Time to tackle this week's newsquiz

The top scorer in last week's newsquiz was Gavin Devine with an impressive 17, narrowly ahead of Janet Boyle on 16. The top team score was 16 by Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe (with help from daughter Meg on her 16th birthday). Here is this week's quiz. As usual there are 25 questions about the week's events. Give it a go and let me know how you get one.

The back pages relish Germany's departure from the World Cup
(Questions 7 and 8)

1. What is the name of the newspaper in Maryland whose offices were attacked by a gunman, killing five people? 

2. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson missed the MPs' vote on a third runway at Heathrow Airport because he was visiting which country?

3. A Commons Defence Committee report said that if the UK is to maintain influence with Washington and its Nato allies, the defence budget should rise from £40billion to what figure? 

4. Which two UK organisations joined forces to release a joint statement demanding that 'pace and urgency' be injected into the Brexit talks?

5. Treasury minister Liz Truss was admonished by Downing Street when she said: 'There's enough hot air and smoke at the ___ department already.’ Which Government department was she referring to?

6. What reason did Scottish Labour MP Danielle Rowley give for being late to a House of Commons women and equalities debate?

7. England qualified for the last 16 in the World Cup. Who will they play in their next game on Tuesday?

8. There will be no German football team in the second stage of the World Cup for the first time since which year?

9. The general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union criticised the Grenfell inquiry saying: 'The line of questioning toward Mike Dowden (the fireman who led the initial response) has been, at times, ____’. What is the missing word?

10. On Thursday all four UK countries saw temperatures reach what figure for the first time in five years?

11. Why did Alison Ettel - who became known online as Permit Patty - threaten to report eight-year-old Jordan Austin to San Francisco police?

12. Why were Rebecca Steinfield and Charles Keidan in the headlines?

13. US President Donald Trump said he was ‘surprised’ that which company was 'the first to wave the White Flag’ after it announced plans to shift some production out of the US in response to new tariffs?

14. Andrew RT Davies announced he was quitting as leader of what?

15. What number seed will seven-times champion Serena Williams be at Wimbledon next week?
16. The Duke of Cambridge visited the tomb of Princess Alice of Battenberg in east Jerusalem. How are they related?

17. Which company warned that profits in the first half of the year will be 'close to zero’, blaming heavy investment?

18. He was father to 11 children, who were never allowed to call him dad, and admitted that he whipped them 'with a switch and a belt’. Who was he?

19. According to a statement read by her husband who was 'a hard-working, dedicated doctor, doing the best for her patients in a very inadequately resourced part of the health service’?

20. What did MP Jonny Reynolds describe as ‘apocalyptic' and ‘looking like Mordor from Lord of the Rings’?

21. Manchester couple Charlie and Gayle Anderson were murdered in which country?

22. Which broadcaster and her eight-year-old daughter were rescued when the family’s boat went up in flames off Corfu?

23. Customers of which company have been warned they could be at risk of fraud or identity theft after a data breach affected tens of thousands of people?

24. Students at the University of Bristol raised £1,500 in order to do what?

25. Ed Sheeran is being sued for $100m (£76.4m) for allegedly copying parts of which Marvin Gaye song for his number one hit Thinking Out Loud?

Answers here

Time to tackle this week's newsquiz

Last week's newsquiz was clearly a tough one. For two days the top scorers, including Toby Brown, Steven Silk, the Penmans and Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe were all stuck on a modest 14. Finally Janet Boyle crashed through the 14 barrier with a powerful 15. I think this week's is a bit easier. As usual there are 25 questions about the week's events. Give it a go and let me know how you get on. 

 An American perspective on the US border policy (Questions 4, 5 and 6)

1. The Government's Brexit bill passed through Parliament after assurances were accepted by rebels that MPs would have a meaningful say. What was the Government majority?

2. EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told MPs and senators from which country that: 'As the clock to Brexit ticks down, we must prepare for every eventuality, including no deal’?

3. Chief operating officer Tom Williams confirmed his company, which employs 14,000 people at 25 sites in Britain, is considering cutting thousands of jobs over concerns about Brexit?  What is the company?

4. In the executive order that US president Donald Trump signed ending the controversial policy of family separation at the Mexican border what word in the title was initially misspelt?

5. What is the colloquial name given to the largest US Customs and Border Protection ‘holding centre’ in McAllen, Texas, where immigrant children, separated from their parents, are being held in cages? 

6. First Lady Melania Trump set off on her visit to immigrant children being held at the border in Texas wearing a khaki coat from Zara with what message on the back?

7. An independent panel reported that 456 patients had their lives shortened after they were prescribed powerful opioids 'without medical justification' at which hospital?

8. Who said this week: 'The suggestion that I am some sort of pervert is a complete travesty of the truth’?

9. Lord Sugar apologised for causing offence after he tweeted a picture of which country’s football team, saying he recognised some of them from the beach in Marbella?

10. Which member of the England World Cup party dislocated a shoulder while out running?
11. Benazir Bhutto was the first in 1990 and this week Jacinda Ardern became the second person to do what?

12. Leslie Gratham, who played Dirty Den in EastEnders, died aged 71. Before joining the soap opera he served ten years in prison for what offence?
13. Naz Shah said: 'I was in my pyjamas. It felt personally very undignified and very invasive. It was embarrassing.’ Where was she?

14. Three young graffiti artists died after being struck by a train near which London station?

15. The BBC announced that David Dimbleby is to step down as presenter of Question Time after almost 25 years. How old is he?
16. With 18.3 million viewers what, according to the BBC, overtook the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to become the most watched broadcast in the UK this year?
17. A shortage of what led to fears for beer, fizzy drink and chicken supplies?

18. A world renowned school of art was extensively damaged by fire in which city?
19. Dedrick Williams, 22, appeared before a Broward County judge via video charged with whose murder?

20. What happened to fashion shop Nataliya Couture outside Royal Ascot?

21. A baby born on a Paris train was given free rail travel on the network until what age?

22. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that what will become fully legal in Canada on October 17?

23. Stanislaw Skupian was jailed for 16 weeks at Uxbridge Magistrates' Court after pleading guilty to fraud by false representation. What did he do?

24. Former Love Island contestant Sophie Gradon, who died age 32, was crowned Miss Great Britain in 2009. Which other beauty title did she hold?

25. Koko, a female western lowland gorilla who died at the Gorilla Foundation in California, gained fame for apparently mastering what?

Answers here

Calling all wannabe Australian journalist

Daily Mail Australia based in Sydney continues to grow. The busy newsroom, manned 24/7, is expanding further under the guidance of experienced editor Barclay Crawford. We are now looking for trainees for the next graduate scheme which starts in January. Below are the details. If you are Australian, interested and have what it takes, get your application in quickly.

Time to tackle this week's newsquiz

The top solo score in last week's newsquiz was 16 by Janet Boyle. The top team score was 19 by the Penmans - with Daisy back from university guaranteeing a top score. Here is this week's quiz. Give it a go and let me know how you get on. 

Grenfell tributes in The Sun and the Evening Standard (Questions 6 and 7)

1. In a vote on a Lords amendment that could have meant staying in the European Economic Area, 15 MPs defied the Labour whip to abstain and voted against. How many defied party instructions and voted for?

2. One frontbencher and five parliamentary aides resigned from the shadow cabinet ahead of the EAA vote. Name any two. Half point for each.

3. Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg warned: 'If you sup with the devil you should use a long spoon and he is using an egg spoon.’ Who was he referring to?

4. How many SNP MPs walked out of Parliament after accusing the Government of a ‘power grab’?

5. At Prime Minister's Questions Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn asked Theresa May if she had asked Donald Trump to do what?

6. How long was the silence at the Grenfell memorial service at St Helen’s Church in Kensington?
7. Grenfell Tower was floodlit in green, the heart badges are green, people at the anniversary memorial service wore green and even the Queen sported a green outfit on Thursday. Why is green the colour of Grenfell?

8. The summit between US president Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un took place on which island off the south coast of Singapore?

9. After his meeting with Kim Jong-un, Donald Trump tweeted: 'Thank you to Chairman Kim, our day together was _____!’ What is the missing word?
10. After the G7 Summit who did Donald Trump describe as meek, mild, very dishonest and weak?

11. How many goals did hosts Russia score in the opening game of the World Cup?

12. Which three countries will host the 2026 World Cup?

13. Who will not be allowed to show their support for England by flying flags and putting stickers on their vehicles during the World Cup? 

14. Which firm announced it is to cut 4,600 jobs over the next two years, with chief executive Warren East saying it needed fewer layers of management?

15. Judge Peter Ross, jailing six men who groomed and sexually abused teenage girls, said sexual abuse had become 'the norm' for them. Which city did all the men live in?

16. What is the name of the ship, run by a French charity, which rescued 629 migrants in the Mediterranean but was turned away by Italy and headed to Spain?

17. Former tennis champion Boris Becker is claiming diplomatic immunity against an attempt to sue him, claiming his appointment as sport and culture attache for which African country gives him protection?

18. Which retailer, with 335 UK stores, appointed administrators, putting 5,100 jobs at risk, after talks with potential buyer R Capital collapsed?

19. Who said in an interview with John Humphrys on Radio 4: 'To be gay in a quite aggressively heterosexual business, a kind of boys club, is certainly not ideal’?

20. The Queen and newly-married Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, took part in their first royal engagement together, opening the Storyhouse Theatre in which city?

21. Which company announced plans to replace champagne and prosecco with non-EU sparkling wines as a part of 'a transition away from products made in the EU'?
22. A pitch invasion and a rendition of Flower of Scotland marked what historic event at the Grange in Edinburgh?

23. Which former MP won best actress at the Tony Awards for her role in Three Tall Women?

24. Niall Aslam, a 23-year-old student, quit what for 'health reasons’?

25. What animal became an online sensation after it spent almost 20 hours scaling a 25-storey office tower in Minnesota?

Answers here

Test your news knowledge with this week's quiz

Well done to Janet Boyle who recorded the top score of 20 in last week's newsquiz, narrowly ahead of Liz Gerard on 19. Here is this week's quiz. As usual there are 25 questions about the week's events. Give it a go and let me know how you get on.

Thursday's front pages

1. What did Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson describe as ‘basically the heart of Remain’?

2. Brexit Secretary David Davis accused the European Commission of 'shooting itself in the foot just to prove that the gun works’ by excluding the UK from what?

3. The Home Secretary Sajid Javid announced a revised counter-terrorism strategy which 'incorporates the lessons learnt from the attacks in 2017'. What single word did he say the strategy would be known as?

4. At Prime Minister Questions Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: 'When it comes to Brexit this government has delivered more delays and more cancellations than ____ ____’. What are the two missing words?

5. Prime Minister Theresa May joined other leaders at the G7 summit in which city?

6. Announcing the go-ahead for a third runway at Heathrow, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said for how long each night will flights be banned to protect people living in the flight path?

7. Department store chain House of Fraser announced it is to close how many of its 59 shops, affecting 6,000 jobs, as part of a rescue deal?

8. Around 120 firefighters fought a blaze at which five-star hotel in Kensington, London?

9. Katherine Noel, born on Christmas Eve in Kansas City, Missouri, died this week. How was she better known?
10. Why was 100-year-old widow Sophia Kaczan in the headlines?

11. The chief executive of which company apologised for saying that a woman could not do his job, adding his remarks had been intended as a joke and taken out of context? 

12. Nightclub owner Peter Stringfellow, who died aged 77, was born in which city?

13. Paul Dacre, who is standing down as editor of the Daily Mail, is the UK’s longest-serving national newspaper editor. How many years has he been in charge of the paper? 

14. A man allegedly hired to kill former Liberal leader Jeremy Thorpe’s ex-lover Norman Scott has been found - after it was previously reported he had died. What is his name?

15. Actor Benedict ­Cumberbatch jumped from a taxi in London to stop muggers beating up a cyclist working for which company?

16. Emirates president Sir Tim Clark said his company's newest Boeing 777 was a step on the way to the ultimate aim to have all planes without what?

17. Jerry Maren, who died in California aged 98, was the last surviving actor to have played a native of which fictional land where only shades of blue were worn?

18. What did Rolling Stones Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood reveal they ate before concerts on the band's UK tour? 

19. Mary Wilson, the widow of former Labour prime minister Harold Wilson, died after a stroke. How old was she?

20. What is the name of the volcano that erupted on Guatemala killing more than 100 people?

21. Who struck a groundbreaking deal to livestream exclusive coverage of 20 Premier League football matches a season online?

22. Lee Ridley, 37, from Consett in County Durham, became famous under what stage name?

23. Who said: 'They say time is the healer. I have lost my watch, how is time going to heal? I have no idea what time it is’?

24. Victoria and David Beckham are auctioning off the outfits they wore to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding to raise money for which families?

25. More than double the number of people applied to take part in this year's Love Island than applied to Oxford and Cambridge universities. To the nearest thousand, how many tried to take part in Love Island?

Answers here

Here's this week's newsquiz

There were some good scores in last week’s newsquiz. You are either all paying more attention or it is getting easier. The top scores were 20.5 by Ben Jackson and Toby Brown (with a PB). Elly Rewcastle scored 19 and Janet Boyle 18.5. The top team were Three Legs' drinkers Peter and Stacey with 19, followed by Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe with 17.5. A special mention goes to Ian McCulloch who records a quiz score each week, usually in single figures, who scored a PB of 13. Well done. Here is this week’s quiz … as usual there are 25 questions about the week. Give it a go and let me know how you get on. 

Today's front pages

1. To the nearest decimal point what percentage of people voted for the repeal of the 8th amendment in Ireland?

2. Digital Minister Margot James said that if people had to use a secondary site to buy concert tickets, 'don't choose ____ they are the worst’. What is the missing word?

3. Who announced she was standing down, saying: 'I think making space for other people at this point is a straightforward thing to do and a good thing to do’?

4. Tommy Robinson, the founder of the far-right English Defence League, was jailed for 13 months after admitting which offence?

5. What was the name of the festival in Portsmouth that was cancelled after two youngsters died?
6. WH Smith was voted the worst retailer on the UK High Street in a survey of more than 10,000 consumers by Which? Name one of the three companies that came top.

7. Why did Arkady Babchenko apologise to his wife Olga?

8. England footballer Raheem Sterling defended his gun tattoo by saying:  'I made a promise to myself I would never touch a gun in my lifetime. I shoot with my ____ ____ so it has a deeper meaning.’ What are the two missing words?
9. Which chain is to be sold to the German company behind Krispy Kreme doughnuts for £1.5bn?

10. US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross announced that EU companies would face tariffs of a 25per cent and 10 percent from midnight last night on which products? Half a point for each.

11. Malian migrant Mamoudou Gassama was made a French citizen after being filmed hauling himself up four floors to save a child dangling from the balcony in Paris. How old was the child?

12. Sixteen people were injured when a bus ploughed into dozens of cars stuck in traffic in which town centre?

13. Benjamin Herman shot dead two female police officers, killed a car passenger and took a cleaner hostage in which city? 

14. Roseanne Barr’s TV show was cancelled after she made a ‘bad taste’ joke about former White House aide Valerie Jarrett, saying she looked like the lovechild of who? Half a point for each.

15. Who wore a black catsuit and said: 'I feel like a warrior in it, like a warrior princess or Queen from Wakanda maybe’?   

16. Alan Bean died aged 86 … why was he famous?

17. Who sent tweets saying: 'Haven’t really slept until now... the scenes are still running through my head again and again’ and 'I'd just like to turn back the time but that's not possible’?

18. Who marked a landmark birthday with a photo posing nude with a diamond encrusted guitar?

19. Italy’s caretaker Prime Minister Carlo Cottarelli is known by what nickname because of his reputation for cutting public spending?

20. What did veteran ‘feminist’ Germaine Greer say ‘would do’ as a punishment for rape?

21. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has pleaded with planners to prevent his neighbour Robbie Williams from building what at his Kensington home?

22. Why did police advise residents in the German town of Lünebach to stay inside their homes?

23. Tony the Tiger and the Honey Monster are facing extinction from where?
24. What did comedian Marty Putz do to upset judges Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon?
25. Britain’s biggest family, the Radfords, is set to become larger after mother Susan posted a video message confirming that she is expecting a girl. When the baby is born, how many children will she have?

Answers here