Shrove Tuesday

 

Specialist Rounds 21 February 2012

Tonight’s specialist questions have been set by the Puss In Boots, and vetted by the Albion.

Entertainment: Radio Ha Ha

Q1. What four unimaginative new names were given to the Home Service, Light and Third Programmes and their associated services following a reorganisation on 30 September 1967?

A1. BBC Radios 1, 2, 3 and 4 [all four station names required].

Q2. The Mary Whitehouse Experience was Radio 1’s first attempt at a comedy series in 1989. The four original writers included Rob Newman and Hugh Dennis. Name one of the other two who went on to TV fame?

A2. David Baddiel or Steve Punt

Q3. The Million Pound Radio Show that aired in the mid-1980s launched the career of which TV funny man that went on to make ‘loadsamoney’?

A3. Harry Enfield

Q4. Which long-running topical television panel game was a taken from an idea first tested by Radio 4’s The News Quiz?

A4. Have I Got News for You

Q5. What was peculiar about Radio 4’s eight-and-a-half hour continuous broadcast on Boxing Day 2000?

A5. Uninterrupted and unabridged reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (because JK Rowling refused to let it be serialised).

Q6. Jack Dee now gives the panel members of I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue silly things to do, but whose famous jazz-trumpet playing shoes did he fill?

A6. Humphrey Lyttelton

Q7. Where is the radio show Old Harry’s Game set?

A7. Hell

Q8. Who wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, originally a radio comedy, first broadcast in 1978?

A8. Douglas Adams

Supplementaries

Q9. In which BBC Radio programme could you have found the characters Neddie, Eccles, Min, Major Bloodknock and Count Moriarty?

A9. The Goon Show

Q10. Mark Steel presenter of Mark Steel’s in Town, also writes a column for which national daily newspaper?

A10. The Independent or the "i"

Geography

Q1. The Oresund bridge joins two European countries - name either of them.

A1. Sweden or Denmark

Q2. Which river separates Devon and Cornwall?

A2. Tamar

Q3. Which Motorway links Glasgow and Edinburgh?

A3. M8

Q4. Which Motorway links Coventry and Leicester?

A4. M69

Q5. Which is the only English port offering passenger ferry services to the Republic of Ireland?

A5. Liverpool

Q6. Which is the only English port offering passenger ferry services to Scandinavia?

A6. Harwich (runs to Esbjerg in Denmark)

Q7. Which British National Park has the longest Coastline?

A7. Pembrokeshire Coast (260 miles)

Q8. Near which British city would you find the mumbles?

A8. Swansea

Supplementaries

Q9. What is the highest denomination Euro banknote available?

A9. 500 Euro

Q10. St Davids, St Thomas and St James Park are all railway stations in which British City?

A10. Exeter

History: 20th Century Europe

Q1. Who was the maternal grandmother of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany?

A1. Queen Victoria of Great Britain

Q2. What was St Petersburg known as between 1914 and 1924?

A2. Petrograd [and then Leningrad until 1991 but I specifically want “Petrograd”]

Q3. Who was Chancellor of West Germany at the time of its reunification with East Germany?

A3. Helmut Kohl

Q4. The Falange were a far right wing group holding power from the 1930s to 1970s in which European country?

A4. Spain

Q5. In which year did Ted Heath's Government impose the "Three Day Week"?

A5. 1974 [leeway 1973-1975]

Q6. Which British Prime Minister lived at Chartwell in Kent from 1924 to 1965?

A6. Winston Churchill

Q7. Apart from West Germany and France, name one other of the founding members in 1952 of the European Coal and Steel Community?

A7. Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg

Q8. In 1963, which French president vetoed the UK's application to join the European Economic Community?

A8. Charles De Gaulle

Supplementaries

Q9. What was the name of the trade union that went on strike at the Lenin Shipyards in Gdansk in 1980?

A9. Solidarity ("Solidarnosc" if anyone can remember the Polish).

Q10. What is the name of the Bosnian town, infamous as the site of the July 1995 mass murders perpetrated by Ratko Mladic's forces?

A10. Srebrenica [pronounced Sreb-ren-itsa]

Science: Some of us are looking at the stars

Q1. What do 82.5% of the UK population use every day that was first developed at CERN by Tim Berners-Lee and his team?

A1. The World Wide Web (Do not accept ‘The Internet’)

Q2. In which decade of the 17 Century did Galileo first use a telescope he had built himself to study the Universe?

A2. 1610s (actual date1609)

Q3. What is the common name for the star Alpha Orionis situated at the top left of the constellation Orion?

A3. Betelgeuse [pronounced Beetlejuice]

Q4. What is the name of the project that Professor Brian Cox is working on at CERN?

A4. BERN Atlas (Accept ‘Atlas’)

Q5. The ‘apparent magnitude’ of a star is a measurement of its what?

A5. Brightness

Q6. International Space Station (ISS) Astronauts' schedules are set on a 24-hour, Earth-based timetable to keep their activity as grounded as possible. The clocks onboard the ISS are set to which time zone?

A6. Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) because that is roughly half way between Houston, Texas and Moscow.

Q7. The first known pulsar was observed in 1967 by astronomers Jocelyn Bell Burnell and Antony Hewish who referred to their discovery as LGM-1. What did LGM stand for?

A7. Little Green Men

Q8. In which US state is Palomar Observatory?

A8. California

Supplementaries

Q9. As of 2006, Pluto is no longer considered a planet, but is now one of five in a class of objects called a dwarf planet. Name one of the other four dwarf planets as identified by the International Astronomical Union?

A9. Ceres, Eris, Makemake or Haumea

Q10. Patrick Moore has been presenting ‘The Sky at Night’ since 1957; name one of his current team of four co-presenters?

A10. Dr Chris Lintott; Pete Lawrence; Paul Abel; Dr Chris North

Sport

Q1. Who holds the women's world 100 metre dash world record?

A1. Florence Griffith-Joyner accept Flo-JO

Q2. Over how many sets is a women's grand slam tennis match contested?

A2. 3

Q3. Which British gymnast won the 2006 and 2010 uneven bars world championship?

A3. Beth Tweddle

Q4. Who was the only woman to win BBC's sport personality of the year in the 1990s?

A4. Liz McColgan (1991)

Q5. Which BBC sports presenter was the the Amateur flat jockey Champion Lady rider in 1990?

A5. Clare Balding

Q6. What is the women's equivalent to the men's tennis competition the Davis Cup?

A6. The Fed Cup

Q7. What is the women's equivalent to the men's golf competition the Ryder Cup?

A7. The Solheim Cup

Q8. Which is the first event contested in an Olympic heptathlon?

A8. 100 metre hurdles

Supplementaries

Q9. Which swimmer won gold medals at the 2008 Olympic games in the 400 metre and 800 metre freestyle?

A9. Rebecca Adlington

Q10. Who is going to be the head coach of the women's Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic football team?

A10. Hope Powell

“C” & “R” round

All the answers in this round start with the letter “R” or “C”.

Q1. Whose parents were Quorum and Mared?

A1. Red Rum

Q2. In which city was Joan of Arc burned at the stake?

A2. Rouen

Q3. A French Press can be used to make which drink?

A3. Coffee

Q4. Until 1955, which word meant a mathematician - it now refers to a machine?

A4. Computer

Q5. Which event was not televised by the BBC in 2009, the first time since 1966 that they had not covered it?

A5. Crufts

Q6. Which of Batman's enemies had henchmen called 'Across and Down' and a girlfriend called 'Anna Gram?'

A6. Riddler

Q7. A substance which is used to alter the rate of a chemical reaction but which does not otherwise take part in it is called what?

A7. Catalyst

Q8. What was the first name of Martin Luther King's widow?

A8. Coretta

Supplementaries

Q9. In which sitcom do Jim, Twiggy and Dave drink in 'The Feathers?'

A9. Royle Family

Q10. Who composed the Minute Waltz?

A10. Chopin

Philosophy

We didn’t want this to be too highbrow so, according to Monty Python “Immanuel Kant was a real pissant who was very rarely stable; Heidegger, Heidegger was a boozy beggar who could think you under the table”. This just about rhymes, badly, but may inspire a few guesses with questions 3-6.

Q1. Which Athenian philosopher was put to death for impiety in 399 BC by being forced to drink Hemlock?

A1. Socrates

Q2. Which Italian dedicated his book "The Prince" to Lorenzo de Medici? His name then became a byword for underhand political cunning.

A2. Niccolo Machiavelli

Q3. Which Victorian English philosopher wrote 'On Liberty' and 'Utilitarianism', and according to Monty Python "...of his own free will, on half a pint of shandy was particularly ill" ?

A3. John Stuart Mill

Q4. Which Edinburgh-born philosopher has a statue on the Royal Mile, and argued you can't get an "ought" from an "is"? According to Monty Python he "could out-consume Schopenhauer and Hegel".

A4. David Hume

Q5. Which Austrian-born British philosopher of the 20th century is known for his work on the nature and limits of language, and according to Monty Python "was a beery swine"?

A5. Ludwig Wittgenstein

Q6. Which ancient Greek philosopher was a student of Plato and tutor to Alexander the Great? He made contributions to science, logic and ethics, but according to Monty Python was "a bugger for the bottle".

A6. Aristotle. [apparently this is also used as rhyming slang for “bottle” by some cockneys and Australians]

Q7. Which English philosopher and proponent of utilitarianism has his clothed skeleton preserved at University College London?

A7. Jeremy Bentham

Q8. Which Welsh philosopher and mathematician was the grandson of a Victorian prime minister and well known for his activism in pacifism and campaigning for nuclear disarmament?

A8. Bertrand Russell

Supplementaries

Q9. In Thomas Hobbes' 'Leviathan', he describes the life of man without society as "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and" what?

A9. Short

Q10. Which still-living philosopher of language and mind is better known for his political writing on international affairs and criticism of US politics?

A10. Noam Chomsky

Going Dutch!

Q1. Who was one of the leading artists in the De Stijl art movement and best known for his paintings which consisted of white backgrounder with a grid of black lines and 3 primary colours?

A1. Piet Mondrian

Q2. Which Dutch explorer is credited with the discovery of New Zeland?

A2. Able Tazman

Q3. The Dutch East Indies is now which modern day country?

A3. Indonesia

Q4. Name a year in the life of William the 3rd of England?

A4. 1650-1702

Q5. Who directed the films Basic Instinct and Show Girls?

A5. Paul Verhoven

Q6. Which Orwellian reality TV show was first shown on Dutch tv in 1999?

A6. Big Brother

Q7. Which Dutch football team won the European Cup in 1988?

A7. PSV Eindoven

Q8. Which far sighted scientific instrument is credited as being first developed by Hans Lippershey and Zacharias Janssen in the 17th century?

A8. The telescope

Q9. Which darts player won his first world championship in 1998?

A9. Raymond Van Barneveld

Q10. Which band had a hit with the song Radar Love?

A10. Golden Earing

 

General Knowledge 21 February 2012

Tonight’s general knowledge questions have been set by the Albion, and vetted by the Puss In Boots.

1 What is the next to last element in the periodic table Alphabetically?

Answer Zinc (Zirconium is the last)

2 Where are the 2016 Olympics due to be held?

Answer Rio De Janeiro

3 Which Shakespeare play is about the confused identity of two sets of twins?

Answer - A Comedy of Errors

4 Name the dog belonging to Harry Redknapp whose name was on a bank account in Monaco.

Answer - Rosie

5 In which country did the song and dance rhythm the Rumba originate?

Answer - Cuba

6 First published in 1929 which character is Belgian George Remi best known for creating?

Answer - Tin Tin This was challenged as Herge was the author – but in fact that is his pen name

7 Who was credited with a second U.K. number one hit single with ‘Mambo No 5’

Answer - Bob The Builder

8 Which early 19th century flamboyant poet and lover wrote these words? "Champagne with foaming whirls as white as Cleopatra's pearls"

Answer - Lord Byron

9 In 'The Lord of the Rings', what is the name of the inn in Bree, where a fine beer can be enjoyed?

Answer - The Prancing Pony

10 Which metallic element atomic, no 83 in the periodic table, soothes Gastric Ulcers?

Answer Bismuth

11 What was the name of the plastic horn which caused problems for broadcasters during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa?

Answer - Vuvuzela

12 Whose recently published memoirs of her time at no 10 Downing Street are entitles ‘Behind the Black Door’?

Answer - Sarah Brown

13 North Korean leader Kim Jong il who died in December last year has been succeeded by which of his sons?

Answer - Kim Jong Un

14 Tony Blair was recently reported in the press as having paid £315,000 in Income tax. From what level of reported income was this deducted

Answer - 12 million pounds (Accept 11 to 13 Millions)

15 What palace is part of the Hermitage museum in St Petersburg, Russia?

Answer - The Winter Palace

16 Which recently deceased pop singer was at one time married to Debbie Rowe

Answer - Michael Jackson

17 Who were the longest running cartoon family before the Simpsons?

Answer The Flintstones

18 Which fashion chain, now operating in more than 20 countries, began in 1964 at a small shop in another store in Sheffield where it could be found up a flight of stairs

Answer Topshop

19 Who was the manager of the Manchester United team that won the European cup in 1968?

Answer - Matt Busby

20 Which U.S. stunt rider, 1938 - 2007, entered the Guinness book of records with the most bones broken in a lifetime?

Answer - Evel Knievel

21 Lyme Disease is spread by which parasitic creature?

Answer - The Tick

22 What song was a hit for Justin Hayward in 1978?

Answer - Forever Autumn

23 What was the name of the canoeist who famously faked his own death in 2002?

Answer - John Darwin

24 Who wrote the book ‘Cakes and Ale‘?

Answer - Somerset Maugham

25 What type of musician would play a rimshot

Answer A Drummer

26 Give the real or character name of the only actor in ‘Dad’s Army‘ who saw active service in both world wars

Answer Arnold Ridley, playing Private Godfrey

27 What was the title of Thin Lizzy’s first top ten hit in 1973?

Answer - Whisky in the Jar

28 What is the name of the flying island in Jonathon Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels?

Answer - Laputa

29 What poison was used in the umbrella killing of Georgi Markov, the Bulgarian dissident?

Answer- Ricin

30 What was the title of the 1961 film featuring Tony Hancock’s first cinematic role?

Answer - The Rebel

31 Which monarch exchanged fire with potential assassins outside the Vienna State Opera is 1931

Answer - King Zog of Albania

32 Sebastian, Scuttle and Flounder are all characters in which Disney film?

Answer - The Little Mermaid

33 In the 70’s who did Idi Amin oust from power in Uganda?

Answer- Milton Obote

34 Who wrote the novel The Women In White?

Answer - Wilkie Collins

35 What was the nickname of Arthur Marx?

Answer‘ - Harpo’

36 In which century was Richard the Lionheart born?

Answer - 12^th

37 Which US state is known for its Black Hills?

Answer - South Dakota

38 What kind of school was run by Pussy Galore?

Answer -Flying School

39 Which character did Emma Samms play in ‘Dynasty’?

Answer - Fallon Carrington-Colby ( Accept Fallon )

40 Bruce Woodcock was connected with which sport?

Answer - Boxing

41 What is the Royal Navy equivalent of the army rank of Major General? Answer - Rear Admiral

42 Who was the first president of the Fifth French republic?

Answer - General DeGaulle

43 What was Disney’s second animated feature film?

Answer - Pinocchio

44 In which city are the world headquarters of the Mormon Church?

Answer - Salt Lake City

45 Which Motown group featured Lionel Ritchie before he went solo?

Answer - The Commodores

46 Which animals name is aboriginal and means ‘No drink’?

Answer - Koala

47 Which role did Phil Collins play in a stage version of Oliver?

Answer - The Artful Dodger

48 Which flowering plant family includes asparagus?

Answer - Lily

49 Who wrote The Secret Garden?

Answer - Frances Hodgson Burnett

50 In which state was ‘Dynasty ‘ set?

Answer - Colorado

51 What was the nickname of Sir Arthur Travers Harris?

Answer - Bomber

52 Who had a 50’s no1 with ‘The Story of My Life’

Answer - Michael Holliday

53 Which British school did Kurt Hahn found in the 1930’s ?

Answer - Gordonstoun

54 Who was asked for the bolt in the original ‘The Golden Shot’?

Answer - Bernie

55 Concorde and Louise Bonne are types of which fruit?

Answer - Pears

56 How were Roberta, Phyllis and Peter collectively known?

Answer - The Railway Children

57 Which county is home to the Brecon Beacons?

Answer - Powys

58 Which King received the support of Robin Hood?

Answer - Richard 1

59 Who played Dot Cotton in Eastenders?

Answer - June Brown

60 Alan Hansen joined Liverpool from which club?

Answer - Partick Thistle

61 What kind of reference book was Bradshaws?

Answer - Railway Timetable

62 Which actress appeared in Woody Allen’s The Purple Rose of Cairo? Answer - Mia Farrow

63 Who said ‘there’s always something fishy about the French’?

Answer - Noel Coward

64 In an archeological context what is ‘ogham’?

Answer - An early medieval alphabet

65 Alphabetically by first name who was the last of the twelve apostles?

Answer - Thomas

66 What is the capital of Equador?

Answer - Quito

67 Which African football team are nicknamed ‘the elephants’?

Answer - Ivory Coast

68 What is a devil’s coachhorse?

Answer - A type of beetle

69 Which Government building, provided for use primarily by the prime minister and also senior politicians, was Prime Minister Lloyd George the first to use?

Answer - Chequers

70 How many laps are there in a single speedway race?

Answer - 4

71 On which river does Florence stand ?

Answer - The Arno

72 Who was the Greek God of time?

Answer - Chronos

73 Which member of England’s 1966 World Cup winning team also played first-class cricket for Essex?

Answer - Geoff Hurst.

74 What does the I in AIDS stand for?

Answer - Immunity (Accept immune) (Acquired Immunity Deficiency Syndrome)

75 Which member of the Royal Family wrote the children’s story The Old Man of Lochnagar?

Answer - Prince Charles.

76 What country contains Africa’s northernmost point?

Answer - Tunisia.

77 Where in Europe would you find the village of Y?

Answer - France.

78 What, with white crème de menthe, puts the sting in a stinger?

Answer - Brandy.

79 What colour is in Rupert the Bear’s scarf in addition to black?

Answer - Yellow.

80 Corfe castle stands amid which range of hills in Dorset?

Answer - The Purbeck Hills.

81 In what film does Michael Caine say, ‘There’s not many people know that’?

Answer - Educating Rita.

82 Quails and Partridges belong to which family of birds?

Answer - Pheasants.

83 In Imperial units how high is the centre of a tennis net?

Answer - Three feet. (No leeway)

84 Whose death on the same day knocked Aldous Huxley’s off the front page?

Answer - John F. Kennedy’s.

85 How many hearts does an octopus have?

Answer - Three.

86 What’s the name of Sherlock Holmes’s smarter brother?

Answer - Mycroft.

87 What kind of apple is on the Beatles Apple label?

Answer - A Granny Smith.

88 In which American state is Amarillo, made famous by the Tony Christie song?

Answer - Texas.

89 Who painted ‘Soft Self-Portrait with Grilled Bacon’?

Answer - Salvador Dali.

90 Who’s missing from Dave Dee, Beaky, Mick and Titch?

Answer - Dozy.

91 What was Britain’s first national park?

Answer - The Peak District.

92 At what age did both Princess Diana and Marilyn Monroe die?

Answer - 36. (Accept 35 to 37)

93 What colour jersey does the Best Young Rider in the Tour de France wear?

Answer - White.

94 On how many separate occasions was Disraeli Prime Minister?

Answer - Twice.

95 Whose only novel was entitled ‘The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym’?

Answer - Edgar Allen Poe.

96 How many Best Director Oscars did Alfred Hitchcock win?

Answer - None.

SUPPLEMENTARY

1. What is the German word meaning ‘the spirit of the times’?

Answer - Zeitgeist.

2. What is Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall’s maiden name?

Answer - Shand

3. Which word derived from the old Norse language means ’trusted intermediary’, and signifies someone who could be of use in the event of problems with officialdom?

Answer - Ombudsman

4. In which decade did the last manned lighthouse in the U.K. close?

Answer - 1990s

5. Which American poet wrote the lines, ‘Because I would not stop for Death, Death kindly stopped for me, The carriage held but us, And Immortality’?

Answer - Emily Dickinson.

6. Joanna Lumley, Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg were all Bond girls, but in which television series did they also all appear?

Answer - The Avengers

7. Name one of the escape tunnels in the film ‘The Great Escape’

Answer Tom, Dick or Harry

8. What is the capital of Uganda?

Answer - Kampala

9. What is the capital of Tanzania

Answer - Dar Es Salaam