The ultimate Christmas quiz: 50 festive questions for you!

Christmas gatherings need activities. After the meal, before the afternoon film, there's a window where everyone's together and vaguely alert. That's quiz time.

I've run Christmas quizzes for family groups ranging from 5 to 35 people, and the key is variety. You need questions that Uncle Brian can answer, that the kids feel included in, and that stop your competitive cousin from completely dominating.

Here are 40 questions that cover the festive spectrum, from extremely easy to impressively obscure.

Easy Round

Perfect for warming up or getting the younger participants involved.

Q1: What colour is Rudolph's nose?

Ans: Red

Q2: Who lives at the North Pole and delivers presents?

Ans: Santa Claus (also accept Father Christmas)

Q3: What do you traditionally put on top of a Christmas tree?

Ans: A star or angel

Q4: Complete the film title: Home __

Ans: Alone

Q5: How many reindeer pull Santa's sleigh, not including Rudolph?

Ans: Eight

Q6: What date is Christmas Day?

Ans: December 25th

Q7: What colour are mistletoe berries?

Ans: White

Q8: In the song, what did my true love give to me on the first day of Christmas?

Ans: A partridge in a pear tree

Christmas Films Round

Films are great equalisers. Different generations know different movies.

Q9: In which film does a young boy set booby traps for two burglars?

Ans: Home Alone

Q10: Which actor plays the Grinch in the 2000 live-action film?

Ans: Jim Carrey

Q11: In Love Actually, what is the occupation of the character played by Hugh Grant?

Ans: Prime Minister

Q12: What Christmas film features the song "Walking in the Air"?

Ans: The Snowman

Q13: In Elf, what is Buddy's favourite food group?

Ans: Candy (also accept sugar)

Q14: Which Dickens character says "Bah, humbug!"?

Ans: Ebenezer Scrooge

Q15: In Die Hard, what building do the terrorists take over?

Ans: Nakatomi Plaza

Q16: In the film Miracle on 34th Street, which department store does Kris Kringle work for?

Ans: Macy's

Yes, Die Hard is a Christmas film. It takes place at Christmas and that's good enough for quiz purposes.

Christmas Music Round

Play clips if you have the equipment, or just read out the questions.

Q17: Which singer had a 1994 hit with "All I Want for Christmas Is You"?

Ans: Mariah Carey

Q18: "Last Christmas" was a hit for which 80s duo?

Ans: Wham!

Q19: Who originally sang "White Christmas"?

Ans: Bing Crosby

Q20: Which band sang "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday"?

Ans: Wizzard

Q21: In "The Twelve Days of Christmas," what gift appears on the seventh day?

Ans: Seven swans a-swimming

Q22: Who duetted with Bing Crosby on "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" in 1977?

Ans: David Bowie

Q23: What was the Christmas number one in the UK in 1984?

Ans: Do They Know It's Christmas? by Band Aid

Q24: Complete the song title: "Fairytale of ___"

Ans: New York (by The Pogues)

Christmas Traditions and History Round

Where the general knowledge types can shine.

Q25: In which country did the tradition of Christmas trees originate?

Ans: Germany

Q26: What is the name of the period leading up to Christmas Day?

Ans: Advent

Q27: What is frankincense?

Ans: A fragrant resin used as incense

Q28: In the Christmas nativity story, what gifts did the three wise men bring?

Ans: Gold, frankincense, and myrrh

Q29: What is the traditional Christmas Day meal in Japan?

Ans: KFC / fried chicken

This one always surprises people. KFC Japan's Christmas tradition started in the 1970s and is now a genuine cultural phenomenon.

Q30: How many ghosts visit Scrooge in A Christmas Carol?

Ans: Four (Marley plus Past, Present, and Future)

Q31: What is Stollen?

Ans: A German fruit bread traditionally eaten at Christmas

Q32: Which country donates the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree to Britain each year?

Ans: Norway

Tricky Christmas Questions

For when you need to separate the contenders from the pretenders.

Q33: In the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas," what were hung by the chimney with care?

Ans: Stockings

Q34: What is the name of Scrooge's deceased business partner?

Ans: Jacob Marley

Q35: The poinsettia plant is native to which country?

Ans: Mexico

Q36: What year was the first Christmas card sent?

Ans: 1843

Q37: In the song "Winter Wonderland," what is the name given to the snowman?

Ans: Parson Brown

Q38: What was the highest-grossing Christmas film of all time at the box office?

Ans: The Grinch (2018 animated version)

Q39: What is the chemical symbol for gold, one of the gifts from the Magi?

Ans: Au

Q40: In the Christmas song, how many geese were a-laying?

Ans: Six

Running Your Christmas Quiz

A few tips from running these for years:

Split people into teams carefully. Mix up the generations so each team has a range of ages. Avoid all the competitive types ending up together.

Adjust the length to your audience. For a family gathering, 20-30 questions is plenty. You don't need all 40.

Have a few spare questions. Ties happen. A sudden-death tiebreaker saves arguments about who really won.

Keep the prizes small but fun. Nobody should feel bad about losing, and winning shouldn't feel like too big a deal. Novelty chocolate and bragging rights work well.