5th January - The Questions

All questions set by the Royal Oak

SPECIALIST

Alliterative Answers

Arts and Entertainment

Geography – Historical Connections

History – Murderers, Spies and Traitors

Maccas

Science – Equations You Learnt (or not) At School

Sounds Fishy

Sport

Alliterative Answers
(The full alliterative answer is required)
1. Who is the Danish actor known for playing the villain Le Chiffre in the Bond film Casino Royale (2006) and Dr Hannibal Lecter in the TV series Hannibal (2013-15)?
Mads Mikkelsen
2.Who was the English MP, born in 1759 in Hull, and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade?
William Wilberforce
3. Which book, published in 1678, tells the story of Christian and his journey from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City atop Mount Zion?
Pilgrim’s Progress
4. Born in 1899 in Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent, she studied at Burslem School of Art and worked in Stoke-on-Trent all her life. She is best known for her hand-painted, ‘art deco’ designs under the label Bizarre. Who was she?.
Clarice Cliff
5. The adventures of this lively little girl in the pink-and-white striped dress, created in 1928 by author Joyce Lankester Brisley, are still being enjoyed today. What is her name?
Milly Molly Mandy
6. Which well-known English comedian/musician’s current tour is called Limboland?
Bill Bailey
7. Probably the first animated sex symbol on screen, who was the ‘Jazz Age’ flapper who made her first appearance in 1930?
Betty Boop
8. Leonard Rossiter played this miserly and seedy landlord in the ITV sitcom Rising Damp. Who was he?
Rupert Rigsby
Supplementaries
9. What is the name of the fictional, award-winning journalist who is the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books and films?
Lois Lane
10. Name the retired French international footballer who won the FIFA World Player of the Year three times, the Ballon D’Or once and the Legion D’honneur in 1998?
Zinedine Zidane
 
Arts and Entertainment
1. Who was the celebrity winner of Strictly Come Dancing 2015? Jay McGuinness
2. Gareth Malone’s ‘Naked Choir 2015’ was won by a male group called ‘Sons of Pitches’. What singing style did all participants in this competition have to use?
Acapella OR unaccompanied by instruments
3. What new modern building has won the UK's most prestigious architecture prize –the RIBA Stirling Prize 2015?
Burntwood School, Wandsworth (accept “London school”) (a girls’ comp)
4. Which British author, who is still the oldest ever winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature (2007), wrote The Golden Notebook and died in 2013?
Doris Lessing
5. By what name was the fictional hero Sir Percy Blakeney also known?
The Scarlet Pimpernel
6. Philip Pirrip is the central character in which Dickens novel?
Great Expectations (his nickname was Pip)
7. Which veteran broadcaster guides you through two hours of 'Sounds of the Sixties' on BBC Radio 2 each Saturday morning? Brian Matthew
8. In which famous 1953 Arthur Miller play do you meet the farmer John Proctor?
The Crucible
Supplementaries
S1. Whose memoir published in September 2015 called "Unscripted - My Ten Years in Telly" describes how he lost patience with some of the luvvies, wafflers and wannabees along his way. Alan Sugar
S2. The novel The Moon and Sixpence by Somerset Maugham was based (in part) on the life of which artist? Paul Gaugin
 
Geography - Historical Connections
1. The site of the Battle of Blenheim (1704), a major battle for the British during the War of the Spanish Succession, is in which modern day country?
Germany
2. In which English county is the site of the 1513 Battle of Flodden, where James IV of Scotland was killed by Henry VIII’s army?
Northumberland (near Branxton)
3. Runnymede, where the Magna Carta was sealed in 1215, is in which English county?
Surrey
4. The famous 1881 gunfight at the OK Corral took place in Tombstone in which US state? Arizona
5. The WW2 Yalta conference in 1945 between Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin took place in a resort on which body of water?
Black Sea
6. The site of the 1805 Battle of Austerlitz, probably the greatest of Napoleon’s victories, is in which modern-day country?
Czech Republic
7. The 1863 Battle of Gettysburg and President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address both took place during the American Civil War, but in which US state?
Pennsylvania
8. Which river flows into the Irish Sea near Drogheda (spell it out!), Republic of Ireland? It was made famous due to a battle of 1690 between the armies of James II and William of Orange (William III).
River Boyne
Supplementaries
S1. Nagasaki, site of the WW2 atom bombing, is on which Japanese island?
Kyushu
S2. In which English County does the site of Fotheringhay Castle lie? Mary, Queen of Scots, was first imprisoned and eventually executed there in 1587?
Northamptonshire (near Oundle)
History - Murderers, Spies & Traitors
1. Ethel Le Neve was the secretary and mistress of which infamous murderer, hanged in 1910 for poisoning his wife?
Dr Hawley Harvey Crippen
2. Sharon Tate, the US actress and model murdered by the ‘Manson Family’ (followers of Charles Manson) in 1969 was married to which film director?
Roman Polanski
3. Name the US married couple who were convicted of spying for the USSR and divulging atom bomb secrets. They died in the electric chair in 1953.
Ethel & Julius Rosenberg
4. Christopher Craig, age 16, shot to death a UK policeman in 1952, but who hung for the murder? After a long campaign, his murder conviction was posthumously quashed in 1998.
Derek Bentley
5. Who was the puppet head of government in Nazi-occupied Norway in WW2? He was executed by firing squad in 1945 and his surname became a synonym for a traitor or collaborator.
Vidkun Quisling
6. How did Judas Iscariot identify Jesus to the authorities when he betrayed him in the Garden of Gethsemene?
Kiss on the cheek
7. She was born Margaretha Geertruida Zelle in The Netherlands, and executed by firing squad in France in 1917 as a German spy. By what stage name was she known?
Mata Hari (full name required)
8. Anthony Blunt and Kim Philby were two of the original four identified members of the ‘Cambridge spy ring’, who worked for the USSR during and after WW2. Name one of the other two members.
Guy Burgess or Donald Maclean
Supplementaries
S1. Who was the Israeli nuclear technician who leaked information to the British press in 1986 about Israel’s possession of nuclear weapons, contrary to Israeli denials?
Mordechai Vanunu
S2. His ‘Black Diaries’ detailing his homosexual activities contributed to the downfall of which Anglo-Irish diplomat? He was executed for treason following his efforts to obtain German military aid to support the Easter Rising by Irish nationalists in 1916.
Sir Roger Casement
 
Maccas – all answers contain the prefix Mac/Mc
1. Character played by actor DeForest Kelley in the original Star Trek series. Dr Leonard H. ‘Bones’ McCoy
2. Republican party loser to Obama in 2008 US Presidential election. Senator John McCain
3. The 25^th US President born in 1843 and assassinated in September 1901, six months into his second term. William McKinley
4. 44 year old actor who starred in Trainspotting, Moulin Rouge and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. Ewan McGregor
5. Author of the 2001 novel Atonement on which the acclaimed 2007 film is based. Ian McEwan
6. Female teacher who died in the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986.
Christa McAuliffe
7. Co-starred in the ITV sitcom Vicious as Freddie Thornhill, alongside Derek Jacobi. Ian McKellen
8. Australian Supermodel often called ‘The Body’. Elle MacPherson
Supplementaries
S1. Simpsons character who is a stereotypical Hollywood ‘has-been’ whose career went downhill due to rumours of an unusual sexual interest in fish.
Troy McClure
S2. Fictional Deputy Marshall from New Mexico, who was on loan to the New York City Police Department as a special investigator between 1970 and 1977. Sam McCloud
 
Maccas – all answers contain the prefix Mac/Mc
1. Character played by actor DeForest Kelley in the original Star Trek series. Dr Leonard H. ‘Bones’ McCoy
2. Republican party loser to Obama in 2008 US Presidential election. Senator John McCain
3. The 25^th US President born in 1843 and assassinated in September 1901, six months into his second term. William McKinley
4. 44 year old actor who starred in Trainspotting, Moulin Rouge and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. Ewan McGregor
5. Author of the 2001 novel Atonement on which the acclaimed 2007 film is based. Ian McEwan
6. Female teacher who died in the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986.
Christa McAuliffe
7. Co-starred in the ITV sitcom Vicious as Freddie Thornhill, alongside Derek Jacobi. Ian McKellen
8. Australian Supermodel often called ‘The Body’. Elle MacPherson
Supplementaries
S1. Simpsons character who is a stereotypical Hollywood ‘has-been’ whose career went downhill due to rumours of an unusual sexual interest in fish.
Troy McClure
S2. Fictional Deputy Marshall from New Mexico, who was on loan to the New York City Police Department as a special investigator between 1970 and 1977. Sam McCloud
 
Science
Equations you learnt (or not!) at school
1. Name the missing gas in this photosynthesis equation. The reaction also needs sunlight.
? + water glucose + oxygen
Carbon dioxide
2. What SI unit would the answer be in?
E = mc²
Joules
3. Who in 1660 stated this relationship with reference to an elastic object? The (alpha) symbol in the middle means ‘directly proportional to’.
force  extension
Robert Hooke
4. Which famous scientist stated this law in 1687?
force = mass x acceleration
Isaac Newton (second law of motion)
5. What SI unit would the answer be in?
power = energy/time
Watts
6. When applied to a right-angled triangle, who first stated this relationship?
a² + b² = c²
Pythagoras
7. Who stated this law in 1827?
resistance = voltage/current
Georg Simon Ohm
8. Name the gas released in this reaction.
zinc + hydrochloric acid zinc chloride + ?
Hydrogen
Supplementaries
S1. Name the molecule, mentioned regularly in the media, that this relationship refers to.
adenine (A) - thymine (T)
cytosine (C) - guanine (G)
DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid (The four bases and their pairings are shown)
S2. Name this process that takes place in all living cells.
glucose + oxygen carbon dioxide + water +energy
Respiration
 
Sounds Fishy
(Each definition should lead you to a fish or other water creature, either directly or because the answer sounds like one. All that is required is the name of the fish or water creature)
1. One of the world’s first supermodels and face of 1960’s swinging London, as well as having a famous relationship with photographer David Bailey.
Jean Shrimpton (The Shrimp)
2. In Disney’s ‘Little Mermaid’, the blue-and-yellow tropical fish who is Ariel’s best friend. Flounder
3. Character played by Ian Lavender in Dad’s Army.
Private Frank Pike
4. British, female, former track-and-field athlete who won Olympic gold in the 400 metres hurdles in 1992 and the World Record in 1993.
Sally Gunnell
5. Hook-shaped peninsula in the easternmost part of Massachusetts. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism in the summer months.
Cape Cod
6. Female MSP (Member of the Scottish Parliament) for Glasgow Southside.
Nicola Sturgeon
7. Novel, film and 1960’s US soap opera which served as a springboard for actors Mia Farrow and Ryan O’Neill.
Peyton Place (Plaice)
8. ‘Bond girl’ who featured opposite Roger Moore in a 1983 Bond film. The role was played by Maud Adams.
Octopussy
Supplementaries
9. Northern Irish singer, and lead vocalist of the Undertones in the 1980’s. His song recordings include “A Good Heart” and “You Little Thief”.
Feargal Sharkey
10. 2004 biographical film featuring a legendary US rhythm & blues and soul singer who also died in 2004.
Ray (Ray Charles)
 
Sport
1. In which sport does the Walker Cup tournament takes place every two years between leading male amateurs of the United States and Great Britain/Ireland? Golf
2. How often are the IAAF World Championships in Athletics held?
Every 2 years
3. Who is the MotoGP 2015 world champion? Jorge Lorenzo
4. In which month is the Australian Open Tennis Tournament held?
January
5. Which horse won the 2015 Derby and the 2015 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe? Golden Horn
6. Which England and Manchester United player recently broke his leg during a European Champions League match? Luke Shaw
7. How many current F1 drivers have been world champions?
Five (Alonso, Button, Hamilton, Raikkonen, Vettel)
8. Which team was coached by Eddie Jones, the new England Rugby Union head coach, during the 2015 Rugby World Cup? Japan
Supplementaries
S1. Which male English equestrian eventer left hospital in November 2015 after suffering serious head trauma from a fall at an event in France? William Fox-Pitt
S2. Who won the 2015 Ladies Tennis US Open? Flavia Pennetta
 

General Knowledge

Q1 What was the surname of the Scottish architect & artist from the Art Nouveau movement whose Christian names were Charles Rennie? MACKINTOSH
Q2 Name the Scottish folk hero whose Robin Hood-like reputation made him the subject of a Sir Walter Scott book of 1817. ROB ROY
Q3 Gatcomb Park is the residence of which member of the Royal Family?
PRINCESS ANNE or PRINCESS ROYAL
Q4 Which former leader of the UK's Liberal Democrats died in 2015?
Charles KENNEDY
Q5 Which famous composer's first names were Pyotr Ilyich? (spell it out)?
TCHAIKOVSKY
Q6 In which country might the RCMP come to your assistance?
CANADA (Royal Canadian Mounted Police)
Q7 Which country always leads the Olympic procession? GREECE
Q8 What name is shared by a card game and a temporary, floating bridge?
PONTOON
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Q9 Name the shifting sandbanks off the east coast of Kent, infamous as a danger to shipping. GOODWIN SANDS
Q10 Football starts with a kick-off but what sport starts with a tip-off?
BASKETBALL
Q11 Which species of whale has the biggest mouth of any animal in the world?
BOWHEAD
Q12 The book and film ‘Captain Corelli's Mandolin’ are set on which Ionian (Greek) Island? CEPHALONIA
Q13 Stilton cheese can only be produced in 3 English counties: Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire are two. Name the third. LEICESTERSHIRE
Q14 Which was the first European country to give women the vote?
FINLAND (1906)
Q15 Who was the first actress to be paid $1 million for a single film?
Elizabeth TAYLOR
Q16 Give a year in the life of Catherine the Great (Catherine II), Emperor of Russia.
1729 - 1796
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Q17 Nerd Do Well (spell out Nerd) is the 2010 memoir of which UK actor (many in comedy roles) and screenwriter? Simon PEGG
Q18 Which country suffered the greatest military losses in WW2 in terms of personnel? USSR (accept RUSSIA)
Q19 Who was the Egyptian President during the Suez Crisis in 1956?
Gamal Abdel NASSER
Q20 In ancient mythology, how many labours did Heracles/Hercules perform?
TWELVE
Q21 Which Celtic band, formed in 1970 in Donegal and still active, made the albums Macalla & Anam? Enya left them in 1981 to go solo. CLANNAD
Q22 Who holds the record for aggregate points scored in all men's international rugby union matches? Dan CARTER (New Zealand)
Q23 In 2015, Caldwell & Yorgeson took 19 days for the first 'free climb' of the Dawn Wall on El Capitan in the USA but in which national park? YOSEMITE
Q24 HSBC is a multinational bank. The letters in its name reflect its 1865 origins. What does the 'S' stand for?
SHANGHAI (Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation)
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Q25 All royalties from the sale of which book (including stage and film adaptations) go to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital for children? PETER PAN
Q26 Jennie Jerome was the maiden name of the mother of which famous leader?
Winston CHURCHILL
Q27 Which country was formerly known as Cathay? CHINA
Q28 What product, which when used releases hydrogen sulphide, might you buy in a joke shop? STINK BOMB
Q29 Which darts champion was nicknamed The Crafty Cockney? Eric BRISTOW
Q30 Name the iron-bearing clay whose name means literally 'baked earth'. It is used by potters for decorative ware and busts. TERRACOTTA (Italian)
Q31 Thomas More's 16th Century book about a perfect society gave the English language a new word in its title? What is it? UTOPIA
Q32 Yellowfin, dogtooth, blue fin and bonito are all varieties of which fish? TUNA
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Q33 Copra is the source of an oil used in the manufacture of margarine and soap. What is copra? Dried kernel of the COCONUT
Q34 The letters 'LR' appear on the Plimsoll line of a ship. What does the 'L' stand for? LLOYD’S Register
Q35 Which singer/pianist/composer won the 2015 Mercury music prize?
Benjamin CLEMENTINE (accept SAINTE-CLEMENTINE)
Q36 Which Catholic saint was born in Lourdes?
BERNADETTE (real name Marie-Bernade Soubirous. Accept any)
Q37 Concerning rail transport, to what does the Whyte (spell out Whyte) system of classification relate? ARRANGEMENT OF WHEELS (steam locomotive, eg 4-6-2)
Q38 Name the recent book by Lord Ashcroft and Isabel Oakeshott which alleges that David Cameron was intimate with a pig's head. CALL ME DAVE
Q39 Which planet of the solar system is named after the Greek god of the sky?
URANUS
Q40 In Arthurian legend, who is the keeper of the Holy Grail? FISHER KING
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Q41 Which female singer, who fronted a well-known rock band formed in 1978 and still active, wrote the 2015 autobiography Reckless? Chrissie HYNDE (Pretenders)
Q42 Which word, used in English to describe a popular type of cooked dish, is derived from the Tamil word for 'spiced sauce'? CURRY (keri in Tamil) Q43 In which century did the infamous Cleopatra (Cleopatra VII) live?
FIRST CENTURY BC (or BCE)
Q44 What is the capital of the Australian state of Victoria? MELBOURNE
Q45 The Bayeux Tapestry pictures which astronomical event? HALLE’S COMET
Q46 Big Band leader Glen Miller died when the plane he was in disappeared over which specific stretch of sea? ENGLISH CHANNEL
Q47 Which US politician wrote the book 'An Inconvenient Truth', subsequently made into a film, about global warming? Al GORE
Q48 The mnemonic MRS GREN (or MRS NERG) recalls the processes which define 'life'. Name one of the 'R's REPRODUCTION or RESPIRATION
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Q49 What was the squadron number of the Dambusters Squadron? 617
Q50 Only one of the four men's Golf Major championships is played at the same course every year. Name the city location of this course.
AUGUSTA (National Golf Club, Georgia)
Q51 Which veteran Scottish comedian once quipped “For years I thought the club's name was 'Partick Thistle Nil”? Billy CONNOLLY
Q52 What nationality was the jeweller Faberge? RUSSIAN
Q53 In December 2015, who was named as Time Magazine's Person of the Year, the first woman since 1986? Angela MERKEL
Q54 English scientist Charles Babbage is most celebrated for being a pioneer in what field? COMPUTING
Q55 Give the term for the decoration of furniture by inlaying coloured woods in the surface. MARQUETRY
Q56 Who is the current Secretary of State for Education? Nicky MORGAN
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Q57 How many counters has each player at the start of a game of backgammon?
FIFTEEN
Q58 What device was originally known as the 'voltaic pile' after its inventor?
BATTERY (Alessandro Volta)
Q59 The Waterbury family features in which classic 1906 children's book by Edith Nesbit? THE RAILWAY CHILDREN
Q60 What name is given to a bell tower near to but not attached to a church?
CAMPANILE
Q61 Along with Doric & Corinthian, what is the third classical Greek order of architecture? IONIC
Q62 In 2015, Andre Borschberg broke the record for non-stop, solo flight. He flew 5,079 miles in just under 5 days in which solar-powered plane?
SOLAR IMPULSE (Solar Impulse 2)
Q63 This legendary baseball player died in 2015 and played for the New York Yankees. Who was he? Lawrence (Yogi) BERRA
Q64 Which Latin term used for school or university means "bounteous mother"?
ALMA MATER
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Q65 What is the nationality of Lowell Goddard, the judge who is leading the UK enquiry into historic child sexual abuse? NEW ZEALANDER
Q66 Which is the nearest city to the River Tay road bridge? DUNDEE
Q67 Umberto II was the last king of which European country? ITALY
Q68 Cerys Matthews, the well-known musician and music presenter, was the lead singer with which band in the mid 1990's? CATATONIA
Q69 Which legume is the main ingredient in the Middle Eastern dip hummus (or houmous)? CHICKPEAS
Q70 The Scottish virtuoso instrumentalist Dame Evelyn Glennie, who is profoundly deaf, plays what? PERCUSSION (don’t accept ‘drums’)
Q71 Which famous TV detective was created in the books of R D Wingfield?
Jack FROST
Q72 What is the title of the Welsh national anthem?
HEN WLAD FY NADAU or LAND OF OUR FATHERS
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Q73 Which advertising guru and art patron married Nigella Lawson?
Charles SAATCHI
Q74 Name the award-winning Canadian novellist and poet whose literary works include Lady Oracle, Cat's Eye and The Handmaid's Tale. Margaret ATWOOD
Q75 It is now closed but where in 2015 would you have found Dismaland, an installation by the artist Banksey? WESTON-SUPER-MARE
Q76 Regarding a famous film franchise, what appears next in the sequence: Identity, Supremacy, Ultimatum? LEGACY (‘Bourne’ films)
Q77 What country lies directly to the east of New Zealand on the other side of the South Pacific Ocean? CHILE
Q78 In politics, what does "Plaid" mean in Plaid Cymru (pronounced Plied Cumrie)?
PARTY
Q79 Which musical term in common usage is derived from the Japanese words meaning 'empty orchestra'? KARAOKE
Q80 Which current boxer has won world titles at eight different weight divisions, more weight divisions than any other boxer in history? Manny PACQUIAO
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Q81 Which car and motorcycle manufacturer had the first name Soichiro (spell it out)? HONDA
Q82 What is the longest river in Europe? VOLGA
Q83 Two brothers played in the recent Davis Cup final win by Great Britain. Which brothers played for GB in the last GB final in 1978? LLOYD (David & John)
Q84 The annual University Boat Race on the Thames begins at Putney. Where does it end? MORTLAKE
Q85 Skunk is a potent form of which illegal, recreational drug?
CANNABIS
Q86 Which British children's game is played on the fingers with looped string?
CAT’S CRADLE
Q87 In the classic film noir Chinatown, Jack Nicholson plays private eye Jake Gittes. What notable injury does Jake receive in the film?
Knife cut to the NOSE (covered with a plaster for most of the film)
Q88 The dance 'The Charleston' is named after a harbour city in which US state?
SOUTH CAROLINA
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Q89 Steiff (spell it out) are specialist manufacturers of which long-established toys?
TEDDY BEARS
Q90 Jack Cohen's motto was "Pile it high and sell it cheap". Which supermarket did he found? TESCO
Q91 The famous island and holiday destination of Bali is part of which country?
INDONESIA
Q92 What is the ‘love theme’ song from the film Top Gun?
TAKE MY BREATH AWAY
Q93 What is the currency of Poland? ZLOTY
Q94 The centre of the UK diamond trade in London was made famous by a recent robbery. What is its name? HATTON GARDEN
Q95 Which British scientist discovered oxygen in 1774? Joseph PRIESTLY
Q96 Regarding economics and a nation's wealth, what does the 'D' in GDP stand for? DOMESTIC (Gross Domestic Product)
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S1. Who was the famous grandfather of Charles Darwin? Josiah WEDGWOOD
S2. What was the first British city to be named European Capital of Culture?
GLASGOW
S3. What is the nickname of the England Women's national football team?
LIONESSES or THREE LIONESSES
S4. According to the 2011 Census, what is the third most widely spoken language in England & Wales (after English & Welsh)? POLISH
S5.  In relation to lighting, what does the 'D' in LED stand for?
DIODE (light emitting diode)
S6.  Which economist features on the current Bank of England £20 note?
Adam SMITH