The Great Reveal: 2025 Xmas Quiz Answers
Well, here it is—the moment of truth! My quiz to end the year and my 91st blog article went out although I would have loved seeing more guesses land in my inbox at tvincent481@gmail.com; it’s been a wonderful trip down memory lane for me.
I promised a balance between challenge and cheer, and now it’s time to see who was a Faithful student of history and who let a Traitorous memory lead them astray.
Scroll down to uncover the truth behind the legends, the lyrics, and those elusive "missing" verses. I wonder if anyone spotted the summer / Christmas mystery, and how old do you think Keira is now or did the nightingale lead you into a trap - the floor is yours!
Christmas Films
1. In The Nightmare Before Christmas, what is the name of the town where Jack Skellington lives? The Answer: Halloweentown )
- Which actor plays the dual roles of the narrator, the conductor, and Santa Claus in the film The Polar Express? The Answer: Tom Hanks)
3.Which actress, famous for playing a princess, stars as the cynical journalist Kate in the 2006 film The Holiday? ("In the world of the faithful, appearances can be deceiving. Which 2006 festive film connects a 'Kate' in a princess role with a 'Calvin'—the same name as the boy who first encountered the man known as Scott Calvin (the Santa Clause)?
Here is the truth behind the deception - if you asked a question or thought something was wrong on this question - you are not banished - yet!
- The Connection: In the 1995 Disney film A Kid in King Arthur's Court, the protagonist is a boy named Calvin Fuller. (This is the "Calvin" link to Scott Calvin/Santa Clause).
- The Princess: Starring alongside him in that film was a young Kate Winslet, who played Princess Sarah in the court of King Arthur.
- The Holiday: Fast forward to 2006, and that same actress—Kate Winslet—stars as the cynical, heartbroken journalist Iris Simpkins in the Christmas classic The Holiday.
The Answer: Kate Winslet
If you identified the actress, famous for a certain 'regal' beginning, who stars as the cynical journalist in this film - without thinking then be careful... a Traitor would know that the answer is hidden in plain sight within the name 'Kate' itself."
4.What type of transportation does Kevin McCallister's family take to Paris in Home Alone? (The Answer: An Aeroplane)
5.In the film Elf, what is the first rule of the Code of the Elves? (The Answer: "Treat every day like Christmas").
Christmas Adverts (all this year - have you seen them I wonder)
What are these slogans or descriptive texts advertising ?
a) "I'm Keira - I'm Keira - I mean I'm Phil"?
The Answer: Waitrose
b) Three elderly women decide to sledge down a large ski slope?
The Answer: Amazon
c) In which some crazy dancing goes on to a 1992 hit called Rhythm is a Dancer by Snap?
The Answer: John Lewis
d) Where a big wedding is celebrated after a very long (10 year engagement)?
The Answer: Kevin the Carrot officially gets married in the 2025 Aldi Christmas advert finale, which aired on November 27, 2025.
He marries his long-time partner, Katie the Carrot.
e) What is being advertised in the picture below
The Answer: Tickets to the Cinema courtesy of being a Sky Movies subscriber - "Son of nutcracker"
Christmas Songs
What's the song and the artist(s) from the clues...
- Song 1: Release 2007 by an artist won the UK version of The X Factor in 2006 with a lyrical line "I don't need expensive things... I just need one thing..."?
The Answer: Leona Lewis - who won the X factor in 2006 "One More Sleep" is the title of the sone which has since become a modern Christmas classic in the UK. The "one thing" she refers to in the lyrics is the arrival of her partner for the holidays, counting down the days until they are reunited.
2.Song 2: Lyric asking Winston Churchill, to come and look at me?
The Answer: This is a bit traitorous, In "Stop the Cavalry," Jona Lewie actually creates a character he calls the "Eternal Soldier." Although the music video is clearly set in the First World War (1914–1918), the lyrics are a mash-up of different wars throughout history to show that the soldier's struggle never changes. A true faithful would spot the detail but get the answer.
Here is how Churchill fits in ....
(but also see the traitorous poem a the end of this blog)
The Historical "Error": You are right—if you said "Stop the Cavalry" by Jona Lewie but Winston Churchill was the Prime Minister during the Second World War. In the First World War (the one with the trenches in the video), he wasn't the leader of the country.
The "Eternal" Soldier: Jona Lewie intentionally mixed eras. In one verse, he mentions Winston Churchill; in another, he mentions the Tsar (Russian Revolution era); and in the next, he mentions a "nuclear fallout zone" (Cold War era).
The Soldier's Frustration: The line "Mr. Churchill comes over here to say we're doing splendidly" is the soldier's way of complaining about any leader who visits the front line to give a "pep talk" while the soldiers are actually freezing and dying.
3.How many miles is "very far" for Chrissie Hynde?
The Answer: 2000 (Its very far!)
4.Pa rum pum pum pum might be a song by Ziggy and Bingy?
The Answer: The Little Drummer Boy (Peace on Earth) - Ziggy Stardust is David Bowies created alter ego whilst Bing Crosby is never called Bingy!
5."We found some hoof prints on her forehead......She'd been drinkin' too much egg nog..." - Name the song?
The Answer: Grandma got run over by a reindeer
Christmas History
1.Which historical figure is widely credited with bringing the tradition of the Christmas Tree into mainstream British tradition ?
- A) Prince Albert (This Answer: is True)
- B) King George III
- C) Charles Dickens
- D) Oliver Cromwell
- Question: During the 1640s, the Puritan-led Parliament, under Oliver Cromwell, officially banned Christmas celebrations, declaring them unlawful. If a citizen chose to secretly hold a festive feast and attend a hidden Christmas service, were they acting as a Faithful subject to the State's new law, or a Traitor to the new order by upholding the banned traditions?
- In Common - three of these people have a thing they achieved in common - who is a traitor? The Answer: Leona Lewis has not won SPOTY
- Can you solve these Christmas dingbats of Films
- All these pictorial represent songs by artists who have had no.1 hits but which is the traitor ?
Film Stills
Name the films
Final Traitor or Faithful Questions - Play True or False!
- True or False: The classic song "White Christmas," made famous by Bing Crosby, first appeared in the film Miracle on 34th Street. (The Answer is False: It debuted in the 1942 film Holiday Inn, where it actually won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. It was so popular that they eventually built the 1954 film White Christmas around it.it was Holiday Inn then White Christmas)
- True or False: Judy Garland first introduced the song "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" in the 1944 musical film Meet Me in St. Louis, with lyrics that went ""Have yourself a merry little Christmas, it may be your last. Next year we may all be living in the past." but were the lyrics she sang changed to make it a better Christmas song that we know today? (The Answer is True -This is a fascinating bit of history. The original lyrics were even darker than the ones quoted—they included lines like, "Have yourself a merry little Christmas / It may be your last / Next year we may all be living in the past / No good times like the olden days / Happy golden days of yore / Faithful friends who were dear to us / Will be near to us no more." Judy Garland famously refused to sing them, saying she’d look like a monster singing that to a crying child (Margaret O'Brien), so the songwriter, Hugh Martin, reluctantly changed them.)
- True or False: Home Alone director Chris Columbus confirmed that the bearded man arguing with Kate McCallister at the Scranton airport is an uncredited cameo by Elvis Presley. (The Answer is False -This is one of the most persistent urban legends in cinema. Fans of the theory point to a bearded man standing behind Catherine O’Hara as a "living" Elvis. However, director Chris Columbus has joked that if Elvis were alive, he probably wouldn't have spent his time as an uncredited extra in a suburban comedy.)
- True or False: When Scott Calvin first tries to call the North Pole, the phone number he dials is 1-800-SANTA.(The Answer is False -this answer has a bit of a "notorious" history. In the original theatrical release, the number mentioned was 1-800-SPANK-ME. Disney later had to edit the line out of home media and TV airings because children were actually calling the number and reaching a phone sex line.)
- True or False: Keira Knightley (who plays Juliet) was the oldest member of the main cast at the time of filming Love Actually. (The Answer is False -This is always the most shocking "fact" from that movie. Keira Knightley was indeed 18 when the film was released (17 during filming). The Boyfriend/Husband (Peter): Chiwetel Ejiofor was 26 years old during filming. This created an 8 or 9-year age gap between the "newlyweds." The Guy with the Cue Cards (Mark): Andrew Lincoln was 29 years old during filming (he turned 30 shortly before the movie was released). This means there was a 12-year age gap between him and Keira. For perspective, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, who played the little boy Sam, was 13 at the time—there was only a five-year age gap between them! Interestingly enough - Joe Wilkinson in the Waitrose advert is 50 years of age - maybe she like older men - there may be a chance for me ?
Hope you enjoyed the Quiz and perhaps learned something too - next time you watch those films or listen to some songs or eat some cheese bought from your local Waitrose!
A Traitorous Poem - Christmas Songs Q2
-Here are the full lyrics to "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square," including the elusive "Lost Bridge" that most modern recordings omit. (But did Jona Lewie rip it off for his 'Stop the Cavalry' song?)
A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square
Lyrics by Eric Maschwitz | Music by Manning Sherwin (1939)
In Mayfair’s streets where legends dwell, And winter yields to spring’s bright spell, Two lovers met as shadows fell, To weave a story none could tell.
The night was thick with magic air, With angels at the Ritz’s stair, While sweet and soft, beyond compare, A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square.
I may be right, I may be wrong, But I would swear my whole life long, That when you smiled, the world was song, And that lone bird sang loud and strong.
The moon looked down on London town, And wore a puzzled, silver frown, For how could he, in starry crown, Know love had turned us upside down?
The very streets were paved in light, A starry, strange, romantic sight, And as we kissed to say goodnight, The nightingale sang through the night.
I’m asking Winston Churchill now To come and look at me, to stop and bow, To view the joy upon my brow, As though a masterpiece, somehow.
Displayed within the Gallery’s hall, The greatest treasure of them all; How sweet the dream that held us thrall, Beneath that bird’s enchanted call.
Our homeward steps were light and rare, As tap-dance feet of Fred Astaire, While like an echo on the air, The nightingale sang in Berkeley Square.
I know the truth, for I was there, That night in Berkeley Square.
