The QI Elves are the brains behind the enduringly popular BBC TV panel show QI. Every Wednesday the Elves appear on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show where they answer the ponderings and wonderings of BBC Radio 2’s most inquisitive listeners.

Dive into this splendid collection of listeners’ unusual questions and some unexpected answers that are sure to make your head spin on topics ranging from goosebumps to grapefruit, pizza to pirates and everything in-between. Generously sprinkled with extra facts and questions from the Elves, Funny You Should Ask . . . is essential reading for the incurably curious.

How much water would you need to put out the Sun? If spiders can walk on the ceiling, why can’t they get out of the bath? Why do dads make such bad jokes? Why does red mean ‘stop’ and green mean ‘go’? Can I dig a tunnel to the other side of the Earth? How do plant seeds know which way is up? Can you fill up a black hole? Who popularised the recorder, and where can I get hold of them?

For more from the team behind QI, visit qi.com. You can also follow QI’s fact-filled Twitter account @qikipedia and listen to their weekly podcast at nosuchthingasafish.com