Getting your questions ready
Getting your questions ready
Beat the crowd
10 questions No timer
50 free Iron Maiden trivia questions with answers — music quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Steve Harris named his band after a torture device, played a first gig in a Poplar hall in 1976, and fifty years later was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In between came a papier-mache mascot who squirted blood, the first metal videos on MTV, a Boeing flown by the frontman and more than 130 million albums. These 50 questions cover the whole run: Ash Mountain, the Soundhouse Tapes, Rod Smallwood, Martin Birch, the Di'Anno years, Bruce Dickinson's audition, Nicko McBrain, Compass Point, the World Slavery Tour behind the Iron Curtain, Rock in Rio with Queen, the Orson Scott Card concept album, the UK number one from a Nightmare on Elm Street film, Blaze Bayley, the Three Amigos, the Grammy for El Dorado, Ed Force One, Empire of the Clouds, Senjutsu and the 2026 Pophouse deal. Easy questions stick to the classic line-up; the expert tier asks about Dennis Wilcock, Bob Sawyer's teeth, Charlotte and the Harlots and the 66.66 euro keychains. Every answer is cited to a page we checked, with a short explanation so you learn something even when you miss. Play it solo or print it for a metal night.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Who founded Iron Maiden in 1975 and went on to be its bassist and main songwriter?
Steve Harris
He and Dave Murray are the only members to appear on every release.
Q 02In which part of London was Iron Maiden formed?
Leyton
Their first gig was at St. Nicks Hall in nearby Poplar on 1 May 1976.
Q 03The band's name was inspired by a film adaptation of which Alexandre Dumas novel?
The Man in the Iron Mask
The title reminded Harris of the iron maiden torture device.
Q 04What name did the band originally use before settling on Iron Maiden?
Ash Mountain
Most members preferred Iron Maiden, so the first name lasted only briefly.
Q 05Who has been the band's lead singer on most of its albums since 1982?
Bruce Dickinson
He came from Samson, auditioned in September 1981 and was hired on the spot.
Q 06Which singer fronted the band on its first two albums before being dismissed in 1981?
Paul Di'Anno
He admitted heavy cocaine use left him unable to face the touring schedule.
Q 07What is the name of the band's skeletal mascot?
Eddie
He began as a papier-mache mask that squirted fake blood at gigs.
Q 08Which artist created Eddie and painted the covers exclusively until 1992?
Derek Riggs
Melvyn Grant was among the artists who took over afterwards.
Q 09What was the band's self-released 1979 debut EP called?
The Soundhouse Tapes
Named after Neal Kay's Bandwagon Heavy Metal Soundhouse club, all 5,000 copies sold within weeks.
Q 10Which label signed Iron Maiden in December 1979?
EMI
The Book of Souls in 2015 was the first studio album not issued by the label outside North America.
Q 11Who became the band's manager after hearing the 1978 demo?
Rod Smallwood
He received an OBE in June 2026 to close the 50th-anniversary celebrations.
Q 12Which guitarist was sacked in 1977 for pretending to play with his teeth on stage?
Bob Sawyer
Harris felt he had embarrassed the band.
Q 13Which early singer, a Kiss fan, used makeup and fake blood on stage?
Dennis Wilcock
He left in 1978 to form his own band, V1.
Q 14Which two early videos were the first metal clips ever aired on MTV?
Q 21"Rime of the Ancient Mariner" on Powerslave adapts a poem by whom?
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
It was the band's longest song until "Empire of the Clouds" in 2015.
Q 22The 1984-85 tour opened with five shows in which Eastern Bloc country?
Poland
The band were the first Western act to bring full production behind the Iron Curtain.
Q 23Iron Maiden co-headlined the first Rock in Rio in 1985 with which band?
Queen
The crowd was estimated at up to half a million people.
Q 24Where was the 1985 double live album Live After Death recorded?
"Iron Maiden" and "Wrathchild"
They came from the Live at the Rainbow video, shot in December 1980.
Q 15Which veteran producer worked with the band from Killers until retiring in 1992?
Martin Birch
The band hired him after being unhappy with the production of their debut.
Q 16Which 1982 album was the band's first to top the UK chart?
The Number of the Beast
It has sold almost 20 million copies and was voted Best British Album Ever in 2012.
Q 17Harris said the 1982 title track came from a nightmare after watching which film?
Damien: Omen II
Robert Burns' poem "Tam o' Shanter" was another influence.
Q 18Which drummer replaced Clive Burr in December 1982?
Nicko McBrain
He came from the band Trust and retired from touring after 2024.
Q 19At which Bahamas studio did the band record Piece of Mind and its two successors?
Compass Point
It gave them three consecutive albums with a Caribbean birthplace.
Q 20Which Piece of Mind single became one of the band's few to get major US radio play?
Flight of Icarus
The other single from the album was "The Trooper".
Long Beach Arena
Extra tracks came from four nights at London's Hammersmith Apollo.
Q 25Seventh Son of a Seventh Son is a concept album based on a novel by which author?
Orson Scott Card
It was the first Maiden record with keyboards, played by Harris and Adrian Smith.
Q 26Under what alias did the band play Brooklyn club L'Amour in May 1988?
Charlotte and the Harlots
The name nods to their recurring character Charlotte.
Q 27How many fans saw the band's record 1988 Monsters of Rock headline set at Donington?
107,000
Their second Donington headline, in 1992, drew a sold-out 75,000.
Q 28Which guitarist replaced Adrian Smith in 1990, after playing on the singer's solo album?
Janick Gers
He had been in Gillan; Smith returned in 1999 to make it a three-guitar band.
Q 29What is the band's only UK number one single?
Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter
It was first recorded for the soundtrack of A Nightmare on Elm Street 5.
Q 30Which country's Christian groups stopped the band performing there in 1992?
Chile
They were branded "emissaries of satanic propaganda".