Tributes to ex-editor David Kernek

Echo old boys: David Kernek (Flintham) second right with, from left, Peter Barron, ex-editor; Nick Herbert, former editorial director of Westminster Press; ex-editor Allan Prosser; Ted Young, now Metro editor; former deputy editor Chris Lloyd and me.

I was saddened to learn of the death of my former colleague David Kernek (formerly Flintham) this week. David was deputy editor of The Northern Echo in the early 80s when I was subbing and night-editing. He was always the calm head when things got heated (as they often did) and the best leader writer I ever worked with. He went on to edit the Bath Evening Chronicle, the Brighton Evening Argus, the Yorkshire Evening Press and then succeeded me at the Echo in 1993. I always enjoyed his company and his world-weary humour. The last time I saw him was when ex-Echo editors got together in London six years ago to mark the end of Peter Barron's tenure. David's story is a remarkable one - the son of an Austrian refugee who fled the holocaust. Read more here from Peter Barron and Allan Prosser. 

Have a crack at the newsquiz

Last week’s newsquiz proved to be a toughie with average scores much lower than usual. The top solo scorers were Robert Rea, Janet Boyle and Toby Brown with 20 ahead of Marguerite Turner on 18.5. The top team was the Roberts Family with 20, ahead of Maureen and Phil Parsons on 19 and Bruce and Sarah Hayward 18. 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 your score.

Today's front pages

1. President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia recognised the territorial claims of which two proxy states in east Ukraine? Half a point for each.

2. In response to the invasion of Ukraine, Prime Minister Boris Johnson initially announced in the Commons that the UK was sanctioning three 'very high net worth individuals’ and how many Russian banks?

3. What is the name of the gas pipe line project that Germany halted in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine?
4. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned of the possibility of 'another ecological disaster’ after Russian military forces seized control of which site?
5. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Manchester United were under pressure to end their £40million agreement with which sponsor?

6. Labour MP Chris Bryant told MPs the Government should seize whose £152million London home as documents indicated he had been linked to 'malign activity’?
7. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the 2022 Champions League final was moved from St Petersburg to which city?

8. UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told military officials: 'Unfortunately we’ve got a busy adversary now in Putin, who has gone full ___’. What is the missing word?
9. Under the Government’s ‘living with Covid’ strategy which of these were not introduced on Thursday? a) Those who test positive no longer need to self-isolate b) The end of free symptomatic and asymptomatic tests c) Fully-vaccinated people in close contact with Covid don't need to test for seven days d) £500 self-isolation support payment for those on low incomes ended.
10. Following Storm Franklin, properties were evacuated, trains cancelled and danger-to-life warnings were issued for Bewdley and Ironbridge as which river broke its banks?

11. A 27-year-old gunman died in Amsterdam after taking hostages and demanding €200million in cryptocurrency at which company’s store?
12. Which country was the runaway leader in the Winter Olympic table with 37 medals, including 16 golds?
13. Who captained Team GB women's curling team to Britain’s only gold medal in the winter Olympics?
14. Under Government plans, students who don’t have two A-levels at grade E or GCSEs in which two subjects would not qualify for a student loan in England? Half a point for each.
15. A letter sent to maternity units by NHS England’s chief midwife instructed them to abandon targets aimed at limiting the number of what?
16. Which footballer's mother was punched in a brawl after the Amir Khan versus Kell Brook fight at Manchester's AO Arena?
17. Which charity was blocked from appointing a CEO on a six-figure salary worth 'a tenth' of the entire first year's annual income?
18. Amrit Magar, 35, was given a five-year restraining order by Bromley magistrates after turning up three times at whose home?
19. Actress Anna Karen, who died in a house fire, found fame for her role as Olive in which TV sitcom in the 1970s?
20. Who paid tribute to her son by singing Whitney Houston's The Greatest Love Of All at a candlelit vigil in Acton, London?
21. Gary Brooker, who died aged 76, was the lead singer of rock band Procol Harum who were at number 1 for six weeks in 1967 with which song?
22. US actress Sally Kellerman, who died aged 84, earned Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for her role as Margaret 'Hot Lips' Houlihan in which 1970s film?
23. Jon Sopel and which other journalist announced they were leaving the BBC to launch a podcast and host a radio show together on LBC?
24. The Duchess of Cambridge went down a slide at a playlab run by who in Copenhagen?

25. Which singer was the first act to be confirmed for the Queen’s Platinum Party at the Palace on June 4?

Answers here

Sheltering from the storm? Here's the newsquiz

The top solo scorer in last week’s newsquiz was Liz Gerard with 22, just ahead of Rob Lawrence on 21, Marguerite Turner 20, Ginger Elvis and Tony Smith 19.5, Robert Rea 19, Toby Brown 18.5 and Stuart Bagnall 17.5. The best team was The Roberts Family with 20, ahead of Bruce and Sarah Hayward 19.5, Three Legs drinkers Peter, Stacey, Les, Nicky, Alice and Ben 18 and Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe 17. 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 your score.

Storm Eunice dominates today's front pages

1. Before Storm Eunice hit, The Met office issued rare red warnings for which two areas of the UK? Half a point for each.
2. The highest gust ever recorded, provisionally, in England hit the Needles on the Isle of Wight during Storm Eunice. What speed was it?
3. During Storm Eunice, the Environment Agency told people that what was 'probably the most stupid thing you can do’?
4. Huge gusts from Storm Eunice ripped which London building’s roof 'to pieces’ with large holes appearing and part of it falling in the Thames?
5. According to Michael Carpenter, the US ambassador to the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Russia has massed up to how many troops on or near the Ukrainian border?
6. Nato's secretary general Jens Stoltenberg described the Russia/Ukraine stand-off as the most serious security crisis in Europe since the end of the Cold War adding: 'I regret to say it's the new ___ in Europe.’ What is the missing word?
7. The Metropolitan Police said it was to investigate claims Prince Charles's charity, The Prince's Foundation, offered an honour to a citizen of which country?
8. Rachael Maskell, who called for Prince Andrew to relinquish his Duke title after agreeing to settle the civil sex assault claim against him, is MP for where?
9. The Queen met the incoming Defence Services Secretary Major General Eldon Millar and his predecessor Rear Admiral James Macleod at Windsor Castle and greeted them by saying: 'Well, as you can see, I can’t ___.’ What is the missing word?
10. A public inquiry heard the testimonies of people who had been wrongly charged in the Horizon IT scandal and was told that the Post Office prosecuted how many employees between 2000 and 2014?
11. A newborn baby died at Luton and Dunstable Hospital after catching which disease following the first outbreak in the UK since 2009?
12. A Facebook post from Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg said who would become the company's president of global affairs?
13. A 35-year-old British swimmer was killed in the first fatal shark attack in which city since 1963?
14. Why was the Two More Years bar in Hackney Wick, London, in the headlines?
15. Two leaders of what protest movement were arrested in Canada hours after police told them that they had to move from the centre of Ottawa?
16. Authorities in New Zealand played songs by which American singer on a loop in an attempt to deter anti-vaccine protesters camped outside the parliament building?
17. Headteacher Rachel Tomlinson of Barrowford Primary School, near Nelson, in Lancashire, upset some parent by banning what?
18. Why was Air Marshal Andrew Turner, one of the RAF’s most senior commanders, suspended from duty?
19. Why did energy company Northern Powergrid thank 74 customers in the north of England?
20. Concerns that Team GB might leave the Winter Olympics without a medal ended when a victory over the United States in what sport guaranteed at least a silver?
21. Olympic Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, 15, argued her positive drugs test was due to contamination with medicine belonging to who?
22. Which football team became World Club Champions after beating Brazilian side Palmeiras 2-1 in Abu Dhabi?
23. Which of these acts did not perform at Sunday's hip-hop-themed Super Bowl half time show? a) Dr Dre b) Eminem c) Drake d) 50 Cent?
24. Which football club is looking for a six-year-old fan called Joe who wrote to say he could not afford to attend matches but included 20p, 5p and 1p coins, which he asked to be given to forward Harry McKirdy?
25. Former Neighbours actress and singer Natalie Imbruglia won ITV’s Masked Singer and Welsh singer Charlotte Church was runner-up. What costumes did they wear? Half a point for each.

Answers here

Have a crack at this week's newsquiz

The top solo scorer in last week’s newsquiz was Rod Ardehali with an impressive 23. Others on the leaderboard were Stuart Bagnall with 21.5, Robert Rea and Liz Gerard 21, Janet Boyle 20, Jayme Bryla 18.5, Toby Brown 18 and Gavin Devine 17.5. The top team was Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe with 21, just ahead of Phil and Maura Parsons on 20, The Roberts Family, Bruce and Sarah Hayward and The Smiths all scored 19 and Team Swindle 17.5. Here is this week's quiz. As usual there are 25 questions about the week. Give it a go and let me know your score. 

A selection of today's front pages

1. The Metropolitan Police said detectives investigating allegations of Covid breaches in Downing Street and Whitehall would be sending formal questionnaires to more than how many people?
2. A Downing Street adviser said Prime Minister Boris Johnson was determined to stay in No 10, adding: 'He’s making very clear that they’ll have to send a ___ division to get him out of there.’ What is the missing word?
3. What is the name of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and MP for North East Cambridgeshire who was appointed Chief of Staff at 10 Downing Street?
4. Boris Johnson’s new communications chief Guto Harri said the Prime Minister sang what song as they discussed his appointment?
5. Which Government minister apologised for 'an error of judgment' after continuing a meeting with bereaved parents after testing positive for Covid’?
6. Boris Johnson was said to be considering legal action over a book, First Lady, which made allegations that his wife Carrie messaged staff from the prime minister’s phone, interfered in political decisions and arranged to have people hired or dismissed. Who is the author?
7. Speaking at the Institute for Government in London, former Prime Minister John Major criticised the 'brazen excuses’ for breaking lockdown rules and said: ‘Collectively, this has made the Government look distinctly ___, which has consequences that go far beyond political unpopularity.’ What is the missing word?
8. According to NHS England, the number of people waiting to start routine hospital treatment was at a record high. How many people did it say were on the waiting list?
9. Who was accused by a Russian TV host of 'behaving in the classic British colonial style’ and of coming to the colony 'to lecture the subjugated natives’?
10. Which company rejected calls for a windfall tax after it posted a profit of $12.8 billion (£9.5 billion) for 2021 after making a loss in 2020?
11. Martin Hewitt, Andy Cooke, Simon Byrne, Mark Rowley and Neil Basu were among the front-runners for which job?
12. How old was Rayan Awram, the boy who died after spending four days trapped down a well in Morocco’s Rif mountains?
13. In a statement on her Jubilee weekend the Queen said it was her sincere wish that when Charles became king his wife Camilla 'will be known as ___ ___ as she continues her own loyal service.’ What are the two missing words?
14. Why did Adidas end its deal with West Ham footballer Kurt Zouma?
15. In the so-called Wagatha Christie case at the High Court, lawyers for Coleen Rooney alleged Rebekah Vardy received money from which newspaper for providing information including from Rooney’s private Instagram account?
16. Bamber Gascoigne, who died age 87, presented which television programme from 1962 to 1987?
17. Primark announced it will launch an exclusive clothing range in partnership with which company, with a limited 11-piece collection being launched this month?
18. The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust was among those to condemn a joke by comedian Jimmy Carr in which he suggested the mass murder of who during the Holocaust was a ‘positive’?
19. Team GB failed to gain an Olympic medal in what event for the first time in 20 years after a disappointing start by athletes Laura Deas and Brogan Crowley?
20. Which Premier League footballer scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out that gave Senegal their first-ever Africa Cup of Nations?
21. The Duchess of Cambridge will narrate one of her favourite children's books, The ___ Who Was Afraid Of The Dark, by Jill Tomlinson, in a CBeebies bedtime story to be broadcast this weekend. What is the missing creature?
22. The Beluga sushi restaurant in Leatherhead, due to open for the first time today (Friday), apologised after publishing what?
23. Which musician sold his back catalogue to Universal Music in a deal thought to be worth up to £221million?
24. Adele won best artist, album of the year and best British song at the Brits but which inaugural award did Ed Sheeran win?
25. The theme to which television programme, sung by 86-year-old Barry Crocker, reached the iTunes top ten and briefly hit the Number One spot.

Answers here

Test your knowledge with the newsquiz

The top solo scorers in last week’s newsquiz were Janet Boyle and Robert Rea with 21, just ahead of Marguerite Turner, Toby Brown and Stuart Bagnall on 20. Ed Mortimer scored 19.5, Liz Gerard 19, Jayme Bryla 18 and Gavin Devine and Jo Wadsworth 17. The Roberts Family were the top team with 23. Bruce and Sarah Hayward scored 22, Maura and Phil Parsons 21 and Adam Batstone and Lucy Thorpe 18. Here is this week’s newsquiz. As usual there are 25 questions about the events of the last five days. Give it a go and let me know your score.

A selection of today's front pages

1. Sue Gray's report into lockdown parties said that, of the 16 events that fell within her remit, how many were being investigated by the Metropolitan police?
2. In an ill-tempered session following the Prime Minister's statement on the lockdown parties, who was ordered by the Speaker to leave the chamber after saying Boris Johnson was a liar?
3. Tory MP Aaron Bell told Boris Johnson in the Commons how he attended his grandmother's funeral, didn’t hug his siblings or parents, read a eulogy and made the three-hour drive home. He finished by saying: 'Does the Prime Minister think I am a ___?’ What is the missing word?
4. Speaking in the Commons, former Prime Minister Theresa May laid out three possibilities for the lockdown breaches, saying that Boris Johnson had either not read the rules, didn't understand what they meant or what other reason?
5. After Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer responded to Sue Gray’s report, Boris Johnson called him 'a former director of public prosecutions, who spent more time prosecuting ___ and failing to prosecute Jimmy Savile.’ What is the missing word?
6. What is the name of Boris Johnson's head of policy who resigned over the Jimmy Savile remark, saying it was an 'inappropriate and partisan reference to a horrendous case of child sex abuse’?
7. Which of these Tory MPs has NOT gone on the record to withdraw their support for the Prime Minister? a) Tobias Ellwood

b) Nadine Dorries c) David Davis d) Andrew Mitchell
8. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak made a commitment to go ahead with the 1.25 percentage point increase in National Insurance in a joint article written for which newspaper?
9. Energy regulators announced the price cap on bills will rise by an average of how much (in pounds), taking a typical annual bill to £1,971?
10. At a joint press conference in Kiev, Boris Johnson gave a message to Russia, saying a military incursion into Ukraine would be three types of disaster - a political disaster was one, what were the other two? Half a point for each.
11. What did Northern Ireland's Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots order to come to an end from midnight on Thursday?
12. What is the name of the First Minister of Northern Ireland who resigned after 231 days in the post?
13. Three people were killed and thousands of homes were without power in Scotland and the North of England after two back-to-back storms hit the UK. What were their names? Half a point for each.
14. Manchester United said that fans wanting to exchange what at the club shop will be able to do so for free?
15. Why did author Val McDermid withdraw her support and sponsorship of Raith Rovers football club and two directors and the captain of the women's team resign?
16. Home Office statistics showed that in the 12 months between April 2020 and 2021 only five per cent of what type of criminals were brought to court?
17. Actress Whoopi Goldberg was suspended from an ABC talk show in America and apologised after saying what was 'not about race’?
18. A British woman, found guilty of fabricating a claim that she was gang-raped, saw her conviction overturned by which country’s supreme court?
19. Footballer Christian Eriksen signed for Brentford after being forced to leave Inter Milan because of what rule that applies in Italy but not in England?
20. Why did Masked Singer judges Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke walk off the US show in protest?
21. Which country banned the selective breeding of British Bulldogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels after a court ruled it was cruel and resulted in health problems?
22. Actor Leonard Fenton, who died aged 95, was best known for playing Dr Harold Legg from 1985 to 2019 in which television programme?

23. Which company bought the popular online game Wordle from its creator Josh Wardle for a price 'in the low seven figures’?
24. Where did a panda called Bing Dwen Dwen and a child called Shuey Rhon Rhon make an appearance this morning (Friday)?
25. Who will replace Phillip Schofield as host of this Sunday’s Dancing On Ice after he announced he was isolating with Covid?

Answers here