12th February - all questions set by The Dolphin

Geography

1. Two US states border Chesapeake Bay; name either.
A. Maryland or Virginia.

2. Which is the most southerly of the Meteorological Office's shipping forecast areas?
A. Trafalgar.

3. The island of Borneo is divided among three countries; Indonesia is one, name either of the other two.
A. Malaysia or Brunei.

4. The Greater Antilles is an island group comprising the four major islands of the West Indies. Three of them are Cuba, Hispaniola and Jamaica; what is the fourth?
A. Puerto Rico.

5. Which country administers the Ross Dependency in Antarctica?
A. New Zealand.

6. In which city is the HQ of the Ordnance Survey?
A. Southampton.

7. In which English county are Mablethorpe and Cleethorpes?
A. Lincolnshire.

8. In which English county are Biggleswade and Leighton Buzzard?
A. Bedfordshire.

Supplementaries:

9. What is the capital city of Lithuania?
A. Vilnius.

10. In which English county is the Forest of Dean?
A. Gloucestershire.

Science and Nature

1. Mesothelioma is an occupational disease caused by exposure to what substance?
A. Asbestos.

2. Which form of food poisoning takes its name from a 19th century medical pioneer of antiseptic surgery?
A. Listeria. (From Joseph Lister).

3. The 1945 Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded, for a major breakthrough in combatting infection, to Howard Florey, Ernst Chain and who else?
A. Sir Alexander Fleming. (The breakthrough was penicillin).

4. The discovery of the gene was facilitated by research on an insect with the scientific name of Drosophila Melanogaster. What is its English name?
A. Fruit fly.

5. The extinct predator whose scientific name is Smilodon is better known as what?
A. Sabre-toothed tiger or cat. (The essential words are sabre tooth).

6. Which is the largest moon in the Solar System?
A. Ganymede. (One of Jupiter's moons).

7. The Perseids appear in August, the Gemenids in December. What are they?
A. Meteor showers.

8. The Colorado beetle is a serious pest which attacks which crop?
A. Potatoes.

Supplementaries:

9. What is the common name for convolvulus?
A. Bindweed.

10. An insect's body is made up of three parts. The head and abdomen are two, what is the third?
A. The thorax.

Women in Sport

1. In January of this year Anastasia Dobromysova became the first Russian woman to become World Champion in which sport?
A. Darts.

2. In 1997, what sporting first was achieved by Wendy Toms?
A. She was the first woman to officiate, as referee's assistant, in a Premiership Football match.

3. Karen Brady is Managing Director of which Premiership Football club, a post to which she was originally appointed in 1993 at the age of 23?
A. Birmingham City.

4. Who partnered Jamie Murray to victory in the 2007 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Final?
A. Jelena Jankovic.

5. Who won the only British medal at the 2004 Winter Olympics?
A. Shelley Rudman (Silver in the Skeleton Luge).

6. TV sport presenter Gabby Logan represented Wales in the 1990 Commonwealth Games; in which sport?
A. Gymnastics. (Specifically, Rhythmic Gymnastics).

7. Winner of a bronze medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics, Kelly Sotherton is Britain’s leading athlete in which discipline?
A. Heptathlon

8. Hope Powell is a leading figure in which sport?
A. Football; she is the manager of the English women's football team.

Supplementaries:

9. Which country won the 2007 Women's Football World Cup, held in China?
A. Germany (beat Brazil 2 - 0 in the Final).

10. Who refereed the January, 2008, Saga Insurance Snooker Final between Mark Selby and Stephen Lee?
A. Michaela Tabb.

Attention All Shipping

1. What name was given to the lowest deck of a passenger vessel, close to the rudder controls, which provided the cheapest and most basic passenger accommodation?
A. Steerage.

2. The Wardroom on a naval vessel is equivalent to what in the Army?
A. Officers' Mess.

3. What name was given to the raised deck at the stern of a sailing vessel, from where the ship was steered?
A. Poop deck.

4. The look-out platform high on a ship's mast takes its name from which bird?
A. Crow (crow's nest).

5. What name is given to the area of a ship below the lowest floorboards, where water may collect and be pumped out from time to time?
A. Bilges.

6. What well-known four word phrase sums up the principles underlying the "Birkenhead Drill"?
A. "Women and children first".

7. On board a ship, for what purpose would a davit be used?
A. For raising or lowering equipment, especially a lifeboat.

8. On board ship, what name is given to a rotating machine with a drum equipped with ratchets for hauling in heavy ropes?

A. Capstan.

Supplementaries:

9. On a sailing ship, what name is given to the long spar projecting almost horizontally from the bow of the vessel, to which a foremast may be attached?
A. Bowsprit.

10. What name is given to the holes in the sides of a ship's deck, to allow water to drain overboard?
A. Scuppers.

Traditions and Legends of the British Isles

1. Which Sussex town is famous (or notorious) for its distinctively anti-Catholic 5th November Bonfire celebrations?
A. Lewes.

2. What ritual forms the climax of Shetland's celebration of Up Helly Aa! held each January? A. The burning of a Viking longship.

3. What is the name of the dog in the Punch and Judy show?
A. Toby.

4. Which Biblical character is traditionally associated with the Glastonbury Thorn?

A. Joseph of Arimathea.

5. What tradition is associated with the 8th May Spring Festival in Helston, Cornwall?
A. The Furry Dance. (This is the strictly correct answer, but accept Floral Dance).

6. In Irish tradition, what does the wailing of the banshee, or fairy woman, signify?
A. That someone is about to die.

7. What name is given to a mythical mischievous being which causes damage to machinery, in particular to aeroplane engines?
A. A gremlin.

8. What name was given to the shade of green traditionally worn by Robin Hood and his Merry Men?
A. Lincoln Green.

Supplementaries:

9. What gift is supposedly conferred on those who kiss the Blarney Stone?
A. Eloquence (the "Gift of the Gab").

10. In Scottish folklore, what is a silkie or selkie?
A. A sea spirit in the shape of a seal, which can come ashore and take the appearance of a human being.

Arts & Entertainment - Based on.

All the questions in this round concern works of art or entertainment that are based on earlier works.

1. Who wrote “Rhapsody On A Theme of Paganini” for piano and orchestra?
A. Rachmaninov

2. Who wrote “Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis”?
A. Ralph Vaughan Williams

3. The 1956 Science Fiction film "The Forbidden Planet", starring Leslie Neilsen and featuring Robbie the Robot, was inspired by which Shakespeare play?
A. The Tempest.

4. The operas "Lucia di Lammermoor", by Donnizetti, and "The Fair Maid of Perth", by Bizet, are both based on novels by which author?
A. Sir Walter Scott.

5. The 1971 stage play, The Banana Box, in which a black student from Croydon successfully fools people into believing he is an African prince, was the basis for which highly popular TV sitcom?
A. Rising Damp.

6. The Rodgers and Hart musical show The Boys from Syracuse" was based on which Shakespeare play?

A. The Comedy of Errors.

7. Which opera by Richard Strauss, on a Biblical theme, was based on a controversial play by Oscar Wilde?
A. Salome.

8. Francis Bacon's series of paintings of Screaming Popes is based on an original painting of the 17th century Pope Innocent X by which artist?
A. Velasquez.

Supplementaries:

9. The 1974 Rock musical film "Catch My Soul" was based on which Shakespeare play?
A. Othello.
10. Which film, starring Steve Martin, is based on the play “Cyrano De Bergerac” by Edmond Rostand?
A. Roxanne

When in doubt say Smith
In this round all the answers are Smith; you just need the first name. And none of them is John.

1. Theatrical dame who, on screen, taught the "creme de la creme"?
A. Maggie Smith.

2. Poet who was
"....much too far out all my life and not waving but drowning."

A. Stevie Smith (Florence Margaret Smith).

3. Overweight Liberal MP for Rochdale, who described the House of Commons as "the longest running farce in the West End".
A. Cyril Smith.

4. Author of the children's novel that provided Disney with the opportunity to fill the screens with loveable spotted puppies.
A. Dodie Smith (101 Dalmatians).

5. Recently took over Sir Edward Elgar's position in the world of notes.
A. Adam Smith. (Banknotes - on reverse of £20 note).

6. Show-jumper who made the two-fingered salute his own.
A. Harvey Smith.

7. Voted the wittiest living person by Radio 4 listeners in 2002, she said that her home town of Erith, Kent, "isn't twinned with anywhere, but does have a suicide pact with Dagenham"; died tragically young in February, 2006.
A. Linda Smith.

8. The protagonist of Orwell's novel 1984.
A. Winston Smith.

Supplementaries:
9. She taught the world how to boil an egg.
A. Delia Smith.

10. Sun Hill sergeant in the TV series The Bill.
A. Dale Smith.

History

1. The Anglo-Saxon kings Penda and Offa ruled over which kingdom?
A. Mercia.

2. Where is the British general Sir John Moore, a commander in the Napoleonic Wars, buried?
A. Corunna.

3. Who were known as "Poilus"? (pronounced Pwa-loos).
A. French soldiers in World War 1.

4. What nickname was given to US soldiers in World War 1?
A. Doughboys.

5. In the Roman Army, what was the function of the Aquilifer?
A. Standard bearer. (Literally, eagle bearer).

6. Who was the Spartan king who led the Greek forces against the Persians at the Battle of Thermopylae?
A. Leonidas.

7. The Dogger Bank Incident of 1904 caused a diplomatic crisis between Britain and which other state?
A. Russia. (A ship of the Russian Baltic Fleet opened fire on English fishing boats in the North Sea. The captain thought they were Japanese gunboats; he was drunk).

8. Who was the Surveyor-General of India from 1830 - 1843?
A. Sir George Everest.

Supplementaries:

9. Who was Nelson's second-in-command at the Battle of Trafalgar?
A. Admiral Collingwood.

10. In 1918 the RAF was formed by the amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) with which other force?
A. The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS - accept initials as an answer).

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

1. Which Old Testament prophet saw a vision of a valley filled with dry bones?
A. Ezekiel.

2. Which actor tucked into a meal of boiled shoe in The Gold Rush?
A. Charlie Chaplin.

3. The dried covering of nutmeg is the source of another spice; what is it
called?
A. Mace.

4. The "Fourth Plinth Project" is a scheme to put on prominent public display noteworthy modern sculptures. In which well-known tourist site are these sculptures exhibited?
A. Trafalgar Square.

5. What is the working title of the new James Bond film, currently in production?
A. Quantum of Solace.

6. Jack Harkness is head of which fictional organisation?
A. Torchwood.

7. Why was Charles Bradlaugh, elected MP for Northampton in 1880, persistently refused entry to the House of Commons in the early 1880s?
A. As an atheist he was unwilling to swear the oath of allegiance on the Bible.

8. Back in the 1980s, who was the fictional MP for Haltemprice?
A. Alan B'Stard.

9. Which midland town is particularly associated with the manufacture of saddles?
A. Walsall.

10. Name either of the two teams to play in the last FA Cup Final played at the old Wembley Stadium.
A. Chelsea and Aston Villa

11. After which medieval Italian mathematician is the following series of numbers named: 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55 etc? (Each successive number being the sum of the previous two)
A. Fibonacci.

12. In which city, in 1945, was the Arab League founded?
A. Cairo.

13. In a famous poem, to whom were the following words addressed:
"By thy long grey beard and glittering eye.
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?"
A. The Ancient Mariner, by Coleridge.

14. This year two countries intend to adopt the Euro as their national currency; name either.
A. Cyprus or Malta.

15. In Parliament, what term is given to a strict instruction to MPs from their party to make sure they attend for a vote in the House?
A. A three-line whip.

16. What was the original name of Sir Francis Drake's ship. The Golden Hind?
A. The Pelican.

17. The dog officially known as the Alpine Mastiff is better known by which name?
A. The St. Bernard.

18. Which of the Wombles habitually wore a bowler hat?
A. Tobermory.

19. The 19th Century French revolutionary Socialist, Pierre Proudhon, asked the question, "What is Property?" What was his answer?
A. "Property is theft".

20. Where does Desperate Dan live?
A. Cactusville.

21. In which country is Valencia Island?
A. Ireland

22. Which hilariously incompetent police officer, the star of a highly successful series of Holywood comedies, first made his appearance in the short-lived TV series Police Squad.
A. Detective Frank Drebbin. (The Naked Gun series, starring Leslie Neilsen).

23. Which comedian is the host of the teatime TV quiz show Goldenballs?
A. Jasper Carrot.

24. In English law what is deemed to be the first priority for payment from the estate of a deceased person?
A. Funeral expenses.

25. Who ruled England as regent for the young King Richard II in the first years of his reign?
A. John of Gaunt. (His uncle. Duke of Lancaster).

26 . Which well-known and widespread organisation was founded in 1915 in the Anglesey village of Llanfairpwll (Llanfair PG)?
The Women's Institute..

27. In the book trade, what term is used to describe a page of a book which has become somewhat discoloured, particularly with a reddish-brown discolouration?
A. Foxed.

28. Which motor cycle company was founded in 1903 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin?
A. Harley Davidson.

29. The actor and playwright born in London as Ian Roberts has adopted which name, by which he is generally known, to reflect his ethnic roots?
A. Kwame Kwei Armah.

30. Who is credited with having constructed the first Christmas Crib?
A. St. Francis of Assissi. (In 1223 in the town of Greccio)

31. How do the parsees dispose of their dead?
A. They expose the bodies on the tops of high towers to be picked clean by vultures.

32. The 1886 painting Bubbles, by John Everett Millais, was subsequently used as a poster to advertise which specific product?
A. Pear's Soap. (Soap is not enough).

33. The Bolivian artist Doris Salcedo has recently exhibited at the Tate Modern a work entitled Shibboleth. Describe it.
A. It's a huge crack in the floor. The word "crack" is all that's needed.

34. Which medieval English religious reformer is sometimes referred to as "The Morning Star of the Reformation"?
A. John Wycliff.

35. What is the pen name of the novelist David Cornwell?
A. John Le Carre.

36. What is the distinctive stylistic feature of an epistolatory novel?
A. It is written in the form of a series of letters.

37. How many scoring zones are there on a standard dartboard?
A. 82. (2 single scoring areas for each number equals 40; 20 doubles; 20 trebles; 25 and bull).

38. According to the opening lines of a famous European novel, what did Gregor Samsa discover when he woke up one morning from anxious dreams?
A. That he had been transformed into an insect - "a monstrous verminous bug". (Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka).

39. When the English actor James Stewart wanted to pursue a career in Hollywood he had to change his name because they already had a James Stewart. What professional name did he adopt?
Stewart Granger.

40. Whose first book of poetry was published in Kilmarnock in 1786?
A. Robbie Burns.

41. In the name of the Italian car manufacturer FIAT, what does the T stand for?
A. Torino. (Accept Turin).

42. According to the poet Thomas Gray, in his "Elegy in a Country Churchyard", where do the paths of glory lead to?
A. The grave.

43. What was the name of the woman police officer killed outside the Libyan Embassy on 17th April, 1984?
A. Yvonne Fletcher.

44. The Julliard School in New York specialises in which subject area?
A. Music.

45. Hampton Court Maze was created for which king in the 1690s?
A. William III (William of Orange).

46. Two quite different vegetables share the same name, though one is referred to as globe, and the other Jerusalem. What are they?
A. Artichoke.

47. What was the original source of the description of the French as "Cheese-eating surrender monkeys"?
A. The Simpsons.
48. Who was known as "the girl with the million dollar legs"?
A. Betty Grable.

49. How many discs are guests on Desert Island Discs allowed to choose?
A. Eight.

50. In the south they're called "Chavs"; up here they're "Scallies". What are they called in Scotland?
A. Neds.

51. The American illustrator J. J. Audubon achieved fame for his pictures of what?
A. Birds. (The Birds of America).

52. In mathematics what dimension is given by the formula ∏D? (PiD).
A. The circumference of a circle.

53. Which car company recently announced production of the world's cheapest car?
A. Tata motors, of India.

54. What name connects a popular Indie Band with a Jewish dynasty which emerged in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BC?
A. Maccabees.

55. In his 1963 Top Twenty hit Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah what camp was referred to in the song?
A. Camp Granada.

56. Joseph Grimaldi was well-known in the early 19th century; what was his profession?
A. Clown.

57. The manufacture of what product is depicted on the back of the new £20 note?
A. Pins.

58. What historic method of political campaigning was unexpectedly revived by John Major in the 1992 General Election campaign?
A. The soapbox.

59. The TV drama My Boy Jack, broadcast on Armistice Sunday, 2007, was a reconstruction of events which occurred during the First World War. What was the surname of the "Jack" in the title?
A. Kipling. (He was Rudyard Kipling's son).

60. What comment did Dylan Thomas make about Wales, referring to the title of the Welsh National Anthem, "Land of my Fathers"?
A. "Land of my Fathers! My Fathers can have it!"

61. Which element comprises over 90 per cent of the composition of the Sun?
A. Hydrogen.

62. The US city of Cleveland stands on the shores of which great lake?
A. Lake Erie.

63. The Women's Pentathlon was replaced at the 1984 Olympics by the Heptathlon. Name either of the two events that were added.
A. Javelin or 800 metres.

64. The ancient city of Ephesus was a major centre for the cult of which goddess?
A. Artemis (Greek); accept Diana (Roman).

65. What are the first five words of the popular American poem, first published in 1823, and entitled A Visit from St. Nicholas?
A. " 'Twas the night before Christmas".

66. What name is given to the ancient Christian Church of Egypt, and also to the ancient Egyptian language that they use for their rituals?
A. Coptic.

67. Which Australian-born actor was found dead in his Manhattan flat on January 22nd this year?
A. Heath Ledger.

68. The 2007 film “I’m Not There” is described as ruminations on the life of a famous musician, in which six actors, including Heath Ledger, Cate Blanchett and Richard Gere, embody different aspects of his life and work. Which musician?
A. Bob Dylan

69. In 2007, which film topped the list of the American Film Institute's top 100 Films of all time?
A. Citizen Cane.

70. The current Cabinet includes a husband and wife team; name either.
A. Ed Balls and Yvette Cooper.

71. Who, according to tradition, was the original narrator of the thousand and one stories in the Arabian Nights?
A. Sheherazade.

72. The BBC sponsored series of Promenade Concerts held each summer is named after which conductor, who founded the concerts?
A. Sir Henry Wood.

73.Who directed the film Monty Python's Life of Brian?
A.Terry Jones.

74. According to the monetarist economist Milton Friedman, there is no such thing as a free what?
A.Lunch.

75.Who is the oldest footballer to score in the final stages of the Football World Cup?
A.Roger Milla. (Of the Cameroons, in 1994, aged 42 allegedly).

76.What is the traditional nickname of someone whose surname is Miller?
A.Dusty.

77.In Greek mythology, who solved the riddle of the Sphinx?
A.Oedipus.

78.What German word means a ghostly double of someone?
A.Doppelganger.

79.What is ACOL?
A bidding system in Bridge.

80.On a standard dartboard, what is the lowest number which cannot be thrown with a single dart?
23

81.What is a "valedictory" message?
A farewell message.

82.Last month the Royal Academy accepted for exhibition a water colour, entitled Farm Building in Norfolk, from Arthur George Carrick. How is he better known?
A.Prince Charles.

83.The name of which toy, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in January, translates into English as "play well"?
A.Lego.

84.Which architect was jailed for seven years for corruption in 1974?
A. John Poulson.

85. Who composed the opera Nabucco?
A. Verdi.

86. Which new fantasy film, based on a book by Philip Pullman, stars Daniel Craig, Nicole Kidman and the child actor Dakota Blue Richards (sic)?
A. The Golden Compass.

87. Which warship, second in line behind HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, became the subject of a famous painting by Turner?
A. HMS Temeraire (The Fighting Temeraire towed to her last resting place).

88. Mt. Toubkal is the highest peak in which north African mountain range, which lies between the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean Sea?
A. The Atlas Mountains.

89. In Stravinsky's ballet Petruschka, what is Petruschka?
A. A puppet or marionette. (Accept, reluctantly, doll).

90. The traditional song glorifying poaching which has the chorus line
"Oh! 'Tis my delight on a Friday night in the season of the year",
is associated with which county?
A. Lincolnshire. (The title is The Lincolnshire Poacher).

91. What was unusual about the piano concerto which Ravel wrote in 1930 for the Austrian concert pianist Paul Wittgenstein?
A. It was for the left hand only. Wittgenstein lost his right arm in the war. He was, incidentally, the brother of the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein.

92. Which country has played host to the 2008 African Cup of Nations?
A. Ghana.

93. What is the traditional nickname of somebody whose surname is Clarke?
A. Nobby.

94. What substance was traditionally supposed to have been added to British soldiers' tea to suppress their sexual urges?
A. Bromide.

95. What German word is used to refer to a quietly malicious pleasure at someone else's misfortune?
A. Schadenfreude.

96. The colourful garden flower, pelargonium, popular in tubs and hanging baskets, is often incorrectly referred to by what name?
A. Geranium.

Supplementaries:

97. What was the first film in the series based on novels by Len Deighton and starring Michael Caine as the spy Harry Palmer?
A. The Ipcress File.

98. Who duetted with Freddy Mercury in the Olympic anthem "Barcelona"?
A. Montserrat Cabballe.

99. What kind of animal is a boomslang (pron. Bomes -lang)?
A. A snake. (A South African tree snake).

100. Which soft drinks brand sponsors the Scottish Football League? (Not the Premiership).
A. Irn-Bru.

101. How, professionally, is Geraldine Grainger known?
A. The Vicar of Dibley.

102. Which war leader died when HMS Hampshire was sunk by a U-Boat in 1916?
A. Lord Kitchener.

103. The fictional village Cranford is based on which real town?
A. Knutsford.

104. In which battle did the action of the poem "Casablanca" take place?
A. The Battle of the Nile, 1798; (accept Aboukir Bay).