TV Theme Tunes Trivia Questions and Answers
The music you can hum before you can name the show. This topic works differently from the rest of the television category, because the recall is almost free — anybody who watched a channel in the last fifty years has a dozen of these committed to memory without ever deciding to learn one. So the questions ask the part nobody absorbs by accident: who wrote it, who sang it, which band had a hit with it before or after, and which show it actually belongs to when two sound alike. That covers a lot of ground — sitcom themes that charted as singles, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Lalo Schifrin writing in five-four, anime openings, the composers who quietly scored half of American television. The easy tier is the shows themselves. The hard tier is the credits nobody reads.
1. "I'll Be There for You" is the theme tune to which sitcom?Easy
- Will & Grace
- Frasier
- Friends ✓
- Seinfeld
2. Which band performed "I'll Be There for You", the Friends theme?Easy
- Barenaked Ladies
- The Rembrandts ✓
- Gin Blossoms
- The Wallflowers
3. "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" is the theme to which bar-set sitcom?Easy
- Cheers ✓
- Frasier
- Night Court
- Taxi
4. Which sitcom opens with Will Smith rapping about a playground fight in West Philadelphia?Easy
- A Different World
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ✓
- The Wayans Bros.
- Hangin' with Mr. Cooper
5. Which band recorded "The History of Everything", the theme to The Big Bang Theory?Medium
- They Might Be Giants
- Barenaked Ladies ✓
- The Rembrandts
- Weezer
6. "Thank You for Being a Friend" is the theme to which sitcom about four women in Miami?Easy
- The Facts of Life
- Designing Women
- The Golden Girls ✓
- Kate & Allie
7. Which sitcom's theme song is titled "Moving on Up"?Easy
- Good Times
- The Jeffersons ✓
- What's Happening!!
- Sanford and Son
8. Gary Portnoy co-wrote and sang the theme to which bar-set sitcom?Medium
- Taxi
- Cheers ✓
- Growing Pains
- Family Ties
9. The theme to Frasier is called "Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs" and is sung by which cast member?Easy
- Peri Gilpin
- Kelsey Grammer ✓
- John Mahoney
- David Hyde Pierce
10. Which animated sitcom's theme was composed by Danny Elfman and features a choir spelling out the show's name?Easy
- The Simpsons ✓
- King of the Hill
- Family Guy
- Futurama
11. Who composed the theme to The Simpsons?Medium
- Hans Zimmer
- Randy Newman
- Alf Clausen
- Danny Elfman ✓
12. Which Nickelodeon cartoon has a theme sung in sea-shanty style, led by a pirate?Easy
- Hey Arnold!
- SpongeBob SquarePants ✓
- Rocko's Modern Life
- Codename: Kids Next Door
13. Which animated series, based on a Game Boy franchise, had its English theme performed by Jason Paige?Easy
- Beyblade
- Yu-Gi-Oh!
- Pokémon ✓
- Digimon
14. Which Disney cartoon's theme was written by Mark Mueller and spells out the show's name?Easy
- Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
- DuckTales ✓
- TaleSpin
- Darkwing Duck
15. In which cartoon's theme are four teenagers and their dog called on to solve a mystery?Easy
- Jabberjaw
- The Funky Phantom
- Scooby-Doo ✓
- Josie and the Pussycats
16. Which Hanna-Barbera cartoon used an instrumental called "Rise and Shine" before a sung theme took over in its third season?Medium
- Wacky Races
- Hong Kong Phooey
- The Jetsons
- The Flintstones ✓
17. The Powerpuff Girls theme says the girls were created with sugar, spice, everything nice and which added ingredient?Medium
- Compound V
- Chemical X ✓
- Element Z
- Formula 9
18. Which HBO fantasy series has an instrumental main title composed by Ramin Djawadi?Easy
- Black Sails
- Marco Polo
- Game of Thrones ✓
- The Last Kingdom
19. Ramin Djawadi also composed the main title for which HBO science-fiction western?Medium
- Westworld ✓
- Fringe
- Battlestar Galactica
- Lost
20. Which HBO series uses a different cover of "Way Down in the Hole" for each season?Hard
- The Sopranos
- True Detective
- Deadwood
- The Wire ✓
21. "Far from Any Road" by The Handsome Family opened which anthology drama's first season?Medium
- The Killing
- True Detective ✓
- Broadchurch
- Mare of Easttown
22. Angelo Badalamenti composed the haunting theme to which David Lynch series?Medium
- Twin Peaks ✓
- The X-Files
- Wild Palms
- Northern Exposure
23. Nicholas Britell composed the widely praised piano theme for which HBO drama about a media dynasty?Medium
- Empire
- Industry
- Billions
- Succession ✓
24. Which Radiophonic Workshop engineer realised the original Doctor Who theme?Hard
- Daphne Oram
- Brian Hodgson
- Delia Derbyshire ✓
- Dick Mills
25. Who wrote the Doctor Who theme that Delia Derbyshire realised?Medium
- Laurie Johnson
- Ron Grainer ✓
- Barry Gray
- John Barry
26. Mark Snow's whistling theme belongs to which 1990s science-fiction series?Medium
- Twin Peaks
- Dark Skies
- Millennium
- The X-Files ✓
27. Which Netflix drama uses "Nothing Really Matters" and a title sequence of a shifting Spanish city?Medium
- Narcos
- The Time in Between
- Cable Girls
- Money Heist ✓
28. Which song, used as a defiant anthem in Money Heist, is an Italian anti-fascist folk song?Hard
- Bella Ciao ✓
- Bandiera Rossa
- Fischia il Vento
- Avanti Popolo
29. "Who Are You" by The Who is the theme to which forensic crime drama?Medium
- NCIS
- Bones
- Cold Case
- CSI ✓
30. Which detective show's theme, by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter, opens with an answering machine message?Hard
- Magnum, P.I.
- The Streets of San Francisco
- Simon & Simon
- The Rockford Files ✓
31. Which British soap's theme is a wistful trumpet-and-strings piece by Eric Spear, used since 1960?Hard
- Crossroads
- Coronation Street ✓
- EastEnders
- Emmerdale Farm
32. The lyrics to "Suicide Is Painless" were written by the 14-year-old son of which film director?Hard
- Sidney Lumet
- Robert Altman ✓
- Arthur Penn
- Hal Ashby
33. Which sitcom theme, "Nothing's Gonna Stop Me Now", accompanied Balki and Larry?Hard
- Step by Step
- Full House
- Perfect Strangers ✓
- Family Matters
34. Which British sitcom's theme, "Handbags and Gladrags", was recorded by Big George for the show?Hard
- The Inbetweeners
- Spaced
- The Office (UK) ✓
- Peep Show
35. The Mad Men title sequence, showing a falling silhouette, is scored with "A Beautiful Mine" by which producer?Hard
- DJ Shadow
- RJD2 ✓
- Danger Mouse
- Madlib
36. Which medical drama's theme was composed by James Newton Howard and won two Emmys?Hard
- House
- ER ✓
- St. Elsewhere
- Chicago Hope
37. John Tesh composed "Roundball Rock", the theme used by NBC for which sport?Hard
- NFL football
- NBA basketball ✓
- MLB baseball
- NHL hockey
38. Which BBC quiz show uses "College Boy" by Derek New as its theme?Hard
- Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
- Fifteen to One
- University Challenge ✓
- Mastermind
39. Which band performed "Guren no Yumiya" and several later Attack on Titan openings?Hard
- Radwimps
- Linked Horizon ✓
- Asian Kung-Fu Generation
- One Ok Rock
How to play these as a game
Trivia Tavern runs these as a live round: one person opens a room, everyone else joins with a five-character code, and answers are locked in on each player’s own phone with a clock running. Faster correct answers score more, and a match draws from the full tv theme tunes pool — 177 questions, of which the 39 above are a sample.
Two to eight players, about fifteen minutes for three rounds, and nobody needs to make an account to sit down.
Open a Trivia Tavern room