Punches, sweary protests and legendary voiceovers – take the Thursday quiz

Something different this week. As the year draws to a close, the Thursday quiz always takes a pause to reflect on some of the notable pop culture, sporting and political figures we lost in the last 12 months, with our annual in memoriam edition. There are no prizes except the opportunity to remember all the joy these people gave us, via the medium of trying to recall obscure trivia related to them. Do let us know how you get on in the comments.

The Thursday quiz, No 188 – annual in memoriam edition

1. We lost the pioneering DJ Annie Nightingale, who was the first female presenter on BBC Radio 1, joining in 1970. Who was the second female presenter on BBC Radio 1, who joined more than a decade later?

   1. Edith Bowman

   2. Annie Mac

   3. Janice Long

   4. Jo Whiley

2. Teri Garr, who died in October, once said: “I’ve spent a lot of time clawing my way to the middle.” What was the name of her character in Mel Brooks’s horror pastiche Young Frankenstein?

   1. Astrid

   2. Inga

   3. Birgitta

   4. Willow

3. Janey Godley was incredibly funny and huge value on Twitter back when it wasn't a cesspit. Where did she stage her amazingly sweary one-woman protest against Donald Trump?

   1. Outside Turnberry golf course

   2. Outside the Balmoral hotel in Edinburgh

   3. Alongside the M8 near Heart of Scotland (Harthill) services

   4. Outside Glasgow international airport

4. We lost the tremendous actor Donald Sutherland. Aside from his fantastic film career, which Kate Bush music video did he star in?

   1. The Dreaming

   2. The Man With the Child in His Eyes

   3. Army Dreamers

   4. Cloudbusting

5. James Earl Jones died in September. His incredible pioneering theatre and film work was somewhat overshadowed by his role playing the voice of which famous sci-fi character?

   1. Hal 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey

   2. The Narrator in Jeff Wayne’s album War of the Worlds

   3. Darth Vader in the Star Wars movies

   4. Wall-E in Wall-E

6. About 20,000 bikers joined in a tribute for one of the TV chef duo Hairy Bikers. Which one?

   1. Dave Myers

   2. Si King

7. We lost Karl Wallinger, who was part of the Waterboys and fronted World Party. Which song of his did Robbie Williams record and make a smash hit?

   1. She’s Madonna

   2. Rock DJ

   3. Angels

   4. She's the One

8. Ray Reardon was an absolute snooker legend, looked like Dracula and had an incredible life story before picking up the cue professionally. When did he first become the world snooker champion?

   1. 1970

   2. 1973

   3. 1975

   4. It is a trick question: though he was incredibly successful and popular, Reardon never won the World Snooker Championship

9. Maggie Smith was an absolute acting legend. She won an Oscar for best actress for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, but in which year did she win the best actress in a supporting role Oscar?

   1. 1966

   2. 1979

   3. 1987

   4. It is a trick question, she never won an Oscar for best supporting actress

10. Geoff Capes was an absolute shot put legend. When did he win an Olympic gold medal?

    1. 1976 in Montreal

    2. 1980 in Moscow

    3. 1984 in Los Angeles

    4. It is a trick question, Capes never won an Olympic gold medal

11. Here is the Pokémon Quaxly on a day out in London. We sadly lost voice-acting star of the Pokémon anime series Rachael Lillis, who used to voice Misty and Jessie. Which team is antagonist Jessie part of?

    1. Team Skull

    2. Team Rocket

    3. Team Flare

    4. Team Valor

12. We lost Damo Suzuki in February, who was the inspiration for the song I Am Damo Suzuki by the Fall. Which of these bands was Damo Suzuki singer for?

    1. Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft

    2. Neu!

    3. Faust

    4. Can

13. Johan Neeskens was one of the key members of the glorious Netherlands football team that came so close to winning men's World Cups. Which final did he score a penalty in?

    1. 1970 in Mexico

    2. 1974 in West Germany

    3. 1978 in Argentina

    4. 1982 in Spain

14. The death of Liam Payne was one of the biggest shocks of the year. How many No 1 singles did One Direction have in the UK?

    1. 2

    2. 4

    3. 6

    4. 8

15. We lost Shelley Duvall. Everybody remembers the line "Here's Johnny" from The Shining, but what was the name of her character in the movie?

    1. Harriet

    2. Martha

    3. Shona

    4. Wendy

16. Paul Di'Anno, one of Iron Maiden's early singers, passed away in 2024. Which of these early Iron Maiden UK hit singles did he sing on?

    1. The Number of the Beast

    2. Running Free

    3. Strong Arm of the Law

    4. Bring Your Daughter … to the Slaughter

17. The tabloids looked back rather more fondly on Sven-Göran Eriksson when he died this year than they generally did at the time he was England's men's football manager. Which team was he working for when he took the England job?

    1. Lazio

    2. Fiorentina

    3. Sampdoria

    4. Napoli

18. We lost Shannen Doherty. What was the name of her character in the original series of Beverly Hills, 90210

    1. Brenda

    2. Donna

    3. Paris

    4. Jennie

19. John Prescott died in November. He famously once thumped a member of the public during a general election campaign. Which election campaign?

    1. 1997

    2. 2001

    3. 2005

    4. 2010

20. And finally, Willow (pictured) wants to remind you that we lost Kevin (not pictured), the world's tallest dog, just days after he secured the world record and enjoyed his 15 minutes of fame. Where did Kevin live?

    1. Canada

    2. New Zealand

    3. South Africa

    4. US

Solutions

1:C - Long joined the station in 1982 as part of a revamp that also saw Annie Nightingale's request show scheduled on Sunday evenings after the chart show, where Nightingale almost certainly introduced many of the weird and wonderful alternative acts of the era to the quiz master that he still listens to today, 2:B - "Hallo. Vould you like to have a roll in ze hay?" as she famously said …, 3:A - Blushes prevent the Thursday quiz from reminding you what her placard said, 4:D - He played Kate's father who had invented a weather machine and then was whisked away by the government, years before chemtrail conspiracy theories became popular, 5:C - He was, of course, Darth Vader, although the actor on screen in the costume was David Prowse, 6:A - Dave died in February aged 66, and the 20,000 bikers took part in a procession from London to Barrow-in-Furness to pay tribute, 7:D - The song appeared on the under-rated fourth World Party album Egyptology in 1997 and was covered by Williams in 1999, somewhat to Wallinger's displeasure, it transpired, 8:A - He won the first of his six titles in 1970, going on to win in 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1978. He was runner-up in 1982, 9:B - She was nominated four times, for Othello (1965), A Room with a View (1985) and Gosford Park (2001), and won for California Suite (1978), 10:D - This is sadly true, although he did win golds at two Commonwealth Games and at two European Indoor Championships, and was on the television a lot during the 1970s and 1980s, making him a household name, 11:B - Prepare for trouble! And make it double! Jessie, James and Meowth were always after Ash's Pikachu, 12:D - Damo Suzuki was Can’s vocalist from 1970 until 1973, and was still gigging playing improvised music with local "sound carriers" acting as his band with a different lineup at every show very close to his death this year aged 74, 13:B - Neeskens scored in the second minute and that whole Dutch squad during the 1970s deserved more than two runners-up medals, 14:B - The band enjoyed 13 top three singles (if you include their contributions to three charity collectives) but on their own scored No 1 hits with Drag Me Down, One Way or Another, Little Things and of course their signature debut, What Makes You Beautiful, 15:D - She was Jack Torrance's long-suffering wife, 16:B - Running Free was their debut single and reached No 34 in the charts. The eagle-eyed NWOBHM fans among you will know that The Number of the Beast was Bruce Dickinson's first appearance on a single, Bring Your Daughter … to the Slaughter was their first No 1 single, and Strong Arm of the Law is by somebody else entirely. These words won't stop this being pointed out in the comments, no doubt, 17:A - He took England to three tournament quarter-finals, losing on penalties twice. He achieved an ambition to manage a team at Anfield in the last months of his life, 18:A - She played Brenda Walsh for the first four seasons of the show, 19:B - He punched a bloke who had thrown an egg at him, and Labour went on to win the election, 20:D - The Great Dane lived in West Des Moines, Iowa, and was an astonishing 7ft tall if he stood up on his hind legs

Scores

1. 0 and above.

   Let us know how you got on in the comments!

If you really do think there has been an egregious error in one of the questions or answers – and can show your working – you can complain about it in the comments below. Why not watch Karl Wallinger and World Party with Is It Like Today? instead …