Corgis, Sex Pistols and the royal bedtime tipple – take the platinum jubilee quiz

Queen Elizabeth II smiles while thinking about how many points you are going to get on one’s quiz. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/AP

When the platinum jubilee arrives on Thursday there won’t be a single person under the age of 70 in the UK who can remember anybody else being on the throne apart from Queen Elizabeth II. Whatever your level of interest in the monarchy – excited monarchist or ardent abolitionist – you will have inevitably absorbed some news about the Queen over the past seven decades. So why not take our quiz – how much do you know about the Queen?

The Guardian’s platinum jubilee quiz

1. 

   In which city was Queen Elizabeth II born?

   1. Edinburgh, Scotland

   2. London, England

   3. Cape Town, South Africa

   4. York, England

2. For how many Commonwealth realms is the Queen currently head of state?

   1. 12

   2. 15

   3. 18

   4. 21

3. 

   How many great-grandchildren does the Queen have? It is at least one, as here is a picture of Prince George …

   1. 7

   2. 9

   3. 10

   4. 12

4. Queen Elizabeth II is often credited as the longest-reigning British monarch. Whose record did she surpass?

   1. Queen Elizabeth I

   2. King George III

   3. Queen Victoria

   4. James I (including his reign as James VI of Scotland)

5. 

   Who provided the BBC television commentary from Westminster Abbey for the Queen's coronation in 1953?

   1. Richard Attenborough

   2. David Attenborough

   3. Richard Dimbleby

   4. David Dimbleby

6. Which dog breed is the Queen's household often credited with inventing?

   1. Dorgi

   2. Lorgi

   3. Porgi

   4. Corgadoodlepoo

7. Where does the Queen usually stay when she visits Northern Ireland?

   1. Kilwaughter Castle

   2. Carrickfergus Castle

   3. Hillsborough Castle

   4. Belfast Castle

8. 

   Astrology is as scientific as having a hereditary monarchy. What star sign is the Queen?

   1. Gemini

   2. Aries

   3. Pisces

   4. Taurus

9. The Queen was the first member of the British royal family to send an email. When did she send it?

   1. 1976

   2. 1986

   3. 1996

   4. 2006

10. 

    In 1977, where did the Sex Pistols' single God Save The Queen reach in the official UK singles chart, despite being banned from radio play by the BBC?

    1. No 1

    2. No 2

    3. No 4

    4. No 9

11. Which of these things does the Queen not need to have?

    1. A driver's licence

    2. A licence plate on vehicles

    3. A passport

    4. All of the above

12. 

    Which other language has the Queen used to speak in public, besides English?

    1. German

    2. French

    3. Spanish

    4. Welsh

13. Over the years the Queen has been given many animals. But which of these didn't she take back home to the UK?

    1. A pig from Fiji

    2. An elephant from Cameroon

    3. A black jaguar from Brazil

    4. A beaver from Canada

14. Which year did the Queen describe as an 'annus horribilis'

    1. 1992, when there was a fire at Windsor Castle

    2. 1997, when Princess Diana died

    3. 2002, when the Queen Mother died

    4. 2012, when one of Princess Anne's dogs attacked and killed one of the Queen's dogs

15. According to her cousin Margaret Rhodes, what does the Queen enjoy every night before bed?

    1. A gin and dubonnet with lemon and ice

    2. A glass of wine

    3. A dry gin martini

    4. A glass of champagne

16. 

    Everybody knows that legally the Queen owns every swan in the country. But is it true that she also owns every seal in British waters?

    1. True

    2. False

17. How many Summer Olympic Games in London has the Queen formally opened?

    1. None

    2. One

    3. Two

18. 

    Who was Queen Elizabeth II's father?

    1. George IV

    2. George V

    3. George VI

    4. George VII

Solutions

1:B - She was born Princess Elizabeth of York in 1926 in Mayfair, London, 2:B - It has been 15 since Barbados voted to become a republic in 2021, 3:D - It is 12. The most recent additions were Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor and Sienna Elizabeth Mapelli Mozzi, who are both still babies, 4:C - Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901, a total of 63 years, 216 days. James VI of Scotland and James I of England and Ireland – one and the same man – reigned in total for 57 years, 246 days. Elizabeth I was Queen for 44 years, 127 days, which is also about the same time that Llywelyn of Gwynedd was King of Wales, although sources don't give exact dates for a precise comparison , 5:C - According to the BBC, seven other commentators contributed along the processional route. They claim the broadcast was watched by more than 20 million people in the UK, 6:A - The story goes that Princess Margaret’s dachshund Pipkin mated with one of the Queen’s corgis and the rest was puppy history, 7:C - It is both the official government residence for the secretary of state for Northern Ireland and the official residence in Northern Ireland of Queen Elizabeth II, 8:D - Although the Queen's 'official' birthday is in June, she was actually born in April. Imagine being 96 right now, having been born with the exact same astrological alignment as the Queen, but then you didn't end up being monarch. Rude, 9:A - In 1976 she visited the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment in Malvern and used Arpanet – a precursor to the internet we know and love today – to send the email, 10:B - It was No 2. Rod Stewart's I Don't Want To Talk About It / First Cut Is The Deepest double a-side was No 1 that week. Rod Stewart is playing at the Queen's platinum jubilee concert at the weekend. The Sex Pistols are not, 11:D - That's £75.50 saved every few years not having to renew a passport for a start. The Queen learnt to drive in the military in the 1940s but is not formally required to have a licence, and is able to drive in unmarked vehicles, 12:B - She learned French as a child, and has delivered a speech at a state banquet in French, 13:A - For some reason she didn't take the pig home from Fiji. She did accept the other three gifts, and then donated them on to London Zoo, 14:A - There had also been explosive revelations from books about Princess Diana, and the public discovery that the Duchess of York was having an affair with her financial adviser, 15:D - She said that the Queen's regular tipples included all of the above, but that she finished the day with champagne. Nice work if you can get it, 16:B - It is false – it is a different kind of royal seal that the Queen has. However she does apparently own all the dolphins and whales in British waters thanks to a 1324 statute that has never been repealed, 17:B - It was one, in 2012. The London Olympics before that were held in 1948, before the Queen took the throne, 18:C - She was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth

Scores

1. 0 and above.

   We hope you enjoyed the quiz, and also either enjoy the jubilee, or enjoy ignoring it