The Glorious Twelfth Trivia Quiz

Answer: She provoked an asp to bite her

Though she almost certainly poisoned herself, there is no historical record of an asp in particular being the means of delivery. By committing suicide, she avoided becoming a prisoner to the Romans and the indignities they may make her suffer, after the military victories of Octavian, who would become Rome's first emperor under the name of Augustus. Octavian had her son Caesarion killed in Egypt and had her other children brought to Rome.

Answer: 29th January 1820, at age 57

George was criticised often in his life for wasteful spending, scandalous behaviour, mistresses and alleged illegitimate children, and generally living high on the hog and beyond his means. By the time he became king he was an obese alcoholic and probable laudanum addict.

As he entered old age he racked up more and more health problems until he died at the age of 67. I won't go into detail about his death or autopsy here, let's just say Elvis Presley's pales in comparison.

Answer: Cecil B. DeMille

His most famous works include "The King of Kings," "The Greatest Show on Earth," and "The Ten Commandments," though he produced 88 films and directed 80. He won three Academy Awards, a Palme d'Or and two Golden Globes, including one in a category named in his honour.

Answer: Klara

Paula and Ida were Adolf's sisters and Eva Braun would become his wife. In "Mein Kampf," Hitler wrote that he had "honoured [his] father, but loved [his] mother." Hitler was devastated by his mother's death and the family doctor later recalled that "In all my career, I have never seen anyone so prostrate with grief as Adolf Hitler."

Answer: A subspecies of zebra

The zoo owners did not realise the quagga was the last of it's kind, and requested hunters to capture them a new one. In fact, the last known wild quagga had died in 1878 and the penultimate captive one had died in Berlin in 1875. In 1889, the naturalist Henry Bryden wrote: "That an animal so beautiful, so capable of domestication and use, and to be found not long since in so great abundance, should have been allowed to be swept from the face of the earth, is surely a disgrace to our latter-day civilization."

Answer: Erwin Schrödinger

Schrödinger is best known for his thought experiment in which a cat in a box with some poison that may or may not be released, depending, on whether or not some radioactive material decays. Until the cat is observed, it is both alive and dead simultaneously, in a state known as quantum superposition.

Answer: The Guinness Book of Records

In 1951, MD of Guinness Breweries Sir Hugh Beaver got into an argument over which was the fastest game bird in Europe, the golden plover or the red grouse. He found no reference book that would confirm Europe's fastest game bird, and realised a book cataloguing superlatives and records would be useful for settling similar arguments all over the UK and Ireland. He commissioned the McWhirter twins, each of whom had a photographic memory amd were operating a fact-finding business in London. The Guinness Book of Records, later re-branded Guinness World Records, was first published in 1954. The book would continue to be updated by the McWhirters and the book itself now has the record of world's best selling copyrighted book ever, with sales of more than 100 million copies in 100 different countries and 37 languages.

Guinness World Records recently posted a video online of the most walnuts cracked open by head in one minute and it is amazing.

The plover is the fastest bird.

Answer: Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang: The Magical Car

"Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang" starts out as a big car that an inventor restores, but it soon starts acting independently and in surprising ways, such as unfurling wings during a traffic jam and flying the inventor and his family straight to the seaside.
Fleming drew upon his own life experiences and people he knew for "Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang: The Magical Car," as he did for his Bond novels.

Answer: Sea Org Day

The Church of Scientology describes the Sea Organization, or Sea Org, as a "fraternal religious order, comprising the church's most dedicated members." All Scientology management organizations are controlled exclusively by members of the Sea Org. It has been described as a paramilitary organization and as a private naval force.

It was established on August 12, 1967 by L. Ron Hubbard, initially with four ships.

Answer: The world's largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton

The fossil was named Sue in Hendrickson's honour and auctioned for $8.4 million. It can be seen at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois. Over 90% of the skeleton was recovered, and Sue stands 40 ft long and 12 ft tall. The fossilised skull alone weighs over 600 lb!