Don't Forget to Write Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Great Fire

The Great Fire of London happened in 1666. It is believed to have started at a bakery in Pudding Lane. 70,000 people out of a population of 80,000 lost their homes in the fire. Samuel Pepys, who was a senior naval officer, climbed a turret in the Tower of London to watch the fire. There is an extensive description in his diary where he wrote, 'It made me weep to see it'.

Answer: Charlotte, Emily and Anne

Charlotte, Emily and Anne wrote novels and poetry at the parsonage in the quiet village of Haworth in West Yorkshire. They all wrote under male pseudonyms as it was not considered respectable for ladies to write. Charlotte's 'Jane Eyre' was the first to receive recognition, but they were all successful.

Answer: Bernie Taupin

In 1967 Elton and Bernie both answered the same newspaper advert for song writers. They failed the audition, but have stayed together as friends and collaborators for more then 50 years, and written many songs from the gentle 'Your Song' to the vibrant 'Rocket Man'.

Answer: Salman Rushdie

In the 1970s Salman Rushdie was an advertising copywriter and he came up with this slogan to advertise cream cakes. There were many adverts on television on this theme and they featured many top comedians such as Tony Hancock, Les Dawson and Barbara Windsor.

Answer: Hiawatha

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in Portland Maine, and became a novelist and a poet. He wrote 'The Song of Hiawatha' in 1855. It was based on many traditional folk tales, especially those of the Ojibway Tribe of Northern Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Answer: Spike Milligan

'The Goon Show' was written by Spike Milligan with contributions from many other writers including Jimmy Grafton and Eric Sykes. It was performed by himself Peter Sellers, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine. The show was characterised by ridiculous plots, lots of catch phrases and puns, and the occasional bizarre sound effect.

The whole thing was quite surreal and it changed the face of British comedy.

Answer: General Lafayette

General Lafayette with the help of Thomas Jefferson and Honore Mirabeau wrote the 'Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen' of 1789. It said that all men are born free and equal in rights. This summed up the values of the French Revolution and formed the basis for the French constitution.

This Declaration together with the British 'Magna Carta', the 'English Bill of Rights' and the 'United States Bill of Rights' formed the basis for the 'United Nations Bill of Rights 1948'.

Answer: 84 Charing Cross Road

Helen Hanff first wrote to Marks and Co. in 1949 in an attempt to get hold of some books that were not available in New York. The Manager, Frank Doel, was able to oblige and sent her the books and a letter with the bill. This began the long term friendship between them, and between herself and other members of staff at the shop.

She sent them food parcels to help out with the rations in post war Britain, and many other gifts were exchanged.

Answer: Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl wrote many of his books in a shed in his garden and he wrote in pencil on yellow pads. His first children's book was 'The Gremlins', which was published in 1943. Roald had a very interesting life. He was a fighter pilot during World War II. Later he was recruited as an agent for MI6 and he provided intelligence from Washington.

Answer: Mark

The word gospel means 'Good News' and refers to accounts of the life of Jesus Christ. It is thought that Mark, who was a follower of Peter's, was the first to write his gospel, followed by Matthew, Luke and finally John. Matthew was a tax collector who was called by Jesus to be one of his apostles and Luke was a Doctor. John was the youngest of the apostles.