Sunday Times/Faber Literary Quiz

[phoenixxx]

Are we all ready? At first glance it looks a stinker! Blondes 4: Bruce Gold? Drinks 3 is Alice Picture 1 is Michael Palin

[captainandy]

picture 6.
I answered this some time back. It's definitely John Sutherland.

[mycastam]

Arrivals 3 - sorry if I've missed the answer - could it be The Adventures of Tom Saywer (Tom and Joe Harker)

[phoenixxx]

I suggest all newcomers just scroll through the entries so far. That will avoid wasting time looking up answers we are all sure about and may help confirm/eliminate some suggestions. My congratulations to everyone - we seem to have almost completed this in record time this year!

[phoenixxx]

Unfortunately John Bold married in Barchester so not The Warden.

[Newby]

Greeting old lags and newbies.
We're doing well this year.
I can confirm Departures 1 as Arilio (?)Zen. Dibdin died earler this year

[BarryJones]

Dear Cybergeeks,

If you lack the wherewithal to complete the quiz on your own, or with the help of real friends, perhaps you should not participate. It is a grave shame that this webpage is the second to come up on a google search. More so that the real intelligence demanded by the quiz be debased by bitty mass participation. In fact, the prize is attainable given that the level of knowledge required is limited to so few Times readers. Perhaps these should be left to compete among their equals rather than this half-witted rabble.

Barry

P.S. The answer to number 4 is 'The Idiot'

[phoenixxx]

I trust the lack of suggestions today is because we are all busy and not because fellow readers have taken notice of the comments made by BarryJones. I have gained a great deal of pleasure over the past few years during this quiz season and I trust other contributors have too. For one, I do not expect to win - being British it's the taking part that counts! However, if Mr Jones considers himself widely read enough to compete against the best what is he doing 'Googling' the answers?

[michealk]

i agree. he wouldn't know we were here unless he was trying to find answers. Have checked pictures today and seen Conrad on back of the book and the picture of John Sutherland in a biography. I promise these are correct.

[monaghan]

Dear all: Took Barry Jones advice and have been busy conferring with my real friends - sadly they are useless so will continue with present company! I thought that his comments might be a wind-up, it looks as if I may be wrong. Incidentally an anagram of Barry Jones is Barren Joys (I confess I googled this so perhaps I am a cybergeek. ). Back to business - did anyone else think I may have got it wrong with my Drinks suggestion - Alice in Wonderland or have alternative suggestion. Thanks

[LG123]

We really should feel sorry for Barry Jones that he feels the need to lash out in this way - I never knew that Times readers were such an elite group, I thought anyone could buy it!
Trying to get round to checking on the Alice answer - there's a copy around here somewhere. Have checked Departures 5 is definitely Winnie in The Secret Agent by Conrad. Also not sure if we confirmed Marriages 1 is Mrs Elton in Emma, but have also checked this.

[phoenixxx]

Definitely Alice for Drinks 3. The 'nice-tasting' beverage is described below. 'However, this bottle was NOT marked `poison,' so Alice ventured to taste it, and finding it very nice, (it had, in fact, a sort of mixed flavour of cherry-tart, custard, pine-apple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast,) she very soon finished it off.'

[michealk]

any thoughts on shards of glass? i wondered about the philip pullman books but couldn't find it anywhere?

[Flapwing]

Deaths 1 - shards of glass - I did mention Oscar and Lucinda and the failed attempt tp ship a glass chuch upriver. It did shatter but I can't remember if anyone was killed. Does someone have a copy to check?

[Flapwing]

Found a copy of Oscar and Lucinda and it is Oscar that is killed by falling glass at the end of the book. 'Shining fragments of aquarium glass fell like snow around him.'

[Flapwing]

Births 1 - I have no idea about that.

[bramblecat]

But surely Oscar drowns?

[Flapwing]

OK Deaths 1 again - Sovereign by CJ Sansom. Shardlake hears the last words from a glazier impaled on a shard of abbey window.

[michealk]

Thank you very much flapwing. i was finding that pretty tough! As I see it we need births 1 and 3, boobies5 and marriages 4. I am currently able to google all day and have been checking answers. I have to say some of the nasty commets by some are distressing as not everyone who enters is fit and well and a teacher. we older ones are using lots of our memories too.

[Flapwing]

Boobies 5 could be Bertie Wooster - I am searching at the moment...