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Pet Shop Boys References Trivia Quiz

The Pet Shop Boys have been known to insert literate and witty references in their songs. Can you identify them?

A multiple-choice quiz by depeche_girl. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
depeche_girl

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
218,915

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
289

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. "We're lying in the gutter but we're looking at the stars"
Whose quote did they paraphrase in this lyric? Hint

Noel Coward

Oscar Wilde

Charles Baudelaire

Evelyn Waugh

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. "A famous writer in the nineteen-twenties"
Which writer are the Boys referencing to in this song, "Being Boring"? Hint

Ernest Hemingway

TS Eliot

Willa Cather

F. Scott Fitzgerald

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. "...and Debussy to a disco beat"
Who, along with Debussy, is referenced here? Hint

Jack Kerouac

Noel Coward

Kim Philby

Che Guevara

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Question 4 of 10

4. "To feast with panthers every night"
This quote from "Jack the Lad" references Oscar Wilde.
Which work is it from? Hint

The Importance of Being Earnest

De Profundis

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Lady Windermere's Fan

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Question 5 of 10

5. Which Pet Shop Boy's song's title was derived from an Anthony Trollope novel? Hint

This Must Be the Place I've Waited Years to Leave

Can You Forgive Her?

Love Comes Quickly

What Keeps Mankind Alive?

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. In the some versions of this song, there is a line "Who do you think you are? Joe Stalin?".
What song is this? Hint

Rent

West End Girls

Don Juan

Left to my own devices

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Question 7 of 10

7. Who are the "Zazou"s in "In the Night"? Hint

Spies

A group of trendy young people in France during World War Two.

A group of trendy young Italians in the 1980's

Nationalistic politicians

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. "Don Juan" is actually an allegory. What is it allegorical to? Hint

The Battle of Britain

Oscar Wilde's trial in 1895

The political situation in the Balkans before World War Two

Nazi Germany in World War Two

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. "Songs like '...' and 'Love is Strange'"
What is the other song being referenced in "I Want to Wake Up"? Hint

Blue Monday

I will survive

Love Will Tear Us Apart

Tainted Love

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Question 10 of 10

10. "I heard it in the ..., everything's for sale"
Where did they hear that everything's for sale in "Shopping"? Hint

House of Commons

Scotland Yard

U.S. Senate

Pentagon

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. "We're lying in the gutter but we're looking at the stars" Whose quote did they paraphrase in this lyric?

Answer: Oscar Wilde

The quote was a quote from Oscar Wilde's "Lady Windermere's Fan". The actual quote was, "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars".

2. "A famous writer in the nineteen-twenties" Which writer are the Boys referencing to in this song, "Being Boring"?

Answer: F. Scott Fitzgerald

Although the song also references his wife, Zelda, the answer is Scott Fitzgerald.

3. "...and Debussy to a disco beat" Who, along with Debussy, is referenced here?

Answer: Che Guevara

Che Guevara was a Cuban revolutionary; Debussy was a classical music composer.

4. "To feast with panthers every night" This quote from "Jack the Lad" references Oscar Wilde. Which work is it from?

Answer: De Profundis

Oscar Wilde's apologia to Lord Afred Douglas was De Profundis. In it, Wilde describes his life; "It was like feasting with panthers. The danger was half the excitement."

5. Which Pet Shop Boy's song's title was derived from an Anthony Trollope novel?

Answer: Can You Forgive Her?

The novel was written in 1864.

6. In the some versions of this song, there is a line "Who do you think you are? Joe Stalin?". What song is this?

Answer: West End Girls

The original version was released in 1984 and Bobby Orlando produced it. The original version contained these lyrics, but when it was remade in 1985, this lyric was deleted.

7. Who are the "Zazou"s in "In the Night"?

Answer: A group of trendy young people in France during World War Two.

While France was occupied by Germany during the second World War, a trendy group of young people emerged in the underground.
They were the Zazous.

8. "Don Juan" is actually an allegory. What is it allegorical to?

Answer: The political situation in the Balkans before World War Two

Possibly the most difficult to decipher reference in the Pet Shop Boys catalogue.
This song was included in their B-sides album "Alternative".
The Pet Shop Boys actually state in the booklet that it is a hard to decipher allegory.

9. "Songs like '...' and 'Love is Strange'" What is the other song being referenced in "I Want to Wake Up"?

Answer: Tainted Love

Covered by Soft Cell in 1981; originally by Gloria Jones.

10. "I heard it in the ..., everything's for sale" Where did they hear that everything's for sale in "Shopping"?

Answer: House of Commons

Contrary to popular belief, this song isn't about shopping for clothes.
It's about privatisation efforts in Britain.

Source: Author depeche_girl

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