1970s Trivia for Seniors: 18 Nostalgia Questions
Sep 14, 2026
Here are eighteen 1970s trivia questions with their answers, arranged in five rounds you can read aloud to a group. The set moves from music to television, film, gadgets and sport, so a table can find a round it likes, and every answer is written on a separate sheet for whoever is hosting.
Most of the questions are about things people met in ordinary life — a song on the radio, a series in the corner of the living room — rather than details only a collector would know. The questions are meant to start talking, not to sort people into those who know and those who do not.
Why the 1970s works so well in a group
The decade is close enough to remember in detail and distant enough to be funny. Songs and series from those years were repeated so often on radio and television that the words are still there somewhere, which makes a question an invitation rather than a test.
It also suits a mixed group. Someone who bought the single when it came out and someone who heard it on a later radio show often remember different things about it, and those differences are usually the best part of the conversation.
How the eighteen questions are grouped
Read one round at a time, allowing about eight minutes for four questions and the talk afterwards.
| Round | Theme | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Music on the radio | 1–4 |
| 2 | Television at home | 5–8 |
| 3 | Films and the cinema queue | 9–12 |
| 4 | Gadgets and everyday things | 13–15 |
| 5 | Sport and headlines | 16–18 |
Round 1: music on the radio
- Which Swedish group won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with "Waterloo"? ABBA.
- Which band released "Hotel California" in 1977? The Eagles.
- Who released the single "Imagine" in 1971? John Lennon.
- Which 1977 film soundtrack includes "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever"? Saturday Night Fever.
Round 2: television at home
- Which comedy series set in a Minneapolis television newsroom starred Mary Tyler Moore? The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
- Which actor played the Doctor in Doctor Who from 1974 onwards? Tom Baker.
- Which New York detective, played by Telly Savalas, was famous for a lollipop? Kojak.
- Which series about the Ingalls family in Walnut Grove first aired in 1974? Little House on the Prairie.
Round 3: films and the cinema queue
- Which 1972 film about a New York crime family won the Oscar for Best Picture? The Godfather.
- Which 1975 Steven Spielberg film is set in a beach town troubled by a great white shark? Jaws.
- Which 1977 film opened a space saga with the subtitle "A New Hope"? Star Wars.
- Which 1978 musical starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John as high-school students? Grease.
Round 4: gadgets and everyday things
- Which cube-shaped puzzle, invented in 1974, went on sale in Hungarian shops in 1977? The Rubik's Cube.
- Which portable cassette player, first sold in 1979, let people take their music outside? The Sony Walkman.
- Which machine, sold from the mid-1970s, let a household record a television programme and watch it later? The video cassette recorder, or VCR.
Round 5: sport and headlines
- Which swimmer won seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich Olympics? Mark Spitz.
- Which boxer regained the world heavyweight title in 1974 in Kinshasa against George Foreman? Muhammad Ali.
- Which 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs was billed as the Battle of the Sexes? The Battle of the Sexes match, which King won.
Hosting notes that keep a room answering
- Open with the music round. A question about a song anyone can hum gives every table a point in the first five minutes, and the room settles quickly afterwards.
- Let three or four people answer together. A small table talks its way to an answer more often than a solo player does, and the discussion is the reason to run the round at all.
- Pause before the answer. Read the question, count slowly to five, then give the answer. A long pause produces more answers than a hint does.
- Keep the answer key on a separate sheet. The host reads the answers aloud; nobody has to hold two pages at once or squint at small print.
- Finish with an open question. Ask which 1970s song takes people straight back to a particular summer, and let the room talk. No scoring is needed for that one.
Printing these questions comfortably
Set the sheets at 16 points or larger, in dark ink on plain white or cream paper, and print one round per page so sheets can be passed around without shuffling. Wide margins help anyone who holds the page at arm's length, and the numbered order above means a host can stop and restart at any point.
If a page is still awkward to read, change the paper rather than the type size: one round per landscape page, on light card that sits flat on a table or a lap. A short round printed large is easier to follow than a long round squeezed onto one sheet.
More rounds and themes
The nostalgia trivia collection holds ready-made rounds on music, film and television, all free to print. There is a companion music trivia guide for a song-based hour, a nostalgia trivia night plan for running the whole evening, and television trivia for a screen-themed round. To slow the pace between rounds, add a printable word search or a bingo card using words from the same decade.
Frequently asked questions
How many of these 1970s questions should we use in one session?
All eighteen run for about forty minutes at a relaxed pace, with a short break after round three. If your group prefers a shorter sitting, use rounds one, three and five and save the rest for another week.
What if nobody in the group remembers an answer?
Read the question again with one extra clue from the same decade, or offer two possible answers and let each table choose. The point of the hour is conversation, so a gentle hint works better than a long silence.
Do we need music or film clips to run this trivia?
No equipment is needed. A printed question sheet and someone to read it aloud are enough, although playing a short 1970s song before the music round helps the room settle into the theme.
Can these questions be used one to one?
Yes. For one to one sessions, read a question and then talk about what the answer brings up: a concert ticket kept in a drawer, a television set in the corner of the living room, a film seen at the cinema. The talking matters more than the score.
Where can I find more nostalgia rounds like this?
The nostalgia trivia collection on this site holds free printable rounds on music, film and television, and the printable centre adds word games on the same themes. Both are free to print for family gatherings, activity groups and classrooms.
These questions are offered for fun, enjoyment and meaningful group activity, with no claims about health or cognitive outcomes.