Fictional Detectives: The Masters of Mystery!

#40 Week 9

Author

Sigrun Sørumgård
February 25, 2025

Step into the world of legendary sleuths and their unforgettable mysteries!

  1. In what novel from 1920, created by author Agatha Christie, do we meet the eccentric Belgian detective Hercule Poirot?

  2. What is the name of the disheveled cigar-smoking Los Angeles homicide detective first portrayed on television by Peter Falk in 1968?

  3. What is fictional detective Morse’s first name?

  4. What is the name of Sherlock Holmes’s brother?

  5. Inspector Bucket is a character in which Charles Dickens novel?

  6. Who plays DCI John Luther in the BBC series Luther?

  7. Which teenage detective stars in a book series by Carolyn Keene and solves mysteries with her friends Bess and George?

  8. Which fictional detective, created by Stieg Larsson, is a skilled hacker and investigator?

  9. What is the name of the long-running detective show starring Brenda Blethyn?

  10. Who was the original lead detective in Midsomer Murders?

The Wonder Wall

  • The first literary detective was probably C Auguste Dupin in Edgar Allan Poe’s 1841 short story Murders In The Rue Morgue.

  • In the 1969 Oxford-Cambridge chess match, two Oxford winners were named Holmes and Watson.

  • All great detectives need a distraction after a hard day of investigating, and some have particularly bespoke hobbies to help them unwind. Inspector 'Tequila' Yuen from John Woo's ultraviolent Hard Boiled movie enjoys playing the clarinet when he isn't shooting guns. Other famous musical prodigies include Sherlock Holmes with his violin and Lord Peter Whimsy and his piano, while Ian Rankin’s Detective Inspector Rebus has an extensive vinyl record collection. Inspector Morse is good at crosswords, Columbo is a master of foreign languages, Poirot grew vegetables, PD James's Adam Dalgliesh wrote poetry, Sara Paretsky's VI Warshawski enjoyed a spot of karate and Charles Paris would occasionally indulge in acting, when not investigating thespian-based crimes.

Yesterday´s Questions & Answers

  1. Which capital city in the world has the highest population?

    Beijing in China with a population of 21.5 million people.

  2. Which city is the capital of Canada?

    Ottawa is the capital of Canada. The city is located in the southeastern part of the province of Ontario.

  3. Which capital is considered the largest in the world, in extent/area?

    Ankara in Turkey. 24,521 square kilometers (9,468 square miles)

  4. Australia's capital, Canberra, is only the sixth largest city in the country. Which five cities are larger (population)?

    Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

  5. Lusaka is the capital of which country?

    Lusaka is the capital and largest city of Zambia in the former Rhodesia.

  6. Which capital is considered the oldest in the world?

    The oldest capital in the world is Damascus (Dimashq), Syria. It has been continuously inhabited since approx. 2500 BCE In 2022, it had an estimated population of 2.5 million. 

  7. Which city is the administrative capital of Bolivia?

    La Paz is Bolivia's third largest city, but the metropolitan area, which also includes the cities of El Alto and Viacha, is Bolivia's largest. The location 3,250–4,100 meters above sea level makes La Paz the world's highest capital. Sucre is Bolivia's official capital, but La Paz is the seat of government and the country's political center.

  8. What is the southernmost capital city in the world?

    Wellington is New Zealand's center of government and the world's southernmost capital city. Wellington is also the country's cultural capital and the third most populous urban area in New Zealand.

  9. What is the capital of Slovenia?

    Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and is located in the central part of the country at the mouth of the river Ljubljanica, between the Alps and the Mediterranean.

  10. South Africa has three official capitals, one executive, one legislative and one judicial - which three cities are these?

    Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative) and Bloemfontein (judicial).