BURNTWOOD FAMILY HISTORY GROUP
CHRISTMAS QUIZ 2025
There was a good turn out when Burntwood Family History Group held its Christmas Social in December this year. Members were asked to bring party food to share and, during the meeting, teams took part in a light-hearted quiz presented by our new Chair, Linda Downes. Linda’s rounds are included below and I’ve added a couple of rounds of my own with some different challenges.
If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can still enjoy this year’s Christmas Quiz but I’m afraid you will have to supply your own party food and fancy dress costumes. There are no prizes for the winners so please feel free to invite friends and family to take part even if they are not BFHG members.
The answers for all the rounds are given at the bottom of this page. The only rule is that the Quizmaster’s answers are the right ones (even if some turn out to be wrong!!!) Feel free to use the quiz for competitions within families or friendship groups. There is no charge for using the quiz, but if you enjoy it (and even if you don’t) please consider making a donation towards the work of a charity that you support or, alternatively, to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.
I hope you enjoy this year’s quiz. There are 5 rounds altogether. You can find the answers at the end of the quiz but NO PEEKING until you’ve attempted all the questions!
Chris Graddon
(Secretary/Treasurer Burntwood Family History Group)
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O.K. Let’s get this quiz under way. Here are your first round questions.
Round 1 Nursery Rhymes
Can you identify these nursery rhymes from their initials?
1. BBBS
2. GGG
3. TWAOWWLIAS
4. RACHTBC
5. WAYGTMPM
6. PPTKO
7. OAL
8. DFWTG
9. SSMAP
10. OMHAF
11. MMQC
12. HDSOAW
13. OTBMS
14. SASOS
15. SSMD
16. RAROR
17. TLPWTM
18. TBM
19. OKC
20. MHALL
21. JAJWUTH
22. LBPHLHS
Easy peasy!! Have you scored 22 out of 22?
The answers to all the rounds can be found at the end of the quiz.
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Round 2 How Many Words Can You Make?
The rules:
1. You can only use the seven letters you’ve been given.
2. Each word MUST contain the letter A.
3. Words must be 4 letters or longer.
4. The seven given letters can be repeated, so Mathematicians can include CALCULUS.
5. Proper nouns and foreign words are not allowed.
6. Abbreviations are not allowed.
7. Hyphenated words are not allowed.
The target is 31 words, but you may be able to find more than 31.
Round 3 Countries of the World - can you name them?
There are 32 countries hidden in these cryptic clues. Can you identify all 32?
N.B. We found this puzzle online but couldn’t identify the author. If you know who they are, please let us know and we will happily acknowledge their authorship here.
Round 4 Er!!!! One of the words in the answer ends ER
Example 1 (2 words) Person employed to explain Pythagoras’ Theorem in a secondary school.
Answer Mathematics teacher
Example 2 Person who goes out determined to enjoy the festivities on New Year’s Eve.
Answer Reveller (usually drunken reveller)
1. (3 words) According to Elvis, what US postmen do with mail they cannot deliver.
2. How MPs in Parliament refer to Sir Lindsay Hoyle.
3. (2 words) Electronic instrument used for detecting and measuring ionizing radiation.
4. What a river does when its course winds over flat land, for example as it gets near the sea.
5. (2 words) In medieval times, the member of the royal household whose task as a fool was to entertain guests and keep the king happy.
6. OOOOPS! THIS ANSWER ENDS ERS.
Action-comedy series starring Tony Curtis and Roger Moore that ran for 24 episodes and was first broadcast on ITV in 1971. Tony Curtis played “Danny Wilde” and you can have a bonus point for the character played by Roger Moore.
7. (3 words) Not very cheerful chap who comes for you at the end.
8. (2 words) Classic make of electric guitar with a double cut-away shape and three pickups, popularized by Hank Marvin, Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton.
9. (2 words) Formal jacket that has the crest or symbol of an educational establishment on the pocket.
10. Popular drink made by crushing and fermenting apples.
11. Very tall building, typically found in New York.
12. Term used, especially in the southern US states, for a tenant farmer who rents a patch of ground and pays the landowner by giving them some of the produce.
13. (2 words) Layered ice cream sundae with fruit and syrup, served in a tall conical glass and eaten with a long spoon.
14. Change the borders of a geographical area in order to fix things so the vote will go to a particular person or political party.
15. What students become in a gap year when they go off touring the world.
16. Large, heavy tool with a long handle used to smash things up, or to knock thick posts into the ground. Also, a big hit for Peter Gabriel in 1986.
17. Someone skilled at the art of coding or decoding secret messages.
18. Film or book that is very popular and is a huge commercial success.
19. Cosmetic cream or lotion that ladies – and some men – put on their skin to counter dryness and make it feel softer and smoother.
20. Character played by Roger Lloyd-Pack in “Only Fools and Horses”.
Round 5 Towns and Cities in the UK – Can You Identify Them?
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