All Things Grey Trivia Quiz

Answer: Macbeth

In the opening scene of the play the witches meet in a storm on the heath. They have a familiar cat called Greymalkin. The First Witch says "I come Greymalkin! Paddock calls". Paddock was an old word for a toad - also one of the witches' familiars. A familiar was a demon who assumed the form of an animal and kept the company of a witch.

John Masefield also featured a cat called Greymalkin in his book "The Midnight Folk". The governess has two cats - Greymalkin and Blackmalkin.

Answer: Tom Pearce

The song starts "Tom Pearce, Tom Pearce lend me your grey mare". Widecombe-in-the-Moor is a pretty village on Dartmoor in Devon where the fair is still held and these days you would probably still find it easier to get there on a horse than in a car. The fair is a very popular tourist attraction (as is the village itself) and the narrow Devon lanes quickly clog up with cars and buses.

Answer: Benjamin Franklin

The quotation "All cats are grey in the dark" is said to date from the 16th century but Benjamin Franklin used it in an essay in which he extols the virtues of an older woman as a lover. Obviously a man of discernment!

The essay is called "Advice on the Choice of a Mistress" and shows that some very modern-sounding thinking is not as original as we may like to believe:

"And as in the dark all cats are grey, the pleasure of corporal enjoyment with an old woman is at least equal, and frequently superior; every knack being, by practice, capable of Improvement."

Though his last word on the subject is less complimentary:

"and lastly. They are so grateful"

It is a short essay and, if you want to read it, it can be found on the internet.

Answer: Felicity

Miss Lemon first appeared in a novel in "Hickory, Dickory Dock", published in 1955, although she had previously been in the Poirot short stories. She originally worked for another of Agatha Christie's characters, Parker Pyne, who was a private eye and she is known for her quiet efficiency.

Answer: Black

Grey horses are born black or dark brown and go grey gradually as they age. They do, however, have black skin underneath the white hair. An albino horse would be white with white skin and pink eyes - like any albino animal.

Desert Orchid was a very successful British racehorse, well loved by many people, and Milton came to fame as an internationally successful show jumper ridden by John Whitaker. Both horses are now dead. Desert Orchid is buried at Kempton park racecourse near a statue of him and Milton is buried on the Whitaker's farm in Yorkshire.

Answer: Earl Grey

Earl Grey stands on a column 41 metres (133ft) high. Buried under its base is a Victorian Glass time capsule containing the original plans for the monument and some gold and silver coins and medals donated by the then Mayor, John Fenwick. It was completed in 1838 and the grand unveiling on 24th August was carried out to the sound of the city's church bells.

Earl Grey was the inventor of Earl Grey tea and the Whig Prime Minister responsible for passing the 1832 Government Reform Bill that paved the way for modern parliament in Britain. The Abolition of Slavery Act of was also passed during his term of office and this led to the end of slavery in the British Empire.

Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson is an internationally renowned paralympic athlete who now is a sports presenter on British television.

Lady Jane Grey was Queen of England for just 9 days after the death of Edward VI.

Henry Grey was (and still is) famous for writing Grey's "Anatomy" - a textbook on anatomy written in the 19th century and still used by medical students today.

Answer: Katherine Parr

In March 1547 Lady Jane Grey entered the household of the dowager queen Katherine Parr, Henry VIII's sixth and last wife. Katherine had retired from court upon Edward VI's accession and her dower manor was in Chelsea. Here, Katherine lived with the man she had wanted to marry before Henry laid claim to her, Thomas Seymour, Edward VI's uncle. She also brought with her the 13 year old Princess Elizabeth (later to be Elizabeth I). Katherine Parr was known for her warm and open nature and was stepmother to all of Henry VIII's children. Jane Grey was sent to her to acquire polish and learn social graces, a common practice for daughters of the nobility.

Jane went on to be put on the throne in July 1553, at the age of 15, in an attempt to prevent a Catholic Queen from acceding to the crown. Public support grew for Mary, however, and after only 9 days, Jane was persuaded to relinquish the crown in favour of Mary - a Catholic. Mary imprisoned Jane in the Tower of London and she was eventually executed in 1554.

Answer: Alex

Alex can apparently distinguish between different colours, sizes and shapes of objects. Furthermore, he is able to speak to his trainer, Irene Pepperberg, and answer questions. He has an impressive vocabulary for a parrot and is said to be able to read at a very rudimentary level.

Parrots are said to have an intelligence level similar to that of a 5 year old human so it is not surprising they can perform these tasks. Research into some of the higher primates today suggests that they too may be more intelligent than we have previously realised.

Answer: Bob Harris

Whispering Bob Harris was so-called because of his quiet, laid-back delivery. The Old Grey Whistle Test was on late at night in the 1970s and show-cased "serious" rock bands. Groups such as Led Zeppelin, David Bowie and many others played album tracks which were otherwise unaired on programmes like Top of the Pops.

The show got its name, according to Bob Harris, from the days when vinyl records were first pressed. They would play it to people they called the "old greys" - the nickname for the office cleaners who started work at 5pm as office staff were leaving. The tunes they could remember and could whistle, having heard them just once or twice, had passed "the old grey whistle test".

Answer: The New York Times

"The New York Times" is nicknamed the "Gray Lady" for its staid appearance and style. The name is thought to have been coined around 1950 and to be a play on the phrase "the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street," a term long used to describe the Bank of England.

"The New York Times" was founded in 1851 and has a reputation for high quality reporting, winning many Pulitzer prizes over the years. Times Square in New York was named in 1904 after the paper moved its offices to what had previously been Longacre Square. However, the paper only stayed there for 9 years, relocating in 1913 to its present headquarters.