To Err is Human Quiz | Thematic Fun

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1. One of the best known blunders in military history occurred when Lord Lucan misunderstood the orders that his commanding officer, Lord Raglan, had issued and sent his brother-in-law, the Earl of Cardigan, and his troops into almost certain defeat. Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote a famous poem about it. What was this event?

Answer: The Charge Of The Light Brigade

This dreadful mistake occurred during the Crimean War. The Russians had heavy artillery at the end of a valley and other guns up on the hills on both sides. Russian troops had captured British redoubts on the far side of the hills and Lord Raglan could see from his position that the Russians were taking the British naval guns away. He sent these order to Lord Lucan, who was in overall charge of the various units.

"Lord Raglan wishes the cavalry to advance rapidly to the front, follow the enemy, and try to prevent the enemy carrying away the guns. Horse artillery may accompany. French cavalry is on your left. Immediate."

The officer who brought the orders, Captain Louis Nolan, did not make it clear to Lord Lucan which guns were to be attacked and the actual target was not in Lucan's line of site. Lucan then instructed the Earl of Cardigan to take the Light Brigade straight down the valley and attack the gun position at the end of the valley. The result was a brutal slaughter which was later immortalised in Tennyson's, "The Charge of the Light Brigade."

Question written by Calpurnia09

2. Did they get it wrong? In 1962 Decca auditioned this band and said of their audition "guitar music is on the way out" and "[band name] will never make it in show business". Who did they famously reject?

Answer: The Beatles

Well how wrong can you be? The Beatles spawned a string of hits, movies, sell-out concerts, television appearances including "The Ed Sullivan Show", and an influence on popular culture and music that still lingers on. I wonder if anyone at Decca talks about it today.

Question written by Cazza2902

3. Even big business gets it wrong from time to time. Coca-Cola turned down the chance to buy which company for a mere one thousand dollars?

Answer: Pepsi Cola

In 1931 Charles Guth of Loft Inc. offered a bankrupt soft drink subsidiary to Coca-Cola for one thousand dollars. They turned it down, thinking that their near monopoly of the soft drink industry meant they didn't need to add anything to their portfolio. The company they rejected went on to become their biggest rival, Pepsi Cola.

Question written by Christinap

4. Who famously said "I'm glad it will be Clark Gable falling on his face and not me"?

Answer: Gary Cooper

Gary Cooper said this about his decision to turn down the part of Rhett Butler in "Gone With The Wind". The film went on to be the big Oscar winner of 1939, getting eight Academy Awards and two honorary awards, although Clark Gable missed out on Best Actor. He was nominated, but the winner was Robert Donat for "Goodbye Mr Chips". The film is now seen as the first great Hollywood blockbuster and is one of the most popular films of all time.

Question written by angelic54

5. In his maiden speech in November 2004 to the Parliament of Australia, Liberal backbencher Jason Wood MP consistently referred to "orgasms" when he meant "organisms". In which city did this event take place?

Answer: Canberra

Born in Sutherland NSW, Jason Wood was elected as the Federal Member for LaTrobe in Victoria in 2004. Canberra has two parliament houses. The Old Parliament House (opened in 1927) is now the Museum of Democracy. The new Parliament House was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1988. It is a stunning design and built into the side of a hill with grass growing over its roof.

Question written by Dutty4ea

6. During World War I, the errors at the Gallipoli campaign began immediately for the ANZAC troops. What was discovered early on?

Answer: They had landed the troops in the wrong place

Even all these years on, after all the reports have been held up to the light and rows of dots joined up, no-one is quite sure how the Anzacs were landed on the wrong beach. Commander Charles Dix, who was in charge of landing the covering force, knew for sure that all had gone wrong, when the boats were within 50 yards of the shore. 'Tell the Colonel' he shouted, 'that the damn fools have taken us a mile too far north!'

Question written by em1958

7. There is a brand name in the automotive industry which has become synonymous with failure; it is Edsel. Which car giant was the parent company of this ill-fated brand?

Answer: Ford

The Edsel brand was launched by Ford in the late 1950s to fill a perceived gap in their range. The name, marketing, pricing, and timing were all badly misjudged, and the brand lasted only around three years. An 'Edsel' has become an industry term for an example of what not to do. Oddly enough, Edsel models still in existence are now worth a lot a money.

Question written by dippo

8. On 15th October 1987, which British weather presenter famously said... "Earlier on today, a lady rang the BBC and said she heard that there was a hurricane on the way. Don't worry if you are watching, there isn't"?

Answer: Michael Fish

Hours later, Britain was hit by the worst storm since 1703! Registering the pressure of a category 3 hurricane with wind speeds around 151km/h, at least 18 people were killed and hundreds more injured. The south of England was hit worst (myself included) with the total estimated clean up cost at around �1 billion.

Question written by Cally242

9. Which football player on his way to greatness, was the joint top goal scorer in the FA Premier League season 1997-98? He destroyed his career by arguing with manager Glenn Hoddle about playing on the B team ensuring he would never play for England again.

Answer: Chris Sutton

Chris Sutton played for Norwich City, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Celtic, Birmingham City and Aston Villa. Although an excellent player, this incident ensured he was only ever capped once for England. In the 1997-98 season he was joint highest goal scorer with Dion Dublin and Michael Owen. He went on to manage Lincoln City where, in January 2010, he took them to the 3rd round of the FA Cup for the first time in a decade.

Question written by Cally242

10. The Warden of New College Oxford, proposing a toast to Queen Victoria, is reputed to have said: "Let us raise our glasses to our queer old dean" - instead of 'dear old queen'. What blundering figure of speech did the Warden famously give his name to?

Answer: Spoonerism

Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844-1930) was educated at Oxford University's New College, where he subsequently spent more than 60 years teaching ancient history, divinity and philosophy. He was renowned for a series of absent-minded errors, but most particularly for his habit of switching the letters of words when he was talking - with bewildering and comic effect. Among these actual or anecdotal Spoonerisms are: "You were fighting a liar in the quadrangle" - (lighting a fire), and "You have hissed all my mystery lectures" - (missed all my history lectures). During a college reception he once told a lady: "You'll soon be had as a matter of course" - (mad as a hatter).

Question written by dsimpy

Source: Author Christinap

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Nannanut before going online.
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