Trickster Twelve #6

Is the erratic British “summer” getting you down? Maybe a grilling for the brain is called for?

Quiz questions

(answers follow below)

What comes fourth in the following sequences?

1.
a) Morbid energy
b) Tantrum prone
c) Job a maybe
d) ?

2.
a) Your head
b) Cars
c) Bars
d) ?

3.

?

What is the connection between these four items?

4.
a) Rarg – Edwin Barnes
b) Alice in Wonderland – Alice
c) Life on Mars – Sam Tyler
d) Dallas Season 9 – Pam Ewing

5.
a) Fannie Blankers-Koen
b) London to Edinburgh
c) Wagner opera
d) Paavo Nurmi and Lasse Viren

6.

7. Which is the odd one out from these four?
a) Sloth
b) Spectacled
c) Sumatran
d) Sun

8. Which disease has been called “The French Disease” by Italians, “The Italian Disease” by the French, and “The Christian Disease” by Arabs?
a) Eczema
b) Influenza
c) Madness
d) Syphilis

9. “Cunningham’s Law” states the best way to get the right answer on the Internet is …
a) To frame your question carefully using particular key words that are likely to appear on the kind of site you’re looking for.
b) To go to Wikipedia
c) To offer money
d) To post the wrong answer

10. In January 2022, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell removed their music from Spotify in protest over Joe Rogan’s podcasts’ statements on Covid-19. However, who threatened to release new music if Spotify continued to stream Joe Rogan’s podcasts?
a) James Blunt
b) Madonna
c) Paul McCartney
d) Weird Al Jankovic

11. Cecil Chubb’s wife was angered when she sent him to an auction to buy dining chairs in 1915 and he instead purchased what for £6,600?
a) Chelsea Football Club
b) London Bridge
c) Stonehenge

12. Complete the anonymous quote – “I considered Atheism but there weren’t enough ___
a) Holidays
b) Rousing songs
c) Statues

Warning: Answers about to appear

1. The sequence is the four most recent US Presidents, with their names embedded in the clues. Hence “Morbid energy” contains Biden. The fourth in this sequence would therefore be something like “Rob us haphazardly”.
2. Guitars. Things that the Man from Mars eats in the Blondie song “Rapture”
3. A picture of a cot. Sequence is Mascot, Ascot, Scot, Cot.
4. Programmes/books where the main action is just a dream of one of the characters. Highly recommend Rarg (link here) – a lovely and gentle bit of UK animation from the late 80s.
5. All are known as The Flying _. Housewife, Scotsman, Dutchman, Finn
6. The connection with these clips is [London] Monopoly squares – James Bond theme (as in Bond Street), Go Now (The Moody Blues), Take a Chance on Me (Abba), Do The Strand (Roxy Music). Apologies to anyone more accustomed to other Monopoly versions.
7. c. All the others are species of bear.
8. d
9. d. However, it’s worth reading this excellent blog post from Stephen Johnson.
10. a
11. c
12. a

How did you get on? Don’t forget to share your scores in the comments below or via the pretty coloured social media buttons. Also grateful for any possible alternative answers or further background on any of the answers or any disagreements (yes, really).