Black Velvet Trivia Quiz

Answer: Colin Vearncombe

Colin Vearncombe, known by his stage name Black, was a singer from Cork, Ireland, who emerged from a punk-rock background to create iconic pop songs. He was unfortunately involved in a road traffic incident in 2016 at the young age of 53 and passed away, leaving his widowed wife and three children behind.

Answer: Martha Canga Antonio

Martha Canga Antonio is a Belgian actor who made her only appearance in "Black". Mavela, her character, shares her name with a game lodge in South Africa; it is unknown whether the two are connected. Whilst not the main character in "Black", Mavela is one of the most important, and is listed first in the cast list.

Answer: Funerals

Since the times of the Roman Empire, black has been associated with mourning and death as well as witchcraft, as opposed to purple - the colour of nobility. They would wear dark togas as a symbol of death, and we have carried that tradition on long into present day. Most Christians (Catholics included) tend to keep this tradition.

Answer: Criterion Software

The 18-certificate video game "Black", developed by Criterion Software, was nominated for the BAFTA Games Award for Best Game in 2007. The game was published by Electronic Arts and is a first-person shooter game, rather alike the "Battlefield" series. It is only compatible with the Xbox and PlayStation 2, meaning nowadays it will never advance in the stock market.

Answer: Absorbs them

Whilst a white filter passes all colours through, a black filter absorbs all colours, meaning none pass through. Normally, colour filters allow all colours to pass through except their own, which is absorbed by the filter. This makes black, technically, a shade, but for all intents and purposes it is considered to be a colour. Perhaps more accurately, it is a mixture of all other colours.

Answer: Cyan, yellow and magenta

The CMYK colour model, used in printing, is composed of black, cyan, magenta and yellow - all of which are mixed to create other colours. In the name, the abbreviation stands for Cyan Magenta Yellow Key, key signifying black. Most colour printing is done in this style, although there are other options.

Answer: Old English

Arguably the oldest form of the word 'black', 'blęc', comes from Old English and means 'dark', or in some circumstances, 'ink'. Some people believe the word comes from different sources, for example the Proto-Germanic word 'blakkaz', meaning 'burned', or even the Proto-Indo-European word 'bhleg' - which means 'to flash'.

Answer: Alannah Myles

The song 'Black Velvet', sung by Canadian singer Alannah Myles, was first released in Canada on the singer's self-named album, "Alannah Myles". It was a number one hit for two consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 100 Chart at release and is classed as blues rock. Myles was signed to Atlantic Records.

Answer: Water

As well as being associated with water, the colour black is also correspondent to winter, cold, and the direction north, usually signified by a black tortoise. Alternatively, it is associated with disorder - including the positive disorder which leads to new life. The word 'black' written in traditional Chinese is Hēisč.

Answer: Tuvalu

The flags of Estonia, Gibraltar and Vanuatu all have black on them, whilst the pattern of the flag of Tuvalu is the flag of the UK on a blue background with yellow stars, as it is a member of the Commonwealth and a former British colony.