The Dead Horse-- Beaten Again! Quiz

Answer: Canada

Carroll Levis was born in Toronto in 1910 and came to the UK in 1935. He worked as a radio compere before going on to organise talent shows around the UK. The shows were broadcast during the 1950s, and a group which tried to get on the show in Liverpool failed to qualify even for the preliminary auditions. They were called The Quarry Men Skiffle Group. I wonder what happened to them?

Answer: Hughie Green

Hughie Green devised the format for 'Opportunity Knocks', which began on BBC Radio in 1949 before moving to Radio Luxembourg during the 1950s. It appeared on the independent television channel, ITV, in 1956 before returning for an extended run from 1964 until 1978.

The show featured the clap-o-meter, to measure audience reaction to the acts, although voting was actually done by post (yes, really). The show brought Paul Daniels, Mary Hopkin and Bonnie Langford to public attention along with many other (fairly) well known entertainers.

The show was revived by the BBC in 1987 where it lasted for three years, introduced by Bob Monkhouse and then Les Dawson.

Answer: Tom Jones

'The Voice' was based on a Dutch format, where the judges initially have their backs turned to the performer. They had to decide whether or not they are interested in the person based purely on the sound of their voice. The judge turned their chair around to signify interest, with the contestant being able to choose their mentor if more than one judge turned around.

The first series was won by Leanne Mitchell, mentored by Sir Tom Jones. A planned tour to showcase the performers was cancelled in June 2012 following poor ticket sales.

Answer: Lee Mead

The show was the second to use the format, which had proved successful in finding Connie Fisher to play the role of Maria in 'The Sound of Music'. All the people named were candidates, with Lee Mead being chosen as the winner by public vote. Keith Jack was the runner up and Lewis Bradley finished third.

The shows were judged by Andrew Lloyd Webber, who was staging the revival of the show, together with Bill Kenwright, Zoe Tyler, John Barrowman and Denise van Outen. Lee married Denise in April 2009, so the show proved successful for him in more than one way.

Answer: Cricket

The show featured various minor celebrities, such as Carol Thatcher and Jodie Marsh, displaying their talents in areas other than those for which they were best known. Olonga won the show by a large margin, receiving 50% of the votes, by proving that he had an excellent tenor voice for singing operatic arias.

He played international cricket for Zimbabwe from 1995 until 2003, becoming the first black Zimbabwean to do so. Olonga had to flee the country having worn a black armband during a match to protest against Zimbabwe's human rights' abuses. Olonga was not alone in the protest, having been supported by Andy Flower, a white Zimbabwean, who became England's coach in 2009.

Answer: New Faces

Apart from those already mentioned in the question, Victoria Wood, Les Dennis, Jim Davidson and the band Showaddywaddy also appeared on the show. The acts were judged by a panel, who included Mickie Most, Noel Edmonds and Tony Hatch, among others, with points awarded under different headings. Patti Boulaye achieved the perfect score when she appeared, with every judge giving her the maximum score for each category.

The show was revived in 1986, with previous winner Marti Caine introducing it, although the only contestant to 'make it' from the two years it ran was Joe Pasquale.

Answer: Cowell

Simon Cowell originally appeared as a judge on 'Pop Idol' in 2001. The show was replaced by 'The X Factor' and Simon has franchised the idea, via his company SYCOtv, to many countries around the world. These include such diverse places as China, Russia and Australia, as well as the USA, where Simon has also been on the judging panel.

The best known, and most successful UK winner, was Leona Lewis, who won the third series in 2006.

Answer: Leslie Crowther

The format of the show was slightly different, as the object was to impersonate a well known singing star rather than showcase their own voice. As well as trying to sound like the star, the contestants were dressed like them, and wore make-up to look as much like their chosen star as possible. Among the most popular choices were Elvis Presley (no surprise there), Cher and Madonna. Several celebrity versions were also made. Leslie Crowther presented the show from 1990 until 1992, but the longest running host was Matthew Kelly who was in charge from 1993 until 2004. Les Dawson hosted 'Blankety Blank' and died in 1993 and Tony Hancock died in 1968. Michael Barrymore was still alive at the beginning of the twenty first century.

Answer: Britain's Got Talent

'Britain's Got Talent' began in June 2007 and is another creation of SYCOtv. Susan Boyle caused an internet sensation with her version of 'I Dreamed a Dream' from 'Les Miserables', which brought her international attention. Despite this, she did not actually win the series, finishing as runner up to the dance group Diversity. Although fame has taken some toll on Susan's health, she continued to record and released the albums 'I Dreamed a Dream' in 2009 and 'The Gift' in 2010.

'Pop Idol' and 'The X Factor' are real talent shows, but 'Rock Rivals' was not - it was a drama about talent shows.

Answer: Fame Academy

The show was produced by the Dutch company Endemol, who also brought up the many series of 'Big Brother'. The concept of 'Fame Academy' was to provide a more in depth musical education, including encouraging the contestants to write their own songs, learn to dance and undertake physical fitness programmes while living in the academy.

The show ran for two series, in 2002 and 2003. Although David Sneddon won, and achieved a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart in 2003 with 'Stop Living the Lie', he decided his talents were better suited to songwriting. Lemar (Obika) has had several UK Top Ten hits, and is the only contestant to remain in the public eye.