These quiz questions might be good for a quick-fire quiz (in fact this was how I have used them in quizzes I've run.)
There are 76 questions on this page, and it was last updated on 17 August 2022.
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I do not make any guarantee as to the accuracy of the answers to these questions. Nor can I guarantee I will be able to update them if the answers change in future. Quizmasters: if you choose to use these questions and then have a contestant start an argument with you... you're on your own.
How many masts are there on a ketch?
2
In 2013, Tina Turner gave up her US citizenship after becoming a citizen of the country she had lived in for many years. Which country?
Switzerland
Who is the patron saint of London?
St. Paul
From which city is the Grand Ole Opry broadcast?
Nashville, Tennessee
In the British Army, to what three letters is the rank of Private normally abbreviated?
Pte
DO NOT accept: Pvt (this is only used in the US Army, not the British Army)
What would you use a treasury tag for?
Fastening paper
From which city in England would an Oxonian come?
Oxford
Cruella de Vil is the principal antagonist in which novel and subsequent animated film?
101 Dalmations
Kaun Banega Crorepati is the Indian version of which British quiz show format?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Which is the smallest number that is both a happy number and a prime number?
7
In which sport is Nicola Adams a famous name?
Boxing
In which city was the first Eurovision Song Contest staged?
Lugano
Which mountain range lies immediately to the east of the Atacama desert?
Andes
What is a fundoshi?
A type of loincloth worn by sumo wrestlers
Helen Mirren stars as a Women’s Institute member who organises and poses in a nude calendar to raise funds for a leukaemia charity. Which 2003 film?
Calendar Girls
Coming from the name of the street where the London bankruptcy court was situated, where is someone said to be if they’re in serious financial difficulty?
(On/in) Carey Street
She first came into the public eye in 1959. She was first seen with her boyfriend Ken in 1961. In 2004, it was announced she and Ken were splitting, but they got back together two years later after Ken had a makeover. Who am I talking about?
Barbie
In 2018, a print of Banksy’s “Girl With Balloon” shredded itself when it was sold at auction. What name was given to the resulting artwork?
Love is in the Bin
Commander Shepard is the player character in which video game series?
Mass Effect
What is the main ingredient of an omelette?
Eggs
In which language might you say "kiitos" by way of thanks?
Finnish
Which organisation has as its motto, "Nation shall speak peace unto Nation"?
The BBC
Rolf Magnus Joakim Larsson, known professionally as Joey Tempest, wrote which smash hit song which became the title track of his band’s third album?
The Final Countdown
What is a vexillologist interested in?
Flags
Which company rebranded in 2017 as Getlink?
Eurotunnel
In 1934, the Turkish parliament granted what surname to the president, Mustafa Kemal, in recognition of his role in building the modern Turkish republic?
Atatürk
(Accept: Father of the Turks)
Kombucha is a drink made by fermenting what?
Tea
Which human rights activist was named Malcolm Little at birth and became known after completing the Hajj as el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz?
Malcolm X
Máxima Zorreguieta Certutti is the current queen consort of the Netherlands. Which country was she born in?
Argentina
What was the name of the merchant who was the first wife of the prophet Muhammad, and whom he came home to after his first revelation from the angel Gabriel?
Khadija
Charles Martinet is the voice of the lead character in which long running Nintendo game series?
Super Mario
What kind of fish is used to make a kipper?
Herring
Complete the title of the children’s book by Judith Kerr: “The Tiger Who…”
Came to Tea
What does the Old Norse word Ragnarök literally mean?
Fate of the Gods.
(DO NOT accept: Twilight of the Gods. This is a translation of the Wagner opera title Götedämmerung, which in Old Norse would be Ragnarøkkr.)
Japanese consultant and author Marie Kondo has a Netflix reality series where she shares methods for doing what?
Tidying people’s houses
In which year did the Oprah Winfrey show’s infamous “you get a car” episode take place?
2004
Also Oprah Winfrey: she co-starred in the 2013 film “The Butler,” playing the wife of a long-serving White House butler. Who played that butler?
Forrest Whitaker
On what day of the year might you partake in the annual “Loony Dook”?
New Year’s Day
Who is Michael D. Higgins?
President of Ireland (accept: Uachtarán)
Daphne Fowler, a serial game show contestant who won Going for Gold, Fifteen-to-One, and Brain of Britain, retired in 2014 from a regular role on which TV quiz show?
Eggheads
What is a jerrycan typically used for carrying?
Fuel (accept: petrol, diesel; don’t accept: oil)
What is the name of the strait that separates the Isle of Wight from mainland England?
Solent
What did an ostler do at an inn?
Look after the guests’ horses
In the UK, the vehicle at the back of a train with a handbrake is called a brake van or guard’s van. What are the equivalent vehicles called in America?
Caboose
What happened in Prague in 1419, 1483, and 1618?
Defenestrations (incidents where people were thrown from windows)
After being verbally provoked, which French footballer famously head butted Marco Materazzi at the 2006 World Cup final?
Zinedine Zidane
Which Florentine diplomat and philosopher, who authored the book Il Principe, now lends his name to any immoral behaviour considered especially scheming or cunning, particularly by politicians?
Niccolò Machiavelli
In the context of schools, what does the acronym PTA stand for?
Parent Teacher Association
Which word, coming from ecclesiastical Latin for ‘whiteness’, is used in astronomy to mean the reflectivity of a surface?
Albedo
And which Greek composer, who later wrote soundtracks for Blade Runner and Chariots of Fire, released a concept album in 1976 named “Albedo 0.39”?
Vangelis
In Islamic legend, what was unusual about Zulfiqar, the sword of the prophet Muhammad’s son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib?
It had two tips (either a single blade with two tips, or two blades)
What word, meaning “sunset,” is shared between the sunset prayer in Islam, and the region of northwest Africa that consists of Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia?
Maghreb/Maghrib
Constantine III is his grandfather, Aurelius Ambrosius and Constans II are his uncles, Uther Pendragon is his father. Which legendary figure am I talking about?
King Arthur (a.k.a. Arthur Pendragon)
In which city would you find the Bird's Nest stadium?
Beijing
Also stadiums: which English county cricket side plays at The Rose Bowl?
Hampshire
What word beginning with 'c' is used to refer to a number that is NOT a prime number?
Composite
Also prime numbers: what is the smallest prime number?
2
Tardar Sauce, who died in 2019, was better known on the internet by what name?
Grumpy Cat
Which English city was formerly known as New Sarum?
Salisbury
And which city was formerly called Salisbury during the colonial era of Zimbabwe until 1982?
Harare
During the COVID crisis, Swedish singer Robyn released a video of herself in a home studio performing which of her songs with a selfie stick?
Dancing On My Own
A 2017 romantic drama film based on a book by André Aciman: Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer play two Jewish Americans who fall in love while staying in northern Italy. The film's title?
Call Me By Your Name
Felipe VI is king of which European country?
Spain
Marsha P Johnson was a pivotal figure in which 1969 uprising in New York?
Stonewall Riots (a.k.a. Stonewall Rebellion or Stonewall Uprising)
The musical piece “Asteroid” is used as the theme for which cinema advertising firm?
Pearl and Dean
What is the former name of the country that adopted the name Eswatini in 2018?
Swaziland
Which composer, trumpeter, and vocalist was known as Satchmo?
Louis Armstrong
What alliterative name is given to the easiest gear on a bicycle, used for climbing hills?
Granny gear
In which month of the Islamic calendar is iftar eaten in the evenings?
Ramadan/Ramazan (the ninth month. Do not accept Eid, the question is about the month, not the festival.)
What kind of electrical fixture is a luminaire?
Light / lamp
The Highway Code: what road marking is used in the controlled area of pedestrian crossings and outside schools to prohibit parking, loading, and overtaking?
Zig zags
Which MP has been nicknamed "The Honourable Member for the 18th Century"?
Jacob Rees-Mogg (MP for North East Somerset)
Who directed the 2020 comic book movie Birds of Prey, starring Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn?
Cathy Yan
In music production, what does DAW stand for?
Digital audio workstation
During protests in 2020, a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was torn down and thrown into the harbour in which UK city?
Bristol
What is the name of James Baldwin's 1974 novel which was adapted into a 2018 film directed by Barry Jenkins?
If Beale Street Could Talk
