1. This year’s Booker prize winner was The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka. But which pop star gave a touching keynote address at the ceremony?

   1. Taylor Swift

   2. Dua Lipa

   3. Jarvis Cocker

   4. David Van Day

2. The bestselling video game was the devilishly tricky open world monster-slasher Elden Ring. Which venerable author helped write its lore, but has subsequently confirmed they’ve never played the game itself?

   1. JK Rowling

   2. George RR Martin

   3. Stephen King

   4. Clive Barker

3. In January, Theranos founders Elizabeth Holmes and Sunny Balwani were convicted on numerous fraud charges after it turned out their blood-testing company was more vibes than actual testing. Which prominent figure did not invest in or endorse their magical thinking?

   1. Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger

   2. Media mogul Rupert Murdoch

   3. Betsy DeVos, Donald Trump’s secretary of education

   4. WWE President Vince McMahon

4. The Dead Eyes podcast reached its thrilling denouement in 2022 with the episode, Tom, when which Hollywood A-lister finally joined the podcast to explain why he had comedian Connor Ratliff fired from a production with a note saying he had “dead eyes”?

   1. Tom Hanks

   2. Tom Holland

   3. Tom Selleck

   4. Tom Cruise

5. 

   This year was, of course, World Cup Year. Simon “The Wizard” Whitlock and Damon “The Heat” Heta won the prestigious PDC World Cup of Darts in June, competing for which nation?

   1. England

   2. Scotland

   3. New Zealand

   4. Australia

6. The year’s biggest film was Top Gun: Maverick, which took in $1.5bn worldwide, further cementing Tom Cruise’s reign as king of the blockbuster. Only three films he’s made in the past 30 years have made less than $100m worldwide. His lowest-earning movie in this time still made a sprightly $49m. What was it?

   1. Lions for Lambs

   2. Rock of Ages

   3. The Mummy

   4. Magnolia

7. February’s Winter Olympics was marred by a litany of scandals and intrigues, not least the case of superstar Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva. A healthy 15-year-old at the time, she has not yet explained why she tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned substance commonly prescribed for which purpose?

   1. For chest pain relating to angina

   2. To decrease insulin resistance in diabetes

   3. To counter the effects of dementia

   4. To reduce shakes caused by Parkinson’s Disease

8. New York City I, a 1941 painting by grid-fond Dutch artist Piet Mondrian, was the subject of alarm this year when its exhibitors discovered which unsettling information?

   1. It was one of eight identical forgeries in different galleries around the world

   2. It had been hanging upside down for 75 years

   3. It was painted over a lost masterpiece by Theo van Doesburg

   4. One of its lines contained an undetected microscopic self-portrait of the artist

9. Harry Styles’s certified banger, As It Was, was the bestselling single of the year. Styles was also implicated in which particularly bizarre scandal in September?

   1. He was accused of stealing said song from a YouTube performer

   2. He was accused of spitting on Chris Pine at the Venice film festival

   3. He was accused of setting fire to his dressing room at the VMAs

   4. He was accused of spiking the punch at the Met Gala

10. 

    American rapper and actor Nick Cannon welcomed his 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th children into the world this year. Which of the following names did he not choose to bestow upon them?

    1. Rise Messiah Cannon

    2. Beautiful Zeppelin Cannon

    3. Legendary Love Cannon

    4. Blue Meenie Cannon

11. Which of the following titles did King Charles III not assume on taking the throne, this September?

    1. Captain General of the Royal Marines

    2. Freedom of the City of Ripon

    3. Sovereign of the Prestige Order of the National Hero of Grenada

    4. Sovereign of the Order of the Star of Melanesia

12. In October, Massachusetts resident Rorie Woods used which novel tactic to repel police officers intent on evicting her from her home?

    1. She set loose eight trained corgis

    2. She let fly a hunting falcon

    3. She unleashed a swarm of bees

    4. She summoned a horde of locusts

13. In May, golf legend Greg Norman said, “Look, we’ve all made mistakes and you just want to learn from those mistakes and how you can correct them going forward.” To what was he referring?

    1. His divorce from Chris Evert

    2. His failure to make the cut at the 1990s Masters

    3. Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s reported involvement in the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi

    4. His erratic and nervous performance as a pundit on Fox Sports’ coverage of the 2015 US Open.

14. This year saw the death of Japanese fighter-turned-diplomat Antonio Inoki, for whom the word “colourful” hardly suffices. Which of the following did he not do during his long and varied career?

    1. Take part in a $6m prize fight with Muhammad Ali to a global audience of 1.4bn

    2. Negotiate directly with Saddam and Uday Hussein for the release of 41 Japanese hostages in Iraq

    3. Buy an island from Kim Jong-il in the belief it was filled with treasure

    4. Hold his own “living funeral” in 2017, concluding with him being raised on a crucifix, before jumping on his coffin and declaring he wasn’t dead yet

15. 

    In November, superstar singer and actor Selena Gomez said, “My only friend in the industry is Taylor Swift.” This prompted confusion from her friend, the actor Francia Raisa, for which reason?

    1. Raisa had taught her how to sing

    2. Raisa had bought her a puppy

    3. Raisa had saved her from a house fire

    4. Raisa had donated her a kidney

16. Analysis of a 2,000-year old coin proved that which Roman emperor, previously thought to be a satirical fiction, actually existed and ruled in approximately AD260?

    1. Tibulus of Insulam Praeruptus

    2. Colossus of Constantine

    3. Sponsian of Dacia

    4. Trajan, Optimus Princeps

17. For the first time in its history, this year’s Oxford English Dictionary Word of the Year was decided by a public vote. Which of the following was not on the shortlist?

    1. Metaverse

    2. Trashfire

    3. #IStandWith

    4. Goblin mode

18. Lollipop the dog and Sashimi the cat set which world record in 2022?

    1. Pets in the same household named after the most culinarily incompatible foodstuffs, taking the title from Trifle the Gerbil and Dulse the Goldfish (2019)

    2. Fastest 5m on a scooter by a dog and cat (pair)

    3. Most viewed TikTok for the above attempt

    4. Heaviest pets living in the same household

19. In 2022, Britain said goodbye to one of the greatest ever people to have graced its shores. But who of the following was not a blood relative of the late Dame Angela Lansbury?

    1. Late animator Oliver Postgate

    2. Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull

    3. Former Labour party leader George Lansbury

    4. Late actor, director, writer and raconteur Peter Ustinov

20. 

    Ukraine won Eurovision 2022, with Stefania by Kalush Orchestra. Owing to the ongoing conflict in that country, they are unable to host in 2023. Which city from runner-up UK will host instead?

    1. Bristol

    2. Glasgow

    3. Liverpool

    4. Hull

21. In March, the Office of National Statistics released its new “shopping basket”, the list of products used to measure consumer price inflation. Which of the following items were removed?

    1. A climbing wall session

    2. A sports bra

    3. Frozen Yorkshire puddings

    4. A man’s suit

22. One of the entries to this year’s Turner Prize was Canadian visual artist Sin Wai Kin’s It’s Always You – a mixed-media piece depicting the artist as what?

    1. All four members of a fictional boyband

    2. An AI hosted on the blockchain

    3. Environmental activist Greta Thunberg

    4. A single microbe held on a human hair

23. Having named 2021 “The Year of Peace and Trust”, the UN gave 2022 the perhaps slightly less romantic designation “The Year of Glass”, along with three even less salubrious titles. Which of the below is not among them?

    1. The International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture

    2. The International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development

    3. The International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists

    4. The International Year of Sustainable Mountain Development

24. 

    Well-meaning poshos Just Stop Oil have been up to their usual “mildly annoying but just might save the world” antics in art galleries this year. Which famous artwork have they not interfered with in 2022?

    1. Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh

    2. Haystacks by Claude Monet

    3. Marilyn in Blue Sage by Andy Warhol

    4. The Hay Wain by John Constable

25. Which country achieved the impressive dual feat of overtaking the US to become the country that consumes the most meat per capita, and overtaking France to become the country that consumes the most wine per capita?

    1. Portugal

    2. Germany

    3. Samoa

    4. Argentina

26. According to National Geographic, which of the following was not a major food trend for 2022?

    1. Alternative milks

    2. Mosses and lichen

    3. Filipino food

    4. Yakitori (Japanese kebabs)

27. Which British music collective, having released their sixth studio album, Air, in April 2022, shocked the music world by releasing five further albums as free downloads on 11 November, in what was described by Variety as “the largest amount of newly recorded music released by a relatively major artist at once?”

    1. Sault

    2. Faya

    3. Basement Jaxx

    4. Skengdo x AM

28. Amazon’s bestselling books of 2022 contain four books by which author?

    1. Richard Osman

    2. JK Rowling/JK Rowling writing as Robert Galbraith

    3. Stephen King

    4. Colleen Hoover

29. Of all the Chancellors of the Exchequer to have been appointed to the role in the 21st century, what percentage of them were appointed in 2022?

    1. 33.3 %

    2. 40%

    3. 50%

    4. 60%

30. The 2022 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role was shared by seven actors (Fred Davis, Daisy Franks, Romina Hytten, Tom Larkin, Habib Nasib Nader, Tom Stacy and Scarlet Wilderink) playing which role in which play?

    1. The Tiger in Life of Pi

    2. Emcee in Cabaret

    3. The voice and body of the ladybird in What the Ladybird Heard

    4. Joe Spud in Billionaire Boy

Solutions

1:B, 2:B, 3:D, 4:A, 5:D, 6:D - Despite being a byword for commercial flops, even The Mummy earned a total of $410m worldwide, 7:A, 8:B, 9:B, 10:D, 11:B - He was awarded the Freedom of the City of Ripon prior to Queen Elizabeth II’s death, 12:C, 13:C, 14:C, 15:D, 16:C, 17:B, 18:B, 19:D - Oliver Postgate was her first cousin. Malcolm Turnbull her second cousin, George Lansbury was her grandfather, but Peter Ustinov was merely married to her half-sister, 20:C, 21:D - Suits were removed to reflect increased casual attire in the workplace, and growing levels of WFH, 22:A, 23:C - The International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists will, however, be a UN Year of… in 2026, 24:C, 25:A, 26:B, 27:A, 28:D, 29:C - There have been eight chancellors appointed this century, four this year, 30:A

Scores

1. 0 and above.

   Congratulations!