Saturday, December 06, 2014

This Blog Shows a Flickering Sign of Life


President's Cup Friendly November 16, 2014

In a unique turn of events, I had a 10 round match ready to go, but since there was 10 players in the room, it was converted into a five-a-side 8 round match. That's right FIVE PLAYERS on each team, not a measly FOUR. I know, 'twas a radical turn of events. REVOLUTION!

The score was, um, 56-48?? Or something like that. And it was exhausting dealing with an extra player on each side. I know. Poor moi. 

Usual things apply, like leaving out the answers for questions people couldn't answer and sticking them at the bottom. Plus, there are a load of spares.

Round 1
1 Which Japanese tennis star is the first Asian player to take part in the ATP World Tour Finals, losing in the semi-finals this year to Novak Djokovic? 
Kei Nishikori
2 Which people, starting with the reign of Kenneth MacAlpin, merged with the Gaels to form the kingdom of Scotland? 
Picts
3 Who donated his tomb to Jesus and supposedly brought the Holy Grail to England? 
Joseph of Arimathea
4 The Bethesda system is used to detect the effects of which virus, known as HPV? The vaccine Gardasil is used against it. 
Human papilloma virus 
5 Which fruit shares its name with the historical region in Kyushu where Saigo Takamori led a failed rebellion in 1877? 
Satsuma
6 Which character in the movie Gremlins was voiced by future US Deal or No Deal host and America's Got Talent judge Howie Mandel? 
Gizmo
7 Which Chinese-American cellist, founder of the Silk Road Ensemble, uses a Davidov Stradivarius and a cello called Petunia? 
Yo-Yo Ma
8 Who is the first permanent president of the European Council? 
Hermann van Rompuy
9 Alexander's Ragtime Band was which composer and lyricist's first major hit? 
Irving Berlin
10 Which play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee fictionalised the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial? 
Inherit the Wind

R2
1 In 1977, James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham and Douglas J. Mink discovered which planet's ring system? 
Uranus
2 Disposable Teens, The Dope Show and The Fight Song feature on Lest We Forget, the greatest hits collection of which American rock act?
Marilyn Manson
3 Depicting a rehearsal of a play titled Caliban's Day, The Habit of Art by Alan Bennett features a fictional meeting between W.H. Auden and which composer? 
Britten
4 Mykonos, Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos are part of which Greek archipelago? 
Cyclades
5 In April 2002, which Cambodian king became possibly the first head of state to start a personal website and blog? 
Norodom Sihanouk
6 Which German composer created the Tristan chord (notes F, B, D sharp, and G sharp)? 
Richard Wagner
7 According to the 12th century Chronicle of St. Neot’s, which king burned some cakes? 
Alfred the Great
8 A Dorgi is a cross between a corgi and which other dog? 
Dachshund
9 Which character gives his name to the authorised 2014 Sherlock Holmes novel by Anthony Horowitz?
Moriarty 
10 Patong Beach is said to be the biggest tourist draw on which Thai island? 
Phuket

R3
1 Which musician is the co-author of the debut picture book Gus & Me: The Story of My Granddad and My First Guitar
Keith Richards (with his artist daughter Theodora Richards)
2 The Tenth Labour of Hercules involved obtaining which giant’s cattle? 
Geryon
3 Vincent van Gogh called which flower-themed painting “the lightning conductor for my illness”? 
Irises
4 Which Canadian snooker player is remembered for his second round match against David Taylor at the 1983 world championship because he stopped playing and wanted to see Cliff Thorburn complete his 147 break?
Bill Werbeniuk
5 Played by Mark Wahlberg, Marcus Luttrell is the title US Navy Seal in which 2013 film? 

6 In a Bulwer-Lytton novel, which title cardinal states that “the pen is mightier than the sword”? 
Richelieu: Or the Conspiracy
7 The invention of which incendiary weapon is credited to architect Callinicus of Heliopolis? 
Greek fire 
8 Which Florentine sculptor's statue of the prophet Habakukk is nicknamed “Le Zuccone” ('pumpkin head')? 
Donatello
9 Which English sailor was the first person to circumnavigate the globe single-handed and non-stop?
Sir Robin Knox-Johnston
10 The Isadorables were a group of six dancers, including Elizabeth Milker and Anna Denzler, who were taught by which dancer?
Isadora Duncan

R4
1 Arthur Sasse is best known for taking a photograph of which man sticking his tongue out?
Albert Einstein
2 Which scandal involved the Soviet naval attaché Yevgeny Ivanov?
The Profumo Affair
3 The artwork Four Marlons by Andy Warhol features Marlon Brando in his role from which film?
The Wild One
4 Selkirk Rex, Havana Brown and Norwegian Forest are breeds of what?
Cat
5 Which country is ruled by a queen from the House of Glucksburg?
Denmark
6 Wichita is the largest city in which US state? 
Kansas
7 The Dutch-born pianist Suzanne Leenhoff married which French painter in 1863?
Edouard Manet
8 Nicknamed (more recently) 'The Cobra', which Dutch darts player of Indonesian ethnicity is the youngest ever winner of a world championship?
Jelle Klaasen
9 Sigourney Weaver once lost on Oscar night in both the Best Supporting Actress and Actress categories when she was up for her roles in Working Girl and which other film?

10 The actor Adam West voices the mayor Adam West in which animated TV series?
Family Guy

R5
1 Which city airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia?
Vancouver
2 Robert O'Neill, aged 38, has hit the news headlines for claiming to kill which man? 
Osama bin Laden  
3 The Legacy of Elizabeth Pringle is the debut novel of which Newsnight presenter?
Kirsty Wark
4 Funky Drummer and My Thang are much-sampled songs released by which soul music star?
James Brown
5 The world's shortest man, according to Guinness World Records, the 21.5-inch tall 75-year-old Chandra Bahadur Dangi comes from which country?

6 Which English city featured in the name of the Mark 1, one of the world's first recognisable modern computer?
Manchester
7 Played by Stanley Tucci, the talk show host Caesar Flickerman features in which movie series?
The Hunger Games
8 In 2004, which boxer had the first of his four fights with Juan Manuel Marquez, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas?
Manny Pacquaio
9 Which French composer created his piano piece Gaspard de la nuit specifically to outdo the notorious difficulty of Balakirev's Islamey
Maurice Ravel
10 What is the UK's second largest supermarket chain, Tesco being number one?
Asda

R6
1 The tea, rooibus, takes its name from the words for 'red bush' in which language?
Afrikaans
2 Which European Space Agency probe shares its name with an island in Lake Nasser, also known as Qasr Anas al-Wujud, that the ancient Egyptians believed was a holy place for the goddess Isis?
Philae
3 Which English celebrity chef shares her name with the subject of love poems by the Roman poet Tibullus?
Delia
4 Which mausoleum is the burial place of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert?
Frogmore Mausoleum
5 Who directed the films My Beautiful Laundrette, Dangerous Liaisons, High Fidelity and The Queen?
Stephen Frears
6 Which medical condition is also known as podagra when it involves the big toe? 
Gout
7 Meeting at the St. Paul's Church in 1848, Germany's first freely elected parliament was named after which city? 
Frankfurt
8 Which country's fleet fired on British fishing boats in the North Sea in an October 1904 incident?
Russia
9 Which London-born stand-up comedian's The 'Out Out' Tour was the best-selling debut DVD of 2011?
Micky Flanagan
10 The taka is the currency of which Asian country? 
Bangladesh 

R7
1 Which two Prime Ministers are named in the Beatles song Taxman?
Mr Wilson & Mr Heath 
2 Which star in the constellation Lyra will become the Pole Star in some 10,000 years' time?
Vega
2 David Suchet played the role of Augustus Melmotte in the 2001 TV adaptation of which novel?
The Way We Live Now
3 The title of a Harold Pinter play, which three-word phrase's various definitions in the OED include 'a state of confusion or uncertainty', 'a dangerous or forbidden place' and 'a stretch of disputed territory'?
No man's land
4 Which Californian wine valley gives its name to the annual event that is the largest wine auction in the world?
Napa Valley
5 Craster kippers come from the village of Craster in which county? 
Northumberland
6 In 1520, who became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire on the death of his father, who was known as 'the Grim'?
Suleyman the Magnificent
7 Which organisation was Benito Mussolini talking about when he said that it was "very well when sparrows shout, but no good at all when eagles fall out"?
League of Nations
8 Which hill top town in Umbria is famous for its university and for its 'baci' or chocolate kisses and chocolate industry as a whole?
Perugia
9 Calling itself the world's only seven star hotel, the sail-shaped Burj Al Arab is located in which city?
Dubai
10 Owned by the John Lewis Partnership, which department store in Sloane Square is named after the son of a Carmarthenshire hat manufacturer, who was born in 1842?
Peter Jones

R8
1 Located in Picardy, which French city's incomplete Cathedral of Saint Peter - the "The Parthenon of French Gothic" - has the world's highest church nave, with a height of 156ft?
Beauvais
2 Nicknamed the "Good Lord's Lantern" or "la Lanterne du Bon Dieu", the Saint-Etienne cathedral in which city in Lorraine displays the largest expanse of stained glass in the world, with 69,920 square feet?
Metz 
3 Which Malaysian dollar billionaire is chairman and chief executive of Beryjaya Corporation Berhad and became owner of Cardiff City in 2010?
Vincent Tan
4 In 1975, which rereleased song became David Bowie's first UK number one single?
Space Oddity
5 The title of a novel by Ian McEwan, which term in Christian theology describes how human beings can be reconciled to God?
Atonement
6 Joel Osteen, with a reported net worth of $56.5 million, is Senior Pastor of Lakewood Church, the largest Protestant Church and largest congregation in the US, averaging a 43,500 attendance per week. It is located in which Texas city?

7 Featuring the songs Phat Planet and Afrika Shox, the 1999 release Rhythm and Stealth was a number one album for which British electronic duo?
Leftfield
8 In 1964, which two-word term was coined by by the toy company Hasbro to market G.I. Joe to boys who wouldn't play with things called 'dolls'?
Action figure
9 Opal is an hydrated amorphous form of which chemical compound?

10 The 1768m-long Peace Bridge between Canada and the US crosses over which river?
Niagara

------------

ANSWERS TO THE UNANSWERED
R3 5 Lone Survivor
R4 9 Gorillas in the Mist
R5 5 Nepal
R8 6 Houston
R8 9 Silica / Silicon dioxide

Spares
What is the most common beef breed of cattle in the US?
Black Angus
Malaysia, with 100,000 square feet of space is the latest outpost to open internationally for which movie studio, joining Toronto, Berlin and Dominican Republic? 
Pinewood Studios
Which brothers belonged to the early 1980s New Zealand band Split Enz? 
Neil and Tim Finn
Rue de Lille 75343 Paris is the address of which art museum?
Musee d'Orsay
Used in cooking, which type of dehydrated cube derives its name from the French for 'broth'?
Bouillon
In Greek mythology, the broken horn of the goat Amalthea became which object? 
Cornucopia
Which fashion accessory can be basket, messenger, pouch or signature? 
Bag
Which painting in the Maurithuis was purchased for only two guilders and 30 cents by Arnoldus Andries des Tombe in 1881 and given a restoration in 1994 that revealed its dark black background was originally a deep green?
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Philip Webb designed the L-shaped Red House in Bexleyheath for which Arts & Crafts movement leader? William Morris
Which sitcom featured the characters Lord Percy Percy and Lord Melchett? 
Blackadder, specifically Blackadder II
Which major world figure wrote The Story of My Experiments with the Truth: An Autobiography?
Mahatma Gandhi
In the 1990 book Esio Trot by Roald Dahl, what type of creature is Mrs Silver's pet Alfie? 
Tortoise
Which Spanish composer built his 1911 piano work Goyescas around the work of Goya? 
Enrique Granados
Funny Girl is a 2014 novel by which English author?
Nick Hornby
Which novel by George Eliot features the drowning of Tom and Maggie Tulliver? 
The Mill on the Floss
Which literary heroine loves Angel Clare? 
Tess Durbeyfield
Who is Wooden in a piece by Bartok, Happy in an Oscar Wilde story, Little in a book by Antoine de Saint-Exupery and Black in an Iris Murdoch novel? 
Prince
The half-brother of detective Harry Bosch, LA attorney Mickey Haller is the title character in which 2005 novel by Michael Connelly?  
The Lincoln Lawyer
Which wine shares its name with the largest city in southern Iran? 
Shiraz