The Mystery of the Mystery Trivia Quiz

Answer: Red

Hematology/Haematology is the study of all matters related to blood - ooh, I feel faint - with an emphasis on any diseases of this precious bodily fluid: their causes, their likely outcome, their recommended treatments, and, of course, their prevention. "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" - William Shakespeare.

Answer: Yellow

The painting "A Young Girl Reading" is a beautiful 18th century work by Jean-Honore Fragonard. It depicts a side on image of a sweet young woman seated in a chair, with a purple ribbon in her hair, and wearing a bright yellow dress. Her cheeks are rosy, and her lips slightly pouting as she intently peruses a small book held in her right hand.

The vivid yellow of her dress suggest life, joy and vivacity - somewhat at odds with the serious manner of her gaze - yet the contrasting effect keeps viewers entranced as it draws us further into her demure absorption. "Literature is my Utopia" - Helen Keller.

Answer: Blue

English portrait and landscape artist, Thomas Gainsborough (c. 1727-1788) was already painting faces and heads of people when he was only ten years old, but landscapes were his first love, and certainly these are pleasant, if a little gloomy. His most famous painting of all, though, is his full length portrait, "The Blue Boy" (c. 1770), a striking depiction of the teenage son of a wealthy merchant, dressed in a full blue suit of old fashioned clothing from the previous century.

The look on the boy's face in this portrait is amusing, as he was probably fed up with the sissy outfit he was forced to wear. "Creativity takes courage" - Henri Matisse.

Answer: Green

Green is a colour much favoured by members of the Islamic faith. It was the colour of the banner flown by the prophet Muhammad, and of course, the same green colour can be seen on the national flags of most Islamic nations. The reason why? Because Muslims believe the colour represents Paradise. "To love, and live beloved, is the soul's paradise" - John Winthrop.

Answer: Pink

Dianthus are a family of flowers, many of which are pink in colour, and of which carnations are members. They look like miniature carnations themselves; they're perennials, so return to brighten your garden every year; and, most of all, life giving pollinators love these flowers and can always seen hovering around them, dining on their nectar, day in and day out. "Anything is possible with sunshine and a little pink" - Lilly Pulitzer.

Answer: Red

Mars is known as the red planet. This is because its surface soils teem with iron oxide, which gives this planet the reddish colour for which it is noted. So, if you ever get to live on that planet one day (no thanks!), could it be said that you were "in the red"? That is an accounting term, by the way, and one you don't wish to see on any of your financial statements.

It means you have recorded a financial deficit. "Mars is there, waiting to be reached" - Buzz Aldrin.

Answer: Yellow

William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was a famous English poet from the Romantic era in Literature. The hallmarks of his work depict a certain melancholy, very much a reflection of his own character, a love of history's appeal, the conversational style of his writing which draws us into comfortably seated by his side as he pens, and an intense, almost aching love of nature.

He brings it to life before our very eyes, none more so than his short lovely poem on the youthful freedom, the dancing in the breeze, the vivid yellow colour of a bank of wild daffodils. "Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze" - William Wordsworth.

Answer: Blue

The Indian peacock is a strikingly lovely bird with stunning tail feathers that appear to be covered in hundreds of little eyes watching to see our reaction when he fans that beautiful plumage. His body colouring though is even lovelier (if one could describe such a masculine chap in this way), and is a vivid metallic blue in colour that quite takes the breath away. Oh my goodness, he is such a beauty. "Be like a peacock and dance with all of your beauty" - Debasish Mridha.

Answer: Green

A leprechaun is a tiny little fellow from Irish folklore. He is usually depicted as dressed in green these days, but once upon a time in the land of the green, he was clad in red. Perhaps Santa didn't like the competition. Leprechauns are inclined - just a wee bit - to cause trouble whenever they can, but this is more to amuse themselves than from any real villainy. "Where would we be without laughter - and a belief in the little folk?" - Eidneach O'Diomasaigh.

Answer: Pink

Major Mitchell's cockatoo is also known as the pink cockatoo or Leadbetter's cockatoo. This bird, which can live to be as old as any human, has a harsh squawking call, and is native to the dryer inland parts of Australia. Its body is a soft salmon pink, its wings are white, and when agitated, the crest that rises up on its head in a row of bright red and yellow feathers, looks amazingly like the warbonnet of a native American Indian. "Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly" - Langston Hughes.

Answer: Red

Does waving the red cape (known as a muleta) of a matador infuriate a bull so much that he charges at it? Not a bit. All bovines are said to be colour blind, so that poor tortured creature with sharpened lances sticking out of his back is actually charging at the flicking back and forth of that cape in desperation - anything to get away from the pain. Did you know that before the fight begins, most bulls are drugged to disorient them, their horns are blunted, their kidneys are repeatedly beaten to weaken them, and vaseline is smeared into their eyes to blur their vision? "Man's inhumanity to man is only surpassed by his cruelty to animals" - George Bernard Shaw.

Answer: Yellow

Canaries are small, lovely little birds with plump chests, and a somewhat cocky stance, very sure of themselves and their appeal to man. Living wild and free since time began, and native to the Azores, they were first bred to be kept in well fed captivity during the 17th century, and have been treasured ever since for their perky little nature and their lovely song. Though they can come in various colours, it is the yellow canary that is the most well known and popular. "The canary is like a man's soul.

It sees bars around it, but instead of despairing, it sings" - Nikos Kazantzakis.

Answer: Blue

Delftware, also known as Delft pottery or Delft blue, is a famous blue and white pottery which came from the city of Delft in the Netherlands, but which was introduced into Europe from Chinese 14th century porcelain. It features idyllic scenes of rural countrysides, gentle waters and delicate plant life, and, when pictured on crockery in particular, was used to adorn the tables of the wealthy for years. Because of its beauty, though, it almost seems a shame to cover this loveliness with prosaic food. "For some must follow, and some command, Though all are made of clay" - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Answer: Green

Chlorophyll is a magical pigment that allows plants to produce energy, and, ultimately, because it readily absorbs many other colours, it is a poor absorber of green - and this is why green is the colour we see all around us everyday in the leaves of beautiful trees and plants everywhere. "She bid me take life easy, as the leaves grow on the tree, But I was young and foolish, and with her I did not agree" - Nick Patrick and Nick Ingman.

Answer: Pink

Long time heavy drinkers of alcohol can sometimes begin to hallucinate, to see things that aren't there. In the world of slang, this is known as seeing pink elephants, though it's hard to imagine why poor old elephants were dragged into a bar over it.

The phrase came into use in the early 20th century, appearing in works such as Jack London's 1913 book, "John Barleycorn", which deals with the author's struggles with alcoholism. "First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you" - F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Answer: Red

Pomegranates grow on small trees approximately 30 feet high, with each one having the potential to live up to 200 years. Native to the Mediterranean areas of the world for thousands of years, this fruit has spread out to the rest of the globe from there.

They were once widely known as wineapples, particularly in Ireland, and even today in that country, the name still holds in the fruit and vegetable markets in Dublin. Before the fruit develops on the pomegranate tree, it produces the prettiest red flower - a little like a cross between a crumpled rose and a carnation. "In every pomegranate, there is a seed of Paradise" - Hindi quote.

Answer: Yellow

Bananas come in different sizes and while they are classed as berries by botanists, as fruit by Mr and Mrs Average in the Street. They are packed full of healthy vitamins for our bodies, they are grown all over the world in 135 countries, and are used as food, for their fibre, and - what's this! - to make wine and beer. Why ruin a perfectly good snack to make alcohol? Just have a banana instead - and skip the hangover. "Intellectual property has the shelf life of a banana" - Bill Gates.

Answer: Blue

Going back over time, blue was never a favoured colour of most historical civilisations. The ancient Greeks didn't even consider it one of the primary colours, the Romans equated it with mourning and barbarians, and the ancient Celts and Germans used it as war paint on their faces.

By the 12th century, however, it had gradually crept into favour as a desirable colour, so much so that the Roman Catholic church decreed that all artists in Italy - and as a flow on to the rest of Europe - should depict the Virgin Mary clothed in long loose cloaks of blue. Blue, as a result, became associated with holiness and virtue from that period on. "I love the colour of the sky, the blue that draws me up, up, up towards eternity" - Eidneach O'Diomasaigh.

Answer: Green

"Green, Green Grass of Home" was a song written by Curly Putman Jr, and, though performed by other singers from time to time, the version by Tom Jones in 1966 became a worldwide hit. It relates the tale of a man who has been dreaming about returning to his lovely former home - only to awaken on the day of his execution. "Yes, they'll come to see me, in the shade of that old oak tree, As they lay me, 'neath the green, green grass of home".

Answer: Pink

When anyone has been sacked from their job, this is often referred to as having been given a pink slip. Although there is some debate - or downright argument - about the origin of the term it is thought by many to date back to the early 20th century when workers at the Ford Motor Car assembly plants were either given a white or pink slip at the end of each day. White meant the worker was to come back to work the following day - pink meant the worker's services were no longer required. "Chop your own wood and it will warm you twice" - Henry Ford.