Authors from the Emerald Isle Trivia Quiz

Answer: Brendan Behan

Behan was born in Dublin in 1923 and spent time in both Borstal (a young offenders' prison) and gaol for his activities in support of the Irish Liberation Army. While incarcerated, he made use of the time to improve his education and he began writing. His first play, 'The Quare Fellow', was published in 1954 and his autobiography, called 'Borstal Boy', came out in 1958.

Behan was a drinker, and drank more to maintain his reputation as a typical Irishman, and alcohol led to his early death in 1964.

Bram Stoker died in London, Beckett in Paris and W B Yeats died in Menton, France.

Answer: Millington

John Millington Synge was born in Dublin in 1871 and died there, aged only thirty-seven, from Hodgkin's disease. Synge was one of the co-founders of the Abbey Theatre in his home town, where 'The Playboy of the Western World' received its premiere in 1907.

The play caused controversy, and a riot on its opening night, as it was considered to be immoral - the lead character (the 'playboy') having claimed to have killed his father. The play is the best known of Synge's writings, with his early death giving him little time in which to build on his success.

Answer: James Joyce

Nora met Joyce in 1904 at the age of twenty, having already seen two previous boyfriends die from natural causes. Their relationship began quickly, although they did not marry until 1931. Their two children were born in 1905 and 1907, in Europe, where the couple spent most of their lives. Nora is frequently described as Joyce's 'muse' and they stayed together until he died, in Zurich, in 1941. Nora stayed in Zurich after his death until she passed on in 1951.

Answer: Fabian Society

Shaw was a prolific author and his plays include 'Saint Joan', about Joan of Arc, 'Pygmalion' and 'Man and Superman'. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925 for his contributions to literature.

The Fabian Society was formed to promote socialist ideals, with the intention being that changes would come about by persuasion and education rather than by force and revolution.

The Labour Party was not formed until 1900 while the Royal Society was much earlier, being founded in 1660. The Tooting Popular Front is entirely fictional, and comes from the television series 'Citizen Smith', which appeared on British television between 1977 and 1980.

Answer: Divinity

Swift was raised by his paternal uncle, his father having died before Swift's birth. He studied at Trinity College in Dublin, achieving his B.A. degree in 1686, before spending some time in England. Swift returned to Trinity and gained his Doctor of Divinity degree in 1702.

His progress in the English church was blocked by no less a person than Queen Anne, who objected to his writings, so he returned to Ireland, eventually becoming Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. As well as his best known work, 'Gulliver's Travels' (1726), Swift wrote 'A Tale of a Tub' in 1704 - the book being the one which annoyed the Queen, and many other works, including poems, essays and, as you would expect, sermons.

Answer: Man Booker

Yet another Dubliner to feature in this quiz, Doyle is also the most recent of the authors chosen. He was born in 1958, and taught geography and English while writing in his spare time. Doyle left teaching in 1993 when he realised he could support himself by writing. Among his early works are 'The Commitments', 'The Snapper' and 'The Van', published between 1987 and 1991, all of which have been adapted for the cinema screen. 'Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha' was written from the point of view of a child and gained him the Man Booker (often called just Booker) Prize in 1993. Doyle has written many other novels, including some for children, plays and non fiction works.

Answer: Painter

John (known as Jack) Butler Yeats was born in 1871, six years after William. Their father was a painter and Jack began his career as an illustrator before turning to oil painting. He also wrote novels, plays and poetry, although it is William who is remembered for his literary works. Jack won a silver Olympic medal for his painting, awarded at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. Among William's works are 'When You Are Old' and 'The Cloths of Heaven', which includes the line 'tread softly because you tread on my dreams'.

He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923.

Answer: Member of Parliament

Although he was born in Ireland, Sheridan was brought up in England and even attended Harrow School. Among his best known works are 'The Rivals', published in 1775, and 'School for Scandal' from 1776. Sheridan bought the Theatre Royal, in partnership with his father-in-law, in 1775.

Sheridan abandoned writing for a career in politics in 1776, and became the MP for Stafford in 1780. He was a radical, supporting both the American and French revolutions. Congress offered him a reward of £20,000 in recognition of his help, but Sheridan felt unable to accept it for risk of being considered a traitor to England. He certainly suffered for his principles, as he died destitute in 1816. Sheridan is buried in Westminster Abbey's Poets' Corner.

Answer: Reading

Wilde was convicted in 1895, following a trial at London's Bow Street. He was initially sent to Pentonville Prison, then Wandsworth (both in London), before being moved to Reading to serve the major part of his sentence of two years. On his release, he moved to France, a broken man, and died there in 1900.

His poem 'The Ballad of Reading Gaol' was written after his release from prison and described the hanging of a man which had taken place during Wilde's time in gaol. The poem includes the line 'Yet each man kills the thing he loves', and the epitaph on Wilde's tomb, in Pere Lachaise Cemetery, Paris, also consists of a quotation from this poem.

Answer: Oliver Goldsmith

The question referred to two of Goldsmith's works. 'The Deserted Village' is a poem dating from 1770, while 'The Vicar of Wakefield' is a novel originally published in 1766. His other works include the plays 'She Stoops to Conquer', performed originally in 1773 and 'The Good-Natur'd Man' from 1768. Goldsmith's date and place of birth are not known for certain, but he is usually said to have been born in 1728 in one of the Irish parishes where his father was the curate. Goldsmith moved to London in 1756 where he lived a rather disorganised life, with his gambling habit meaning he was often in debt, before dying at the early age of forty-five.