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Original poster

Pub Quiz question

181 replies

DriveVerySlowlyPastNumber23IWantThemToSeeMyHat · 22/08/2025 22:41

Pub Quiz question: 'How many months have 30 days in?'

What would your answer be?

OP posts:
GiveDogBone · 24/08/2025 19:45

11, it doesn’t say “exactly 30 days”, etc. every month that has 31 days also has 30.

P.S. The 1% club had a very similar question this week with (therefore) a very similar trick.

exaltedwombat · 24/08/2025 18:42

Which answer was disallowed?

Leedsfan247 · 24/08/2025 18:22

11 everyone except February

Chinsupmeloves · 24/08/2025 18:20

Chinsupmeloves · 24/08/2025 18:19

One of the riddles I often use...all.

Oops but with question how many have 28 days.

Chinsupmeloves · 24/08/2025 18:19

One of the riddles I often use...all.

RavenhairedRachel · 24/08/2025 18:09

If the question is worded as How many months have 30 days in them strictly speaking its 11. If its exactly 30 days then its 4

steff13 · 24/08/2025 17:57

MyLimeGuide · 23/08/2025 20:08

Ahh very clever! Well done steff13

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Thanks. It literally just popped into my head. I assume I must have heard it somewhere and it's just been sitting in the dark recesses of my brain, waiting for just such an occasion. 😁

FormidableAnt · 24/08/2025 17:55

Eleven

NoThanksNeeded · 24/08/2025 17:26

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:49

No, I meant it's easily done to miss it if you're singing the song through in your head, and thus not come up with any answer at all initially - not that you would actually think that the lyrics might include the word Bananarama or similar!

Edited... Actually, no, I just re-read what you said and realised I completely misinterpreted what you said.

You are indeed right that you would work backwards and instantly discount all of the artist names that couldn't possibly be used as general words or phrases in songs, so you would only be left with one (or possibly two or three - I haven't looked through the entire artist list for the song, mind!)

Edited
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Ah but if you expect some kind of trick, as thinking was lead by the subject of this thread, then you do as I was which was try to find a hidden name - think Simon Le Bon singing a line like "hear them sigh, Monday comes again" where Sigh Mon(day) is kind of Simon

CrispySquid · 24/08/2025 12:49

11 months have 30 days
4 months have ONLY/SOLEY 30 days

Vaxtable · 24/08/2025 12:47

11

luckylavender · 24/08/2025 12:24

11

SprayWhiteDung · 24/08/2025 12:24

zerofeeling · 24/08/2025 09:46

It's not a trick question at all, the answer iscorrect for the way the question is phrased and it teaches you to think instead of rushing in.

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I agree. I think it's over-simplistic and presumptuous to think that pub quizzes are only ever about purely standard trivia questions and answers.

A lot of them also have elements to make you think carefully and logically and challenge you, as well as entertain you in a humorous way.

It's a similar principle with a lot of TV gameshows - such as the earlier rounds of Tipping Point - where they will use ridiculously easy questions (my favourites were 'Which country does an Australian come from?' and 'If a food is described as being tomatoey, which foodstuff is it being compared to?'); but they often have a time pressure or it's first to the buzzer, as well as the unusual (for an ordinary non-celeb) situation of being in a TV studio with bright lights and an audience, which are often more of the challenge than the actual question itself.

There are often clues carefully inserted into the questions (sometimes obscure, sometimes in plain sight), so part of the challenge is in listening properly before jumping right in. I did once see a question on The Chase where Bradley asked "Which female British singer...?" and the contestant obviously just panicked, seized on 'which singer' and guessed at (I forget exactly, but somebody clearly non-British and non-female like) Elvis!

zerofeeling · 24/08/2025 09:46

PhilosophicalCheeseSandwich · 23/08/2025 16:32

I agree. We quiz a lot and hate stupid trick questions - it's the sign of a lazy host who enjoys winding people up.

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It's not a trick question at all, the answer iscorrect for the way the question is phrased and it teaches you to think instead of rushing in.

MyLimeGuide · 24/08/2025 07:38

PollyBell · 24/08/2025 01:02

How is anyone being wound up and how is it lazy?, is it people's lack of intelligence that people cant get a simple question correct?

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I don't think it's lazy, its a bit like riddles though.... as opposed to trivia?

PollyBell · 24/08/2025 01:02

PhilosophicalCheeseSandwich · 23/08/2025 16:32

I agree. We quiz a lot and hate stupid trick questions - it's the sign of a lazy host who enjoys winding people up.

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How is anyone being wound up and how is it lazy?, is it people's lack of intelligence that people cant get a simple question correct?

JudgeJ · 23/08/2025 23:54

PhilosophicalCheeseSandwich · 23/08/2025 16:32

I agree. We quiz a lot and hate stupid trick questions - it's the sign of a lazy host who enjoys winding people up.

Show quote history

It isn't a trick question, it's perfectly clear!

MasterBeth · 23/08/2025 23:53

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:49

No, I meant it's easily done to miss it if you're singing the song through in your head, and thus not come up with any answer at all initially - not that you would actually think that the lyrics might include the word Bananarama or similar!

Edited... Actually, no, I just re-read what you said and realised I completely misinterpreted what you said.

You are indeed right that you would work backwards and instantly discount all of the artist names that couldn't possibly be used as general words or phrases in songs, so you would only be left with one (or possibly two or three - I haven't looked through the entire artist list for the song, mind!)

Edited
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No, but obviously the quickest way to do it is not to think of all of the words in Do They Know It's Christmas and see if any of the match a pop star, but think of the people who sang on Do They Know It's Christmas and see if any of them have a name that might be in the song.

What 80s pop stars have words as names...

Sting?

Yes.

Easy

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:51

MasterBeth · 23/08/2025 23:47

Billy Connolly

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Yep. Most people (who are old enough to know the song) naturally assume it would have been Tammy Wynette.

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:49

MasterBeth · 23/08/2025 23:46

I mean, it's not easily done because of course no-one's singing "George Michael" or "George O'Dowd" in that song, so of course you're looking for someone with a name that's not a name but a word, and of course it's Sting.

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No, I meant it's easily done to miss it if you're singing the song through in your head, and thus not come up with any answer at all initially - not that you would actually think that the lyrics might include the word Bananarama or similar!

Edited... Actually, no, I just re-read what you said and realised I completely misinterpreted what you said.

You are indeed right that you would work backwards and instantly discount all of the artist names that couldn't possibly be used as general words or phrases in songs, so you would only be left with one (or possibly two or three - I haven't looked through the entire artist list for the song, mind!)

MasterBeth · 23/08/2025 23:47

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:44

Who had a UK number 1 hit with the song 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E ?

Edited

Billy Connolly

MasterBeth · 23/08/2025 23:46

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 16:32

Easily done - it's only one word, which makes it harder than if, say, there'd been Rick Parfitt or Simon Le Bon somewhere in the lyrics!

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I mean, it's not easily done because of course no-one's singing "George Michael" or "George O'Dowd" in that song, so of course you're looking for someone with a name that's not a name but a word, and of course it's Sting.

SprayWhiteDung · 23/08/2025 23:44

Who had a UK number 1 hit with the song 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E ?

MyLimeGuide · 23/08/2025 21:58

Awaiting question 3....

jcyclops · 23/08/2025 20:53

cariadlet · 23/08/2025 19:57

It is Mercury because it zips along more quickly than the other planets so comes (relatively) close to Earth more often.

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Although Venus makes the closest approach to Earth, all planets spend half their time on the far side of the sun, and Mercury, with the smallest orbit is much much closer when on the far side. On average, Mercury is the closest planet to all the other planets.