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The Lyrics of Noel Coward
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For his devotees, Coward is “the Master,” but he seems to have been overlooked so far on Fun Trivia. So here are a few questions, mainly about his better known songs.
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C
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 16 06
1044 plays
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French Literature 842 - 1980
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When I took some of the quizzes in the "Literature by Region" sub-category, I was surprised to see that there was very little material on French literature. So I've tried to produce a quiz, if only to encourage someone else to do better.
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French Literature
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Tough
20 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 24 02
1446 plays
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Title Characters
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A literary work is often named after its main character. Some titles are descriptions of characters, not names. For example, in John Fowles’ novel, Sarah Woodruff is “The French Lieutenant’s Woman.” How many of these title characters can you identify?
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Literary Titles
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 01 04
5040 plays
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Hogarth
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Beef-eating, beer-swilling Englishmen like me feel an affinity for Hogarth; but I hope he’s more widely appreciated. Here are a few questions on his life and work. All the pictures mentioned are on the web, though the originals are nearly all in London.
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Art World Figures
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 07 04
300 plays
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Poetic Parodies
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Verse parody in English is as least as old as Chaucer, but this quiz deals with the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Can you identify the poets who are the authors or targets of ten parodies?
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Poetry
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Jul 20 05
420 plays
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Private Eye
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Founded in 1961, “Private Eye” has become Britain’s best known satirical periodical. This quiz deals with some of its main features through the years.
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Newspapers & Magazines
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 26 07
210 plays
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Guilding the Stone - June
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The Quiz Makers Guild monthly birthstones series reaches June – the pearl, according to the American Gem Society. This quiz explores some of the cultural associations of the pearl.
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Gems and Birthstones
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
May 23 09
267 plays
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Author Anagrams
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Fifteen British and American authors introduce themselves with anagrams of their names (in capitals) and a few more clues (usually references to their works). Many anagrams were generated by Anagram Genius software. Fill in the blanks with the names.
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Writers & Authors
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Difficult
15 Q
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TabbyTom
Jan 01 05
1308 plays
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London Alphabeticals No 2
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For anyone who enjoyed my first "London Alphabetical" quiz, here is a second on the same theme. Again, the main source of information is the London Encyclopaedia compiled by Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert and published by Macmillan.
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London
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Average
25 Q
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TabbyTom
Sep 17 03
5049 plays
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“Done into English”: 1,000 Years of Translation
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Translation is an under-appreciated art. Much of it may be hackwork, but for a thousand years the best translators have been enabling readers of English to understand and enjoy the world’s masterpieces in that language.
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Mixed Literature
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 24 07
471 plays
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The UK According to Whitaker: 1900
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I’ve recently bought a facsimile reprint of Whitaker’s Almanac (a British reference book) for 1900. From it I’ve culled the following ten questions about the UK at the end of the nineteenth century.
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UK History
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 04 07
1404 plays
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London Alphabeticals
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I've had a few compliments on my "UK Alphabeticals" quiz, so here is a similar quiz restricted to London. Non-Brits may find it difficult. My main source of information is Weinreb and Hibbert's London Encyclopaedia, published by Macmillan.
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By Country
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Average
25 Q
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TabbyTom
Aug 29 03
4491 plays
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London In Literature
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Naturally enough, a lot of English literature is concerned with the capital, and many authors are intimately associated with the city. Here is a quiz on London in literature from the fourteenth to the twentieth centuries.
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British Literature
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Tough
15 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 20 02
1833 plays
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UK Alphabeticals
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I enjoyed Jim_in_Oz's quiz "Aussie Alphabeticals", and so I've tried to create an alphabetical quiz for the UK, with a question for every letter except X.
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By Country
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Average
25 Q
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TabbyTom
Aug 24 03
5364 plays
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Victorian and Edwardian Music Hall
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The British music hall has gone the way of the bustle, the gas mantle and the hansom cab, but a few snatches of its songs live on in the folk memory. This quiz covers some of the best known.
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1930s Music and before
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Oct 20 06
372 plays
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The Wallace Collection
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People called Wallace have distinguished themselves in many fields. How much do you know about these Wallaces?
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Same Surname
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Sep 17 08
414 plays
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My True Love Guild To Me – 7th Day
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Quiz Maker Guild author Tabby Tom has wrapped a Christmas quiz gift of “Seven Swans A-Swimming.” See how much you know about swans, swimmers and heptads (groups of seven).
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Twelve Days of Christmas
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 31 08
333 plays
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British Reference Books
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Dedicated trivia buffs need to be acquainted with reference books. This quiz deals with some of the better known British works.
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Non-Fiction
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Jun 02 06
477 plays
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Written in Prison
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Throughout the ages, writers have fallen foul of the law, sometimes because of their writings and sometimes for other reasons; so it’s not really surprising that many works of literature were written in prison. This quiz deals with a few of them.
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Specific Subjects & Themes
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Apr 23 06
447 plays
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Eponymous Noblemen
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Many things are named after their discoverers or inventors. If these were British noblemen, the name that's used may be the title, not the surname. Can you work out the titles of the following nobs who have left their mark on the language?
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Eponyms (Words from Names)
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Aug 30 03
2202 plays
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Historic Hastings
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Every Brit knows about the Battle of Hastings, but the town has also made a few other contributions to British history. This quiz calls for a general knowledge of British history and life rather than a detailed knowledge of Hastings.
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British Local History
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Apr 18 07
945 plays
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Kipling's British History
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Inspired by LilahDeDah’s “Kipling World Tour,” I’ve attempted a quiz on British history in Kipling’s verse. My main source is “Kipling’s English History” by Marghanita Laski, based on a BBC radio series. I haven’t retained Kipling’s Cockney spellings.
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Kipling, Rudyard
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 28 04
288 plays
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London in Quotations
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The British capital has been celebrated and execrated in prose, poetry and song for centuries. Can you answer a few questions about a cross-section of quotes?
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Quotes
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Very Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 10 05
954 plays
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Early Days of ITV
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Independent (i.e. commercial) television came to Britain in 1955, and soon gained the biggest share of the rapidly expanding TV audience. This quiz covers some of its best known programmes from the 1950s.
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UK Classic TV
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 09 04
1350 plays
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Authors' Dedications
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Authors use the device of the dedication to express all kinds of feelings for others. This quiz takes ten dedications from the "Bloomsbury Dictionary of Dedications" by Adrian Room. The dedication itself often gives some kind of clue to the answer.
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Authors and their Works
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Jan 28 05
378 plays
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Quotes by Dr Johnson
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In just about any dictionary of English quotations, Dr Johnson is one of the main sources with his unique mixture of wit, wisdom and downright rudeness. How well do you know his sayings?
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Complete The Quote
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Difficult
25 Q
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TabbyTom
Jan 11 03
810 plays
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Guild-y as Sin: Sloth
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In 1321, Dante climbed the terraces of Purgatory and saw a new deadly sin on each level. Now the Quiz Makers' Guild is making the same trip, and seeing things Dante never dreamed of. The fourth level is Sloth. Coming soon: Greed, by patricck.
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Thematic 10 Questions
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Oct 21 09
174 plays
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Doctors in Literature
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Some fictional doctors are selfless saviours, some are unscrupulous quacks, and some are just fairly ordinary human beings. Here are a few questions on physicians in literature.
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Specific Subjects & Themes
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 06 04
534 plays
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George MacDonald Fraser's Flashman Novels
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Fraser's novels take up the story of Harry Flashman, the villain of 'Tom Brown's Schooldays'. In a series of racily written and superbly researched books, Fraser shows us how Flashman climbed to the top of the tree in Victorian England.
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Fraser, George Macdonald
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Average
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 15 02
378 plays
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Sir Walter Raleigh
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Explorer, soldier, courtier, lover, poet, historian, – Sir Walter Raleigh was all of these. Here are a few questions on his unusually varied life.
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U.K. People
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 06 04
831 plays
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Oxford in Quotations
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Here are just a few of the many quotations inspired by the city and university of Oxford.
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Quotes
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 11 05
246 plays
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Nell Gwyn
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The mistresses of British kings can be numbered in hundreds, but one of the best known and best loved is Eleanor (“Nell”) Gwyn. This quiz is based largely on Derek Parker’s biography of her, published by Sutton Publishing in 2000.
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Nell Gwyn
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 22 03
579 plays
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Early Days Of English Cricket
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Most cricket quizzes seem to deal with very recent history, so I'm trying to balance, by going back to the days when the game was taking shape.
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England
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 30 03
630 plays
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Pubs In Literature
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For my first attempt at a Fun Trivia quiz, I've selected a subject that combines two of my main interests in life!
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Specific Subjects & Themes
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Nov 22 01
666 plays
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The Life Of Samuel Johnson
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I've always been an admirer of Samuel Johnson, both as a man and as a writer. If you share my tastes, can you answer the following questions on his life?
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Johnson, Samuel
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 22 01
240 plays
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The Clergy in English Literature
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The clergy has figured largely in English literature over the centuries. Here are a few questions about fictional clerics.
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Specific Subjects & Themes
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 20 04
420 plays
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British Measurements
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The UK has succumbed to the Système International d'Unités (a.k.a. the metric system), but old units are still remembered and sometimes used in some activities. How much do you know about these?
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Measurements, Time and Distance
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
May 22 03
1308 plays
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British Trade Union History
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A few questions on the history of organized labour in Britain.
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UK History
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 19 02
624 plays
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Title Characters No 2
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Can you identify the characters who are described in the titles of ten literary works (e.g. Sarah Woodruff, in John Fowles’ novel, is “The French Lieutenant’s Woman”)?
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Literary Titles
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Jul 14 04
897 plays
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'Lucky Jim' By Kingsley Amis
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A few questions on Kingsley Amis's first and possibly funniest novel.
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A
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 16 02
243 plays
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Lawyers in Anglo-American Literature
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A few questions on fictional lawyers through the ages.
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Specific Subjects & Themes
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 06 04
246 plays
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The City Of Oxford
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We've all heard of Oxford University, and the aptly-named Frideswide has an excellent quiz on it. But Oxford isn't just an academic centre, and so here is a quiz about the city and its history which has little connection with its famous seat of learning.
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Southern England
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 18 02
492 plays
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The Life Of John Milton
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How much do you know about the life of one of our greatest (and probably least likeable) poets?
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Milton, John
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 24 02
408 plays
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W.G. Grace
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There have been many great cricketers, but probably nobody has ever dominated the game in his own time to the same extent as W.G. Grace. How much do you know about him?
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W.G. Grace
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Feb 26 02
474 plays
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Goodness Gracious!
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Grace is the link between the questions in this quiz.
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Thematic 10Q Tough
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Mar 20 02
978 plays
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Literary Sequels
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When a novel is a success, the author often likes to follow it up with 'more of the same'. Can you answer these questions on sequels in 19th and 20th century literature?
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Literary Titles
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Dec 13 01
1032 plays
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April 22nd in History
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Like other quizmakers, I've been tempted to make a quiz about events that happened on my birthday. In my case, that's April 22nd. Main sources: "The Wordsworth Book of Days" and "Encyclopaedia Britannica".
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April May June
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Apr 26 03
591 plays
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British Entertainment Common Bond
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The common bond is in the field of entertainment. The British will have an advantage.
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10Q CB Tough
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Tough
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Oct 21 03
720 plays
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Tom's Toms
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Ten questions on ten Toms from real life and fiction.
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First Names
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Difficult
10 Q
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TabbyTom
Apr 28 03
633 plays
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