Clues R Us
Neck-deep in crossword research at the minute, gleaning for a forthcoming magazine story about the mystic origins of the cryptic.
One book I came across is ‘A-Z Of Crosswords’ by Jonathan Crowther, alias Azed in The Observer. Much like a chatty Who’s Who, the volume lets us meet Dumpynose, Schadenfreude, Bunthorne, Shed and 50 other crossword makers.
To make some general observations about this elite bunch, there are very few women, and the lion’s share of these literate fellas relishes cricket. Other prevalent hobbies include walking, drinking and classical music.
As for the typical occupation – aside from wangling anagrams – the singular most common calling seems to be maths-related – statistics, physics, accountancy, chemistry, with a tinge of Greek or Latin in their public schooling.
Mind you, not all setters meet such a profile. Leafing through the lives of Mass and Paul (my two favourites), Fawley and Taupi (my next two), I encountered opera singers, priests, welders, librarians, silks, photographers, ex-strawberry farmers and possibly the best moonlight gig for cryptic-crafting – a cocktail barman.
Sumptuous clues are also offered. Creator of Inspector Morse – Colin Dexter – alias Codex in The Listener gets merit points for his gem: A kick in the pants (HIP FLASK). While the prolific Rufus, a retired magician born as Roger Squires, conjured this peach: Hold hands (STEVEDORES).
Two other books worth investigating, for those with a crossword bent, are ‘Pretty Girl In Crimson Rose’ by Sandy Balfour, and the very-hard-to-find ‘Strange World of the Crossword’ by Roger Millington. Maybe I’ll dig some nuggets from both in posts to come.
Not now though – off to Brisbane for the National Play Festival this weekend: six plays in two days, with scarcely time for sleep or Maltesers. Of course, such a theatric assault must warrant a blog debrief as well. Now, have I packed my hip flask?