The AnswerBank Articles

The Carbuncle Awards: Cumbernauld honoured

Congratulations to the North Lanarkshire town of Cumbernauld, which has been awarded the 2001 Carbuncle Award as 'the most dismal place in Scotland', beating off competition from Gretna, Aviemore,00:00 Mon 26th Nov 2001

God Save Jamie Reid

Q. Who exactly is Jamie Reid A. Jamie Reed is the artist whose radical cut outs and collages defined the punk movement in the 1970s. His picture of the Queen wearing a safety pin through her lips -00:00 Sun 25th Nov 2001

Listed buildings

Q. When did the listing of historic or interesting buildings start in this country A. Listing began in Britain on 1 January 1950, under the post-war Labour government. At the time there was a mood00:00 Sat 24th Nov 2001

The blue pencil: Banned books

The censorship and outright banning of printed works has a long and (dis- ) honourable history. Governments, religious authorities and the plain interfering of all complexions and persuasions have,00:00 Thu 22nd Nov 2001

How come there's no known recording of George Orwell's voice

A. Because he was deemed unfit for active service in the Second World War George Orwell - born Eric Arthur Blair - worked in the BBC's Far East Service as Talks Producer, from 18 August 1941 to 400:00 Sat 17th Nov 2001

St Pancras Station and Hotel

St Pancras Station and Hotel - originally called the Midland Grand Hotel - is one of the great examples of Victorian Gothic - or Gothic Revival - architecture. Commissioned by the Midland Railway,00:00 Fri 16th Nov 2001

Ken Kesey (1935-2001)

One of the most celebrated figures in the counter-culture of the 1960s died in an Oregon hospital on 10 November 2001 following an operation for liver cancer. He was 66. Q. So, who was Ken Kesey 00:00 Fri 16th Nov 2001

Calligraphy

Q. What is it A. Literally 'beautiful writing', from the Ancient Greek words kallos and graphia. It is an art of writing in which the form of the letters or characters is as important as the words00:00 Sun 11th Nov 2001

Magic, really

Q. Magic what A. Magic - or Magical - Realism. In literature Magic Realism is a kind of fiction in which supernatural and natural characters and events merge as if there is no distinction between00:00 Fri 09th Nov 2001

The price is right: Buying a bestseller

There's been much noise made in the media over the last couple of weeks about the 'revelation' that the bookshop chains have been taking money from publishers in order to promote their books more00:00 Thu 08th Nov 2001

Vanishing point: Perspective

Q. What is it A. The dictionary describes it as 'the technique or process of representing on a plane or curved surface the spatial relation of objects as they might appear to the eye; specifically00:00 Sun 04th Nov 2001

Ripping yarns: Jack's letters

Q. Did Jack the Ripper send any letters to the police A. During the period the murders took place (1888-9), the police and gentlemen of the press were literally bombarded with letters from people00:00 Sun 04th Nov 2001

Sir John Lavery (1856-1941)

Q. Who was he A. John Lavery was born in Belfast in 1856, the son of a publican. His father was drowned at sea while emigrating to America in 1859. John's mother died soon afterwards and he was00:00 Sat 03rd Nov 2001

Stonehenge

Q. A 'national disgrace' A. In 1986, Stonehenge and some 1,600 acres of its surrounding landscape containing an extraordinary number of interrelated archaeological sites, including barrow00:00 Sun 28th Oct 2001

Mary Norton (1903-1992)

Q. Who was Mary Norton A. The British children's writer Mary Norton (n e Pearson) was born in London and died at the age of 88 in Devon. She was educated in a convent school and trained as an00:00 Sat 27th Oct 2001

Carnegie Libraries

Q. What are Carnegie libraries A. They are libraries built with money donated by the American multi-millionaire Andrew Carnegie. Q. Of Carnegie Hall fame A. The same. Q. Who was he A. Andrew00:00 Fri 26th Oct 2001

Who is Jack Vettriano

Q. Who is Jack Vettriano A. Born in Scotland in 1951 of Italian parents, Jack Vettriano left school at sixteen to become a mining engineer in the local coalfields. A friend gave him a set of00:00 Sun 21st Oct 2001

The Poet Laureate

Q. What does a Poet Laureate do A. In Britain the Poet Laureate is responsible for composing poems for court and national occasions. At the time of each laureate's death, it is the duty of the Prime00:00 Sat 20th Oct 2001

He's behind you!: Pantomime

Q. We're all familiar with that great British institution pantomime, but where does it come from A. Pantomime as we understand it today is a Christmas entertainment intended primarily - though,00:00 Thu 18th Oct 2001

Who built the World Trade Center

Q. Who was Minoru Yamasaki A. Minoru Yamasaki was born into a poor family in Seattle in 1912. Intent on becoming an architect, Yamasaki worked for five summers in an Alaskan fish cannery, earning00:00 Mon 15th Oct 2001