outfits for the occasion were “pure class”.  Who were the couple?

Peter Andre and Jordan

7.

At which circuit does the San Marino Grand Prix take place?

Imola

8.

To date which has been the most easterly venue for 5 day Test Cricket in the world?

Napier (Hawkes Bay, New Zealand)

SPARES

1.

What is the other name for the Solan Goose?

The Gannet

2.

What is the name of Donald Duck’s sister?

Dumbella

3.

Who sailed a yacht called Drum?

Simon Le Bon

4.

Which TV detective did William Conrad play?

Cannon

5.

Who painted The Monarch of the Glen?

Landseer

6.

Which of these cities lies closest to the Greenwich Meridian: Mexico City, Lima or Chicago?

Lima