When James and I first started compiling crosswords, back in the 70s, we found that nearly all crosswords used those odd words that you only ever see in crosswords – such as ambo (an oblong pulpit), arras ( a wall hanging to conceal an alcove), eyot or ait (isle in a river) or umiak (Eskimo boat rowed by women).
These vowel-rich words are necessary as building blocks, to link words up on a grid. But we decided to experiment and instead of using obscure words that you might never need to use in normal conversation, we would use famous names as clues. Politicians, actors, scientists, inventors, sports stars – as long as they were well-known, they could find themselves in one of our crosswords.
At the time, it was thought to be quite a bizarre move in crosswording circles, with many a muttered criticism of “You can’t do that! – it’s just not done!”
However, it got the green light with our puzzlers, which is the most important thing, and soon after this, that most flattering of compliments – imitation.
Many crosswords now use famous names, along with photos, and we have discovered through our readers it has been very useful as an educational tool, learning not just about the English language but also about the movers and shakers of the world, whether famous or infamous, who have made their mark.
In the pages of our BIG crosswords, you’ll find various clues about the eminent and you can also have fun recognising the photos of comedians, rulers, authors – even the odd escapologist or spoon-bender. Irish actor Pierce Brosnan once said: “Fame is like a big piece of meringue – it’s beautiful and you keep eating it, but it doesn’t really fill you up.”
However, we like to think our crosswords fill your mind with useful information plus the satisfaction of solving them. And anyway, even if he wasn’t so good-looking, Pierce would always be a star in my book. In fact, he has been a star in my book of Starhunts. Many of you love these code-cracker style puzzles which feature a celebrity as the answer. We often receive mail asking about more information on these famous people, so our Webmaster has started a new section of our website dedicated to the celebrities who have appeared in our puzzles. You can find it under christines-desk/star-grazing.
Happy Puzzling!
Dear Christine and James,
I have enjoyed the books for at least twenty years and was thrilled to find you on line. I ‘puzzle’ every day either way or both, if time permits. Thank you for all the brain exercises I have enjoyed all this time.