FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!

Python Arcana and Minutia Trivia Quiz

We know you all know the parrot sketch by heart. We know you know the lyrics to the "Lumberjack Song". Let's get into some of the lesser-known bits of Pythonic genius.

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

Author
coolupway

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
89,294

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
2068

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. What problem did British naval officer B. J. Smethwick indicate that the Royal Navy "now have... relatively under control."? Hint

The mouse problem

Silliness

Cannibalism

Dennis Moore

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. Which facts does Cleese's barrister elicit from Cardinal Richelieu in qualifying him as a character witness? Hint

He "built up the centralized monarchy in France".

He "persecuted the Huguenots".

He "perpetuated the religious schism in Europe".

All of these

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. According to Pythonic scripture, which is the worst tennis-playing nation in the world? Hint

France

Scotland

Czechoslovakia

Paraguay

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. "What great opponent of Cartesian dualism resists the reduction of psychological phenomena to physical states?" Hint

Henri Bergson

Margaret Thatcher

Reginald Maudling

Reginald Bonsanquet

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. Who comes to visit during the "Attila the Hun Show"? Hint

"Gaiseric the Vandal"

"A whole horde of them marauding Visigoths"

"Alexander the Great"

"The man from the off-licence"

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. Vince Snetterton-Lewis once asked Dinsdale Piranha not to nail his head to the floor because his "parents were coming round for tea."
How, if at all, did Dinsdale oblige him? Hint

"He blew off a thermonuclear device in my drawing-room."

"He said I had to see Doug."

"He just nailed my head to the wainscotting."

"He just screwed my pelvis to a cake stand."

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. To which monarch does Biggles dictate a a letter to the effect that the "eels... were really scrummy"? Hint

King Haakon

Prince Bernhard

Queen Beatrix

King Leopold

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. What complaint does Eric Idle's whiny tourist make about German businessmen? Hint

They "pretend... to be acrobats and form...pyramids and barge into the queues..."

"They have diarrhea and flabby white legs."

"They keep singing 'Torremolinos, Torremolinos..."

"They drone on and on about how Mr. Smith should be running this country."

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. Subject of discussion in the Welsh coalmine (in Llandarog Carmarthen) while HM the Queen is "STILL WATCHING 'THE VIRGINIAN.'" Hint

Political, economic and social causes of the 30 years' war

Diverse weaponry of the Spanish Inquisition

Whether Sir Walter Scott was a "loony"

Date of ratification of the treaty of Utrecht

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. What is the Pythonic signficance (if any) of "colour TV sets and...Tony Jacklin golf clubs?" Hint

Mentioned in rule six of the "Philosophy Department of the U. of Woolamaloo."

Betoken the presence of an "Upper-Class Twit."

Freemasons own them.

200 of each stored at Luigi Vercotti's "high-class escort agency."

(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

Select a User ID:

Choose a Password:

Your Email:

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. What problem did British naval officer B. J. Smethwick indicate that the Royal Navy "now have... relatively under control."?

Answer: Cannibalism

"... it is the RAF who now suffer the largest casualties in this area."

2. Which facts does Cleese's barrister elicit from Cardinal Richelieu in qualifying him as a character witness?

Answer: All of these

Subtle and incisive cross-examination by Inspector Dim of the Yard establishes that Richelieu died in December 1642, and that the witness is in fact a "professional Cardinal Richelieu impersonator".

3. According to Pythonic scripture, which is the worst tennis-playing nation in the world?

Answer: Scotland

"And so it's Podgorny versus Blancmange in this first ever Intergalactic Wimbledon."

4. "What great opponent of Cartesian dualism resists the reduction of psychological phenomena to physical states?"

Answer: Henri Bergson

Jones' pepperpot answers this question easily, but then is at a loss to tell Cleese's MC what it is that "swims in the sea and gets caught in nets."

5. Who comes to visit during the "Attila the Hun Show"?

Answer: "A whole horde of them marauding Visigoths"

"In the fifth century, as the once-mighty Roman Empire crumbled, the soft underbelly of Western Europe lay invitingly exposed..." One of the rare Python historical intro's that did NOT lead into the inevitable sketch about train schedules, chartered accountancy, cheese or French philosophers.

6. Vince Snetterton-Lewis once asked Dinsdale Piranha not to nail his head to the floor because his "parents were coming round for tea." How, if at all, did Dinsdale oblige him?

Answer: "He just screwed my pelvis to a cake stand."

Stig O'Tracy had HIS head nailed to the floor because he had "transgressed the unwritten law."

7. To which monarch does Biggles dictate a a letter to the effect that the "eels... were really scrummy"?

Answer: King Haakon

"...Sorry to mench, but if you've finished with the lawn-edger could you pop it in the post."

8. What complaint does Eric Idle's whiny tourist make about German businessmen?

Answer: They "pretend... to be acrobats and form...pyramids and barge into the queues..."

"Bolour supplement" indeed!

9. Subject of discussion in the Welsh coalmine (in Llandarog Carmarthen) while HM the Queen is "STILL WATCHING 'THE VIRGINIAN.'"

Answer: Date of ratification of the treaty of Utrecht

"Oh, most magnificent and merciful majesty... whose nose we are not worthy to pick, and whose very faeces are an untrammelled delight... we beseech thee, tell thy humble servants the name of the section between the triglyphs in the frieze section of a classical Doric entablature."

10. What is the Pythonic signficance (if any) of "colour TV sets and...Tony Jacklin golf clubs?"

Answer: Freemasons own them.

"You excrement! You lousy hypocritical whining toadies... You wouldn't let me join, would you, you blackballing bastards!"

P.S. "There is no rule six"

Source: Author coolupway

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor ltc717 before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.