Latest questions: 27 April 2021

This week's questions have been gleaned from those set for use in Weeks 1 to 5, and Knockout Qualifying Round 2, of the 2016–17 season in Stockport Quiz League. The biggest credit should go to the Smart Italics, whose set for Week 4 inspired questions 5 to 21. (To be fair, I think I may have been through the other weeks' sets before.)

A Brief History of Seven Killings, by Marlon James – winner of the Booker Prize in 2015 – tells the story of the attempted murder, in 1976, of which real–life popular music legend?		Bob Marley
Name one of the two Egyptian hieroglyphs that are used as labels in Round Three (the Connecting Wall) in the BBC quiz show Only Connect.		Lion or water
Not Dead Yet, first published in 2016, was the autobiography of which popular music star – one of only three to have sold over 100 million records both in a group and as a solo artist?		Phil Collins
Named after the father and son who are two of its country's most famous writers, Slaveykov Square is a popular meeting place in which European capital city?		Sofia
In heraldry, what name is given to a V–shaped mark (inverted, more often than not)?		Chevron
In which best–selling computer game, first launched in 2000 by Electronic Arts, do players create virtual people, place them in houses, and help direct their moods and satisfy their desires?		The Sims
Originally built in the 11th century, what is Europe's longest–occupied royal residence?		Windsor Castle
Who wrote the poem Two Loves, whose last line ("I am the love that dare not speak its name") Oscar Wilde was famously asked to explain, under cross–examination, at his trial for gross indecency?		Lord Alfred Douglas
Which London bank, reputedly founded in 1563 by Sir Thomas Gresham, used a grasshopper (as included in his family crest) as its symbol, and was acquired by Barclays in 1969?		Martins
The word 'nosh' (meaning a snack, or any kind of food) was imported into English from which other language?		Yiddish
The slang word 'shufty' (meaning a look or peep) was imported into English from which other language?		Arabic
In Formula One motor racing, the race distance for a Grand Prix is the smallest number of laps that's greater than what?		305 km (189.5 miles)
What's the maximum time allowed for a Formula One Grand Prix?		2 hours
Give one of the two forenames of Harry and Ginny's second son, in the Harry Potter stories – the central character in the two–part stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child).		Albus or Severus
In the 2016 film version of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, who played Newt Scamander – the author of the eponymous Hogwarts textbook?		Eddie Redmayne
Which former Australian Open and Wimbledon singles champion became the first woman to coach a top ten male tennis player, when she was engaged by Andy Murray in 2014?		Amélie Mauresmo
Which record label, named after the two brothers who founded it in Chicago in 1950, launched the careers of Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters?		Chess
Give any year during the construction of the Mount Rushmore monument.		1927–41
Which brand, launched by the Ford Motor Company in 1957 as "the car of the future" and named after the son of the company's founder, became a byword for commercial failure after it was quietly withdrawn two years later?		Edsel
Which Radio 4 consumer affairs programme, first broadcast in 1970, is currently presented by Winifred Robinson from Monday to Thursday and Peter White on Fridays?		You and Yours
The 'Auguste' and 'whiteface' characters are easily–recognised examples of what?		Clowns
What's the minimum age at which you can become a company director in the UK?		16
Which well–known fictional family lives at 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging?		The Dursleys
In the Alien film franchise, what's the first name of the iconic character Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver?		Ellen
Which British heptathlete was World Indoor and Commonwealth Games champion in 2018, and European Indoor and World (Outdoor) Champion in 2019?		Katarina Johnson–Thompson
Established in August 1944, the Gothic Line was the German forces' last major line of defence during their retreat from which country?		Italy

© Haydn Thompson 2021