A Welsh Potpourri Trivia Quiz

Answer: St George's Channel

St George's Channel is the body of water which lies between St David's Head and Pembroke on the Welsh side and Rosslare and Wexford on the Irish side. Ferries run from Fishguard and Pembroke in Wales to the port of Rosslare in Ireland. The crossing takes about three and a half to four hours, and these are the main routes between the southern halves of Wales and Ireland.

Further north you would be crossing the Irish Sea, while the Celtic Sea is part of the Atlantic Ocean, extending from the Bristol Channel as far south as the Bay of Biscay.

Answer: Richard Llewellyn

Llewellyn claimed at the time that this story of Welsh mining folk in south Wales was based on his own life. In fact, he was English although of Welsh heritage, and his material came from meetings and discussions with mining families.

The main character in the novel is Huw Morgan, the academic son in a mining family. The story covers his early life and attempts to avoid becoming a miner like his father and brothers. After his father dies in a mining accident, Huw moves away from Wales - subsequent novels reveal that he goes to Patagonia in Argentina, home to many Welsh emigrants.

The film came out in 1941 with Roddy McDowell playing Huw. It won several Oscars including Best Director for John Ford.

Answer: Oatmeal

Laverbread is made from a particular type of seaweed, so I wouldn't advise you to try creating this delicacy by gathering any old seaweed you find floating in a pool. The seaweed you need is found on the western coasts of the UK and eastern coasts of Ireland and belongs to the Porphyra genus - this includes several edible seaweeds, such as nori in Japan.

Laverbread is made by boiling the seaweed until it forms a puree. It can be eaten on toast or as an accompaniment to a fried breakfast, although many recipes are found on the internet. Oatmeal is by far the most common coating.

Answer: Harry Secombe

The four names listed are the original Goons. Milligan was born in India and claimed Irish heritage from his father, although he spent most of his life in England. Bentine and Sellers were both English, but Harry Secombe was born in Swansea so was definitely Welsh.

'The Goon Show' was primarily the creation of Spike Milligan, with the other three members playing various characters. It was a mixture of parody and surrealism with funny names, voices and sounds. Bentine stayed with the show only for the first two seasons and was not replaced.

Harry Secombe had an excellent tenor singing voice and made several records. Two of his songs made the UK Singles Charts, 'If I Ruled the World' in 1963 and 'This is My Song' in 1968. He also presented various television programmes, particularly those with a religious theme.

Answer: Beaumaris

All of these are castles in Wales, but Beaumaris is the one on Anglesey. It is the last of the castles commissioned by England's king, Edward I, but was never finished. Problems with the Scots and a lack of funds meant the project had to be abandoned in the 1320s.

Enough remains, though, to give an impression of what it should be. A series of defensive rings were built and the castle remains impressive. Harlech is on the west coast of Wales and Hawarden is more of a stately home located in Flintshire. Manorbier is in Pembrokeshire, on the south coast, and dates from Norman times.

Answer: Prestatyn

Dating from at least the eight century, the dyke marks the border between England and Wales, particularly between Powys and Mercia, the English region of which Offa was the king. There is some debate about the dyke's age, with some evidence that it may have been started three centuries earlier than traditionally accepted. It consists of a high, wide earthwork, with ditches on either side.

After all the centuries which have passed, only parts of the dyke remain, but enough to allow visitors to imagine the rest. A national footpath runs from Sedbury to Prestatyn, a distance of 177 miles which runs close to the dyke in places and several miles from it in others. Shorter sections, e.g. Hay-on-Wye to Kington, might be more manageable.

Answer: Novello

Born in Cardiff in 1893, Ivor Novello took his stage name from his mother, Clara Novello Davies. The name was given to her in honour of a singer named Clara Novello who had Italian heritage. Ivor Novello became a famous entertainer with acting, composing and singing among his talents.

Among his compositions are 'Keep the Home Fires Burning', popular during World War I, and 'We'll Gather Lilacs'. Novello contributed songs to many stage musicals of his era, and appeared in several films in the 1920s and 1930s. He died in 1951.

The other names belong to Shirley Basse, Bryn Terfel and David Emanuel - the first two known for singing and the latter as a fashion designer - all from Wales.

Answer: Cambrians

All of these mountains are found in Wales, but it's the Cambrian Mountains, specifically Plynlimon, their highest point, where all three rivers rise. Located in Ceredigion, formerly Cardiganshire, in west Wales, the Cambrians are more of an area of uplands than the mountain peaks found in Snowdonia.

The Rheidol River (Afon Rheidol in Welsh) is the shortest of the three rivers, flowing for nineteen miles and joining with two other rivers, the Mynach and Ystwyth, before reaching Cardigan Bay at Aberystwyth. The Wye (Afon Gwy) is just over one hundred and fifty miles long, and flows past Rhayader and Builth Wells in Wales, and Hay-on-Wye, Hereford, Ross-on-Wye and Tintern before emptying into the Severn estuary. The Severn (Afon Hafren) is Great Britain's longest river at 220 miles. In England, it has three county towns on its banks in Shrewsbury, Worcester and Gloucester. The estuary lies between England and Wales, with two road bridges crossing it, and becomes the Bristol Channel.

Answer: Welsh Folk Museum

The Welsh Folk Museum became the UK's first open air museum, inspired by those in Scandinavia. The land on which it stands belonged to the Earl of Plymouth, who donated St Fagans Castle and its surroundings to Wales. Located near Cardiff, the museum has displays of buildings from all areas of Wales. These have been moved from their original locations and rebuilt as a living museum.

Among the buildings are a church, dating from the sixteenth century, a Tudor merchant's house, shops, farmhouses from different eras and labourers' cottages. The aim of the museum is to display the life of Wales through the centuries, and displays of traditional crafts are part of the experience.

The museum has had several names since its opening, but the original name was the Welsh Folk Museum.

Answer: Gareth Bale

Gareth Thomas played for the national team on exactly one hundred occasions, between 1995 and 2007. He also went on one British Lions tour, in 2005. Gareth Edwards played at scrum half and was a regular for Wales at ruby union between 1967 and 1978, when the team was all-conquering. Gareth Llewellyn was a forward, playing either lock for flanker, and represented Wales between 1989 and 2004.

Gareth Bale, on the other hand, played association football, or soccer if you're American. He earned 111 Welsh caps in an international career lasting from 2006 until 2022.