LTT's 2012 Christmas Quiz

You’re all competent transport professionals out there in LTT readerland. But how well do you know your transport in the worlds of books, plays, films, paintings and songs? Our resident media luvvie, Rik Thomas, wants to find out

01. Which TV comedy group often travelled around on a three-seater bicycle called a trandem?

A. Monty Python’s Flying Circus

B. The Goodies

C. The Mary Whitehouse Experience

02. Which classic 1945 film was largely shot at Carnforth station in Lancashire?

A. Brief Encounter

B. Casablanca

C. Murder on the Orient Express

03. In the Oscar Wilde play ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ which London railway station plays a vital part in the plot?

A. Victoria

B. London Bridge

C. Paddington

04. The three Shakespeare plays ‘Twelfth Night’, ‘The Comedy of Errors’ and ‘The Tempest’ all have what in common?

A. They all feature people falling off horses

B. They all feature characters making long pilgrimages on foot

C. They all feature shipwrecks

05. John Wayne’s first starring role was in which famous western?

A. Stagecoach

B. A Man Called Horse

C. Paint Your Wagon

06. A Volvo 1800 was the ‘star car’ in which 1960s TV series?

A. The Avengers

B. The Saint

C. The Champions

07. ‘Time Flies By (When You’re the Driver of a Train)’ is a song that featured in which classic children’s TV series?

A. Chigley

B. The Magic Roundabout

C. Thomas the Tank Engine

08. The plot of the 2004 China Mieville novel ‘The Iron Council’ centres on the construction of what?

A. A new orbital motorway

B. A new airport

C. A new railroad

09. Italian director Vittorio De Sica’s best-known film, made in 1948, is about what transport mode?

A. Walking

B. Cycling

C. Flying

10. In the 1978 film ‘The Driver’, who plays the title role?

A. Ryan O’Neal

B. Warren Beatty

C. Steve Mcqueen

11. Joseph Heller’s novel Catch-22 is mostly set where?

A. A US army base

B. A US naval base

C. A US airforce base

12. The registration number NCC-1701 refers to what kind of vehicle?

A. A car

B. A spaceship

C. A train

13. The episode of the TV sitcom ‘Yes, Minister’ entitled ‘The Bed of Nails’ concerned the development of what?

A. A road pricing scheme

B. An integrated transport policy

C. An airport expansion programme

14. When, in 1963, Cliff Richard famously travelled from London to Athens, which mode of transport did he use?

A. An aircraft

B. A motorcycle

C. A bus

15. In 1978 rock band Queen released a double-A side single, ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ and what track on the other side?

A. Foot race

B. Bicycle race

C. Sports car race

16. In the 2002 film ‘Rabbit-Proof Fence’ how do the children make the 1,500 mile trip to be reunited with their families?

A. They walk

B. They fly

C. They hitch-hike

17. The famous Turner painting ‘Rain, Steam, and Speed’ features a train travelling along which famous railway?

A. The Trans-Siberian Railway

B. The Great Western Railway

C. The Ffestiniog and Blaenau Railway

18. Science fiction author HG Wells once wrote a novel about the war in the what?

A. Air

B. Car park

C. Bike sheds

19. What is the title of the 2004 film that documents the early life of Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara?

A. The Travel Choice Diaries

B. The Trainspotting Diaries

C. The Motorcycle Diaries

20. What did The Goons famously do for Christmas in 1956?

A.    Drive forwards

B.    Walk backwards

C.    Cycle sideways

 

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Answers:

01.    B. The Goodies
02.    A. Brief Encounter
03.    A. Victoria
04.    C. They all feature shipwrecks
05.    A. Stagecoach
06.    B. The Saint
07.    A. Chigley
08.    C. A new railroad
09.    B. Cycling
10.    A. Ryan O’Nea
11.    C. A US airforce base
12.    B. A spaceship
13.    B. An integrated transport policy
14.    C. A bus
15.    B. Bicycle race
16.    A. They walk
17.    B. The Great Western Railway
18.    A. Air
19.    C. The Motorcycle Diaries
20.    B. Walk backwards

SCORES:

0-6. Your professional dedication to the transport profession is commendable. But, seriously, would it kill you to get out more?

7-12. Better. You aren’t a total transport geek – you have obviously read a few books, or seen a few films. Not a lot, obviously, but a few.
13-16. Now we’re getting somewhere. You are a well-rounded individual, capable of being both a competent transport professional during the day and a normal-ish human being during the evenings and weekends. Well done.

17-20. Well, now, we are seriously impressed by this. Well-read, a patron of the arts, and yet still a top-notch transport professional by day, we assume. Outstanding!