50 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 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01On which channel did the BBC series Merlin air from 2008 to 2012?
BBC One
It ran for five series, ending with a two-part Christmas finale on 24 December 2012.
Q 02How many series of the BBC's Merlin were made?
Five
Broadcasting rights were sold to more than 180 countries.
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
Uther's crackdown twenty years earlier was known as the Great Purge.
Q 05What was Uther's crackdown on magic twenty years before the series called?
The Great Purge
He also imprisoned the last dragon in the caves beneath the castle.
Q 06What is the name of the Great Dragon imprisoned beneath Camelot?
Kilgharrah
John Hurt voiced him; Aithusa is the white dragon hatched later in the series.
Q 07Who voiced the Great Dragon?
John Hurt
Hurt had earlier voiced Hazel in Watership Down and Aragorn in the 1978 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
She went on to play Lena Luthor in Supergirl and Zara in Jurassic World.
Q 10Morgana is eventually revealed to be whose illegitimate daughter?
Uther's
Her betrayal leaves the king a broken man.
Q 11What is Gwen's job when the series begins?
Morgana's servant
Uther considers her unworthy of Arthur and even accuses her of witchcraft.
Q 12Who played Gaius, the court physician?
Richard Wilson
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
He was also the prime minister in Little Britain and Rupert Mannion in Ted Lasso.
Q 14Who is the traitor uncle who arrives to help Arthur in series four?
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
The druid boy Arthur once helped to free is destined to kill him.
Q 23Who played Morgana's half-sister Morgause?
Emilia Fox
Michelle Ryan played the witch Nimueh in series one.
Agravaine
Nathaniel Parker's character blames Uther for the death of his sister, Queen Igraine.
Q 15What is Merlin's aged alter ego called?
Dragoon the Great
The Dolma is his other disguise, an elderly sorceress guarding a lake.
Q 16By what name do the druids and Morgana know Merlin in prophecy?
Emrys
In Welsh tradition Emrys is the name Geoffrey of Monmouth fused with Myrddin to create the legendary Merlin.
Q 17What power does Merlin inherit from his father Balinor?
Command over dragons
John Lynch played the last Dragonlord, who dies in Merlin's arms.
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
Arthur travels there to defend it from raiders in "The Moment of Truth".
Q 20Which knight sacrifices himself to close the veil between worlds?
Lancelot
The Cailleach refused Merlin, declaring his time among men was not yet over.
Q 24Which Game of Thrones actor played the Witchfinder Aredian?
Charles Dance
Uther hires the feared sorcerer hunter after someone reports seeing magic in Camelot.
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 26What is the name of Mordred's sword that mortally wounds Arthur?
Clemant
A shard of the blade stays lodged in Arthur, so Merlin races to take him to Avalon.
Q 27At which battle does the series climax?
Camlann
Merlin is at his most powerful there, scattering Saxons and driving off the white dragon.
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
Filming split between the Oise castle and locations in Wales near Cardiff.
Q 30Which French ruler bought the castle used as Camelot in 1810 for under 3,000 francs?
Napoleon I
It was then a romantic ruin; the castle was rebuilt later in the century.