A Bright New Shining Star Trivia Quiz

Answer: Stefani Germanotta

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, to give her full name, was born in New York and released her first album, named 'The Fame', in 2008. The singles from it were successful, and included 'Poker Face' and 'Paparazzi'. Her success has remained constant since her beginnings and she has been described as being of 'iconic status' by the Songwriter Hall of Fame. Lady Gaga was Billboard's 'Woman of the Year' in 2015, and has extended her activities to include some acting roles.

The photo hint is of a German flag as a partial clue to her real name. Alecia Moore is the real name of Pink, Katheryn Hudson is Katy Perry and Rihanna's real name is Robyn Fenty.

Answer: Q

The two films mentioned in the question are both part of the 'James Bond' franchise and all the options come from the series. Ben played the part of Q, the role previously played by the late Desmond Llewellyn in seventeen 'Bond' films. Q stands for quartermaster, the character who provides Bond with his various gadgets. M is the head of MI5, and was played by Dame Judi Dench between 1995 and 2012. Moneypenny is a female character, and Bill Tanner is from MI6 in the 'Bond' movies.

Among Ben's other films are 'Layer Cake' (2004), 'Brideshead Revisited' (2008) and 'Cloud Atlas' (2012).

The photo shows a clock with the time being a 'quarter' to twelve.

Answer: Grayson Perry

Perry's main speciality is pottery, creating ceramics, particularly vases. He uses the medium to express his opinions on social issues and hypocrisy in the designs. In 2009, Grayson began creating tapestries and he has also worked with a firm of architects to create a house, 'Julie's House', in Essex. Perry often appears in public dressed in female clothing of various types, with Claire sometimes being a young girl. When he received his CBE, he was attired in an outfit consisting of a blue dress and jacket with a black hat, described as being a 'mother of the bride' creation.

The photo clue is pretty obvious, being various shades of grey.

Answer: Usain Bolt

Bolt became the first man to achieve the feat of winning the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints, and be part of the gold medal winning 4 x 100 metre relay team at consecutive Olympic Games. He won in Beijing in 2008 and followed it up in 2012 at the London games. Born in Jamaica in 1986, Bolt is 6'5" tall and his long legs seem to cover the distance in the blink of an eye.

Although swimmer Phelps was a multiple medal winner, he entered rather more than three events at each games and won eight gold medals in 2008 and a further four in 2012. Wiggins was a double gold medallist in cycling in Beijing and won a further gold in London. Rower Steve Redgrave did not compete in either 2008 or 2012, although he did win gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000 inclusive.

The picture shows a bolt of lightning, in case you needed an additional hint.

Answer: The Bridge

All of these series appeared on our screens thanks to our Scandinavian neighbours. 'The Bridge' was the one which brought us the intriguing Saga Noren, with her lack of human empathy combined with an inexorable inability to solve crimes. The first and second series put Saga, from Malmo in Sweden, in partnership with the Copenhagen based Martin Rohde (played by Kim Bodnia) as they dealt with crimes involving victims from both countries. The third series saw Rohde replaced by Henrik Saboe (Thure Lindhart). The bridge of the title refers to the Oresund bridge, which links the two countries and plays a vital part in the storylines.

The photo clue shows a pack of cards, used in the game of bridge,

Answer: Academy Award for Best Director

Of course, Kathryn isn't just a twenty-first century star, since her directing career began back in 1978, but she became much more widely known when she won the Oscar for directing 'The Hurt Locker'. The film also picked up the Best Picture Academy Award, along with a host of other accolades from film institutes around the world. The story is about a group of bomb disposal experts and the stress they undergo during the Iraq War. Kathryn's other work includes 'Point Break' (1999), 'K19: The Widowmaker' (2002) and 'Zero Dark Thirty' (2012).

The photo clue shows a row of lockers as a hint towards the film for which Kathryn received her acclaim.

Answer: One Direction

It's sometimes hard to believe that One Direction came only third in the 2010 UK season of 'The X Factor'. Simon Cowell signed them up all the same, and the band has hardly been out of the headlines since. Their first hit was 'What Makes You Beautiful', and numerous other hits have followed in the UK, USA and around the world. Zayn Malik left the band in 2015, and the remaining four members announced that they would not replace him but continue as a quartet.

I suspect that no additional hint was needed for this question, but the one way sign might have helped one or two players who have never heard of the band.

Answer: Hilary Mantel

Mantel's first novel, 'Every Day is Mother's Day', was published in 1985 and further novels appeared at regular intervals, along with other writings and regular literary awards. It was her novel about Thomas Cromwell, 'Wolf Hall', which was published in 2009 that really brought the author into the limelight for many people. Cromwell had regularly been portrayed as a bully and unpleasant character but Mantel's version showed a much more rounded person. The book was awarded the Man Booker Prize for 2009 and the follow up, 'Bring up the Bodies', also won the coveted award, making Mantel the first woman to achieve a double win.

The photo hint is a picture of a mantelpiece.

Answer: Model

Cara was born in London in 1992 and was signed up by the prestigious Storm Model agency in 2009. She appeared on the catwalk for designers such as Burberry, Chanel and many others. Looking at the list, it seems Cara has been a model for any designer most of us could name, and several that we'd struggle to think of. In 2012, she turned her attentions to acting and reduced her commitments to modelling. Her first film was 'Anna Karenina' in 2012 and she has continued to appear in various films and on television since then. Cara has also done some singing and designing in her own name.

The clue wasn't intended to imply that Cara has been a pilot, although she seems to have tried most things, but the aeroplane is a model, not a full size one.

Answer: 12 Years a Slave

The role of Patsey in '12 Years a Slave' was Lupita's first major film role, and it won her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2014, as well as a host of other nominations and awards. Although she was born in Mexico, she was raised in Kenya, and took a leading role in a Kenyan television series named 'Shuga' for its first two series. '12 Years a Slave' was a huge box office success, and established Lupita as an actress.

The photo clue is a reference to one of the most memorable and graphic scenes in the film.