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50 free Murdoch Mysteries trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
This Murdoch Mysteries trivia quiz covers the CBC detective drama from its 2004 origins as three Bravo TV movies to its renewal for a nineteenth season. It asks about Detective William Murdoch and his Station House No. 4 colleagues — Inspector Brackenreid, Dr. Julia Ogden, Constable Crabtree and the coroners and detectives who joined later — along with the Maureen Jennings novels behind it all, the real historical figures who keep turning up in Toronto, and the show's famous stunt casting, from a sitting prime minister to William Shatner as Mark Twain. Production questions cover Shaftesbury Films, the filming locations in Cambridge and Bristol, the move from Citytv to CBC, the web series and the musical episode. Early rounds suit casual viewers; later rounds reward fans who have watched all 300 episodes. Every answer was checked against encyclopaedia entries before publishing.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Who plays Detective William Murdoch in the series?
Yannick Bisson
He took over the role in 2007 after Peter Outerbridge played Murdoch in the three earlier TV movies.
Q 02In which city is Murdoch Mysteries set?
Toronto
Murdoch works for the Toronto Constabulary in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Q 03Which author's Detective Murdoch novels inspired the series?
Maureen Jennings
The three 2004 TV movies were adapted directly from her books.
Q 04Which network first aired the series, on January 20, 2008?
Citytv
Rogers Media dropped it after five seasons and CBC picked it up for season six in 2013.
Q 05Under what title did the show air on the US Ovation network until season twelve?
The Artful Detective
Season 12 aired on Ovation in 2019 under the original Murdoch Mysteries name.
Q 06What does Murdoch call fingerprints in the series?
Finger marks
Fingerprinting, blood testing and trace evidence were all unusual methods for the 1890s.
Q 07Which body of water does Murdoch search with a primitive sonar in one episode?
Lake Ontario
Such improvised gadgets have led critics to describe the show as having steampunk elements.
Q 08Who plays Inspector Brackenreid in the series?
Thomas Craig
Colm Meaney played the inspector in the 2004 TV movies before the role was recast.
Q 09From which English county does the whisky-loving Inspector Brackenreid hail?
Yorkshire
He prefers conventional policing but is usually proud when Murdoch's odd methods pay off.
Q 10Who plays Dr. Julia Ogden?
Hélène Joy
Keeley Hawes had the role in the 2004 movies; Joy took it over for the series.
Q 11What career does Constable George Crabtree aspire to?
Mystery novelist
One season saw him writing The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs as a fantasy manuscript, tied to a web series.
Q 12Which doctor is introduced in the fifth season after Dr. Ogden marries?
Dr. Emily Grace
Played by Georgina Reilly, she shows romantic interest in Crabtree and later moves to England.
Q 13Whom does Dr. Ogden marry in season five?
Dr. Darcy Garland
She met him in Buffalo; Dr. Grace later dates his brother for a while.
Q 21What secret facility name do Crabtree and Murdoch use as a nod to Area 51?
Concession 51
Characters also extrapolate period inventions into microwave ovens, night-vision goggles and Silly Putty.
Q 22Which religion does the detective follow, setting him apart in a largely Protestant city?
Catholicism
The prejudice he meets because of it is one of the series' underlying themes.
Q 23Who played the lead in the three 2004 TV movies?
Peter Outerbridge
His commitment to ReGenesis raised doubts about his availability when a series was ordered in 2006.
Q 14Which Station House 4 colleague does Brackenreid risk his reputation to bring back from New York?
Watts
The storyline reflects the show's recurring treatment of discrimination in period Toronto.
Q 15What is the title of the season 17 musical episode?
Why Is Everybody Singing?
Murdoch hears voices as song while in a coma after being shot; Crabtree dances round a lamppost in a nod to Gene Kelly.
Q 16Who directed the season 17 musical episode?
Laurie Lynd
Every cast member sang and danced in the episode.
Q 17Which actor plays Albert Choi, who becomes Murdoch's boss in season 18?
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee
Murdoch declines the inspector's job after years of being passed over for being Catholic.
Q 18To which post is Brackenreid promoted in season 18?
Chief Constable of Toronto
He is largely absent that season but keeps acting as if he still held his old inspector role.
Q 19Where does Dr. Ogden move with her daughter in season 18?
England
Murdoch visits for their wedding anniversary in the two-part 300th episode.
Q 20Which architect appears in season 12 to design the Murdochs' home?
Frank Lloyd Wright
The 'Murdoch Mystery Mansion' has the open layout, low flat roof and geometric stained glass he was known for.
Q 24What was the original title of the 2004 TV movies?
Murder 19C: The Detective Murdoch Mysteries
The films aired on Bravo Canada and were titled Except the Dying, Poor Tom Is Cold and Under the Dragon's Tail.
Q 25Which British actress played Dr. Ogden in the 2004 TV movies?
Keeley Hawes
Colm Meaney was Brackenreid and Matthew MacFadzean played Crabtree in the same films.
Q 26How many Gemini Award nominations did the show receive in summer 2008?
14
Critics were surprised Bisson was left out, and that it won only two Geminis in November.
Q 27In which English city was a 2010 episode filmed, the first shot outside Canada?
Bristol
Parts of the season three opener were shot there, the first filming outside Canada.
Q 28Which Canadian prime minister played a clueless cop in a 2011 episode?
Stephen Harper
His character fails to recognise then-prime minister Wilfrid Laurier; he filmed the cameo while visiting the set with his daughter.
Q 29Which company decided not to continue the series beyond season five?
Rogers Media
CBC picked it up, and executive Kirstine Stewart said a home at CBC 'made absolute sense'.
Q 30Roughly how many viewers regularly watched the show on CBC as of January 2014?
1.4 million
It became one of the CBC's most highly rated programs.