The King William’s College General Knowledge Paper (GKP) has been frustrating and intriguing a select group of quiz connoisseurs since 1904. The paper consists of 18 sets of 10 questions, each set covering a particular theme, which in many cases is far from obvious. Cracking the theme has long been one of the attractions to devotees of the GKP.
These days, however, pupil participation in the quiz is voluntary.
The quiz has been published in The Guardian Newspaper just before Christmas since 1951 and has quite a devoted following. Answers are published in the same newspaper towards the end of January.
A Latin phrase is always printed at the top of the quiz: “Scire ubi aliquid invenire possis ea demum maxima pars eruditionis est”. Freely translated, this means ‘The greatest part of knowledge is knowing where to find something’. However, be warned – using Google or a similar search engine may not always deliver the expected results!
Since 1997, the person responsible for compiling the questions is Dr Pat Cullen, a retired General Practitioner and OKW, residing in the Isle of Man. Dr Cullen has produced a compendium of past papers entitled ‘The World’s Most Difficult Quiz’, which is available from local bookshops and online from Amazon.co.uk.
The 2023-24 paper can be accessed HERE.
The 2023-24 answers can be accessed HERE.
Please return your answers to the Principal’s Office by Monday 15th January 2024. The answers will be posted at the end of January.
Previous Papers:
