The Man Who Never Was

Today’s questions are related to the date, April 29th..

One

In a 1943 British deception plan, a corpse was given the identity of ‘Major William Martin’. The idea for the above operation, which was partly inspired by a plot device in a 1939 novel by Basil Thomson, The …’s Hat Mystery, had first been suggested in a memo.

1. What was the codename of this operation?
2. What word for a hat maker is missing from the book’s title? 
3. A future spy novelist—later the creator of a fictional spy which spawned a massive media franchise—worked in British Naval Intelligence during the war where he circulated the memo outlining the above deception tactics. Who was he?

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Two

In 2011, Prince William married his longtime girlfriend, Catherine, whom he had met at university. 

1. What is Catherine’s maiden name?
2. At what university did they meet?
3. In what church did they marry?

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Three

In 2004, after 107 years of vehicle production, the final … was built in Lansing, Michigan. What make of vehicle is missing from the previous sentence?

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Four

On this day in 2018, a U.S. TV series became the longest-running scripted prime-time show, overtaking a Western that had aired from 1955 to 1975. Name both these shows.

Answer: The Simpsons; Gunsmoke.

The record-breaking episode was the show’s 636th, surpassing Gunsmoke’s long-standing total.

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Five

Also on this day, in 1770, which British explorer made his first recorded landing on the east coast of Australia, at Botany Bay?

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Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

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