Papal beginnings, crowded islands and a rescued baby squirrel – take the Thursday quiz

This squirrel has got some questions for you … Photograph: FLPA/Rex/Shutterstock

The Thursday quiz has thoroughly overdosed on Eurovision preparations this week, but never fear, it still just about found time to put together the usual mix of 15 topical general knowledge and pop culture questions for your amusement. There are no prizes, but you can let us know how you got on in the comments.

The Thursday quiz, No 210

1. 

   The world got a new pope. What number Leo is he?

   1. XII

   2. XIV

   3. XVI

   4. XXX-L

2. 

   And what number pope is he?

   1. The new pope is the 227th pope

   2. The new pope is the 247th pope

   3. The new pope is the 267th pope

   4. The new pope is the 1,057th pope

3. 

   Which? Travel has awarded which Greek island the dubious title of 'most crowded resort in Europe'?

   1. Zakynthos

   2. Lefkada

   3. Kefalonia

   4. Clom

4. 

   This is Nutmeg, the official rescue baby squirrel of the Guardian Thursday quiz. He wants to know which South American country has announced Carlo Ancelotti will be the coach of its men's national football team?

   1. Argentina

   2. Uruguay

   3. Brazil

   4. Peru

5. 

   Here is Karl-Heinz with his opening lines. This week the Thursday quiz imagines the German soccer legend would like to know which cult film starts innocuously enough with Marwood saying: "I'm having a cup of tea. Do you want one?"

   1. Brazil

   2. A Clockwork Orange

   3. School for Scoundrels

   4. Withnail & I

6. 

   This is Willow, the official dog of the Guardian Thursday quiz, and she has this week's flag question. How many yellow stars are there on the People's Republic of China flag?

   1. Four

   2. Five

   3. Six

   4. None. It is a trick question as the stars on the flag are white

7. 

   Phoebe Waller-Bridge has taken time out from fending off people going "But when are you going to do Fleabag 3?" by making a documentary about which type of animal?

   1. Owl

   2. Orangutan

   3. Octopus

   4. Very naughty miniature dachshunds

8. 

   Which of the co-leaders of the Green party of England and Wales has said they will not be standing again to be leader?

   1. Carla Denyer

   2. Adrian Ramsay

   3. Both Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay have said they won't be standing again

9. 

   Here is farther or nearer with Geordie Alan Shearer! This week we imagine the England soccer legend wants to know, if he leaves his home town of Newcastle upon Tyne, which is farther or nearer – Edinburgh, Scotland, or York, England?

   1. Edinburgh is nearer than York to Newcastle upon Tyne

   2. York is nearer than Edinburgh to Newcastle upon Tyne

10. 

    Looks like chemistry is back on the menu, boys! This is a new round called Elemental, my dear Watson!, as Sherlock Holmes definitely never said. According to the Royal Society of Chemistry website, which of these elements is NOT a "colourless, odourless gas"?

    1. Neon

    2. Fluorine

    3. Helium

    4. Nitrogen

11. 

    It is the anniversary of the trial of Anne Boleyn (pictured, but painted), the unfortunate second wife of Henry VIII. When was she put on trial, and ultimately beheaded?

    1. 1516

    2. 1536

    3. 1556

    4. 1576

12. 

    It is also the anniversary of the opening in 1940 of the very first McDonald's restaurant. What are the names of the brothers who started the chain?

    1. Ron and Russell

    2. Robert and Montgomery

    3. Riley and Michael

    4. Richard and Maurice

13. 

    Which of these cities in the US has found a way around a Republican ban on flying pride flags by designating a new official city flag that features the pride design?

    1. Kansas City, Missouri

    2. Panama City, Florida

    3. Iowa City, Iowa

    4. Salt Lake City, Utah

14. 

    It is Brian Eno's birthday today. Happy birthday, Brian! Here come the warm jets! What is the name of the flash cards to promote creativity that he invented with the multimedia artist Peter Schmidt?

    1. Oblique Strategies

    2. Ambiguous Methods

    3. Lateral Techniques

    4. Derek

15. 

    Which Swedish city has already announced it does not want to host Eurovision next year?

    1. Stockholm

    2. Malmö

    3. Uppsala

    4. Klow

Solutions

1:B - That is a lot of Leos, 2:C - That is a lot of popes, 3:A - It had 149,887 tourist overnight stays per 1,000 residents in 2023, which also sounds a lot to be honest, 4:C - The current Real Madrid head coach will start the Seleção job on 26 May, 5:D - Marwood gets no response from Withnail and very soon pops off to the local cafe. And then the fun begins …, 6:B - The design features one large star with four smaller stars in an arc set off towards the fly, and it was adopted in 1949, 7:C - Yes, for some reason she has devoted her time an underwater documentary, 8:A - She has said she wants to concentrate on being an MP, 9:B - Edinburgh is 90 miles from Newcastle upon Tyne, whereas York is only 73 miles from Newcastle upon Tyne. Top bins!, 10:B - The website describes fluorine as "a very pale yellow-green, dangerously reactive gas. It is the most reactive of all the elements and quickly attacks all metals. Steel wool bursts into flames when exposed to fluorine". Even in the Thursday quiz, when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth …, 11:B - "Chicken jockey your way out of that one, your royal highness," as they probably said at the time, 12:D - The first one was in San Bernardino, California, 13:D - Three new flags have the city’s traditional sego lily design imposed over, respectively, a pride flag, a trans flag and a Juneteenth commemoration flag, 14:A - Cards include "Repetition is a form of change", "Look closely at the most embarrassing details and amplify them" and "Introduce 30-50 feral hogs into the studio", 15:B - Sweden is hot favourite to win Saturday's extravaganza, and Malmö, which hosted last year, has already said it doesn't want to go through all that again

Scores

1. 0 and above.

   We hope you had fun – let us know how you got on in the comments

If you really do think there has been an egregious error in one of the questions or answers – and can show your working and are absolutely 100% positive you aren’t attempting to factcheck a joke – you can complain about it in the comments below. Why not watch Regicide by New Candys instead?

Regicide by New Candys