What Even Trivia Quiz

Answer: 2

"Fawlty Towers" debuted on UK TV in 1975 and has since been regarded as one of the high watermarks of British comedy. Featuring John Cleese, Prunella Scales, and a cast of characters working at a Devon hotel, it's full of eminently quotable lines, and having run for only a dozen episodes, it's one of those programmes that never overstays its welcome.

"Fawlty Towers" aired entirely on BBC Two, a network known for its less mainstream fare (at least that was the intent back when it was created in 1964). Generally, when shows lasted the long-haul and became more popular, they transitioned over to BBC One (some examples, at a time, include "Top Gear" and "The Great British Bake Off").

Answer: 2

Dante Alighieri's "Inferno" lays out the different circles of Hell as encountered during his journey deeper and deeper into the underworld, and the second circle, of nine, takes him through the depiction of lust. Here, Dante discovers those who have been condemned to remain within a never-ending storm reflective of the tempestuous feelings of romance, love, betrayal, and carnality they had in life. Amongst those found here are Cleopatra and Helen of Troy.

Dante eventually escapes this circle of Hell when he faints, and he awakens one level lower in the circle of gluttony.

Answer: 2

There are a number of countries out there with two official capitals, and in Bolivia's case, it's a little more complicated than it seems from the outside. La Paz has traditionally been considered to be Bolivia's capital, but it's only a capital in an administrative sense as it contains many of the nation's government institutions. Per Bolivia's constitution, however, the judicial capital of the country is actually Sucre, found much further southwest, located in a more central region.

Other countries with multiple capitals include the Netherlands (Amsterdam and The Hague), Eswatini (Mbabane and Lobamba), and South Africa (Bloemfontein, Cape Town, and Pretoria).

Answer: 4

Not-coincidentally Beyoncé's fourth solo album, "4" released in 2011 and featured a handful of instant pop classics including the empowerment anthem "Run the World (Girls)", the infectious "Love On Top", and the unique, uptempo R&B track "Countdown". "4" would end up going multi-platinum internationally, continuing Beyoncé's streak of immense sales and growing popularity; it would also hit number one on charts in the U.S., the UK, Australia, South Korea, Spain, and on and on.

Interestingly, it was one of the only albums in Beyoncé's catalogue not to be up for Album of the Year (though "Love On Top" would take a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance).

Answer: 4

The 'Four Asian Tigers' refers to the four regions of Asia that boomed during the latter half of the 20th century-- Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan-- building themselves into distinct economical and industrial powerhouses, all of which felt the fruits of those labours and policies well into the next century. All four would grow to bear high GDP, become integral to international trade, and support greater quality of life factors (including life expectancy, household income, and general well-being) than their own neighbours as a result.

While no one person can be attributed to being the source of the term 'Four Asian Tigers', economic theory emerging in the 1990s chalked the phrase up to existing language used to describe Japan's post-war successes.

Answer: 4

Of the twenty arrondissements of Paris, the 4th is one of the most visited because it contains some of the most famous sites on the Seine. Visitors here get their run of Île de la Cité and Île Saint-Louis, which means that Notre-Dame de Paris is part of this area. Crossing over to the northern side of the river, sightseers won't need to walk too far to find Hôtel de Ville, Place de la Bastille, or Centre Georges Pompidou, amongst other landmarks.

It's been a busy spot to visit for more than two thousand years, but it's right in the middle of everything; it exemplifies Paris.

Answer: 6

Releasing seventeen episodes between 1967 and 1968, the UK television programme, "The Prisoner", featured Patrick McGoohan as the mysterious protagonist known as 'Number Six', a former intelligence officer for the British Secret Service who awakened in a mysterious village. Forced to determine why he was there, who he could trust, and if he was part of a bigger plot, Number Six had to unearth the mysteries while also facing off against concerning twists of fate that could only be described as sci-fi-leaning in nature.

Many regard it as one of the top British thriller shows of the 1960s and it has endured in pop culture since.

Answer: 6

First being conceived for "The Amazing Spider-Man Annual" in 1964, the Sinister Six were devised as a supervillain group who set out to defeat the titular hero. Led by the infamous Doctor Octopus, the first iteration of the gang would include Kraven the Hunter, Mysterio, Vulture, Sandman, and Electro as well, though the roster would shift over time depending on the storylines as they unfolded.

At one time they were even the Sinister Seven (and the Sinister Twelve!).

Answer: 6

Six Flags, as a company, started outside of Arlington, Texas, in the 1960s but it has since undergone significant expansion and changes over decades of growth in and out of the United States, becoming one of the largest theme park conglomerates coming out of North America. Merging with Cedar Fair in the 2020s, it would grow to include famous parks like Knott's Berry Farm in Anaheim, Cedar Point in Sandusky, Kings Island near Cincinnati, and Canada's Wonderland north of Toronto, Ontario.

The six flags of their name refers to the six different flags that flew over Texas in its history (Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the U.S. flag, and the Confederate U.S. flag).

Answer: 8

'Pieces of eight' may sound like pirate booty, and it's not too far off from the truth. When the Spanish dollar was minted in the fifteenth century, it would eventually become a de facto world currency during the Age of Exploration, eventually making its way to far-flung locales (especially for Europeans) and becoming one of the key forms of tender in the Caribbean. There are eight Spanish reales in one Spanish dollar.

As for the pirate connection, 'pieces of eight' was a phrase spoken (often) by Captain Flint, Long John Silver's noisy parrot in the 1883 boys novel "Treasure Island", by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Answer: 8

Though popularized by the Eminem-led film "8 Mile" (2002), the actual 8 Mile is a roadway along the northern edge of Detroit, Michigan, making up the M-102 highway (and then some). It's a unique area when considering social makeup; 8 Mile is known, historically, for being a demarkation line for class division in this part of the city with many of the upper-class white suburbs being built to the north and many black families in poverty to the south. Though the region has undergone significant transformations, even as recently as after the Eminem film, it has long held a certain reputation for being rough around the edges for outsiders.

Answer: 8

What started as an independent video game exploring a recursive, liminal space, "Exit 8" places your character into a Japanese metro station and your goal is to leave it. The problem is that passing through the space has you looping back upon yourself over and over, only advancing you if you can pick up on subtle differences and make changes to your navigation accordingly.

The 2023 PC game gave way to a Japanese film in 2025 (premiering at Cannes) which capitalized on the trend popularized by "Backrooms"-style gaming that emerged in the decade.