TV Theme Tunes Quiz: 60 Questions And Answers

Read the question, take the answers on paper, and settle the arguments at the end. Answers are in the last section.

Six rounds of ten. Works for a pub quiz, a family Christmas or a wet playtime.

Round 1: kids' TV

1. Which show's theme begins 'Woof, woof, yappity yap'?
2. Which programme's fire brigade roll call ends with 'Dibble and Grubb'?
3. Which children's series had a theme sung by Ken Barrie, who also voiced the lead?
4. Which show's theme tells you a bear is 'furry and cuddly and full of surprises'?
5. Which dungeon game show opened with a low choral chant and a helmeted contestant?
6. Which show's theme was performed by the group who also voiced the lead character, a bear in a blue costume?
7. Which programme's title music is a musical box melody over a village green?
8. Which show's opening features a sausage on a fork?
9. Which series had the line 'we're the Wombles of Wimbledon Common are we'?
10. Which cartoon theme spells out the hero's name over a sting of trumpets and ends 'he's the greatest'?

Round 2: soaps

• 11. Which soap theme is a brass and cornet piece written by Eric Spear?
• 12. Which soap opens with an aerial shot of the Thames and a drum roll?
• 13. Which Australian soap's theme includes 'everybody needs good neighbours'?
• 14. Which soap's theme is a folk-style instrumental over the Yorkshire dales?
• 15. Which Liverpool soap ran from 1982 to 2003 with an urgent synth theme?
• 16. Which Australian soap is set around a beach and a surf club?
• 17. Which Welsh-set soap ran for decades on S4C?
• 18. Which soap's theme was rearranged and re-recorded but kept the same melody for over sixty years?
• 19. Which soap is set in Chester and started in 1995?
• 20. Which Scottish soap ran on STV and the BBC from 1980?

Round 3: sitcoms and comedy

• 21. Which sitcom theme was sung by John Sullivan, who also wrote the series?
• 22. Which sitcom's theme begins 'Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler'?
• 23. Which sitcom is set in a Devon hotel with an anagram on the sign?
• 24. Which comedy's theme is a harpsichord piece over a period title card, with four different series settings?
• 25. Which sitcom about two Peckham brothers had a closing theme mentioning 'hooky street'?
• 26. Which comedy featured a theme sung over the words 'no income tax, no VAT'?
• 27. Which sitcom's theme tune is whistled?
• 28. Which comedy about three older men in Yorkshire ran from 1973 to 2010?
• 29. Which sitcom set in a department store used a chime and a tannoy voice?
• 30. Which Father Ted theme was an instrumental by the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon?

Round 4: drama and sport

• 31. Which Saturday afternoon BBC sport programme ran from 1958 to 2007 with a theme of the same name?
• 32. Which football highlights programme's theme was written by Barry Stoller?
• 33. Which motorsport coverage used Fleetwood Mac's 'The Chain'?
• 34. Which snooker programme uses 'Drag Racer' by the Doug Wood Band?
• 35. Which cricket coverage used 'Soul Limbo' by Booker T and the MGs?
• 36. Which science fiction series has a theme realised by Delia Derbyshire at the Radiophonic Workshop?
• 37. Which Yorkshire vet drama took its title from a hymn?
• 38. Which crime drama set in Oxford had a theme containing the lead character's name in Morse code?
• 39. Which police series set in a fictional northern town ran from 1962 with a whistled theme?
• 40. Which medical drama has run since 1986 on Saturday nights?

Round 5: the lyrics round

• 41. 'Up above the streets and houses, rainbow climbing high' - which show?
• 42. Which pre-school show asked you to look through the round window?
• 43. 'Dedication, dedication, dedication' - which show?
• 44. 'Here we go, here we go' belongs to which sport?
• 45. Complete: 'The Wombles of...'
• 46. Complete: 'Danger Mouse, he's the...'
• 47. Complete: 'Postman Pat, Postman Pat, Postman Pat and his...'
• 48. Complete: 'Thunderbirds are...'
• 49. Complete: 'Zippy, George and...'
• 50. Complete: 'No income tax, no...'

Round 6: the hard ones

• 51. Who composed the Coronation Street theme?
• 52. Who realised the original Doctor Who theme, and who composed it?
• 53. Which Radiophonic Workshop composer wrote the Blake's 7 theme?
• 54. What instrument gives the Clangers their voices?
• 55. Which band recorded the Magpie theme under a pseudonym?
• 56. Who wrote the music for Camberwick Green, Trumpton and Chigley?
• 57. Who sang the Only Fools and Horses theme?
• 58. Which Ronnie Hazlehurst theme accompanied a sitcom set in a Yorkshire village?
• 59. Who wrote and performed the Wombles' music?
• 60. Which show's theme was written by Mike Post and is often mistaken for a British one?

Answers

• 1 Woof! 2 Trumpton. 3 Postman Pat. 4 SuperTed. 5 Knightmare. 6 Bananaman, voiced by The Goodies. 7 Camberwick Green. 8 Grange Hill. 9 The Wombles. 10 Danger Mouse.
• 11 Coronation Street. 12 EastEnders. 13 Neighbours. 14 Emmerdale. 15 Brookside. 16 Home and Away. 17 Pobol y Cwm. 18 Coronation Street. 19 Hollyoaks. 20 Take the High Road.
• 21 Only Fools and Horses. 22 Dad's Army. 23 Fawlty Towers. 24 Blackadder. 25 Only Fools and Horses. 26 Only Fools and Horses. 27 Steptoe and Son. 28 Last of the Summer Wine. 29 Are You Being Served? 30 Songs of Love.
• 31 Grandstand. 32 Match of the Day. 33 Formula One on the BBC. 34 Pot Black and the snooker coverage. 35 Test cricket on the BBC. 36 Doctor Who. 37 All Creatures Great and Small. 38 Inspector Morse. 39 Z-Cars. 40 Casualty.
• 41 Rainbow. 42 Play School. 43 Record Breakers. 44 Football. 45 Wimbledon Common. 46 Greatest. 47 Black and white cat. 48 Go. 49 Bungle. 50 VAT.
• 51 Eric Spear. 52 Realised by Delia Derbyshire, composed by Ron Grainer. 53 Dudley Simpson. 54 A swanee whistle. 55 The Spencer Davis Group. 56 Freddie Phillips. 57 John Sullivan. 58 Last of the Summer Wine. 59 Mike Batt. 60 The A-Team.

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How to write it so it lands

• Rounds of ten, papers swapped for marking.
• Ten seconds of a clip is more than enough.
• Keep a tiebreaker back - there's always a draw.

Where to shop next

• 70s kids' TV shows
• 80s kids' TV shows
• 90s kids' TV shows
• Saturday morning TV
• After-school TV
• Kids' TV presenters we all remember
• Scariest kids' TV moments
• Christmas TV of the 70s, 80s and 90s
• Bank holiday films that were always on
• Puppets and animation we grew up with
• ITV or BBC childhood
• Adverts we can all still recite
• Test card, Ceefax and the three-channel years
• Soap moments that stopped the country
• Nostalgic quiz questions
• Growing up in the 80s and 90s
• Playground games we all played
• 80s and 90s party ideas
• Free feel good tools
• Shop cards
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Birthday cards for kids
• Funny Father's Day cards
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

Who wrote the Coronation Street theme?

Eric Spear, in 1960. The melody has been re-recorded and rearranged many times but has never been replaced.

Who composed the Doctor Who theme?

Ron Grainer composed it and Delia Derbyshire realised it at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1963, building the sound from tape loops and test oscillators rather than instruments.

Who sang the Only Fools and Horses theme?

John Sullivan, the writer of the series, sang both the opening and closing themes himself.

How do you run a theme tune quiz?

Read the questions in rounds of ten, take answers on paper, swap papers to mark, and keep a tiebreaker in reserve. If you can play clips, ten seconds each is plenty.

Do you sell DVDs or TV merchandise?

No - we make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. This is written for the pleasure of remembering it, and the only products on this page are our own cards.