Rare feathers, trading insults and Joan of Arc’s arrest – take the Thursday quiz

The sun rises over the snow-covered statue of Joan of Arc in Orleans in 2018, but when was she captured? Photograph: Christophe Archambault/AFP/Getty Images

Welcome again to the weekly Guardian news quiz that veers wildly between intricate topical questions about geopolitics, general knowledge, science, and asking you to put in order some indie albums from the 1990s, depending on how emotional and nostalgic the quizmaster was feeling at the point of writing it. And that is half the charm. There are no prizes, but let us know how you get on in the comments

The Thursday quiz, No 161

1. 

   Rishi Sunak's damp election announcement was soundtracked by protesters playing what in the background?

   1. Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes

   2. Tubthumping by Chumbawamba

   3. Things Can Only Get Better by D:Ream

   4. Working Class Hero by John Lennon

2. 

   Argentina’s populist president, Javier Milei, hasn't been making friends by suggesting the wife of which European prime minister is corrupt?

   1. Pedro Sánchez of Spain

   2. Luís Montenegro of Portugal

   3. Gabriel Attal of France

   4. Luís Portugal of Montenegro

3. 

   The French overseas territory New Caledonia has been in the news after riots left people dead and Australia and New Zealand planned to evacuate tourists as a consequence. Emmanuel Macron announced he would visit. But what is the capital of New Caledonia ?

   1. Port Vila

   2. Mamoudzou

   3. Saint-Denis

   4. Nouméa

4. 

   An actor who is the heir to Elvis Presley's Graceland estate via her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, has filed a legal complaint against a private investment firm, alleging that it is attempting a “non-judicial” sale of the home. Who is she?

   1. Dakota Fanning

   2. Riley Keough

   3. Katie Holmes

   4. Camila Morrone

5. 

   A very rare feather (not pictured) has sold at auction for £22,000 ($28,300/€26,000). What type of feather?

   1. From the extinct Fijian viti levu scrubfowl

   2. From the extinct Siberian slender-billed curlew

   3. From the extinct Colombian treinta cincuenta cerdos

   4. From the extinct New Zealand huia bird

6. 

   Willow, the official dog of the Guardian Thursday quiz, loathes golf with a passion. But help her out with the drama that ensued at the US PGA Championship at Valhalla this weekend by sorting this out …

   1. Scottie Scheffler got arrested, Xander Schauffele won the event

   2. Xander Schauffele got arrested, Scottie Scheffler won the event

7. 

   One question about every country taking part in the Euro 2024 finals this summer, which will now clash with the UK general election, thanks. This week: Today is the anniversary of the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, which was known as West Germany. When?

   1. 1947

   2. 1949

   3. 1951

   4. 1953

8. 

   Which UK-based used-car website once valued at £6bn has collapsed into administration putting 200 jobs at risk?

   1. Motordough

   2. Cazoo

   3. Honk Honk

   4. WeBuyAnyHeap

9. 

   Last week Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth ended his party's cooperation deal with the Labour-led government in Wales. How does Plaid Cymru render its name in English?

   1. Wales First

   2. The Party of Wales

   3. Welsh National party

   4. Wales Forever

10. 

    You've always wanted to pass GCSE citizenship studies, right? Try this one. Children are taught that the country of Oman is different from the UK because it has an absolute monarchy. Which of these statements about Oman that children are told is untrue?

    1. Oman is ruled by one person, the Sultan, who holds absolute power

    2. The Sultan is both the head of state and the head of government

    3. The Sultan of Oman inherits the role directly from his father

    4. The Sultan can make and pass laws

11. 

    It is the anniversary of when Joan of Arc (are you sure about this picture – Ed) was captured by Burgundian troops at the siege of Compiègne. Which year?

    1. 1130

    2. 1230

    3. 1330

    4. 1430

12. 

    The Charlatans (known as The Charlatans UK in some territories) are far too nice to duff you up behind the bike sheds after school, but they will be disappointed with you if you can't put their first four albums in the correct order of release. Which of these is it?

    1. Some Friendly; Up to Our Hips; The Charlatans; Tellin' Stories

    2. Some Friendly; Between 10th and 11th; Up to Our Hips; The Charlatans

    3. The Charlatans; Up to Our Hips; Tellin' Stories; Us and Us Only

    4. The Charlatans; Between 10th and 11th; Up to Our Hips; Us and Us Only

13. 

    Which symbol do scientists use to denote the Newtonian constant of gravitation, also sometimes known as the universal gravitational constant or the Cavendish gravitational constant?

    1. P

    2. O

    3. N

    4. G

14. 

    Liverpool football club has confirmed that it is replacing Jürgen Klopp. Who with?

    1. Xabi Alonso

    2. Arne Slot

    3. Luis Enrique

    4. Ron from Sparks

15. 

    Kabin Crew & Lisdoonvarna Crew are some Irish children having a moment in the viral internet sunshine after their song amassed 8.6m views in a matter of days. What is it called?

    1. The Spark

    2. The Bush

    3. The Doctor

    4. The Very Naughty Miniature Dachshund

Solutions

1:C - The New Labour anthem that soundtracked Tony Blair's 1997 victory was probably only the third most annoying thing for Sunak, behind the drenching he got and the way it made his suit go shiny. If only there was some kind of indoor room at Downing Street they could use for announcements, 2:A - Pedro Sánchez has described the allegations as part of a baseless smear campaign waged against him and his family by his political and media enemies, and recalled Spain's ambassador from Argentina after Milei brought it up again. Incidentally, the Thursday quiz knows that Luís Portugal is not the prime minister of Montenegro, and that the office is actually held by Eddie Norway. That's a joke too … it is Milojko Spajić, 3:D - The metropolitan area has over 180,000 inhabitants, and it has been announced that Emmanuel Macron will head there in a French effort to restore order, 4:B - On 19 May, a public notice was posted in local news outlets stating that Graceland would be auctioned at Shelby County Courthouse in Memphis on 23 May. A judge filed a temporary restraining order on 20 May. Keough was Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated in 2023 for her lead role in Daisy Jones & the Six, 5:D - The feather weighs roughly 9 grams, making it vastly more valuable than gold – $5,169 per gram compared with $127 per gram of gold. The last confirmed sighting of a huia was in 1907, 6:A - No, the Thursday quiz doesn't really know who these people are either, 7:B - The West German Constitution was approved on 8 May 1949 and came into effect on 23 May after getting assent from the Allied powers., 8:B - The company’s collapse comes just two years after the UK-based used-car website listed on the New York Stock Exchange to much fanfare in 2021. It spent a hefty sum sponsoring football clubs including Aston Villa and Everton, as well as horse racing, darts, snooker and cricket to bolster its brand, 9:B - Its English-language website has the URL www.partyof.wales and the tag © Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales. The Encyclopedia Britannica also gives their full name as Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales. The party was founded in 1925 as Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru., 10:C - This is usually the case, but current Sultan Haitham bin Tariq is the grandson of Taimur bin Faisal who was Sultan from 1913 to 1932, 11:D - She had insisted on accompanying troops out on a skirmish, and then was with the rearguard when it was cut off from the city after the doors were shut before everybody had got back inside, which set off a very unpleasant chain of events for her, 12:B - An absolutely cracking band that the quiz master has seen several times over the years and just last week walked past Tim Burgess in a tube station and was too shy to say hello, 13:D - Henry Cavendish first managed to put a number to it in the late 1700s and called it G. Obviously O is oxygen, P is Phosphorus, N is the newton (the absolute unit of force in the International System of Units) and putting them all togther to make a stink is the Thursday quiz having fun, 14:B - The former Feyenoord coach will officially start on 1 June, subject to a work permit, and the Thursday quiz promises it wouldn't laugh if it turned out the pen-pusher signing that off supports Everton and just says no, 15:A - The song's lyrics include the lines "We got the energy, we’ll tell you all about it. I searched for my spark and I found it". It is an anthem for Cruinniú na nÓg (Gathering of Youth), which will hold hundreds of free creative events for children and teenagers across Ireland

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 – feel free to email martin.belam@theguardian.com, but remember the quizmaster’s word is final and there is a new The The single to listen to instead.