Latest questions: 3 November 2020

This week's questions have mainly been gleaned from those set for use in Weeks 6 and 7 of the 2017–18 season in Stockport Quiz League, by the Tame Valley (Questions 1 to 20) and the Tiviot (Questions 21 to 28).

Which species of bird has the scientific or Latin name Tyto alba?		Barn owl
What was the name of the border collie that appeared in The Dandy comic from 1944 to 1982, and was parodied in Viz's Black Bag ("the faithful border bin liner")?		Black Bob
In Harry Potter, which bad–tempered character owns an unpleasant cat named Mrs. Norris?		Argus Filch (caretaker at Hogwarts)
Which fictional detective, created by W. J. Burley, featured in a television series broadcast on ITV in the mid–1990s when he was played by Jack Shepherd?		(DS Charles) Wycliffe
The 1959 British film Serious Charge is notable for whose screen acting debut, as Curley, the younger brother of petty criminal Larry Thompson?		Cliff Richard
Manufactured in Enfield, Middlesex from 1871 to 1889, what was a Martini–Henry?		A rifle
The Navy Pier, 1,100 yards long, is the most–visited tourist attraction in which US city?		Chicago
Pier 39, with its leisure facilities and and the sea lions that "haul out" on it, are a popular tourist attraction in which US city?		San Francisco
In the poem Cargoes, by John Masefield, what's the first–mentioned cargo of the Quinquireme of Nineveh?		Ivory
Which disease caused the deaths of Prince Albert in 1861, and the poet and priest Gerard Manley Hopkins in 1889?		Typhoid
What was the first forename of Harold Macmillan, UK Prime Minister from 1955 to 1963?		Maurice
What was the middle name of Sir Arthur Sullivan?		Seymour
Which English country gives its name to a breed of pig, of which Wodehouse's Empress of Blandings, Orwell's Napoleon (in Animal Farm) and Beatrix Potter's Pig–Wig (in The Tale of Pigling Bland) are fictional examples?		Berkshire
Whom or what did the nineteenth–century German polymath Friedrich Nietzsche notoriously describe as "God's second blunder"?		Woman
What is South America's most southerly capital city?		Montevideo
Which model was introduced by Daimler in 1953 to replace the Consort, priced £1,066 – making it an "affordable" Daimler?		The Conquest
The so–called 'world championships' of which game were held at Day's Lock, on the River Thames near Oxford, annually from 1984 to 2014 (except in 2013), and from 2015 to 2018 on the Windrush near Witney? (They were not held in 2013, 2019 or 2020.)		Poohsticks
Which Australian performer gave her name to the practice of giving repeated 'farewell performances', or returning to one's profession after retirement?		Dame Nellie Melba
What's the English name for trees of the genus Fraxinus?		Ash
What's the English name for trees of the genus Betula?		Birch
The harlequin or multicoloured Asian is an invasive species of which family of insects, known scientifically as Coccinelidae (cock–sin–elli–die)?		Ladybird
The breakaway state of Transnistria declared its independence as long ago as 1990, but is internationally recognised as belonging to which country?		Moldova
In the world of retail business, what do the initials ELC stand for?		Early Learning Centre
Running (or basting), cross, stem, back, satin, chain, feather, knotted and blanket are some of the basic types of what? (Two–word answer required)		Embroidery stitch
Who scored 49 goals for Tottenham Hotspur in the 1986–7 season – 33 of them in the League?		Clive Allen
Which body of water separates the Pacific and Arctic Oceans?		The Bering Strait
Which character in a James Bond film was played by Orson Welles in 1967, and by the Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen in 2006?		Le Chiffre (in Casino Royale)
Which single–word song title links Lionel Richie in the 1980s, The Beloved and Oasis in the 1990s, and Adele in the 2010s?		Hello
In the Christian church, what name – from the first word of the Latin version – is given to the Virgin Mary's hymn of praise, giving thanks for being chosen to become the Mother of God?		Magnificat
Which Oscar–winning film of 1955 ends with the words "Hello ... hello, Clara?", as the 39–year–old title character tentatively phones his date to propose to her?		Marty
The rulers of which country or empire sat on the original Peacock Throne, from 1635 until 1783?		India (Mughal Empire)
Which Japanese style of comics or graphic novels, developed in the late 19th century, has a name that can be translated as either "whimsical (or impromptu) pictures", or "pictures run riot"?		Manga

© Haydn Thompson 2020