80 pub quiz questions on TV, politics general knowledge and countries

Looking for a ready-made quiz to test the knowledge of your family and friends during lockdown? Well we’ve put together a belter for you.

We’ve got 80 questions divided into four rounds – and they’re sure to test any quiz-goers.

The categories are television, politics, general knowledge and finally countries (and this final round is a bit different).

So whether you want to test your own knowledge or you’re looking to test someone else’s – we’ve got you sorted.

If you’re looking for even more questions then we also have 552 quiz questions and answers compiled for your ultimate pub quiz  – for that click here.

You will find the answers to this quiz below, so no scrolling down and cheating in advance.

We’ve also rounded up quizzes that contain (in total) a whopping 552 quiz questions and answers on a variety of topics – for that click here.

Good luck!

Round one – television quiz questions

1. What made Carole Hersee a famous face on television between 1967 and 1998?

2. Which famous TV screenwriter also played one of the spooks in Rentaghost?

3. On which 80s chat show did Steve Nieve, keyboard player with Elvis Costello’s Attractions, lead the house band?

4. Which sartorially challenged Grange Hill teacher had a degree from Keele University?

5. Noele Gordon played Meg Richardson in which ITV soap opera?

6. Which two Playschool presenters appeared as Chock-a-Bloke and Chock-a-Girl in the kids’ show Chock-a-Block?

7. Which singer memorably performed Ding-Dong Merrily On High on the Christmas special Knowing Me, Knowing Yule, with Alan Partridge?

8. What was the real name of the TV chef known as The Galloping Gourmet?

9 .The instrumental Eye Level, by the Simon Park Orchestra, was theme tune to which recently revived detective series?

10. The ITV drama Crown Court was set in which fictional town: a) Melchester b) Donchester c) Fulchester

11. How were Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Tracey Ullman and Ruby Wax collectively known, according to the title of an 80s sitcom?

12. Which veteran actress, known for her husky voice, played their landlady in the show?

13. Steven Van Zandt played which member of Tony’s crew in The Sopranos?

14. Which actress connects the American Pie movies, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the sitcom How I Met Your Mother?

15. How is Buffy actor Anthony Head connected to Shoestring Star Trevor Eve?

16. What product did the first commercial shown on ITV advertise?

17. Name the first three presenters of quiz show Family Fortunes?

18. The Psychiatrist, A Touch of Class and The Germans were all episodes of which BBC sitcom?

19. Name the duo who wrote the theme tune to Minder

20. Which Stoke-on-Trent born presenter was one of the first hosts of the BBC’s Breakfast Time?

Round two – Politics quiz questions

1. Victorian politician Benjamín Disraeli said it would be a ‘mishap’ if his rival William Gladstone fell into the Thames. How did he define a tragedy?

2. Sirimavo Bandaranaike was the world’s first non-hereditary head of a Government in modern world history. Of which country?

3. Who was the Chancellor of the Exchequer in Margaret Thatcher’s first cabinet?

4. Who succeeded him at the Treasury in a 1983 reshuffle?

5. In which year did Tony Blair sweep to power in a Labour landslide?

6. What was the nickname of former Labour prime minister Jim Callaghan?

7. What was Callaghan’s real first name?

8. And what is his unique political achievement?

9. Which former vice-president was Ronald Reagan’s Democratic opponent in the 1984 presidential election?

10. And what was notable about the Democrats’ candidate for vice-president that year?

11. Charles Haughey, Garret Fitzgerald and Bertie Ahern have all been leaders of which country?

12. In which year was Francois Mitterrand elected president of France?

13. The Gang of Four was a political grouping in which country?

14. Francois ‘Papa Doc’ and Jean-Claude ‘Baby Doc’ Duvalier were dictators of which Caribbean nation?

15. Which Liberal Democrat leader formed a coalition administration with David Cameron’s Conservatives in 2010?

16. Who is the only British prime minister to be assassinated?

17. Which former Labour cabinet minister became First Minister of Scotland following devolution?

18. What is the name of the leading Welsh nationalist party?

19. Jacinda Arden is the female prime minister of which Commonwealth country?

20. After which former Conservative Home Secretary and Prime Minister were policemen nicknamed ‘bobbies’?

Round three – General knowledge quiz questions

1. Which surname links Cuban singer Celia and former US presidential hopeful Ted?

2. What was the name of the family in BBC sitcom My Family?

3. Which star-crossed lover had the surname Montague in a Shakespeare play?

4. Where was the Dodgers baseball team based before its move to Los Angeles for the 1958 season?

5. What links the previous four answers?

6. Which Swedish actress appeared in the James Bond films Octopussy, The Man with the Golden Gun and A View to a Kill?

7. What is the surname of the Girls Aloud singer Sarah?

8. Complete the name of the creator of TV police show The Sweeney: Ian _ Martin

9. According to the Bible, which call will awaken and raise the dead on the Day of Judgment?

10. What’s the connection?

11. Which notorious murderer was dubbed The Yorkshire Ripper?

12. 1980s England football manager and captain Bobby and Bryan share a surname. What is it?

13. Which tragic actress starred in the films The Misfits, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Some Like it Hot?

14. Which surname connects soup maker Ena with Tomorrow’s World host Raymond?

15. What is the connection?

16. US author Elaine Dundy’s 1958 novel is called The Dud_?

17. What did Herbie go, according to the 1980 film?

18. What is the nickname of New York City?

19. Complete the title of a 1988 album by The Fall: I am Curious _

20. What links the previous four answers?

Round four – Countries quiz questions

This one is a bit different… can you identify 10 modern-day counties from their old names?

 1.  Siam

2.  Ceylon

3. Bechuanaland

4. Tanganyika

5. Upper Volta

6. Zaire

7. East Pakistan

8. Kampuchea

9. Dahomey

10. Southern Rhodesia

Now can you name the new identities these next 10 former countries….

11. Myanmar

12. Ghana

13. eSwatini

14. Malawi

15. Lesotho

16. Vanuatu

17. Namibia

18. Mali

19. Central African Republic

20. Zambia

Round one – Television quiz questions answers

1. The BBC test card. She was the little girl playing noughts and crosses.

2. Lynda La Plante, as Tamara Novek

3. The Last Resort, with Jonathan Ross

4. Bill ‘Scruffy’ McGuffy

5. Crossroads

6. Fred Harris and Carol Leader

7. Mick Hucknall

8. Graham Kerr

9. Van Der Valk

10. Fulchester

11. Girls on Top

12. Joan Greenwood

13. Silvio Dante

14. Alyson Hannigan

15. He appeared in a long-running series of coffee commercials with actress Sharon Maughan, Eve’s wife.

16. Gibbs SR toothpaste

17. Bob Monkhouse, Max Bygraves and Les Dennis

18. Fawlty Towers

19. Gerrard Kenny and Patricia Waterman (then wife of star Dennis)

20. Frank Bough

Round two – Politics quiz questions answers

1. If someone dragged him out again

2. Sri Lanka

3. Sir Geoffrey Howe

4. Nigel Lawson

5. 1997

6. ‘Sunny’

7. Leonard

8. He is the only person to hold all four great offices of state (Prime Minister, Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer)

9. Walter Mondale

10. Geraldine Ferraro was the first woman chosen to run for the position

11. Ireland

12. 1981

13. China

14. Haiti

15. Nick Clegg

16. Spencer Perceval

17. Donald Dewar

18. Plaid Cymru

19. New Zealand

20. Sir Robert Peel

Round three – General knowledge quiz questions answers

1. Cruz

2. Harper

3. Romeo

4. Brooklyn

5. Children of David and Victoria Beckham

6. Maude Adams

7. Harding

8. Kennedy

9. The Last Trump

10. US presidents

11. Peter Sutcliffe

12. Robson

13. Marilyn Monroe

14. Baxter

15. Surnames of teachers at Grange Hill

16. Avocado

17. Bananas

18. The Big Apple

19. Orange

20. Fruit

Round four – Countries quiz questions answers

1. Thailand

2. Sri Lanka

3. Botswana

4. Tanzania

5. Burkina Faso

6. Dem Rep of Congo

7. Bangladesh

8. Cambodia

9. Benin

10. Zimbabwe

11. Burma

12. Gold Coast

13. Swaziland

14. Nyasaland

15. Basutoland

16. New Hebrides

17. South West Africa

18. Sudanese Republic

19. Central African Empire

20. Northern Rhodesia