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Timed practice · Test 10 of 24

Life in the UK practice test 10: Cold Start

Paper 10 is best sat cold. No re-reading, no skimming a chapter first — just open it and begin, exactly as you will have to at the test centre.

How to sit this one. Sit it timed and unprepared. A lower score than usual is the point: it shows you which facts you only know when they are fresh.

24 questions in 45 minutes, with 18 correct to pass — the same 75% the official test asks for. Nothing is saved to an account: your progress stays in this browser, so you can close the tab and pick the paper up where you left it.

Questions
24
Time limit
45 minutes
Pass mark
18 of 24 (75%)
How do you want to practise?

Answers and explanations

Every question in paper 10, with the right answer and the handbook section it comes from. Open it after you have had a go.

Show all 24 answers and explanations

  1. 1. What did Clarice Cliff design?

    • Pottery — correct answer
    • Furniture
    • Cars
    • Bridges

    Clarice Cliff designed brightly coloured pottery in the Art Deco style of the 1920s and 1930s. Handbook section 4.9.

  2. 2. Which of these countries did Britain fight against in the First World War?

    • Russia
    • Belgium
    • Germany — correct answer
    • France

    Britain fought against Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria. France and Russia were its allies. Handbook section 3.16.

  3. 3. What is the Chelsea Flower Show?

    • An annual flower show held in London — correct answer
    • A gardening programme on the BBC
    • A prize for the best public park
    • A market for garden tools in Chelsea

    The Chelsea Flower Show is held in London every year and attracts gardeners and visitors from around the world. Handbook section 4.12.

  4. 4. What is the cabinet?

    • The committee of senior ministers who make important government decisions — correct answer
    • The group of civil servants who run Downing Street
    • The panel of judges who advise the monarch
    • The team of officials who count election votes

    The cabinet is made up of about 20 senior ministers chosen by the Prime Minister. It meets regularly to settle the government's most important decisions. Handbook section 5.6.

  5. 5. What did the Emancipation Act of 1833 do?

    • It abolished slavery throughout the British Empire — correct answer
    • It banned the trading of slaves only
    • It gave enslaved people the vote
    • It ended the East India Company

    The Emancipation Act of 1833 abolished slavery throughout the British Empire, not just the trade in enslaved people. Handbook section 3.14.

  6. 6. Which of these are named as British overseas territories?

    • St Helena and the Falkland Islands — correct answer
    • The Isle of Man and Jersey
    • Scotland and Wales
    • Guernsey and Alderney

    St Helena and the Falkland Islands are British overseas territories. They are linked to the UK but are not part of it. Handbook section 2.4.

  7. 7. Which country did Germany invade, leading Britain to declare war in 1939?

    • France
    • Norway
    • Belgium
    • Poland — correct answer

    Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. Britain and France had promised to defend Poland, so they declared war. Handbook section 3.18.

  8. 8. Which British artist is remembered as an influential landscape painter and a master of watercolour?

    • Joseph Turner — correct answer
    • Henry Moore
    • Sir John Lavery
    • David Hockney

    Joseph Turner was an influential landscape painter whose watercolours changed the way British artists painted light and weather. Handbook section 4.8.

  9. 9. Which well-known dish is traditionally bought from a takeaway shop in England?

    • Fish and chips — correct answer
    • Haggis
    • Soda bread
    • Welsh cakes

    Fish and chips is a traditional English dish, usually bought from a takeaway shop and eaten hot. Handbook section 4.13.

  10. 10. What did the Reform Act of 1832 do?

    • It increased the number of people who could vote and abolished the rotten boroughs — correct answer
    • It gave women the same voting rights as men
    • It abolished the House of Lords
    • It lowered the voting age to 18

    The Reform Act of 1832 was a first step towards a wider franchise. It swept away the tiny 'rotten boroughs', where a handful of voters elected an MP, and gave the vote to more men. Handbook section 5.1.

  11. 11. What does a solicitor do?

    • Gives legal advice and can act for you in a legal matter — correct answer
    • Decides whether you are guilty
    • Runs the local council
    • Sits on a jury

    Solicitors give legal advice and represent clients. Many advertise their charges, and some offer a free first meeting. Handbook section 5.17.

  12. 12. Henry Moore is best known for which kind of work?

    • Large abstract bronze sculptures — correct answer
    • Watercolour landscapes
    • Portrait photography
    • Stained glass windows

    Henry Moore was a sculptor best known for his large abstract bronze figures, which stand in public places around the world. Handbook section 4.8.

  13. 13. What is an Ulster fry?

    • A fried meal with bacon, eggs, sausage and soda bread — correct answer
    • A stew of lamb and vegetables
    • A sweet pastry eaten at Christmas
    • A fish soup from the west coast

    An Ulster fry is a Northern Irish fried meal with bacon, eggs, sausage, soda bread and potato bread. Handbook section 4.13.

  14. 14. Where is Skara Brae, the best preserved prehistoric village in northern Europe?

    • In County Down
    • On Orkney, off the north coast of Scotland — correct answer
    • On the Isle of Wight
    • In north Wales

    Skara Brae is on Orkney, off the north coast of Scotland. Its stone houses survive so well that we can see how Stone Age people lived. Handbook section 3.1.

  15. 15. What is the shadow cabinet?

    • Senior opposition MPs who each challenge a particular government minister — correct answer
    • A secret committee of civil servants
    • The group of peers who revise bills
    • The Prime Minister's personal advisers

    The Leader of the Opposition appoints senior colleagues to shadow each cabinet minister, scrutinising their work and developing alternative policies. Handbook section 5.6.

  16. 16. What is the job of the party whips in Parliament?

    • To organise their party's MPs and make sure they attend and vote — correct answer
    • To count the ballot papers at an election
    • To advise the monarch on new laws
    • To chair debates in the chamber

    Whips are MPs appointed by their party to keep members informed of business and to make sure they turn up for important votes. Each party has a chief whip. Handbook section 5.4.

  17. 17. Which English king defeated the French at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415?

    • Henry VII
    • Henry V — correct answer
    • Edward III
    • Richard III

    King Henry V defeated the French at Agincourt in 1415. It is the most famous English victory of the Hundred Years War. Handbook section 3.6.

  18. 18. Where do the questions in the official Life in the UK test come from?

    • The official handbook for new residents — correct answer
    • Any general knowledge quiz book
    • News reports from the past year
    • A list published by each test centre

    Every question in the official test is based on the official handbook. Studying the whole handbook is the way to prepare for it. Handbook section 1.3.

  19. 19. What can you do if you believe a police officer has treated you unlawfully?

    • Complain to the police force, to an independent body, or to your MP — correct answer
    • Nothing; police decisions cannot be challenged
    • Ask a different officer to overturn it
    • Take the officer's uniform to a magistrate

    Complaints can go to the force itself, to the independent body that oversees police conduct, or through your MP. Serious complaints are investigated independently. Handbook section 5.14.

  20. 20. Which parts of Britain stayed free from Anglo-Saxon rule?

    • Kent and Sussex
    • Mainly Wales and Scotland — correct answer
    • Yorkshire and Northumbria
    • East Anglia and Essex

    The Anglo-Saxons settled in what is now England. Wales and Scotland, in the west and north, remained free of their rule. Handbook section 3.3.

  21. 21. At which London theatre did Shakespeare work?

    • The Globe — correct answer
    • The Royal Albert Hall
    • The Old Vic
    • The Lyceum

    Shakespeare worked at the Globe theatre in London, where many of his plays were first performed. Handbook section 4.7.

  22. 22. What is the Booker Prize for Fiction awarded for?

    • The best fiction novel of the year — correct answer
    • The best first poem by a new writer
    • The best play staged in the West End
    • The best history book of the year

    The Booker Prize for Fiction is given each year for the best novel, written by an author from the Commonwealth, Ireland or Zimbabwe. Handbook section 4.10.

  23. 23. What role does the monarch hold in the United Kingdom?

    • Head of state — correct answer
    • Head of government
    • Leader of the largest party
    • Chief judge

    The monarch is head of state. The head of government is the Prime Minister, who leads the party that can command a majority in the House of Commons. Handbook section 5.3.

  24. 24. Select the TWO things a new citizen does at a citizenship ceremony.

    • Make an oath of allegiance or an affirmation of loyalty — correct answer
    • Make a pledge to the UK — correct answer
    • Sit a written examination
    • Hand in their previous passport

    At the ceremony you make either an oath of allegiance or an affirmation of loyalty, and then you make the pledge. There is no exam and you do not surrender another passport. Handbook section 1.4.

What paper 10 asks about

These 24 questions come from 5 chapters of the official handbook. By the difficulty the questions were written at, that is 13 easy, 10 medium and 1 harder.

Chapters in this paper

The topics it leans on most

Revise before the next paper

A mock test tells you where you stand. These pages are where you close the gaps.