Meeting Disney's Princesses Trivia Quiz

'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' was based on the fairy tale collected by the German Grimm brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm. It is widely acknowledged as the first full length animated film, although Walt Disney Productions had created short films previously.

The story about the princess Snow White and her wicked stepmother was an instant success becoming the highest grossing film of 1938. It set the template for many of the films which followed.

Another Disney film to be based on a classic fairy tale, 'Cinderella' dates from 1950. Its voice cast included Ilene Woods as the title character and Verna Felton as the Fairy Godmother who comes along to save the day.

Songs from the film include 'A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes', sung by Cinderella, and 'Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo', performed by the Fairy Godmother. Disney also made a live action film, directed by Kenneth Branagh, in 2015 with Lily James as Cinderella.

Based on the fairy tale written by Charles Perrault, Aurora is the princess at the centre of 'Sleeping Beauty'. She is cursed by the evil witch Maleficent to prick her finger on a spindle and fall into a sleep from which she can only be woken by the kiss of a true lover.

In true fairy tale style, a prince named Phillip, the man Aurora was betrothed to as a baby, falls in love with the girl he knows as Briar Rose. He also kills Maleficent, who has taken on the form of a dragon, and the couple, in typical fairy rale fashion, live happily ever after.

Some critics felt the plot was too close to that of 'Snow White', and it was the last animated fairy tale created by Disney for several years.

We've skipped a few years to 'The Little Mermaid', from 1989, because the Disney films of the intervening years avoided real princesses. Ariel is the name of the mermaid princess who longs to be human. She manages to rescue a real prince and makes a deal with the wicked witch Ursula who promises to make her human for three days.

The supporting cast enhances the film, with a fish named Flounder and a crab called Sebastian adding to the fun. Of course, all works out in the end and Ariel marries the rather prosaically named Prince Eric.

Loosely based on one of the stories from 'One Thousand and One Nights', this version of the story of 'Aladdin' incorporated the incredible talents of Robin Williams, who provided the voice of the Genie. Aladdin is a poor boy, called a 'street rat', who falls for the daughter of the Sultan of Agrabah, Princess Jasmine.

With the help of the Genie, the pair manage to overcome the plotting of the evil Jafar and gain the blessing of her father. The film saw a move away from the traditional princesses, which was followed in subsequent films covered in the quiz.

Although Pocahontas was a real person, the film played fast and loose with the facts of her life. The story depicts her as an adult in the film while she would have still been a pre-teen at the time that the settlers she helps arrived in the USA. The romance with John Smith is also stretching the truth.

Despite the lack of reality, the film proved popular, with famous names such as Mel Gibson (as Smith) and Christian Bale lending their voice talents. The film also won two Academy Awards for the score and Best Original Song with 'Colors of the Wind'.

This film features another heroine who is not the helpless type waiting for a hero to rescue her. The story is based on a Chinese legend about a young woman named Mulan, who disguises herself as a man to take her father's place in the army when he is conscripted.

The mythical element is provided by Mushu, a small dragon, who becomes her guardian. Passing as a soldier named Fa Ping, Mulan is able to maintain her deceit until she is badly injured. With Mushu's help, Mulan is able to save the life of the Emperor and is honoured for her efforts.

Mushu is voiced by Eddie Murphy, to great effect and singers such as Lea Salonga, Donny Osmond and Matthew Wilder sang the songs. Mention should also be made of Marni Nixon, who has provided singing voices for many characters in films both animated and live.

Tiana is the heroine of the 2009 film 'The Princess and the Frog'. The film took its inspiration from the Brothers Grimm story 'The Frog Prince' and the 2002 novel The Frog Princess', written by E D Baker.

In the film, Tiana is working as a waitress while dreaming of opening her own restaurant. A prince named Naveen comes to New Orleans, where the film is set, intending to marry Tiana's best friend for her money. The location means that voodoo is involved with Naveen being turned into a frog and Tiana suffering the same fate when she kisses the frog - the fairy tale ending didn't work because Tiana wasn't a princess. Eventually all ends well after Naveen and Tiana marry, thus making her a real princess and both are restored to human form.

Randy Newman provided the music for the film.

'Frozen' actually has two princesses = Elsa and her estranged younger sister Anna. Elsa has magical powers which create snow and ice. The storyline was adapted from Hans Christian Andersen's tale of 'The Snow Queen'.

The princesses are voiced by Kristen Bell (Anna) and Idina Menzel (Elsa) with the sisters finding a way to reconcile with the help of a snowman named Olaf. The film was so successful that it led to a sequel released in 2019 - others are being planned at the time of writing this quiz (in 2025).

'Moana' was released in 2016 taking its storyline from the myths of Polynesia. It is set in ancient times when Moana, the daughter of a village chieftain, is chosen by the ocean to return an ancient artefact to a goddess. Moana has to enlist the aid of Maui, a mythical hero from various Polynesian cultures, including that of Hawaii - Maui is believed to have formed the islands by dragging them up from the depths with a fish hook.

Casting includes Auli'i Cravalho as Moana - the actress was born in Hawaii and has Polynesian heritage, while Maui is voiced by Dwayne Johnson, better known to many as the Rock. Songs were provided by the likes of Lin Manuel Miranda and the film did well enough to warrant a sequel in 2024.