Famous Englanders Trivia Quiz

Answer: Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 till 1990. She served three consecutive terms as leader of the Conservative Party. Margaret Hilda Thatcher is the first woman to ever hold the post of prime minister in Britain and she served in that post the longest of any other politician during the 20th century.

She died at age 87 in April of 2013. Her affectionate nickname was the "Iron Lady," a moniker conferred upon her by the Russian media.

Answer: Freddie Mercury

Freddie Mercury was born in the (the) British protectorate of Zanzibar in modern-day Tanzania. His family fled civil war and he arrived in England as a 17-year old. Freddie graduated with a degree in Art and Design from Ealing Art College. His real love was music and in 1970 he joined a band with Brian May and Roger Taylor.

By then he had changed his name from Farrokh Bulsara to Freddie Mercury and the band "Queen" was formed. Freddie Mercury died in 1991 due to complications with pneumonia after contracting the AIDS virus.

Answer: Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton was born on Christmas Day 1642 and is remembered as one of the most influential scientists of the 17th century. He lived 84 years and introduced ground-breaking work in physics, calculus, and natural philosophy. Newton was a fellow of Trinity College and taught at Cambridge University.

He also invented one of the first practical reflecting telescopes which aided him in his work with prisms and optics. In recognition of his contributions to science he was afforded the honor of a burial at Westminster Abbey.

Answer: Florence Nightingale

Florence Nightingale was born in Florence Italy to a wealthy English family on May 12th, 1820. At one year of age, she moved back to England with her family and through her early years became interested in the field of nursing. Against her family's wishes she continued to foster an interest in medicine leading her to travel widely across Europe. Nightingale became known as the "Lady with the Lamp" on account of her exploits as leader of a nursing corps treating English soldiers during the Crimean War.

In the years that followed, she established the first British Nursing College for Women at St. Thomas' Hospital in London. She died in 1910 at the age of 90 years at her home in Park Lane, London.

Answer: Barbara Windsor

Barbara Ann Deeks is a successful English actress that was born in London in 1937. Her stage name is Barbara Windsor. The younger generation in England know her best for a starring role on the successful soap opera "Eastenders" where she played the role of Peggy Mitchell from 1994 till 2010 and again from 2013 to 2015.

The older generation might remember Barbara from the successful "Carry-On" franchise which put out nine films between 1964 and 1974. Windsor also made an appearance in the film "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" in 1968.

In the year 2000 she was awarded an MBE for her services to entertainment.

Answer: Steve Redgrave

One of the greatest Olympic athletes to ever participate in the Games is Sir Steven Redgrave. He first represented Great Britain at the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles where he competed in the coxed fours with Martin Cross, Adrian Ellison, Andy Holmes, and Richard Budgett.

In Seoul in 1988 he won two medals, a Bronze in the coxed pairs with Andy Holmes and Patrick Sweeney and the Gold medal in the coxless pairs with Andy Holmes. In 1992, in Barcelona, Redgrave again struck Gold in the coxless pairs with Matthew Pinsent. Four years later in Atlanta the duo retained their Olympic title in the same event.

After the Atlanta games Redgrave briefly retired. However, he was coaxed out of retirement for one last attempt at Olympic glory in 2004. Amazingly, he teamed up with Matthew Pinsent, Tim Foster, and James Cracknell to win the Gold medal in the coxless fours. Redgrave has also won 9 World Championship medals in rowing and earned a BBC Sports Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011.

Answer: William Booth

William Booth was born in Nottingham on April 10th, 1829. In his early years he was drawn to the Methodist church where he became a preacher. During this time he established the "Christian Revival Society" in 1865 which became the "Christian Mission" and then the "Salvation Army" in 1878. He became its first "General" with a mission to distribute humanitarian aid and the Gospel across the globe. Today the Salvation Army claims a worldwide membership of over 1.5 million people in over 120 different countries.

Answer: Winston Churchill

Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill was a remarkable man. The English people remember him as the stalwart leader who guided them through the trauma of World War II. He served as the Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and again during the post-war reconstruction from 1951 to 1955. During his lifetime, he also served in the British army, earned a Nobel Prize in literature and was made an honorary citizen of the United States of America.

He died on January 24th, 1965 and was afforded a full state funeral attended by leaders from over 100 different countries including the Queen of England.

Answer: Francis Drake

Sir Francis Drake, was the vice-admiral of the English fleet during the Spanish Armada in 1588. He was a fearsome naval officer and the Spanish nicknamed him "El Draque" meaning "the dragon." Prior to the Spanish Armada victory he circumnavigated the globe between 1577 and 1580 for which he received a knighthood in 1581 from Queen Elizabeth I. Drake was a favorite of the English court but was known to be a pirate by many.

He met an untimely death in 1596 when he contracted dysentery on a naval expedition to San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Answer: William Shakespeare

The Bard of Avon is considered the greatest playwright ever to come out of the British Isles. He lived from 1564 until 1616 and was the author of 38 plays and over 150 sonnets. However, over the course of history, scholars and researchers have argued the veracity of his authorship in some of the plays credited to him.

Some of his most famous plays such as "Romeo & Juliet", "Hamlet", and "Macbeth" are considered tragedies. I think it is a tragedy he didn't write more comedies.