The newsquiz - 25 questions about the week

The top solo scorers in last week’s newsquiz were Hannah Tomes and Janet Boyle who both scored 18. Toby Brown on 16.5 came next. The top team was the Roberts Family with 22. Phil and Maura Parsons, Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe and Peter and Stacey all clocked up a score of 17. Here is this week’s newsquiz. As always there are 25 questions about the week’s events. Give it a go and let me know how you get on.  

A selection of today's front pages

1. Labour suspended former leader Jeremy Corbyn after a damning report on anti-Semitism from the EHRC. What does EHRC stand for?

2. Labour said Jeremy Corbyn was suspended because of his reaction to the EHRC report, saying 'the scale of the problem was also dramatically ___ for political reasons'. What is the missing word?

3. As of today (Friday), which one of these cities is not in the Government’s Tier-3 Covid alert level: Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leicester, Nottingham?

4. Which two European countries announced lockdowns for November, closing bars, gyms, cinemas and theatres? Half a point for each.

5. Boots announced plans for coronavirus swab tests which will cost £120 and which the company claimed would deliver results in how many minutes?

6. Which chain announced it will cut another 1,300 jobs, two months after it revealed plans to axe 1,100 roles and close 73 of its restaurants, because of coronavirus restrictions?

7. Friends claimed that the Kurdish-Iranian family, who drowned in the English Channel, paid smugglers how much to get them to the UK? Answer can be given in pounds or euros.

8. President Emmanuel Macron said France would not give in to terror after a knifeman killed two women and a man in which city?

9. What was the name of the tanker which was boarded by the Special Boat Service after a suspected hijacking involving stowaways off the Isle of Wight?

10. Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage appeared at an election campaign rally in Arizona and told the crowd that President Donald Trump 'is the single most resilient and ___ person I have ever met in my life.' What is the missing word?

11. What was the name of the 27-year-old who was shot dead by police in Philadelphia, causing hundreds to take to the streets in protest?

12. Why was Chris Noden refused entry to Tesco in Newport, South Wales?

13. Two British teenagers were killed and another injured in a parasailing accident on which island?

14. BBC presenter Victoria Derbyshire apologised for what, saying 'it was hypothetical - however I was totally wrong to say it and I'm sorry'?

15. Police arrested a 38-year-old man after the bodies of a mother and son were found in separate homes in which English city?
16. Frank Bough, who died aged 87, presented which sports programme for 15 years from 1967?

17. Police started an investigation into a crash in north London between a Deliveroo cyclist and which politician?

18. At the Portuguese Grand Prix on Sunday, Lewis Hamilton broke Michael Schumacher's 14-year record of how many Formula One race victories?
19. Data collected by a modified Boeing 747 carrying a telescope helped NASA scientists to confirm the existence of what?

20. Who announced that she had been diagnosed with cancer and had surgery to remove her bladder, uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries, part of her colon, urethra and part of her vagina?

21. Who responded to the death of comedian Bobby Ball, at the age of 76, with a statement saying: 'Rock on, my good friend, I can’t believe this, I’m devastated'?

22. Joan Hocquard, Britain’s oldest person, died in a care home in Dorset. How old was she?

23. Broadcaster Piers Morgan called her a 'tone-deaf imbecile', musician Peter Frampton said she was 'so insensitive' and actor Tom Payne called her tweets 'unbelievably awful'. Who were they talking about?

24. John Bream, 34, was taken to hospital after breaking what world record?

25. Kazakhstan's tourism board, in its new advertising campaign, adopted which two-word catchphrase used by the film character Borat?

Answers here

Time to tackle the newsquiz

The top solo score in last week’s newsquiz was Alex Ross with 19, just ahead of Liz Gerard on 18. The top teams were Simon, Sue and Will Cole and Phil and Maura Parsons who both scored 20. Here is this week’s newsquiz. As usual there are 25 questions about the week’s events. Give it a go and let me know how you get on. 

A selection of today's front pages

1. Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, referring to his talks with the Government over Tier 3 restrictions, asked: 'Are they playing ___ with places and people’s lives through a pandemic? Is that what this is about?' What is the missing word?
2. The Welsh government announced that a 'sharp and deep firebreak' – under which schools, shops, pubs and hotels would close and citizens would be told to stay at home – would last for how long?
3. Which two of these eight Northern towns will not be in the Government’s third tier this weekend - Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Warrington, Rotherham, Wakefield, Doncaster and Barnsley? Half a point for each.
4. Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner apologised for using what word in the House of Commons during a debate on the Government’s handling of the pandemic?
5. Four students were fined £10,000 each and suspended from which university after telling police, who broke up their house party, they were 'spoiling their fun'?
6. Which European country this week became the sixth in the world to pass one million recorded cases of Covid-19?
7. Who reacted to Cabinet Minister Michael Gove's argument in the Commons, that the UK could operate better on border security from outside the EU, by appearing to mouth the words 'utter rubbish' to colleagues?
8. Tory MP Caroline Ansell resigned as a parliamentary private secretary after voting against the Government on what?
9. Who was Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon referring to when she said in her daily Press conference that 'he is a key worker and he has got lots of magic powers that make him safe'?
10. Great-grandmother Maureen Eames, 83, went viral after an interview saying she didn't give what about Tier 3 restrictions to beat Coronavirus?
11. What was the name of the French teacher who was beheaded close to his school in Paris?
12. Who posted a picture on Instagram of himself looking into the sunset with the caption: 'Thank you to everybody who has supported me through this ordeal. I will be spending some time putting my family back together again.'
13. What is the name of the asteroid where a Nasa spacecraft landed to collect cosmic rubble for analysis?
14. Who said: 'Homosexual people have a right to be in a family. They are children of God and have a right to a family. Nobody should be thrown out or made miserable over it'?
15. Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani dismissed as a 'fabrication' a scene from a film which appears to show him on a bed with a hand inside his trousers. What is the full name of the film?
16. Widow Claire Mercer, after a court case at Sheffield Crown Court, said what was to blame for her husband’s death?
17. Who told a drive-in rally in Philadelphia that: 'Donald Trump isn’t suddenly going to protect all of us. He can’t even take the basic steps to protect himself'?
18. According to research, published in the journal Nature Food, bottle-fed babies are swallowing millions of what a day?
19. Royal Mail announced what new service from Wednesday which it described as 'one of the biggest changes to the daily delivery since the launch of the postbox in 1852'?
20. The Champions League started this week. Which was the only British team to not win their opening fixture?
21. Residents in a Canadian town voted in favour of changing its name to Val-des-Sources. What was the town called before?
22. Why did Sky History axe its new show, The Chop: Britain's Top Woodworker, in which carpenters tested their skills?
23. Major Mick Stanley, 80, set off on a 100-mile charity trip on the Chichester Canal rowing a boat made from corrugated iron, hosepipes and curtain hooks. What is his boat called?
24. What did Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his siblings give their father, Stanley, on his 80th birthday?
25. Which UK singer will be guest hosting the NBC comedy show Saturday Night Live this weekend?

Answers here

The newsroom after Covid ...

How will newspapers shape-up after the pandemic? In the last seven months we have seen redundancies, lost sales, declining revenues, closed titles and journalists working from home. Some publishers believe what has happened is ‘brutal’ and full recovery may not be possible but others think the crisis presents the opportunity to introduce radical change. So what will the industry look like in two years time? I took out my crystal ball and asked leading industry figures to do the same. The predictions include a radically different sources of revenue, change of ownership, the end of the newsroom, fewer dailies and more weeklies, less print, fewer people and more hyperlocals. Experienced editorial executives Neil Benson, Alastair Machray, James Mitchinson and Doug Wills also offer their thoughts on a post-Covid strategy. It’s all in my article for the latest edition of InPublishing magazine. Give it a read here. 

MailOnline looking for trainee journalists

The four-week course with the Daily Mail trainees finished on Friday. They are now off on their placements ... and the bylines are already rolling in. I will follow their careers and enjoy their success stories. My attention now turns to recruiting for the MailOnline scheme which will start in April. The trainees will have four weeks training at the Mail's offices in Derry Street, followed by three months' placement in the regions before returning to the MailOnline newsroom. We are looking for young journalists for both news and sport who want to work for one of the world’s biggest English-language newspaper website.

The MailOnline class of 2018

This is a hugely rewarding job. If you are looking for nine-to-five, though, it's not for you. Trainees need to be prepared to work for a round-the-clock operation with nightshifts and regular weekends. But if you fancy covering national and international news and sport at a fast pace, we look forward to hearing from you. The details on how to apply are here.

Sports trainee Alex lifts the quiz champagne

Socially distanced sub-editors. From the left: Aimee Miller, Laren Tayyip, Katie Jenkins, Alex Ross, Alex Jennings with the champagne, Jason Murugesu, Rhys Noye-Allen, Harry Jones and Lucy Lewin.

The trainee sub-editors enjoyed an intense final week’s training at the Mail’s London offices. They had sessions with assistant chief sub Richard Hall and deputy night editor Chris Dean. Senior sub, and former trainee, Tom Belcher gave them stories to sub and lay out and a panel of last year's grads - Anna Tatham, Jack Schofield, Sian Bahia and Becca McCauley, did a Q&A panel. The sports subs spent two days on the sports desk putting together a spread and the others edited and laid out a breaking story in real time. They all put together supplement visuals. Among the pages they created (in their own time) was this copy of Time magazine. A nice touch ... thank you.

The reporters left the course last Friday and went off on their placements - and gathered lots of bylines in their first week. Trainee sub Laren Tayyip also got published while on the course with a story about a couple whose first dates were on FaceTime during lockdown and are now travelling the world together. Read it here.

The subs now head off to placements at the Mail in London and Glasgow, the Press Association, Metro, the Evening Standard and the i newspaper. They are a bright and likeable bunch and I wish them well on the next stage. As usual we finished with the newsquiz. The winner this week with 19 was Alex Ross. Katie Jenkins and Rhys Noye-Allen scored 17.5, Harry Jones 17, Laren Tayyip and Alex Jennings 16.5 and Jason Murugesu 16. It was enough for Alex Jennings to collect the champagne for the top score over the four weeks - an average of just over 18. The top online solo scorer in last week’s quiz was Janet Boyle with 18.5 and the top team was Peter and Stacey in the Three Legs with 17. Here is this week's quiz. Give it a go and see if you can do better than Alex's 19. 

A selection of today's front pages

1. Which city, home to 1.5 million people, became the first area to enter the Government’s 'very high' alert level, with the closure of pubs, betting shops, gyms, leisure centres and casinos?
2. Who said he would not accept the people in his area being treated as 'canaries in the coalmine' for an experimental regional lockdown strategy?
3. In Tuesday’s Covid-19 briefing Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that the rising number of cases were 'flashing at us like dashboard warnings in a ___ ___ and we must act now.' What are the two missing words?
4. Labour leader Kier Starmer told the Commons that 'having read and considered the Sage advice' he had genuinely concluded that what was in the national interest?
5. A pub in the Wirral on Merseyside renamed itself the Three Bellends - with a sign featuring the faces of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, advisor Dominic Cummings and Health Secretary Matt Hancock? But what was the pub called before?
6. The Queen made her first official outside engagement for seven months when she and Prince William, without masks, visited where?
7. Italy, the Vatican City and San Marino were all added to the UK’s quarantine list but Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said those returning from which Greek island will now not need to quarantine?
8. Health Secretary Matt Hancock was accused of drinking in a Commons bar after 10pm and making a 'joke’ saying: 'The drinks are on me – but ___ ___ ___are in charge of the payment methodology so I will not be paying anything.' What are the three missing words?

9. In which European city did the courts overturn an 11pm lockdown for bars and restaurants saying it was a 'disproportionate encroachment' on the industry’s freedom?

10. French President Emmanuel Macron said people who live in nine cities including Paris, Marseille and Lyon will not be able to leave their homes without 'valid' reason between what hours? 
11. Álex Cruz stepped down as chief executive of which company and was replaced by Sean Doyle?
12. A mother and her three young children died when their people carrier collided with a lorry on which road?
13. The Government pulled an advert that caused a stir for suggesting 'Fatima’s next job could be in cyber'. What is Fatima’s existing job?
14. Tennis player Rafael Nadal and F1 driver Lewis Hamilton both equalled all-time records in their sports at the weekend. Whose records did they match? Half a point for each.
15. Which pop group announced it was considering reuniting after its former singer Tom Parker was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour?
16. Project Big Picture, the plan to overhaul English football by Manchester United and Liverpool, proposed abolishing the League Cup and which other annual event?
17. Morrisons, Waitrose and John Lewis said they won't be using what in their own-brand Christmas products as it can wash into the environment, harm wildlife and get into the food chain?
18. Who said this week: 'As a young black man from Wythenshawe, never did I think I would be accepting an MBE, never mind an MBE at the age of 22.'
19. According to the Met Office the wettest day for UK-wide rainfall, since records began in 1891, was on what day this month?
20. Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey apologised for blocking users from posting links to an article that claimed who had smoked a 'crack' pipe while engaging in a sex act?
21. Church minister Alison Davies and mourners were chastised by a crematorium official for doing what at the funeral of a 94-year-old woman in Bridgend?

22. During his first rally since being discharged from hospital for Covid-19, President Donald Trump promised to give every one in the crowd in Florida what?
23. A piece of paper handed to reporters in Wiltshire this week, which read 'our marriage is strong and we’re very much still together. Thank You', was signed by two first names. What were they?
24. An image of what animal hugging a tree led to Russian photographer Sergey Gorshkov being named 2020 wildlife photographer of the year by the Duchess of Cambridge at a ceremony at London’s Natural History Museum?
25. What did 46-year-old Jon Courtenay win?

Answers here

Trainee Archie wins the newsquiz wine

The Mail's reporting trainees. Back row: Henry Jones, Molly Clayton, Az Munrallee and Emma Loffhagen (Evening Standard). Front row: Sam Merriman, Archie Mitchell (with the Sancerre) and Elliot Mulligan.

I said farewell to the Daily Mail reporting trainees today. They now go to the Mail newsrooms in London, Dublin, Glasgow and the Evening Standard offices in London. They are a bright and likeable bunch. I wish them well and look forward to their success stories. The trainee subs have another week to go. The trainees had some first class sessions this week. Editor Geordie Greig talked about his vision, offered advice, inspired them and took questions. Neil Darbyshire looked at leader writing, Ailsa Leslie shared the secrets of MailPlus, Eleanor Hayward talked about her journey from trainee to health reporter and two of last year’s trainees, Helena Kelly and Kumail Jaffer, gave tips on what to expect next. The subs laid out Mail pages with guidance from Mike Brough and did long-form subbing with Fiona Webster. Everyone also wrote travel features and Emma Loffhagen became the first to be published with a look inside North Korea's hotels. Read it here.  

We finished, as usual, with the newsquiz. Archie Mitchell won for the third week in a row with a score of 18 and collected the prize bottle of Sancerre. He was narrowly ahead of Alex Jennings on 17.5 and Katie Jenkins and the Standard's Emma Loffhagen on 17. The top solo online score last week was 21 by Janet Boyle, just ahead of Jamie Johnson on 20. The top team was Maura and Phil Parsons with 20.5 with Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe on 20. Here is this week’s quiz. Give it a go and see if you can beat Archie’s score.   

A selection of today's front pages

1. In his party conference speech PM Boris Johnson said: ‘In 1942, when just about everything had gone wrong, the Government sketched out a vision of the postwar new ___ that they wanted to build. And that is what we are doing now – in the teeth of this pandemic.’ What is the missing word?

2. Who lavished praise on Boris Johnson at the Tory Party conference saying he was a 'close personal friend’, 'rare' communicator, had 'got the big calls right', and added that his daughters loved the Prime Minister’s dog Dilyn?

3. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that pubs in the country’s central belt, including Glasgow and Edinburgh, will close from tonight (Friday) for how many days? 

4. What is the name of the hospital where US President Donald Trump was taken after being diagnosed with Covid-19?
5. US President Donald Trump claimed that contracting the coronavirus was a 'blessing from God' and vowed to make an experimental antibody drug free for all Covid patients. What is the drug called?

6. The Great ___ Declaration was published this week calling for young people to be allowed to return to life as normal while the elderly and most vulnerable are given 'focused protection’. What is the missing word?

7. Which company announced it was temporarily suspending operations at all of its 536 Regal theatres and its 127 Picturehouse theatres in the UK?

8. Five Greek islands have been taken off the self-isolation list from 4am tomorrow. Zakynthos, Tinos and Serifos are three of them. Name the other two.

9. EasyJet warned it faces losses of more than £800million this year - its first loss in how many years?

10. Tammy Abraham and which other two footballers were told to delay their arrival at England's training camp after breaking the rule of six by attending a party for Abraham’s birthday? Half a point for each.

11. Which company said it was cutting 800 jobs, after tighter lockdown restrictions meant that 79 of its pubs will stay closed, with about one third expected to be shut permanently?

12. A trial at the Old Bailey heard that how many Vietnamese migrants, including three children, died in a shipping container on board a ferry from Belgium?

13. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, at the virtual Tory party conference, promised to power every home in the UK with offshore wind energy by what year?

14. A personal trainer who launched a workout based on what theme 'wholeheartedly' apologised for a 'very ill-judged post' on the PureGym Facebook account?

15. Two female scientists, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna, became the first two women to share what?

16. Author Tom Bower, in a book serialised in the Mail on Sunday, claimed that Boris Johnson’s father Stanley broke the Prime Minister’s mother’s nose. What is the book called?

17. Police issued warnings to students after three suspected drug-related deaths at universities in which city?

18. A medical practitioners tribunal heard that former British Cycling and Team Sky doctor Richard Freeman destroyed what with 'a screwdriver or blunt instrument' before handing it to forensic experts?

19. Walmart sold its majority share in Asda to brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa from Blackburn. How did the brothers make their money?

20. Former Guardian and broadcast journalist Allegra Stratton was appointed to which role?

21. Eddie Van Halen, who died this week aged 65, was once ranked as the Greatest Guitarist of All Time and played the solo on which Michael Jackson single?

22. Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil offered to pay the salary of Jerry Quy who is also known by what name?

23. Actress Dawn French, on the eve of her 63rd birthday, said ‘I’ve gone back to being an entire ___’. What is the missing word?

24. Which professional dancer has Nicola Adams reportedly been paired with for the first ever same-sex dance partner in this year’s Strictly Come Dancing?

25. Which BBC TV programme is returning as a reboot on Channel 4 with Davina McCall as the new host.

Answers here

Archie wins the newsquiz again

The Daily Mail trainees had another busy week in London. They rewrote articles from the wire and pitched news stories and travel ideas. They enjoyed sessions by assistant editor (politics) Simon Walters, consultant editor Andrew Pierce, executive news-editor Amy Iggulden and chief reporter Sam Greenhill. The subs went through the art of features sub-editing with Felix Duckworth and the reporters were taught the tricks of the reporting trade by Christian Gysin. There was a day with the Mail’s legal team and editor emeritus Peter Wright went through the Editor’s Code in detail. We finished the week as always with the newsquiz. The winner (again) this week was Archie Mitchell with 21, narrowly ahead of Sam Merriman on 20 and Elliot Mulligan and Henry Jones on 19.5. Alex Jennings and Harry Jones both scored 19. The top online solo score last week was Janet Boyle with 18 and the top team was the Roberts Family with 21. Nobody online scored higher than Archie’s 22. 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. 

A selection of today's front pages

1. Doctors said Donald Trump was more at risk from coronavirus than wife Melania because he is male, overweight and because of their ages. What is the age difference? 
2. What is the name of the aide that was in the presidential debate conference room with Donald Trump, and travelled with him on Air Force One, who tested positive for Covid-19 before the First Couple?
3. Why did the Scottish National Party suspend MP Margaret Ferrier?
4. Who said the Government was treating Parliament with ‘contempt' by rushing through powers to tackle coronavirus without debate and that he was 'now looking to the Government to rebuild trust with the House’?
5. After giving a garbled response, when asked whether people in the North-East would be able to meet other households outside in a pub garden, Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: 'Apologies, I ___ today.’ What is the missing word?
6. Video footage showed at least 200 students breaching lockdown rules by climbing on top of ping pong tables and raving at Arundel House, an accommodation block, at which university?
7. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced this week that which two countries were being added to the Government's travel quarantine 'red list’? Half a point each.
8. Which town’s mayor vowed to defy the Government's lockdown to protect the 'jobs and mental health' of residents?

9. Why was Amy Coney Barrett in the headlines?

10. Sergeant Matt Ratana, who was shot dead in a police station in Croydon, was described by the rugby club where he was head coach as 'an irreplaceable figure’. Name the club.
11. What is the name of the MP for Leicester East who was suspended from the Labour party after being charged with harassment of a woman for nearly two years?
12. Former Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre and former editor of the Daily Telegraph Charles Moore were reported to have been asked by Boris Johnson to take over as the chairmen of which two organisations? Half point for each.
13. Donald Trump and Joe Biden faced each other in the first presidential debate on Tuesday night which was held in which American city? 
14. What is the name of the white supremacist group that Donald Trump said, during the presidential debate, should 'stand back and stand by’?
15. According to a report in the New York Times how much, in dollars, did President Donald Trump pay in income taxes in both 2016 and 2017?
16. Ireland's Supreme Court ruled that the rolls used in which company’s hot sandwiches contained too much sugar to be considered bread?
17. What is the name of the storm that is bringing gales and lashing rain to Britain this weekend?
18. Football manager Steve Bruce said ‘we have lost the plot’, Roy Hodgson said it was ‘nonsense’ and pundit Jamie Carragher said it was 'an absolute joke’. What were they talking about?
19. Which country backed down after initially demanding the return of a fossilised giant shark's tooth given to Prince George by Sir David Attenborough?
20. What did inventor Richard Browning put through its paces on the Langdale Pikes in the Lake District?
21. A survey by Perspectus Global listed 20 words that were unfamiliar to 18-30 year olds. Top of the list was which word, originally meaning to pickle in a liquid, that 40 per cent of those surveyed did not know?

22. Which musician topped the Forbes World's Highest Paid Celebs of 2020 list with earnings of £131million?

23. Dame Jenni Murray finished her final shift on Woman’s Hour, after 33 years, by playing a song called I Am Woman by which singer who died this week?
24. Why were grey parrots Billy, Elsie, Eric, Jade and Tyson separated at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park’s colony?
25. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow posted a naked picture on Instagram saying she was ‘in nothing but my birthday suit today’ to celebrate her birthday? How old is she?

Answers here