How well do you know the Mercury prize?

1. 

   Primal Scream picked up the award in 1992 for their album Screamadelica. Which of the following albums was not on the shortlist that year?

   1. Simply Red - Stars

   2. Shakespears Sister - Hormonally Yours

   3. Young Disciples – Road to Freedom

2. 

   How many times have Radiohead lost the Mercury prize?

   1. 8

   2. 4

   3. 5

3. 

   The xx won the Mercury prize in 2010. Which of the below was said during their acceptance speech?

   1. “Thank you so much we've had the most incredible year. It's just felt like every day we've woken up to something incredible”

   2. “Hello, wow. It’s so loud in here! See you soon.”

   3. “Come on you reds!”

4. 

   Which of the below is a song title from At Least for Now, Benjamin Clementine's 2015 Mercury prize-winning album?

   1. Quiver a Little

   2. Walk Like a Man (Without Hate)

   3. The Economy of a Lost Tradition

5. 

   Which is a song from Myths of the Near Future, the Mercury-winning album in 2007?

   1. Four Horsemen of 2012

   2. Apocalypse How

   3. We Are the Tectonic Saber Boys

6. 

   In 2001, the band Gorillaz requested that their eponymous debut album be withdrawn from the shortlist. For what reason did the cartoon bassist Murdoc Niccals give?

   1. Winning the award would be "like carrying a dead albatross round your neck for eternity"

   2. Winning the award would be “like carrying a living lizard inside your pants for four months”

   3. Winning the award would “like carrying a dead albatross around in a Waitrose bag for life. For eternity”

7. 

   Aged 18, who was the youngest Mercury Prize winner?

   1. Dizzee Rascal

   2. Speech Debelle

   3. Bassist Paul Blackburn of Gomez

8. 

   Which of the following brands has not sponsored the Mercury prize?

   1. Nationwide Building Society

   2. Panasonic

   3. Danone

9. 

   In 2006, Isobel Campbell's collaboration with Mark Lanegan, Ballad of the Broken Seas, was shortlisted. Why did this ruffle some people’s feathers?

   1. Lanegan is American and the Mercury is a British award for British and Irish citizens

   2. Lanegan famously stated in 2005 that he hated the Mercury prize and the thought of Jools Holland alone made him furious

   3. Lanegan briefly gave up his musical career in 2006 to become a scenic painter and withdrew Ballad of the Broken Seas from Mercury contention

10. 

    In 2001 PJ Harvey became the first female artist to win the Mercury. Who presented the award to her?

    1. Edith Bowman and Jools Holland

    2. Zoë Ball and Jo Whiley

    3. Joe Wiley and Mark Riley

Solutions

1:B, 2:B, 3:A, 4:A, 5:A, 6:A, 7:A, 8:C, 9:A, 10:B

Scores