Merlin Trivia
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47 free Merlin trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Merlin began as a mad Welsh bard, got fused with a boy prophet by Geoffrey of Monmouth, and ended up a warlock hiding his magic as Prince Arthur's servant on Saturday-night BBC One. This Merlin trivia covers both: the medieval legend of the wizard, Nimue and the Lady of the Lake, and the 2008–2012 series with Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath, Anthony Head and John Hurt's Great Dragon. Every answer is sourced, with a short explanation so you learn something even when you miss.
30 of 47 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01On which British channel did Merlin air from 2008 to 2012?
BBC One
Merlin aired on BBC One from 20 September 2008 until its two-part finale, The Diamond of the Day, on 22 and 24 December 2012.
Q 02How many series of the BBC's Merlin were made?
Five
Five series were made, 13 episodes each for 65 in total; series one began in September 2008 and series five ended in December 2012.
Q 03Who played Merlin in the BBC series?
Colin Morgan
The Northern Irish actor later played Leo Elster in Humans and Billy Clanton in Belfast.
Q 04Why must Merlin hide his powers in Camelot?
King Uther executes sorcerers
King Uther executes sorcerers: since his crackdown twenty years earlier, magic is banned in Camelot on pain of death, so Merlin keeps his gift secret.
Q 05What was Uther's crackdown on magic twenty years before the series called?
The Great Purge
The Great Purge was Uther's campaign to eradicate magic from Camelot; he executed sorcerers, banned magic on pain of death and chained the last dragon beneath the castle.
Q 06What is the name of the Great Dragon imprisoned beneath Camelot?
Kilgharrah
Kilgharrah is the Great Dragon chained beneath Camelot for twenty years; Aithusa is the white dragon hatched from the last dragon egg in series four.
Q 07Who voiced the Great Dragon?
John Hurt
John Hurt voiced the Great Dragon; he had earlier voiced Hazel in Watership Down (1978) and Aragorn in Ralph Bakshi's animated The Lord of the Rings.
Q 08Who played Arthur Pendragon?
Bradley James
He later played Damien Thorn in the Omen sequel series Damien.
Q 09Who played Morgana?
Katie McGrath
Katie McGrath played Morgana; she went on to play Lena Luthor in Supergirl and Zara in Jurassic World (2015).
Q 10Morgana is eventually revealed to be whose illegitimate daughter?
Uther's
Uther fathered Morgana with Gorlois's wife Vivienne; he confesses it to Gaius in series three's The Crystal Cave, and her betrayal later leaves him a broken man.
Q 11What is Gwen's job when the series begins?
Morgana's servant
Gwen is Morgana's servant, and the daughter of Tom the blacksmith; Uther later deems her unworthy of Arthur and in series one even sentences her for witchcraft.
Q 12Who played Gaius, the court physician?
Richard Wilson
Richard Wilson played Gaius; he is best known as Victor Meldrew in One Foot in the Grave.
Q 13Which Buffy the Vampire Slayer actor played Uther Pendragon?
Anthony Head
Anthony Head, Buffy's Rupert Giles, played Uther; he was also the prime minister in Little Britain and Rupert Mannion in Ted Lasso.
Q 21Which actor played the knight who began as a commoner and sacrificed himself at the veil?
Santiago Cabrera
Macken played Gwaine, Hopper played Percival and Edun played Gwen's brother Elyan.
Q 22Which two actors played Mordred at different ages?
Asa Butterfield and Alexander Vlahos
Asa Butterfield played Mordred as the druid boy in the early series and Alexander Vlahos the adult knight in series five; the boy Arthur helped free is destined to kill him.
Q 23Who played Morgana's half-sister Morgause?
Emilia Fox
Emilia Fox played Morgause, the high priestess and Morgana's half-sister; Michelle Ryan played the witch Nimueh in series one.
Q 14Who is the traitor uncle who arrives to help Arthur in series four?
Agravaine
Agravaine, played by Nathaniel Parker, is Queen Ygraine's brother; he blames Uther for her death and secretly serves Morgana throughout series four.
Q 15What is Merlin's aged alter ego called?
Dragoon the Great
Dragoon the Great is the old-man disguise Merlin first adopts in series three's Queen of Hearts; the Dolma, an elderly sorceress, is his other disguise in series five.
Q 16By what name do the druids and Morgana know Merlin in prophecy?
Emrys
Emrys is the name the druids and Morgana use for Merlin, whom their prophecies call the greatest sorcerer ever to live; it is the Welsh form of Ambrosius.
Q 17What power does Merlin inherit from his father Balinor?
Command over dragons
Balinor, played by John Lynch, was the last Dragonlord; when he dies in Merlin's arms in The Last Dragonlord, command over dragons passes to his son.
Q 18How does the Great Dragon forge Excalibur in the series?
In his breath
He keeps demanding his freedom in return for his help.
Q 19What is Merlin's home village called?
Ealdor
Ealdor, just across the border in Cenred's kingdom, is Merlin's home village; Arthur travels there to defend it from Kanen's raiders in The Moment of Truth.
Q 20Which knight sacrifices himself to close the veil between worlds?
Lancelot
Lancelot walks into the veil at the Isle of the Blessed in The Darkest Hour; the Cailleach had refused Merlin, saying his time among men was not yet over.
Q 24Which Game of Thrones actor played the Witchfinder Aredian?
Charles Dance
Charles Dance, Game of Thrones' Tywin Lannister, played Aredian in series two's The Witchfinder; Uther summons him after a villager reports seeing magic.
Q 25What curse afflicts the druid girl Freya?
She becomes a winged panther at midnight
Laura Donnelly played the doomed girl, who later appears as the Lady of the Lake.
Q 26Which creature does Morgana implant in Merlin's neck to make him kill Arthur?
Fomorroh
The Fomorroh, a serpent-like creature, is planted in Merlin's neck in series four's A Servant of Two Masters, binding him to Morgana's order to kill Arthur.
Q 27At which battle does the series climax?
Camlann
The series ends at Camlann: in The Diamond of the Day Merlin, restored to full power, hurls lightning at the Saxons and drives off the white dragon Aithusa.
Q 28How does the final episode end?
An immortal Merlin waits in the modern day
He returns Excalibur to the lake, and the scene jumps to the present with Merlin still waiting for Arthur.
Q 29Which French castle served as Camelot for filming?
Pierrefonds
The Château de Pierrefonds in Oise stood in for Camelot; interiors and other locations were filmed in Wales, around Cardiff.
Q 30Which production company made Merlin with BBC Wales?
Shine
Shine Limited made Merlin for BBC Wales, with FremantleMedia handling international sales; Julie Gardner, BBC Wales's head of drama, was executive producer for the BBC.