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Quite Interesting Facts #5
1,342 QI Facts To Leave You Flabbergasted
“Trivia buffs and know-it-alls alike will exult to find so much repeatable wisdom gathered in one place.”― New York Times
This book is bursting with mindboggling morsels of trivia - informative, hilarious, sometimes arcane or utterly useless, but always entertaining. Every fact in this magnificent little volume has been researched with punctilious care in order to bring you the truth in its purest form.
This book is bursting with mindboggling morsels of trivia - informative, hilarious, sometimes arcane or utterly useless, but always entertaining. Every fact in this magnificent little volume has been researched with punctilious care in order to bring you the truth in its purest form.
356 pages, Hardcover
Published September 25, 2018
51 people are currently reading
243 people want to read
About the author
John Lloyd
227 books139 followersJohn Hardress Wilfred Lloyd is an English television and radio comedy producer and writer. His television work includes Not the Nine O'Clock News, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Spitting Image, Blackadder and QI. He is currently the presenter of BBC Radio 4's The Museum of Curiosity.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
November 15, 2016
I have watched all the episodes of QI hosted by Stephen Fry and the new ones hosted by Sandi Toksvig so I just had to get this book.
Some of the facts I already knew. Most of the facts I did not know. Some of the facts made me smile. Several of the facts disgusted me. All this book makes a fantastic read.
At the beginning of the book there is an online link to any of the facts in case you doubt them or just want to find out more.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Faber & Faber and the authors John Lloyd, John Mitchinson, James Harkin and Anne Miller for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Some of the facts I already knew. Most of the facts I did not know. Some of the facts made me smile. Several of the facts disgusted me. All this book makes a fantastic read.
At the beginning of the book there is an online link to any of the facts in case you doubt them or just want to find out more.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Faber & Faber and the authors John Lloyd, John Mitchinson, James Harkin and Anne Miller for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
December 4, 2020
Becomes addictive. I loved reading it
Very versatile with the facts.
I'm sure even the know it all I've bought it for will find it fascinating
Very versatile with the facts.
I'm sure even the know it all I've bought it for will find it fascinating
January 30, 2019
I would like to thank Netgalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
I found some facts interesting, some I already knew and the others boring.
·152 pages read
·5/7 books read
·A blue book
= 157 house points
#HHCup #SHHCup
I found some facts interesting, some I already knew and the others boring.
·152 pages read
·5/7 books read
·A blue book
= 157 house points
#HHCup #SHHCup
June 18, 2018
Love the new "check the source" website, but a couple of the sources were not really the best quality, but only a few. I just love all of QI so much.
March 15, 2019
Funny facts that you definitely don't need to know, but are funny to read about.
December 19, 2020
Love, love love these books!
January 13, 2021
Bought for me many moons ago by my partner FOR TWO CONVERGING REASONS. Here are the facts:
I like QI and most things related to QI
We used to own a beautiful rat called Flabbergast
Right, facts over - time for OPINION. It's relatively difficult to generate too specific an opinion for a book of sentence-long facts but I've managed one, and that opinion is that this book taught me that I definitely find reading the "article" rather than the headline a more rewarding experience. As much as "the beehive hairdo was invented to fit under the fez" is interesting, to go further requires research on your own part. If you yell it at a dinner party, without any supporting information, you wouldn't labelled an interesting person YOU'D BE LABELLED A FOOL. Plus there are restrictions now, why are you having a dinner party you monster? Where was I, oh my opinion yes. So yes, I did buzz through this rather quickly, and found some fascinating nuggets to follow-up on but when things that are indisputably true such as "Beer was illegal in Iceland until 1989" next to changeable things or abstract pointless things like "if all the spiders in the world were lined up end-to-end they'd reach the biggest co-op on Jupiter" (this is not a real example) it all feels rather flimsy.
A book to whet the appetite of the mind but you'd get more out of just following QI on Twitter (and you'd be nearer a search engine to follow the fact up to boot). Worth keeping because of the indisputable and unGoogleable fact that my wonderful one drew me a doodle of our beautiful rat on the inside.
I like QI and most things related to QI
We used to own a beautiful rat called Flabbergast
Right, facts over - time for OPINION. It's relatively difficult to generate too specific an opinion for a book of sentence-long facts but I've managed one, and that opinion is that this book taught me that I definitely find reading the "article" rather than the headline a more rewarding experience. As much as "the beehive hairdo was invented to fit under the fez" is interesting, to go further requires research on your own part. If you yell it at a dinner party, without any supporting information, you wouldn't labelled an interesting person YOU'D BE LABELLED A FOOL. Plus there are restrictions now, why are you having a dinner party you monster? Where was I, oh my opinion yes. So yes, I did buzz through this rather quickly, and found some fascinating nuggets to follow-up on but when things that are indisputably true such as "Beer was illegal in Iceland until 1989" next to changeable things or abstract pointless things like "if all the spiders in the world were lined up end-to-end they'd reach the biggest co-op on Jupiter" (this is not a real example) it all feels rather flimsy.
A book to whet the appetite of the mind but you'd get more out of just following QI on Twitter (and you'd be nearer a search engine to follow the fact up to boot). Worth keeping because of the indisputable and unGoogleable fact that my wonderful one drew me a doodle of our beautiful rat on the inside.
November 16, 2016
I have a soft spot for QI and all that comes with it (though I must admit, I'm still mourning the loss of Stephen Fry). As always with books like this, I shall compose my review of ten facts which I found very interesting indeed, and hope you do too.
1. A 'batman' was a unit of weight in the Ottoman Empire.
2. Making all the chain mail for The Lord of the Rings wore the costume designers' fingerprints away.
3. The inventors of silly-string were trying to make a spray-on cast for broken bones.
4. The Queen owns a drive-thru McDonald's in Slough.
5. The Dalai Lama is frightened of caterpillars.
6. A can of Coke uses ingredients from all seven continents except Antarctica.
7. In 1841, Robert Browning used the word 'twat' in his poem 'Pippa Passes'.
8. Quidditch, digestive biscuits, and overdrafts were all invented in Edinburgh.
9. In 1547, men with moustaches were banned from Dublin.
10. In 1996, two neighbours in Devon spent a year hooting at owls, unaware they were actually hooting at each other.
Go on, you've got this far; have a bonus five facts. (Yes, I found it difficult to choose. Don't judge me.)
11. Siberian Christmas trees get so cold they can turn into glass.
12. Japanese railways have underpasses for turtles.
13. Men called Nigel are twice as likely to vote for UKIP.
14. As a small boy, Roald Dahl made a pilgrimage to see Beatrix Potter. When he got there, all she said was: 'Well, you've seen her. Now, buzz off!'
15. In the Middle Ages, bras were called 'breastbags'.
You're welcome.
1. A 'batman' was a unit of weight in the Ottoman Empire.
2. Making all the chain mail for The Lord of the Rings wore the costume designers' fingerprints away.
3. The inventors of silly-string were trying to make a spray-on cast for broken bones.
4. The Queen owns a drive-thru McDonald's in Slough.
5. The Dalai Lama is frightened of caterpillars.
6. A can of Coke uses ingredients from all seven continents except Antarctica.
7. In 1841, Robert Browning used the word 'twat' in his poem 'Pippa Passes'.
8. Quidditch, digestive biscuits, and overdrafts were all invented in Edinburgh.
9. In 1547, men with moustaches were banned from Dublin.
10. In 1996, two neighbours in Devon spent a year hooting at owls, unaware they were actually hooting at each other.
Go on, you've got this far; have a bonus five facts. (Yes, I found it difficult to choose. Don't judge me.)
11. Siberian Christmas trees get so cold they can turn into glass.
12. Japanese railways have underpasses for turtles.
13. Men called Nigel are twice as likely to vote for UKIP.
14. As a small boy, Roald Dahl made a pilgrimage to see Beatrix Potter. When he got there, all she said was: 'Well, you've seen her. Now, buzz off!'
15. In the Middle Ages, bras were called 'breastbags'.
You're welcome.
November 16, 2016
I love the TV show QI, so this book was a must-have when it popped up on Netgalley. Not surprisingly, I think I bookmarked every page because every fact is an absolute gem. Each one segues into the next along a similar vein, and all are backed up with the source and additional facts available at the book’s website: qi.com/1342. Some of the facts I knew already, being an avid fan of the show and trivia in general, but there were hundreds more I felt compelled to read out to anyone who would listen. Lots of fun and very educational. Now I've identified myself as a scurryfunge, and my whole family knows that Neanderthals are shown as slouching because the first one to be reconstructed happened to have arthritis. It came as no surprise that Stormtroopers from Star Wars Lego sets outnumber Earth's real soldiers by 50 to one, but did you know 12 percent of Americans think USB is a country in Europe? Now that's quite interesting (and worrying)!
***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***
***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***
November 10, 2016
A new QI Book, a new QI Book! It must be almost Christmas!
Following the previous year's efforts the QI Elves have found yet more interesting, shocking and useless facts. As an avid follower of the podcast “No Such Thing As a Fish”and the TV spin off “No Such Thing As The News” I jumped at the chance to get my hands on this book and once again it didn’t disappoint.
I was impressed by the addition of hyperlinks to the sources of the facts at the end of each page when reading in a connected Ebook forma. This made the experience feel more like an extended version of the podcast. I could almost hear the voices of the elves as they offered up their facts and sources!
A truely excellent addition to the collection, bring on the next one, especially if it means its almost Christmas again!
I received a review copy from NetGalley.
Following the previous year's efforts the QI Elves have found yet more interesting, shocking and useless facts. As an avid follower of the podcast “No Such Thing As a Fish”and the TV spin off “No Such Thing As The News” I jumped at the chance to get my hands on this book and once again it didn’t disappoint.
I was impressed by the addition of hyperlinks to the sources of the facts at the end of each page when reading in a connected Ebook forma. This made the experience feel more like an extended version of the podcast. I could almost hear the voices of the elves as they offered up their facts and sources!
A truely excellent addition to the collection, bring on the next one, especially if it means its almost Christmas again!
I received a review copy from NetGalley.
December 8, 2016
1,342 QI Facts To Leave You Flabbergasted published in Hardcover by Faber Books on 3 Nov 2016 by John Lloyd, John Mitchinson, James Harkin and Anne Miller.
It is 10 years since the first QI book, The Book of General Ignorance, was published and topped the bestseller list. Since then, drum roll please, over 3.3 million QI books have been sold!
This latest addition to the series has been published to coincide with the new BBC 2 series of QI hosted by Sandi Toksvig.
I'm a huge fan of these books, and this latest one is packed full of interesting facts, that really will leave you flabbergasted.
I've chuckled and gasped my way through most of them, reading them out to my husband, and trying my best to remember them!
Perfect as a stocking filler, this book will give hours and hours of entertainment for all ages
http://randomthingsthroughmyletterbox...
It is 10 years since the first QI book, The Book of General Ignorance, was published and topped the bestseller list. Since then, drum roll please, over 3.3 million QI books have been sold!
This latest addition to the series has been published to coincide with the new BBC 2 series of QI hosted by Sandi Toksvig.
I'm a huge fan of these books, and this latest one is packed full of interesting facts, that really will leave you flabbergasted.
I've chuckled and gasped my way through most of them, reading them out to my husband, and trying my best to remember them!
Perfect as a stocking filler, this book will give hours and hours of entertainment for all ages
http://randomthingsthroughmyletterbox...
January 29, 2017
To get the best out of this book, you need to read it on a tablet or other web-enabled device.
The facts in the book provide the topic headings for the hyperlinks on the Web pages.
Together, these can make for a fascinating reading experience, whereas the book alone can be more frustrating than enlightening.
The facts in the book provide the topic headings for the hyperlinks on the Web pages.
Together, these can make for a fascinating reading experience, whereas the book alone can be more frustrating than enlightening.
November 1, 2016
I love the way the QI elves play games with us with these books. That's not to say it's a game of pulling the wool over our eyes, for every entrant in this series has had the equivalent online version for the sources, so every page is replicated with the due links you need to search for proof of their statements. No, the game is Six Degrees of Separation. And they're so good at it, they can do most things in three. So in just three standalone, but thematically linked, phrases, you can get from how to make the sound of an Orc army for Lord of the Rings films to record-breaking nipple hair. From illicit wartime barbers in Italy to American founding father bedroom arrangements, is only three steps – and the path carries on to reach that erstwhile novice stand-up, Ronald Reagan, in two more. It's only two jumps between Donald Trump and Charles Darwin, disconcertingly.
Please feel free to click on the following for my full five-star review:-
http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/i...
Please feel free to click on the following for my full five-star review:-
http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/i...
September 9, 2021
Facts aren't always as immutable as we like to think, especially if you have to compile a book filled with over a thousand of them without it reading like an unedited Wikipedia article. That means a lot of these sentence-long facts pique the interest more from deliberate phrasing than their actual substance—which, awkwardly, requires a separate website by the authors to fuly understand.
Some facts are just arbitrary correlations: "Men who watch a lot of porn have smaller-than-average brains." Others are salvaged into quasi-facts by using mitigating language: "Half of all museum specimens are thought to be wrongly labelled." Most are obscure or pedantic trivia that covers every imaginable subject. While this does mean a majority of the facts are forgettable, there were about forty or so that genuinely interested me.
Some facts are just arbitrary correlations: "Men who watch a lot of porn have smaller-than-average brains." Others are salvaged into quasi-facts by using mitigating language: "Half of all museum specimens are thought to be wrongly labelled." Most are obscure or pedantic trivia that covers every imaginable subject. While this does mean a majority of the facts are forgettable, there were about forty or so that genuinely interested me.
June 13, 2018
I am a big fan of the programme and I had perused through other books in the series, always enjoying the fact that no matter which page you open, you always find something that keeps you reading and discover something new.
I host a local radio programme and I'm always searching for interesting and short items to share and this definitely fits the bill.
I'm not sure how the ARC copy compares to the paper version but I'm sure it would delight readers who enjoy the programme and it offers support to use the data for educational purposes (that would make it interesting for teachers too).
A good book to dip in and out of.
I host a local radio programme and I'm always searching for interesting and short items to share and this definitely fits the bill.
I'm not sure how the ARC copy compares to the paper version but I'm sure it would delight readers who enjoy the programme and it offers support to use the data for educational purposes (that would make it interesting for teachers too).
A good book to dip in and out of.
July 27, 2017
The Qi elves led by the great creator, mr John Lloyd - comes up with over 1,300 facts that will
engage your mind - so much so you might be heard shouting "I don't believe it!" (in a victor meldrew Style-ee)
entertaining as well as flabbergasting...well worth reading more than once!
engage your mind - so much so you might be heard shouting "I don't believe it!" (in a victor meldrew Style-ee)
entertaining as well as flabbergasting...well worth reading more than once!
January 9, 2021
Lots of fascinating facts here as with the other books but once again many of the sources are either behind pay walls or are links that no longer work so validating some of the facts or seeking further details can be frustrating!
February 16, 2022
We know the deal by now, but it's no less impressive than before. Spotting themes between books can be fun. I've found 'making vast concepts of time and number understandable', animal sexual exploits and celebrity quirks.
February 5, 2024
Some really good facts in here… and yes they did leave me flabbergasted! Haha.
Some faves below…
‘The sun gets 4 million tons lighter every second.’
‘3.8 billion years ago, a day was less than 10 hours long.’
‘Selfies kill more people than sharks.’
Some faves below…
‘The sun gets 4 million tons lighter every second.’
‘3.8 billion years ago, a day was less than 10 hours long.’
‘Selfies kill more people than sharks.’
January 31, 2018
Quite Interesting!
February 17, 2018
This book is a very good book to read I have got the book in real life. I strongly suggest you read it 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😈
August 14, 2018
Great read, very interesting
November 27, 2018
Fact: Pinball is illegal in Beacon, New York.
Fact: This book contains lots of facts.
Fact: It is a good book.
Fact: This book contains lots of facts.
Fact: It is a good book.
January 31, 2019
Just love these books!
April 13, 2020
Just factoids, none with links to resources to back the claims up, quite a few only seem true in a special setting.
August 27, 2021
Sure did leave me flabbergasted!
August 29, 2021
Fascinating!
January 31, 2022
Delightfully quirky as always
January 21, 2023
A enjoyable collection of random facts that are just really entertaining to read/discover.
And it feels even more fun because I've been watching QI lately <3
And it feels even more fun because I've been watching QI lately <3
February 16, 2024
fun but flawed
Would be great save for a few items which were untrue ( sabre tooth tigers) and the fact that many items require you have knowledge of or have lived in the UK.
Would be great save for a few items which were untrue ( sabre tooth tigers) and the fact that many items require you have knowledge of or have lived in the UK.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews