The Bear Facts in Haiku Trivia Quiz

Answer: duffel coat

Paddington Bear was sent from 'Darkest Peru' to England by his Aunt Lucy, who was no longer able to care for him. He was found on Paddington Station by Mr and Mrs Brown and their children, Jonathan and Judy, and 'adopted' into their family. His favourite food is marmalade sandwiches. When he arrived, he only had his hat and an old, rather tatty suitcase; his trademark duffel coat and Wellingtons came later.

There are twenty-seven books in the 'Paddington' series, and he has been the subject of several film and television adaptations. The first book, 'A Bear Called Paddington', was published in 1958. The last book, 'Paddington's Finest Hour' was published in April 2017, shortly before author Michael Bond's death on 27 June 2017 at the age of 91.

Answer: Pooky

The main characters in cartoonist Jim Davis's 'Garfield' strip are Garfield, his owner Jon and Jon's dog, Odie. Pooky the teddy bear is Garfield's best friend and is often seen being hugged by him, which can sometimes make Jon a little jealous.

The other choices are all fictional bears. 'Corduroy' is the title character of a book by author Don Freeman, a charming tale of a teddy bear who is found in a department store by a little girl who buys him. Don Freeman later wrote another book about Corduroy, 'A Pocket for Corduroy'. Humphrey the Bear is a Disney creation who appeared in several Disney productions, the first being the 'Goofy' cartoon 'Hold That Pose' in 1950. There is also another fictional bear called Humphrey - Humphrey B Bear, an Australian children's television character. Bobo is the teddy bear belonging to Mr Burns from 'The Simpsons', which he had when he was small. His story is told in the episode 'Rosebud'.

Answer: Rupert

Rupert Bear first saw the light of day in the 'Daily Express' in 1920 and the strip continues in the paper to this day. He became so popular that ever since 1936 there has been a 'Rupert' annual, which has featured in many a child's Christmas stocking.

The strip was originally created by artist Mary Tourtel (1874-1948), who lived in Canterbury, Kent. It follows the adventures of Rupert and his friends Bill Badger, Edward Trunk, Algy Pug, Ping Pong, Willie the mouse and others. The friends' adventures have been adapted for television and film over the years. As well as the cartoon strip, Mary Tourtel also wrote and illustrated forty-six books about Rupert and his friends. When she retired a few years before her death the strip was continued by other writers. There is a museum dedicated to Rupert in her home city.

Answer: Baloo

Rudyard Kipling was born in India in 1865 and returned to live there again for a spell during his adult life. He also travelled the world widely. The stories in 'The Jungle Book' centre on Mowgli, a little boy or 'man-child' who is raised by a pack of wolves. The stories are told as fables and feature several animals, of which Baloo is the bear, Mowgli's friend who always looks out for him. Shere Khan is the evil tiger who wants to kill Mowgli, and Kaa is a very large snake. Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a courageous little mongoose who is rescued by a family who decide to keep him as a pet. He later saves them by killing two deadly king cobras, Nag and Nagaina.

'The Jungle Book' has been adapted for the screen several times, perhaps most memorably with the 1967 Disney animation which features the song 'The Bare Necessities', sung by Phil Harris. This was to be Walt Disney's final film, as he died during the making of it. A more recent adaptation is the live-action film released in 2016, with actor Bill Murray voicing the part of Baloo.

In 1902, Kipling purchased Batemans, a large house and grounds in East Sussex, where he lived for the last years of his life. His wife bequeathed Batemans to the National Trust on her death in 1939, following Kipling's own death in 1936.

Answer: Mary Plain

The stories depict Mary Plain and her family as real bears, rather than toys. The bears live in a real place too, the Bear Pits or Bärengraben, in Berne, the Swiss capital. The books, which are beautifully illustrated, focus on the fictional lives of Mary and her family, and also feature her relationship with her friend the Owl Man, who is always on hand to keep her safe.

The books have been read on children's radio programmes and on the children's television show 'Jackanory'. The first book, called 'Mostly Mary', was published in 1930, and the last, 'Mary Plain's Whodunit' in 1965. Gwynedd Rae lived from 1892 to 1977.

Answer: a great big filthy spider

The cause of Ron Weasley's arachnophobia is revealed in 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' when the friends meet Aragog the Acromantula, a huge spider-like creature, in the Forbidden Forest. Ron explains that he has been terrified of spiders ever since he was small, when his older brother Fred changed his teddy bear, which he was holding at the time, into a - in his words - 'great big filthy spider' because he was angry that Ron had broken his toy broomstick.

There are no real live bears in the 'Harry Potter' world, although the series abounds with other creatures. J K Rowling wrote that Harry himself had a teddy bear as a baby, when he lived with his parents before their untimely deaths at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Another was the teddy bear given by Hagrid to Norbert, his baby dragon, but not surprisingly that bear didn't last very long!

Answer: Pudsey

Pudsey Bear has been the charity's mascot since 1985. He is depicted as a teddy bear who wears a bandana over his right eye. BBC Children in Need is the BBC's own charity. It was set up in 1980; as its name suggests, its aim is to raise funds to support charities working on projects involving young people and children across the UK. Fundraising events are held at local level across the country during the year, and the main event is a major telethon held each November, where stars from music, soap, comedy and more perform free of charge.

The BBC has long been involved in children's charities via television and radio appeals. The donations made to BBC Children in Need reached a little over $1 million in its first year. Since then support for the charity has grown and grown; the amount raised in 2016 was in the region of a staggering £60 million, of which £46 million was raised on the night of the telethon alone. The late Sir Terry Wogan was the main presenter since the charity's inauguration until ill health forced him to step down in 2015, when the show was presented by Dermot O'Leary.

Answer: Cindy

Cindy Bear, one of many cartoon characters to have been created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, was introduced to 'The Yogi Bear Show' in 1961. She was voiced by Julie Bennett, who has had a long career as a voice actor as well as appearing on stage and screen. Yogi himself, along with Boo-Boo Bear, had originally made his debut in 'The Huckleberry Hound Show' in 1958 before being given a show of his own.

Cindy Bear has appeared in many of the 'Yogi Bear' television shows, films and comics. The character has a big role in the 1964 comedy film animation 'Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!', in which she is kidnapped and forced to perform in a travelling circus before eventually being rescued by Yogi and Boo-Boo.

Answer: Little John

Little John, Robin Hood's second in command among his band of outlaws, is portrayed by a bear, voiced by Phil Harris, who coincidentally voiced another bear, Baloo, in the 1967 Disney film 'The Jungle Book', featured in an earlier question in this quiz. Robin Hood and Maid Marian were portrayed as a fox and a vixen, played by Brian Bedford and Monica Evans, and the character of Friar Tuck was represented by a badger, voiced by Andy Devine.

'Robin Hood' also features the voice talents of Sir Peter Ustinov in the dual roles of lions King Richard and Prince John, and Terry-Thomas as Sir Hiss, the snake, Prince John's evil henchman. The film was Oscar-nominated for the song 'Love', performed by Nancy Adams as the singing voice of Maid Marian.

Answer: Christopher Robin

The stories about Winnie-the-Pooh were written by A A (Alan Alexander) Milne (1882 - 1956) for his young son, Christopher Robin. Winnie-the-Pooh was based on Christopher Robin Milne's own teddy bear. The bear had originally been called Edward, but Christopher Robin renamed him Winnie in honour of a bear he had seen in London Zoo. Winnie (short for the Canadian city of Winnipeg) was a female bear who had been rescued as a cub and brought to England at the outbreak of World War I by Major Harry Colebourn of the Royal Canadian Army Veterinary Corps.

'Winnie-the-Pooh' was first published in 1926 and 'The House at Pooh Corner' in 1928. The tales are set in the 'Hundred Acre Wood', a fictional setting based on the real Five Hundred Acre Wood in the Ashdown Forest, East Sussex, a site of considerable historical and archaeological interest. The Milne family lived nearby and Christopher Robin's father often took him walking there. There are many films based on the characters, and Winnie-the-Pooh is one of the most popular and enduring children's characters ever. The books are beautifully illustrated throughout by E H Shepard, who also illustrated the animal characters in Kenneth Grahame's 'Wind in the Willows'.

Together with Christopher Robin and his firm friends Tigger, Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, Owl and others, Winnie-the-Pooh has several adventures in the Hundred Acre Wood including the game of 'Poohsticks' and searching for honey to eat, which he loves. Winnie-the-Pooh spells 'honey' as 'hunny' in the books. He knows his limitations and does admit to not being a talented speller.