13th January 2009

 

 

Specialist questions

 

Set by Puss Heads

 

Checked by the Harrington B, and Principals

Round 1.  Science & Nature

 

1.  In the periodic table, how many Noble gases are there?

     SIX

2.  What distance is described as one-sixtieth of a degree of the earth’s circumference?

     1 NAUTICAL MILE

3.  Which organ is inflamed when one is suffering from Nephritis?

     KIDNEY

4.  In which organ of the body is the pineal gland?

     BRAIN

5.  What was the name of the space shuttle which explode shortly after launch in 1986, killing all seven crew members?

     CHALLENGER

 

6.  From which plant do we get Vanilla?

    ORCHID

7.  To which island was the long since extinct bird, the Dodo, native? 

     MAURITIUS

   

8. Which English chemist discovered Sodium, Potassium, Barium, and Calcium?

    SIR HUMPHREY DAVY

 

Supplementaries

1.   Which metal has the highest melting point at 3,410 °C?

      TUNGSTEN

2.   Name the sheep that was the world’s first cloned mammal in 1997

       DOLLY

 

 

Round 2.   Retail therapy

Each question is a clue to a well known high street shop or business (assuming they still exist come quiz night!)  i.e……

     Beach shelter made from dough = Pizza Hut

 

1.  Sounds like a Burke & Hare outlet

     THE BODY SHOP

2.   Irrigate the cobbles to read a bit

     WATERSTONES

3.   Fast food in the underpass.

     SUBWAY

4.  Excellent medical composition

     SUPERDRUG

5.  Oily fowl following American Derby

    KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN

6.  Karl and Frank pair up to form a duo

    MARKS and SPENCER

7.  Small arboreal areas

    LITTLEWOODS

8.  Does Mickey shop here?

     DISNEY  STORE

Supplementaries

1.  How appropriate it would be to have a branch on the Ile de la Cité in Paris

     RIVER ISLAND

2.   Plug in for a spicy time

     CURRY'S

Round 3.   There’s gold in them thar hills

 All the questions involve gold in one form or another

 

 

1.   In which year was gold first discovered in California, prompting the Californian

      Gold Rush?

      1848  (allow 1846 - 1850)

 

2.   In which year was the Charlie Chaplin film 'The Gold Rush' first released?

      1925 (allow 1923 - 1927)

 

3.   The signature tune to the 1980s/1990s TV comedy show 'The Golden Girls' was a

      song by Andrew Gold. What was it called? 

     THANK YOU FOR BEING A FRIEND

 

4.  Which TV game show's finale was the Gold Run?

     BLOCKBUSTERS

 

5.  The Golden Rose TV awards were presented in Montreux, Switzerland until 2003.

     In 2004 they were moved to which other Swiss town or city?

     LUCERNE

 

6.   In which country were Golden Wonder Crisps first produced, in 1947?

      SCOTLAND

 

7.   Which company manufactures the Goldwing motorcycle?

      HONDA

 

8.   The first gold discs were presented to artists by their record companies to

      celebrate sales of a million records. The first of these was awarded in the USA by

      RCA in 1942. To whom?

      GLENN MILLER  (for Chattanooga Choo Choo)

 

 

 

Supplementaries

 

 

1.  Going For Gold is currently being shown on Channel Five every weekday lunchtime. Henry Kelly was the original question master but who is the question master on this version?

     JOHN SUCHET

 

2.  David Gold's daughter Jacqueline is the CEO of which company?

     ANN SUMMERS (and KNICKERBOX)

 

 

 

 

 

Round 4.   SPORT - More gold

 1.  Which male athlete won a gold medal at every World Athletics Championships from 1983 to 1997?

     SERGEY BUBKA

 

2.  Of which English football club is David Gold the chairman?

     BIRMINGHAM CITY

 

3.  The Golden Boot is awarded to the leading goalscorer in the football World Cup. Who is the only Englishman to have won this award?

     GARY LINEKER (in 1986)

 

4.  Cyclist Chris Hoy won 3 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics. He also won the

     BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in December. Who was the only other cyclist to win this award?

     TOMMY SIMPSON  (in 1965)

 

5.  How many gold medals did Michael Phelps win at the Beijing Olympics?

     EIGHT

 

6.  On an Olympic archery target, how many points are scored for an inner gold?

     TEN

 

7.   Which horse won the Cheltenham Gold Cup three years in succession, 2002, 2003 and 2004?

      BEST MATE

 

8.   Tony Nash and Robin Dixon won the gold medal in the 2 man bobsled at which Winter Olympics - year or venue?

      1964 at INNSBRUCK

 

Supplementaries

 

 

1.  At which Olympics did Torvill & Dean skate to Ravel's Bolero to win the gold medal? - either year or venue

     1984 at SARAJEVO

 

2.  Goldie Sayers has been the number one British athlete for the last 5 years in which event?

     JAVELIN

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Round 5.  Geography

 

 

1.  What is the largest city in Switzerland?

     ZURICH

 

2. What is the second longest river in Africa?

    THE CONGO (ALSO KNOWN AS THE ZAIRE RIVER)

 

3. What is the state capital of Montana?

    HELENA

 

4. What is the largest city on the south island of New Zealand?

    CHRISTCHURCH

 

5. What is the name of the island off the southern coast of south island New Zealand?

    STEWART ISLAND

 

6. The Gambia borders with only one other country. Which country?

    SENEGAL

 

7. Green Bay is a bay of which Great Lake?

    LAKE MICHIGAN

 

8. What is the second most populous city in Africa?

    LAGOS (NIGERIA)

 

 

Supplementaries

 

 

1. What is the state capital of Nebraska?

    LINCOLN

 

2. What the second largest city in the Ukraine?

    KHARKIV

 

 

 

 

  

Round 6 Arts & Entertainment

 

 

1.  Who wrote Anna Karenina?

     LEO TOLSTOY

 

2.  Which band recorded the albums, Selling England by the Pound, Foxtrot and Trick of the Tail?

    GENESIS

 

3.  Who won Best Director Oscar in 1999 for the film American Beauty?

     SAM MENDES

 

4.  What was Charles Dickens’s final novel?

     THE MYSTERY OF EDWYN DROOD

 

5.  Which heavy metal band recorded the albums Master Of puppets, Ride the Lightning and St. Anger?

     METALLICA

 

6.  By what name is Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat by Beethoven better known?

     EMPEROR

 

7.  By what name is Beethoven’s sixth symphony known?

     PASTORAL

 

8.  Who won Best Director Oscar in 1989 for the film Born on The Fourth Of July?

    OLIVER STONE

 

 

Supplementaries

 

 

1.  By what name is Symphony No. 8 in B Minor by Schubert?

     UNFINISHED

 

2.  Who is missing from this list of musicians – Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and X?

      ERIC CLAPTON (members of Cream).

 

 

 

                                               

Round 7.  History

 

 

1.   Which incident in 1731 gave its name to a war between England and Spain which ran from 1739 to 1748?

      THE CUTTING OFF OF ROBERT JENKINS EAR

 

2.   In 1805 what title was bestowed upon Napoleon Bonaparte?

      KING of ITALY

 

3.   What title was bestowed on Queen Victoria in 1876?

      EMPRESS of INDIA

 

4.   On 13th August 1964 why were Peter Allen and Gwynne Evans in the news?

      THEY WERE THE LAST CONVICTS TO BE HANGED IN BRITAIN

      BEFORE CAPITAL PUNISHMENT WAS ABOLISHED

 

5.   Which monarch, who died in 1327, was the first to establish colleges in Oxford and Cambridge?

      EDWARD II

 

6.   Name any year in the reign of Canute the Great?

      995 - 1035

 

7.   The Hundred Years War began in 1337 in what year did it end?

      1453

 

8.   When Charles II came to the throne he declared his birthday (29th May) a national holiday to celebrate the return of the monarchy. What name was given to this day?

      OAK APPLE DAY

 

 

Supplementaries

 

 

 

1.   Following the Reunification of Italy in 1861 who became the first king of the united country?

      VICTOR EMMANUEL II (accept VICTOR EMMANUEL)

 

2.   The word Cabal has come into current usage from an acronym of the names of the group of 5 ministers who conducted affairs of state during the reign of Charles II.  Name one of the ministers.

      CLIFFORD, ARLINGTON, BUCKINGHAM, ASHLEY or LAUDERDALE

 

 

 

 

 

Round 8.  Our American Cousins

 

 

1.   Montpelier is the smallest state capital in the USA with a population of only 8,000. Of which State is it the capital?

      VERMONT

 

2.   Who directed the films “Flags of our Fathers” and “Letters from Iwo Jima” which  tell the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima from the American and Japanese sides respectively?

      CLINT EASTWOOD

 

3.   Where were the 1960 Winter Olympic Games held?

      SQUAW VALEY

 

4.    Only 2 US state capitals contain the full name of the state. Indianapolis is one what is the other?

      OKLAHOMA CITY

 

5.   Who is the American journalist and author famous for her unofficial biographies of Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra and Nancy Reagan amongst others?

     KITTY KELLEY

 

6.   In which state is the largest population of Amish religious community found?

      PENNSYLVANIA

 

7.   Who was the Scottish born naturalist and author whose work led to the establishment of both Yosemite and Sequoia as National Parks and who gave his name to the giant redwood woods north of San Fransisco?

      JOHN MUIR       

 

8.   William Henry Harrison was the ninth American president. He stands out from the rest for two reasons. Name either.

     HE WAS THE FIRST TO DIE IN OFFICE. /  HIS WAS THE SHORTEST TENURE (31 DAYS)

 

Supplementaries

 

 

1.   Which native American Indian, one of the 5 men who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima, was decorated as a war hero but died a dissolute drunk?  His story was immortalised in song by Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan and others.

     IRA HAYES

 

 

2.   In what year did Franklin D Roosevelt famously say “I think this would be a good time for a beer”?

     1933 ………….Accept 1932-1934   (repeal of Prohibition)

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

I have not been able to get an electronic copy of these questions yet and the following is very sketchy as it has been scanned - if I do get an electronic copy I will replace the following

1. In December, Mark Felt — who was involved in the Watergate scandal — died. How was he better known?

 Deep Throat

 

 

2. In which Australian state is Brisbane?

Queensland

 3. As at Jan 1 st 2009, who is the chairman of Macclesfield Town FC?

Mike Rance

4. What is 'pop sensation' Geraldine McQueen's real name?

Peter Kay

5. In December 2008, playwright Harold Pinter died. For which film screenplay, starring Meryl Streep, was he nominated for an Oscar?

 The French Lieutenant's Woman

 6. What is the nickname of the Australian Rugby Union team?

The Wallabies

7. What was the name of the fuel line created to support the D-Day landings?

PLUTO (Pipe Line Under The Ocean)

 

8. In what year was the Boy Scouts Movement (now known as The Scouts Association) founded?

 1908 (allow 1906 - 1910)

 

9. Whose 2003 debut album was called `The Soul Sessions'?

Joss Stone

 

10. Which religious holiday do the French know as Vendredi  Saint?

Good Friday

11.  Which battle between England and France occurred 400 years before Waterloo?

 Agincourt

12. What standard size of paper measures 420mm x 297mm? 

A3

13.British driver Jenson Button started his Fl career with which team? 

Williams

14. What is the middle name of Sir Alex Ferguson?

 Chapman

15. .Which amateur football club's home ground is Hampden Park?

 Queen's Park FC

16. Which ex-England footballer, now a racehorse trainer, was seriously injured in a road accident on the Ml in August 2008?

Mick Channon

17. Originally known as Lewis Separates and then Miss Chelsea, what's this High Street fashion chain's current name?

 River island

18. Who preceded Mervyn King as the Governor of the Bank of England?

Eddie George

 19. Which British monarch was on the throne at the time of both Trafalgar and Waterloo?

George III

20.       What was the last pitched battle on British soil? 

Culloden (1746)

21.       Which popular celebrity partnered Christina Rihanoff on Strictly Come Dancing?

John Sargeant

22.       Which Asian island was formerly known as Formosa?

Taiwan

23. In 1963 Dr Richard Beeching was in the headlines. For what?

 His report on Britain's railways that recommended axing over a quarter of the network

 

 24.  What is the name of Father Ted's housekeeper?

Mrs Doyle

25. Where is the only place in Britain ever visited by Elvis Presley?

 

Prestwick Airport (a 2-hour stopover en route from Germany to the USA in 1960)

26. What nickname is shared by the Hull City FC and Leicester Rugby Union teams?

 Tigers

27. .What nickname is shared by the Southampton FC and Northampton Rugby Union teams ? Saints

 28. Name the Conservative Foreign Secretary who resigned after the Falklands Invasion in 1982?

 

Lord Carrington

 29. In the NATO communications alphabet, what word represents the letter Q?

 Quebec

 30. What is the Christian name of Sharpe, in Bernard Cornwell's novels? 

Richard

30. Who are the current sponsors of The FA Cup? 

E.on (the energy company)

32. Which was the first British football club to win the European Cup? 

Celtic

 

33. Which horse won the 2008 Cheltenham Gold Cup? 

Denman

 

4. Woolworth's first UK store opened in 1909. In which city?

 

Liverpool

35.  .Whose ancestral home is Woburn Abbey? The Duke of Bedford

36. What name is given to the wife of an Earl? Countess

 

37. Name either of the characters played by Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon in The Odd Couple.

Oscar or Felix

 

38. Who is the only person to win the Nobel Prize for Literature (1925) and an Oscar (1938)?

 

George Bernard Shaw

 

39. . What name is given to a native of The Orkneys?

 

Orcadian

 

40. Who commanded the US forces in The First gulf War, and became known as Stormin' Norman?

General Norman Schwarzkopf Jr

 

41. Who invented the Spinning Jenny?

James Hargreaves

42. In which decade was the Co-operative Movement founded in Rochdale?

 1840s (1844)

43. Which well-known Conservative politician lost out to both McMillan and Douglas-Home in his efforts to become Prime Minister?

R A (RAB) Butler

 44.Which British Prime Minister succeeded Asquith? 

David Lloyd George

45. Name the drummer with rock legends Pink Floyd.

Nick Mason

46. Which classic rock group's original members included Tony lommi, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler?

Black Sabbath.

47. 0n which river does St Petersburg stand?

Neva

48. Which is the most easterly of the English National Parks? 

The Norfolk Broads

49. What was the signature tune of Flanagan and Allen?

Underneath The Arches

50. Which band leader's catchphrase was "Wakey, wakey!"?

Billy Cotton

51. Who did Ramon Mercader assassinate in Mexico on 20th August 1940?

Leon Trotsky

52  In which year did the Eiffel Tower open? 

1889 (accept 1887 — 1891)

53        What is the fastest creature on two legs?

The Ostrich

54. What species of fish are Common, Leather, Mirror or Crucian? 

Carp

55. Which acid was once commonly known as oil of vitriol?

Sulphuric acid

56. Which planet has a great red spot?

Jupiter

57. On which record label was Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells released?

Virgin

 58. What sort of creature is a Gloucestershire Old Spot?

A pig

59. Viscum album is the Latin/scientific name for which plant? 

Mistletoe

60. Which 1970s rock band founded its own record label and called it SwanSong?

 Led Zeppelin

61. 1712 saw the last execution in England for which crime? 

Witchcraft

62. Who was England's last Roman Catholic monarch?

James II

63. Which stretch of water separates Sicily from Italy?

The Straits of Messina

64. Not counting Antarctica and Australia (which are continental land masses), the world's three largest islands are Greenland, New Guinea and Borneo. What is the fourth?

 Madagascar

65. Which element has the chemical symbol W? 

Tungsten

66. Which element has the chemical symbol P?

Phosphorous

 67.Eniskillen is the administrative centre of which Northern Irish district?

Fermanagh

68. In World War 2, the Junkers JU87 was better known as what?

 The Stuka Dive Bomber

69. In which Italian city was Christopher Columbus born

Genoa

 70. Dundalk is the administrative centre of which Irish county?

 Louth

71. In binary arithmetic, which number is represented by 100?

4

 72. .Who was the first person to sail solo around the world non-stop? 

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston (June 1968)

73. The super-fast Lockheed SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft built in the 1960s is better known by what name?

The Blackbird

74.Which actor played C. S. Lewis in the 1993 film "Shadowlands''?

Anthony Hopkins

75. Which actress played The White Witch in the 2005 film of `The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'?

 Tilda Swinton

76. .Which global car manufacturer recently forecast its first annual loss in 71 years?

 Toyota

77.  Which royal house succeeded to the throne in 1603?

The Stuarts

78. Who designed Marble Arch?

 John Nash

79. According to the Internet Movie Database (imdb.com), what was Harpo Marx's real first name?

 Adolph

80.On a stringed musical instrument such as a violin, what is the component that supports the strings called?

 The bridge

81. In which year was cigarette advertising banned on ITV?

 1965 (accept 1964 – 1966)

82. What is a male swan called?

A cob

83. Who led the defence of Mafeking in the second Boer War? 

Robert Baden-Powell

84. In which year was Arighi Bianchi established?

1854 (accept 1851 -1857)

 85. 'Hibernia was the Roman name for which country?

Ireland

 86. Name either of the two Thames bridges under which the Oxford/Cambridge boat race passes.

 Barnes/Hammersmith

87. Who was the last Plantagenet monarch of England? 

Richard IlI

88. Which is the only letter to have a value of 5 in Scrabble?

K

 89. .Which Monopoly property is missing from this group: The Strand, Trafalgar Square and...?

 Fleet Street

90. How long did the General Strike last?

9 days (accept 8-10)

91. How is the bodily condition `Hidrosis' better-known? 

Sweating/perspiration

92. What does a manometer measure?

 Gas pressure

93. Who composed the opera `Peter Grimes'?

Benjamin Britten

 94.Who was the last Emperor of India?

George VI (until Indian independence in 1947)

 95.       How long did prohibition last in the USA?

 14 years (accept 13-15)

96.       In World War 2, what was Operation Dynamo?

 The evacuation of Dunkirk

SUPPLEMENTARIES

What was German Field Marshall Rommel's first name? 

Erwin

Give year in the life of Marco Polo.

 1254 - 1324

 

 

Which classical composer wrote `Fanfare for the Common Man', with which Emerson Lake and Palmer had a chart hit in 1977?

 Aaron Copeland

On which island was Nelson Mandela held for most of his imprisonment? 

Robben Island

Uranus was discovered in 1781 by which astronomer?

 William Herschel

Who was the Roman counterpart of the Greek Goddess Athena? 

Minerva

Which Manchester group had a 1979 hit with `Every Day Hurts'?

 Sad Cafe