Q 01/05

Which Oasis B-side to 'Whatever', sung by Noel Gallagher, is The Royle Family's theme tune?

A) Don't Look Back in Anger

B) Half the World Away

C) The Masterplan

D) Talk Tonight

Answer · why

B) Half the World Away

Half the World Away was written and sung by Noel Gallagher, who admits it sounds 'exactly the same' as a Burt Bacharach tune and is surprised he has n...

Q 02/05

Which actor plays Jim Royle, having been jailed in 1973 as one of the picketing builders called the Shrewsbury Two?

A) Bernard Hill

B) Pete Postlethwaite

C) Ricky Tomlinson

D) Tom Georgeson

Answer · why

C) Ricky Tomlinson

Ricky Tomlinson was a plasterer sentenced to two years for conspiracy to intimidate after the 1972 builders' strike; the Court of Appeal quashed the c...

Q 03/05

Which two-word catchphrase punctuates Jim Royle's outbursts from his armchair in The Royle Family?

A) Sod off!

B) My arse!

C) Not likely!

D) Shut it!

Answer · why

B) My arse!

'My arse!' greets most of what the telly offers; Jim is written as a misanthropic, cynical slob who spends his days in the armchair doing as close to ...

Q 04/05

Which 2006 special, The Royle Family's first new episode in six years, sees Nana die after moving in with the Royles?

A) The New Sofa

B) The Golden Egg Cup

C) Joe's Crackers

D) The Queen of Sheba

Answer · why

D) The Queen of Sheba

The Queen of Sheba also sees Denise name her newborn daughter Norma after Nana, and the performance won Nana's actress a British Comedy Award at the a...

Q 05/05

Which British sitcom staple did The Royle Family do without in 1998, when it was shot on film with one camera?

A) A laugh track

B) A catchphrase

C) A studio set

D) A theme tune

Answer · why

A) A laugh track

A laugh track was standard for British sitcoms of the time, but The Royle Family was filmed with no studio audience, and most episodes seem to unfold ...