Why was Bandura in the news this year?
He was banned from cricket for six years for match fixing
It was taken over by German banks to stabilise the Greek economy
It was the winning word in the final of the national Scrabble championships
He won the Kentucky Derby
What was “Water’s Reach” renamed this year?
Nelson Mandela House
Sir Alex Ferguson Way
The Katherine Grainger Rowing Centre
The Margaret Thatcher Memorial Hospital
Why was Bergoglio in the news this year?
She was Aleksandr the Meerkat’s new love interest
It became the world’s most expensive cocktail, available at the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, for just $8,000 a glass
He became pope
It was the centre of a modern-day gold rush as vast uranium deposits were discovered on its outskirts
Why would you have met American Michael De Santa for the first time this year?
It’s the name of one of the three playable characters in Grand Theft Auto 5
He’s the new US ambassador to Hungary who had never visited Europe before
It was the name used by US clothing firm American Apparel as it tried to rebrand Father Christmas
It was the pseudonym used by Cliff Richard to try to get his new single played by Radio 1
Why was Chelyabinsk in the news this year?
They were the band who won the first ever Iraqi X Factor
He signed for Aston Villa despite being invented by student pranksters
She won the Kentucky Derby
It was hit by a meteor
What was Quintana?
He was the winner of the King of the Mountains jersey at the Tour de France
It was the first English sparkling wine to win a gold medal at the International Wine Challenge
It was the brand new galaxy discovered by a 12-year-old Leicestershire schoolgirl
Nigella’s middle name
How did Leon and June become famous this year?
They were Brisbane Zoo’s first successful mating pandas
They watched the week’s TV for us on Channel 4’s Gogglebox
They were the codenames for two US drones shot down over Syria
They were announced as the mascots for the 2014 Commonwealth Games
How did Rainbow Picnic Pie come to prominence?
It was Peter Andre’s comeback album which failed to crack the charts, prompting him to “retire from music”
It was Frances Quinn’s signature bake when she won The Great British Bake Off
She was Jamie Oliver’s new daughter
It was withdrawn from sale after being found to contain up to 75% horse meat
Who was Robert Galbraith?
He was the first man to have sex in space
She was a bassett hound who won best of breed at Crufts
He was the author of The Cuckoo’s Calling, and was later revealed to be JK Rowling
He lost the title of world’s oldest man when investigators discovered he wasn’t 115, he was 87
Why did Orb feature in the Guardian this year?
It was part of a vast CIA surveillance programme exposed by Edward Snowden
It was the newly formed Office with Responsibility for Badgers
It was the original name of Katy Perry’s new perfume before it was discovered to be an extraordinarily rude word in Spanish
He won the Kentucky Derby
A painting of Lucian Freud was sold at auction for over $142m in November. What would you associate it with?
Sausages
Pork chops
Bacon
Lamb shanks
Which month of 2013 was the longest?
January
May
October
December
In the huge 2013 viral hit song What Does the Fox Say?, what is the first thing the fox does actually say?
Blapp Brapp Bipp Babbarap Bapp Bipp
Ring Ding Ding Ding Dingeringeding
Joff Tchoff Tchoffo Tchoffo Tchoff
Wa Pa Pa Pa Pa Pa Pow
What did Eddie “the Eagle” Edwards win this year?
£1.9m on the Euromillions lottery
A celebrity high-diving TV show
A Taunton council seat on behalf of Ukip
A libel case against a Canadian winter sports magazine
Which of the following films was NOT one of the top 10 grossing movies of 2013?
Hangover 3
Despicable Me 2
Gravity
Iron Man 3
Only one of these is a country. Which one?
New Caledonia
Papua New Guinea
Guam
Cook Islands
Only one of these is a British city. Which one?
Middlesbrough
Brechin
Coleraine
Chelmsford
Only one of these men has won a best actor Oscar. Which one?
Leonardo DiCaprio
Johnny Depp
Liam Neeson
Denzel Washington
And only one of these women has won a best actress Oscar. Which one?
Sandra Bullock
Glenn Close
Julianne Moore
Sigourney Weaver
I’m assuming you get the idea of this round by now. Which one of these songs was a Christmas No 1 single?
Last Christmas by Wham
Fairytale of New York by The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl
Merry Christmas Everyone by Shakin’ Stevens
I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday by Wizzard
Which of these facts about the 1982 film version of Raymond Briggs’ The Snowman is true?
David Bowie introduced the US version
Aled Jones sang on its soundtrack
Fungus the Bogeyman can be spotted in an upstairs window during the flying scene
Nick Park was one of the junior animators on the project
What was special about Blackpool’s festive fixture against Blackburn Rovers in 1965
The stadium’s new floodlights caused the Blackpool illuminations to go out
The winning goal was scored by S Claus
It was the last ever English league match to be played on Christmas Day
It was the first occasion on which an orange ball was used
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the birthplace of St Nicholas was in which modern-day country?
Russia
Turkey
Finland
Belarus
Which scientist, born on Christmas Day, was once a member of parliament whose only recorded speech in Hansard involves asking a fellow MP if he could shut a window?
Charles Darwin
Edmund Halley
Humphrey Davy
Isaac Newton
And finally, but most importantly, which of these chocolate bars is not represented in your massive Christmas tin of Celebrations?
Twirl
Twix
Snickers
Bounty
Solutions
1:C, 2:B, 3:C, 4:A, 5:D, 6:A, 7:B, 8:B, 9:C, 10:D, 11:C, 12:C, 13:B, 14:B, 15:A, 16:B, 17:D, 18:D, 19:A, 20:C, 21:A, 22:C, 23:B, 24:D, 25:A
Scores
0 and above.
No doubt you're a well-balanced, well-read individual – but your trivia knowledge is not up to scratch. Why not spend Christmas reading random Wikipedia entries?
8 and above.
Hmm, not bad – but a bit more aimless surfing in 2014 definitely wouldn't do you any harm.
16 and above.
Impressive … but true mastery of trivia is still eluding you. A little more cyberslacking is definitely required in the new year.
21 and above.
Congratulations on another wasted year. Your trivia knowledge is truly outstanding. Either you're a student or Alexander Armstrong