If you’re usually the person everyone fights to have on their pub quiz team, this should put that reputation firmly on the line.
Coasting through a music round or breezing past a few geography questions is one thing, but a proper general knowledge test doesn’t let you stick to your comfort zone. These 20 questions jump all over the place, leaping from chart-topping records and classic cinema to tricky science, ancient history, sporting moments, and world capitals.
There’s nowhere to hide if you’ve only got one specialist subject, so you’ll need to pull out all the stops to stay in contention. Grab a pen, keep an honest tally of your score as you go, and see whether you can actually earn those 20 out of 20 bragging rights.
1. Who painted The Scream?
A. Munch
B. Goya
C. Kirchner
D. Macke
2. Which band released ‘World in Motion’, England’s 1990 World Cup song?
A. The Lightning Seeds
B. Duran Duran
C. The Farm
D. New Order
3. Hypertension is also known as what?
A. Stress
B. High blood pressure
C. Pulled muscle
D. Stroke
4. New Zealand rugby international Richie McCaw played in which position?
A. Full-back
B. Flanker
C. Fly-half
D. Centre
5. Which is the largest city in Canada?
A. Toronto
B. Ottawa
C. Calgary
D. Montreal
6. Complete this line from the poem Jabberwocky: ‘The claws that catch, the jaws that…’
A. Rip
B. Chomp
C. Tear
D. Bite
7. Who wrote the 2015 book The Girl on the Train?
A. Paula Hawkins
B. E. L. James
C. Ella Woodward
D. Emma Healey
8. In physics, who first predicted gravitational waves?
A. Hawking
B. Dirac
C. Newton
D. Einstein
9. A ukulele generally has how many strings?
A. Four
B. Six
C. Three
D. Five
10. Who famously made the Gettysburg Address?
A. Monroe
B. Lincoln
C. Adams
D. Jefferson
11. The Esperanto word ‘manĝi’ translates as what?
A. Wizard
B. Eat
C. Father
D. Crush
12. Who directed the 2009 film Star Trek?
A. J. J. Abrams
B. Christopher Nolan
C. Peter Jackson
D. Steven Spielberg
13. Which city is the state capital of Florida?
A. Miami
B. Tallahassee
C. Pensacola
D. Orlando
14. To Autumn is a poem by whom?
A. William Blake
B. Ted Hughes
C. William Wordsworth
D. John Keats
15. The Smiths originated in which English city?
A. Manchester
B. Newcastle
C. London
D. Liverpool
16. Sudan, Eritrea and Yemen border which sea?
A. The Mediterranean Sea
B. The Red Sea
C. The Dead Sea
D. The Caspian Sea
17. In which year was the first episode of EastEnders shown?
A. 1975
B. 1980
C. 1970
D. 1985
18. Who was president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015?
A. Muhammadu Buhari
B. Namadi Sambo
C. Goodluck Jonathan
D. Olusegun Obasanjo
19. Which apostle wrote the First Letter to the Corinthians in the Bible?
A. Luke
B. Mark
C. Peter
D. Paul
20. Which group of the modern periodic table contains the noble gases?
A. Group 1
B. Group 2
C. Group 18
D. Group 14
Answers
1. A. Munch
2. D. New Order
3. B. High blood pressure
4. B. Flanker
5. A. Toronto
6. D. Bite
7. A. Paula Hawkins
8. D. Einstein
9. A. Four
10. B. Lincoln
11. B. Eat
12. A. J. J. Abrams
13. B. Tallahassee
14. D. John Keats
15. A. Manchester
16. B. The Red Sea
17. D. 1985
18. C. Goodluck Jonathan
19. D. Paul
20. C. Group 18
How many did you get right? Tell us your score in the comments and see whether you’re still the person everyone wants on their quiz team.
