Which British novelist wrote 'The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'?
Answer
Henry Fielding
80 British Literature Trivia Questions with Answers
80 public questions with answers, drawn from the well. How many can you answer?
British Literature trivia spans major novels, authors, pseudonyms, characters, settings, and publishing history from the eighteenth century through the modern era. Questions may ask you to identify the writer of a classic novel, recognize an author’s pen name, or remember the original title of a celebrated work.
This category includes Henry Fielding’s The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, the opening setting of H.G. Wells’s The War of the Worlds, Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, and Jane Austen’s original title for Pride and Prejudice. With 80 questions, it suits a serious pub quiz, a classroom review, a literature club, or a game night where players enjoy both famous books and less obvious literary facts.
Which pseudonym did Emily Brontë use for 'Wuthering Heights'?
Answer
Ellis Bell
What was the original title of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice'?
Answer
First Impressions
Which Brontë sister wrote the novel 'Jane Eyre'?
Answer
Charlotte Brontë
What was the real name of the author George Eliot?
Answer
Mary Ann Evans
Which British diarist chronicled the Great Fire of London in 1666?
Answer
Samuel Pepys
Which British author used the pseudonym 'Mary Westmacott'?
Answer
Agatha Christie
Which British poet wrote the collection 'The Whitsun Weddings'?
Answer
Philip Larkin
Which British novelist wrote 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'?
Answer
Muriel Spark
In which Shakespeare play does the character Shylock appear?
Answer
The Merchant of Venice
Which British children's author created the character Winnie-the-Pooh?
Answer
A.A. Milne
Which novel by George Orwell depicts a totalitarian future where Big Brother watches?
Answer
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Which British novelist wrote 'Great Expectations'?
Answer
Charles Dickens
Which British author wrote the sensation novel 'The Woman in White'?
Answer
Wilkie Collins
Which British poet wrote the allegorical epic 'The Faerie Queene'?
Answer
Edmund Spenser
What is the name of the fictional detective in the novels of G.K. Chesterton?
Answer
Father Brown
Which British poet and playwright is known for 'The Waste Land'?
Answer
T.S. Eliot
Which British novelist wrote 'Treasure Island'?
Answer
Robert Louis Stevenson
Which British children's author wrote 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit'?
Answer
Beatrix Potter
What is the name of the detective created by Dorothy L. Sayers?
Answer
Lord Peter Wimsey
Which British poet is considered the first to be buried in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey?
Answer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Which British author wrote the longest English novel, 'Clarissa'?
Answer
Samuel Richardson
Which British author wrote the Gothic novel 'The Castle of Otranto'?
Answer
Horace Walpole
Which British poet wrote the epic 'Paradise Lost'?
Answer
John Milton
Which British author wrote 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'?
Answer
Lewis Carroll
Which British novelist wrote 'The Railway Children'?
Answer
E. Nesbit
Which British poet wrote 'The Charge of the Light Brigade'?
Answer
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Which British author wrote 'The Chronicles of Narnia' series?
Answer
C.S. Lewis
Which British author wrote the novel 'Midnight's Children'?
Answer
Salman Rushdie
In Shakespeare's 'Macbeth', what is Macbeth's title at the start of the play?
Answer
Thane of Glamis
Which British poet wrote the line 'To be, or not to be'?
Answer
William Shakespeare
Which British novelist wrote 'The Moonstone', considered the first detective novel?
Answer
Wilkie Collins
Which British children's author created Matilda Wormwood?
Answer
Roald Dahl
What is the name of Mr. Darcy's estate in 'Pride and Prejudice'?
Answer
Pemberley
Which novel by Virginia Woolf takes place in a single day?
Answer
Mrs Dalloway
British Literature trivia — quick answers
What are good British Literature trivia questions?
Good British Literature trivia questions ask about authors, novels, pseudonyms, settings, titles, characters, and literary movements. Examples include identifying the Brontë sister who wrote Jane Eyre, naming George Eliot’s real name, and recalling Austen’s original title for Pride and Prejudice.
How hard is British Literature trivia?
British Literature trivia is usually moderate to difficult. Famous novels and authors provide accessible questions, but pen names, first titles, publication history, and specific settings require wider reading or strong familiarity with literary history.
Who wrote The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling?
The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling was written by Henry Fielding, an English novelist and playwright. Published in 1749, the comic novel follows the foundling Tom Jones through romance, mistaken identity, social conflict, and adventure. It is often regarded as one of the important early English novels.
What was the original title of Pride and Prejudice?
Jane Austen originally titled Pride and Prejudice First Impressions. She wrote the early version in the 1790s, but the novel was revised before publication under its better-known title in 1813. The final name emphasizes the mistaken judgments and personal growth at the center of Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy’s relationship.
What was George Eliot’s real name?
George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, also known as Marian Evans. She used a male pseudonym in part to ensure that her serious fiction would be judged on its literary merits rather than dismissed as conventional women’s writing. Her major novels include Middlemarch and Silas Marner.
Which Brontë sister wrote Jane Eyre?
Charlotte Brontë wrote Jane Eyre, which was published in 1847 under the pseudonym Currer Bell. The novel follows Jane’s development from an unhappy childhood to an independent adult life and combines romance, social criticism, and Gothic elements. Charlotte’s sisters Emily and Anne were also important Victorian novelists.