The Daily Teaser …

You know, I’ve got to confess, I’ve got Yesterday on in the background, again. You’d probably guessed I’ve got something on, hadn’t you … ?

And they’re showing The Seven Ages of Britain, again. Amazing thing: this episode’s covering the period of the 17th century. David Dimbleby’s just given Sir Robert Hooke’s Micrographia a mention.

And, yes, I know it’s full of creepy-crawlies, but my word, they don’t make science text-books like that, any more … !

At any rate, lets get moving on, shall we … ?

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Yesterday’s Teaser saw Trevor — all on his own — scoring 6 out of 6.

Lets see how he — and you — do with today’s questions, shall we? Here they are, along with the ‘How To’ and License …

Q1) 20th August, 1911, saw the sending — from New York — of the world’s first commercial around-the-world what … ?


Q2) 20th August, 1920, saw the death of Bolshevik leader, Leon Trotsky: in which Stranglers song does this event get a mention … ?

Q3) 20th August, 1970, saw the birth of computer games developer, John D. Carmack 2nd: what’s the name of the most recently released id Software title that he worked on … ?

Q4) Many years earlier, 20th August, 1890, saw the birth of which horror writer … ?

Q5) And finally … 20th August, 1083, saw the canonisation of Saint Stephen 1st … of where?


Here’s yesterday’s questions and answers …

Q1) 19th August, 1987, saw Michæl Ryan kill how many people, during the notorious Hungerford Massacre … ?


A1) 14.

Q2) 19th August, 1990, saw who conduct his final concert … ?

A2) Leonard Bernstein.

Q3) More to the point, with which Beethoven symphony did he finish the gig … ?

A3) Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

Q4) 19th August, 1960, saw who given a ten year gaol sentence, by a Soviet military court … ?

A4) U-2 pilot, Francis Gary Powers.

Q5) 19th August, 1906, saw the birth of Philo T. Farnsworth, the man credited with the invention of electronic … what … ?


A5) Electronic television. (John Logie Baird, the man generally recognised as the inventor of television, designed an electro-mechanical system.)

Q6) And finally … 19th August, 1951, saw the birth of Queen bassist, John Deacon: which of his songs was the bigger UK hit for the band: You're My Best Friend, Another One Bites the Dust or I Want To Break Free?


A6) I Want To Break Free: which peaked at No. 3. (There’s a possibly apocryphal story doing the fan circuit: apparently Freddie had badgered to rest of the band to do a video in drag for years, and had practically given up on the idea by the time of the promotional brain-storming session for I Want To Break Free came ’round. Then, apparently, Brian May made Freddie’s day. By saying “Sod it, Freddie’ll only whinge if we don’t: let’s do this one in frocks …” )

And — as it’s Friday — here’s the 60-question-set for struggling pub-quiz-masters: covered by the same Creative Commons license as the Teasers, of course …

Online 67.

ROUND ONE. CURRENT EVENTS.

Q1) Briana Corrigan & Jacqui Abbot were the two female singers for which band?

A1) The Beautiful South.


Q2) True or False. The World Spam Museum is in Austin, Texas.

A2) True.

Q3) Which south American country borders Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia?

A3) Paraguay.

Q4) Disney’s version of Pinocchio was released in which decade of the 20th Century?

A4) The 1940s.

Q5) Alistair Cooke became famous for broadcasting his Letter from … where?
A5) America.

Q6) Dermatology is the study of human … what?


A6) Skin.

Q7) Before becoming a TV presenter, Anthea Turner worked for which motoring organisation?

A7) The AA.

Q8) Northern Soul was the début album from which 90s band?


A8) M People.

Q9) During the 60s, which member of the Kennedy family was involved with the Chappaquidick incident?


A9) Edward ‘Teddy’ Kennedy.

Q10) What stewed item goes into a compote?


A10) Stewed Fruit.

ROUND TWO. RETAIL THERAPY.

Q11) Which Dutch owned retail chain collapsed in 2001?

A11) C & A.

Q12) Which Regent street store claims to be the world’s largest toy-shop?

A12) Hamley’s.

Q13) Which US store bought ASDA, in 1999?

A13) Wal-Mart.

Q14) Which chain of restaurants opened its first outlet in Chicago, in 1954?

A14) McDonalds.

Q15) Who founded The Body Shop?

A15) Anita Roddick.

Q16) The head of which UK retailer saw his shares plummet, after referring to his products as ‘total crap’?

A16) Ratner’s.

Q17) The GUM department store is in which Eastern European city?

A17) Moscow.

Q18) What was the name of the department store, in Are you Being Served?

A18) Grace Brothers.

Q19) Saint Michael is the in-house brand sold by which high street chain?

A19) Marks & Spencer.

Q20) Which UK retailer was owned by the Moores family, for many years?

A20) Littlewoods.

ROUND THREE. SCIENCE.

Q21) An accidental discovery by William Roentgen led to the development of what?

A21) X-rays.

Q22) Who developed Colossus, the machine that helped cracked the German Enigma code, during the Second World War?

A22) Alan Turing.

Q23) In which year of the 1830s did Michael Faraday first convert magnetism into electricity?

A23) 1831.

Q24) What subatomic particles did James Chadwick discover in 1932; neutrons, electrons or protons?

A24) Neutrons.

Q25) Dmitri Mendelev devised what, the Periodic Table, the first radio telescope or the microscope?

A25) The Periodic Table.

Q26) Max Planck worked on quantifying light with which famous scientist?

A26) Albert Einstein.

Q27) Herman Scaaffhausen wrote the first scientific paper about which evolutionary discovery?

A27) Neanderthal Man.

Q28) Acetylsalicylic acid is better known how?

A28) Aspirin.

Q29) Who’s generally accredited with discovering that microbes caused infections?

A29) Louis Pasteur.

Q30) Karl Landsteiner first developed what, blood group classifications, or chemotherapy?

A30) Blood group classification.

ROUND FOUR. SPORTING CHANCES.

Q31) What was the last birthday celebrated by Michael Owen, before he scored against Romania, in France, 1998?

A31) His 18th.

Q32) How many events are there, in the Heptathlon?

A32) 7. (Seven.)

Q33) England’s first ever cricketing test match was against which nation?

A33) Australia.

Q34) Who won the Men’s singles title at Wimbledon, in 1985?

A34) Boris Becker.

Q35) Who was Steve Ovett’s main British rival at middle-distance running, in 1980?

A35) Sebastian Coe.

Q36) James Douglas beat Mike Tyson, in 1990: what was his nickname?

A36) Buster.

Q37) Which West Indian cricketer hit six sixes in an over, in 1968?

A37) Sir Garfield (Gary) Sobers.

Q38) Which Manchester side won the 1968 European Cup?

A38) Manchester United.

Q39) How many times did Red Rum win the Grand National?

A39) 3. (Three.)

Q40) At the Italia 90 World Cup, which England player famously burst into tears?

A40) Paul Gascoigne. (Accept Gazza.)

ROUND FIVE. QUOTE UNQUOTE. (Who said what?)

Q41) Noel Coward once said “Never trust a man with short legs – his brains are too near his…” what?

A41) Bottom.

Q42) “Never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many, to so few”. Winston Churchill said that about what WW2 Battle?

A42) The Battle of Britain.

Q43) Which artist famously said, “… everyone will be famous for 15 minutes”?

A43) Andy Warhol.

Q44) Gertrude Stein once said that “A rose is a …” what?

A44) “A rose.”

Q45) What blood sport did Oscar Wilde once describe as “…the unspeakable in pursuit of the inedible”?

A45) Fox-hunting.

Q46) Which US president once said that “… the world must be made safe for democracy”?

A46) Woodrow Wilson.

Q47) While we’re on the subject, which US president said “Ich bin ein Berliner”?

A47) John F. Kennedy. (He was trying to empathise with the people of Berlin and ended up claiming to be a type of doughnut. Allegedly …)

Q48) Which English leader said “Put your faith in God and keep your powder dry”?

A48) Oliver Cromwell.

Q49) Which writer once said “Golf is a good walk, spoiled”?

A49) Mark Twain. (Extra point for putting down his real name, of Samuel Clemens.)

Q50) Which actress once said “Give a man a free hand and he’ll let it roam all over you”?

A50) Mae West.

ROUND SIX. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE.

Q51) What is 2 cubed … ?

A51) 8.

Q52) Spasticus Autisticus was banned by the BBC. Which band wrote and performed it?

A52) Ian Dury & the Blockheads.

Q53) Outside of the countries of the middle-east, what South American country is theworld’s largest oil producer?

A53) Venezuela.

Q54) MI6 is also known as what?

A54) The Special Intelligence Service.

Q55) The Pantheon, in Rome, is an ancient Roman temple; which emperor ordered its building?

A55) Emperor Hadrian.

Q56) Name either of the two feuding families in Romeo and Juliet. (Two points for both.)

A56) The Montagues and the Capulets.

Q57) In which year of the 1950s was the Warsaw Pact signed?

A57) 1955.

Q58) Caroline Herschel was Britain’s first professional female what, astrophysicist, chemist or astronomer?

A58) Astronomer.

Q59) Who won the Apple v Apple Court case, Apple Computers, or the Beatles?

A59) Apple Computers.

Q60) Muriel Spark’s most famous book was called what?

A60) The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie.

Enjoy those, everyone: I’ll catch you all later … !