Shell Trivia Quiz

Answer: Richard Branson

Sir Richard Branson, as he became on receiving a knighthood in 2000, founded the Virgin group of companies in 1970. Business interests include airlines, trains, games, music, cable television and broadband, to name but a few. In fact, this quiz is brought to you by Virgin, who are my broadband suppliers. Branson bought Necker Island early on in his career, and developed it into a luxury resort.

Although the purchase price of 175,000 pounds sterling was relatively low, the development costs ran into several millions so I hope your lottery win was a big one.

Answer: Chelsea

Abramovich built up his riches via numerous different enterprises, with many of them being in the oil industry. He acquired ownership of Chelsea F.C., whose home ground is in London, in June 2003 and shelled out an estimated 600 million pounds sterling in his first five years of ownership, according to Wikipedia. Since Abramovich has been the owner the club has won the Premiership championship on three occasions, in 2005, 2006 and 2010.

Manchester United has been owned by the American Glazer family since 2005 and Mohamed Al-Fayed bought Fulham in 1997. Aston Villa was acquired by another American, Randy Lerner, in 2006.

Answer: Human skull

Apparently called 'For the Love of God' to reflect Hirst's mother's reaction -'For the love of God, what are you going to do next?' - to her son's artwork, the skull is covered with over 8,000 diamonds on a platinum cast. A large pear-shaped diamond is set in the middle of the forehead. Among other works by Hirst are exhibits of dead animals in formaldehyde, which include a shark, cow and sheep.

He has also produced a statue of a pregnant woman with half of her skin peeled back to show the child in her womb.

This work is called 'The Virgin Mother' and the first version produced was put on display at Lever House in New York.

Answer: Bugatti

The 2011 price tag for this vehicle starts at 1,700,000 US dollars, and it has a top speed of between 253 miles per hour and 267 miles per hour, depending upon which model you choose. It was named for the motor racing driver Pierre Veyron, whose career lasted from 1933 to 1953.

He won the 24 hour Le Mans race in 1939 driving a Bugatti Type 57. The Veyron was chosen by the BBC's 'Top Gear' team as the car of the decade for 2000 to 2009.

Answer: Private jet

The company was originally formed as Learjet in the late 1950s or thereabouts and became part of Bombadier Aerospace in 1990. One of the earliest jets for private use was the Learjet 23, produced from 1962 to 1966, which could carry up to six passengers and two crew. How many seats you will need in your new jet will depend on how many friends you have.

This number may have increased as word of your win gets around. Other manufacturers of small jets include Cessna and Gulfstream.

Answer: Ascot

The tradition of Royal Ascot dates back to the time of Queen Anne in 1711. The five days of the meeting are normally attended by the reigning monarch and other members of the Royal family. They arrive at the course by horse-drawn carriage. Admittance to the Royal Enclosure is governed by strict rules, and to get in for the first time depends on knowing someone who can obtain membership for you. Dress codes are also of a high standard, with men needing to wear morning dress and ladies unable to show too much bare flesh. Admittance has been refused on occasions to those who fail to meet the requirements.

Answer: Diamond

The diamond came from India and its name in Persian means 'Mountain of Light'. At one time it was the largest known stone, but was cut to a much smaller size to improve its appearance. The diamond was 'acquired' and given to Queen Victoria when she became Empress of India.

It is now set into a crown worn by the consort of the king, with the last wearer being Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. The crown is kept on display with other jewellery and emblems of state in the Tower of London.

Answer: Switzerland

Although all these countries are known for their skiing, it is Klosters which has proved itself to be a favourite with the British Royal family, with Prince Charles in particular having visited regularly for more than thirty years. He brought Diana with him to the resort during their marriage and introduced both Princes William and Harry to the pleasures of skiing. Klosters is situated just under 100 miles from Zurich, one of the largest cities in Switzerland.

Answer: Jean Patou

'Joy' was first brought out in 1929 and has remained popular ever since. It is made from jasmine flowers and rose petals, with 10,000 jasmine flowers and 28 dozen roses needed to make 30 ml of perfume. Compared to most of the other options I have placed before you, the perfume is relatively inexpensive at 800 US dollars for a small bottle.

Answer: Van Gogh

There are two versions of this painting, with one being owned by the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The version sold in 1990 was bought by a Japanese businessman and the purchase price was a world record at the time. The purchaser died in 1996 and no information has been made public as to the painting's ownership since.

The owner had said that he wanted it to be cremated with him but it seems unlikely that this wish was carried out. Paintings by the other artists also appear among the top ten most expensive sold at auction.

Other works of art would undoubtedly be valued even higher - the 'Mona Lisa' has the highest value for insurance purposes - but have never been available to buy.