About Last Night …

Hmmm.

Well, now I’ve got the whinging pommery over with …

The one good upshot about last night, is that we had four teams in; — which was good, given it was New Years Day.

But, here, this is the Review of the Year question set I used. And, as with the Christmas one, it was the same set that I used at the King Harold, on Tuesday.

ROUND ONE: – GENERAL KNOWLEDGE.

Q1) Ian Bishop won this year’s Golden Spurtle, which means he’s the official World Champion maker of … what?

A1) Porridge!

Q2) According to insurance reports released this year, Britain’s most destructive dog is the Great Dane; – what’s Britain’s 2nd most destructive breed?

Q2) The Chihuahua

Q3) The Royal Marsden Hospital was hit by fire, this year; - what disease is it famed for treating?

A3) Cancer

Q4) Which Australian actor died of an Overdose, this year? (Bonus for telling us the name of his last completed film.)

A4) Heath Ledger. (Dark Knight)

Q5) According to figures released this year, two million e-mails are sent in the UK, every how often; – every minute, hour, or day?

A5) Every minute. That’s about 2 billion a day.

Q6) Which new plane made its first commercial flight to Europe, this year?

A6) The Airbus A380, the worlds biggest plane.

Q7) Who became Mayor of London, this year?

A7) Boris Johnson. (Curiously on enough, on the same day as the Feast of Saint Boris of Bulgaria.)

Q8) Which Archbishop took a dive, this year?

A8) His Reverence, Archbishop John Sentamu of York; – he took a parachute dive for charity, in June, this year.

Q9) A bumbling civil servant left top secret intelligence documents about al-Qaeda on a what, this year?

A9) A train.

Q10) What drinkable item saw its hundredth birthday this year?

A10) The tea-bag.

ROUND TWO: – TV DINNERS.

Q11) Which former “Blue Peter” presenter got savaged by a vicious terrier, this year?

A11) Peter Purves

Q12) Who, according to reports this year, was US tv’s highest paid TV actor?

A12) Charlie Sheen

Q13) Which show did Rachel Rice win, this year?

A13) Big Brother

Q14) Oliver Postgate died this year; – what was the first series he made for the BBC?

A14) “The Saga of Noggin the Nog”

Q15) Who got fired from “Countdown”, this year?

A15) Carol Vorderman

Q16) Konnie Hug left her job, this year; - which children’s show did she present?

A16) “Blue Peter”. (She was the longest serving female presenter of the show, and the 2nd longest serving presenter of the show, next to John Noakes)

Q17) Which Scottish actor appeared on a New Zealand Wanted poster, this year?

A17) Robbie Coltrane; – the burglar he replaced was under 16. As such, NZ police couldn’t show his image.

Q18) John Hewer died this year; – which iconic chracter did he play on TV?

A18) Captain Birdseye.

Q19) Who was named as Britain’s most watched tv hosts?

A19) Ant & Dec

Q20) Which Scottish actor played Hamlet, this year? (Bonus for telling us which “Star Trek” star played Claudius.)

A20) David Tennent; – opposite Patrick Stewart, as Hamlet’s Uncle Claudius.

ROUND THREE: – AT THE MOVIES.

Q21) Who won Harvard University’s ‘Woman of the Year’ award?

A21) Charlize Theron

Q22) Who got named as Hollywood’s highest paid actress, this year?

A22) Angelina Jolie

Q23) Keanu Reeves starred in a remake of which science fiction film, this year? (Bonus for telling us the name of the robot character.)

A23) “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (Gort)

Q24) This year saw the UK release of Oliver Stone’s latest movie, which is all about … WHO?

A24) George W Bush

Q25) Don LaFontaine died this year, at the age of 68; - during his Hollywood career, he recorded voice-overs for for over 5000 … what?

A25) Movie trailers.

Q26) Which Hollywood veteran was involved in a car crash, this year?

A26) Morgan Freeman

Q27) Which tv spin off movie was a great success this year?

A27) Sex and the City

Q28) Which film director announced he was boycotting the Beijing Olympics?

A28) Steven Spielberg.

Q29) Which film won Best Film, at this Year’s BAFTA’s?

A29) Atonement, with Keira Knightley, & James McAvoy.

Q30) Paul Newman died this year, @ the age of 83; - but did he play Butch Cassidy, or the Sundance Kid?

A30) Butch Cassidy.

ROUND FOUR: – SPORTING CHANCES.

Q31) Anastacia Dobromyslava won the Women’s World championship, this year; - in what sport?

A31) Darts

Q32) Who won the F1 Drivers championship, this year? (Bonus point for telling us the team)

A32) Lewis Hamilton. (McLaren Mercedes)

Q33) Katerina Emmins won the first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics, in the 10 metre Air Rifle event; - what nationality is she?

A33) Czech

Q34) Welsh cyclist, Nicole Cook, was the first Briton to win a gold medal, in Beijing, this year; – but in which event?

A34) Women’s Road Race

Q35) How many gold medals did Britain get in this year’s Olympics?

A35) 19. We came fourth in the overall medal table.

Q36) Who won the Mens finals at Wimbledon, this year?

A36) Rafæl Nadal. (He beat 5-times consecutive winner, Roger Federer.)

Q37) Who won the Euro 2008 football tournament?

A37) Spain. (They won 1 - 0 against Germany)

Q38) Which American Footballer was found guilty of Armed Robbery, this year?

A38) OJ Simpson

Q39) Which east London stadium closed thisn year?

A39) Walthamstow Dog Race track

Q40) Who won this year’s Scottish Premier League?

A40) Celtic.

ROUND FIVE: – MUSIC AND LIGHTS.

Q41) Producer & DJ, Trevor Romeo, was honoured with an OBE, this year; - how is he better known?

A41) Jazzie B, of Soul 2 Soul

Q42) Dima Bilan won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Believe”; – what country did he represent?

A42) Russia.

Q43) 13 podiatrists went to work at the Glastonbury Festival, this year; – what 1st world war condition were they there to treat?

A43) Trench Foot.

Q44) Which rapper headlined the Glastonbury festival, this year? (Bonus point for telling us which Oasis song he did …)

A44) Jay Z. (“Wonderwall”.)

Q45) In a poll for Rolling Stone magazine, in 2008, who got named as the greatest singer of the rock era?

A45) Aretha Franklin. (Ray Charles came in second, Elvis third, Sam Cooke fourth, and John Lennon at fifth.)

Q46) Who won the ‘Best Album’ award, at this year’s MOBO awards?

A46) Leona Lewis, for Spirit

Q47) Which Greek icon did her last world tour, this year?

A47) Nana Mouskouri

Q48) One of Jimi Hendrix’s guitar’s was sold, this year; – the guitar in question was the first one he burnt on stage, at a club in which district of Greater London?

A48) Finsbury Park. (At the Finsbury Astoria, to be precise. It eventually went for just over £280,000)

Q49) Which veteran DJ won the John Peel Award, this year?

A49) Annie Nightingale.

Q50) Why has “Chinese Democracy” been in the news, this year?

A50) It’s the title of the first Guns and Roses album for 15 years.

ROUND SIX: – GENERAL KNOWLE IGNORANCE.

Q51) Which Olympic cyclist got named as BBC Sports Personality of the Year, in 2008? (Bonus for telling us how many gold medals he won, in Beijing.)

A51) Chris Hoy. (Three)

Q52) Which terminal at Heathrow, had opening day trouble, this year?

A52) Terminal 5

Q53) Which furniture store went into administration, this year?

A53) MFI.

Q54) It was found out this year, that Ken Livingston has how many children?

A54) 5. By 3 different mothers.

Q55) According to a survey this year, how many people have a part of their body - apart from their earlobe - pierced; – 1 in 8, 1 in 10, or 1 in 12?

A55) 1 in 10

Q56) Alison Carol is the new face of which fictional heroine?

A56) Lara Croft

Q57) According to BBC reports, this year, what’s the most expensive operation you can have on the NHS; – a cochlea implant, a heart transplant, or a facelift?

A57) A cochlea implant. (@ £18, 609; – it lets deaf people hear.)

Q58) The World’s Largest supertanker was hijacked, this year; – by pirates from which African nation?

A58) Somalia

Q59) President Bush had shoes thrown at him, this year, by a disgruntled journalist; – where was President Bush visiting?

A59) Iraq

Q60) How old was the NHS, this year?

A60) 60.