Jonathan Crowther
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Crowther has for over 35 years composed the Azed
cryptic crossword
in The Observer
Sunday newspaper. He was voted "best British crossword setter" in a poll of crossword setters conducted by The Sunday Times
in 1991 and in the same year was chosen as "the crossword compilers' crossword compiler" in The Observer Magazine "Experts' Expert" feature.
. He was educated at Rugby School
before going on to read classics and classical philology at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
. From there, in 1964, he joined Oxford University Press
and he worked for them, in India
, London
, and Oxford
, until his retirement in early 2000. His final position was as a lexicographer writing dictionaries for foreign students of English. Married with two sons, he lives in Oxford.
Encouraged by his father, Jonathan enjoyed solving crosswords from an early age. He caught the Ximenes
bug while still at Rugby and "just lived for Sundays" thereafter. His first puzzles to be published were in the university weekly, Varsity
, under the pseudonym Gong and after leaving university he started submitting to The Listener. They published sixteen Gong puzzles between June 1965 and February 1972. He continued to be a Ximenes competitor until Ximenes' death in 1971.
Appointed as Ximenes' successor, he cast around for a new pseudonym. His two predecessors had taken theirs from Spanish inquisitors-general but none of the names remaining seemed suitably impressive. However, reversing the last name of one, Diego de Deza
, gives (to British ears at least) the first and last letters of the alphabet. Letter manipulation and word reversal are integral parts of a cryptic crossword: thus Azed was born. Azed No. 1 appeared in The Observer in March 1972 and monthly clue-writing competitions à la Ximenes resumed. These still continue and in the monthly "slip", he gives details of each competition and discusses points of technique and more general interest relating to his puzzles. He relishes the dialogue the competitions generate and many regular solvers have become his friends. Among the technical comments can sometimes be found glimpses into his private life - he is very interested in cricket and less so in football … he took part in a performance of Haydn's
Nelson Mass at Radley College
… one of his sons is a rock musician. Interesting in their own right, these snippets are seized on by the more cunning competitors as ways to make their clues more appealing to the judge and so increase their chances of success.
and Phi, for example). Though he may not always approve of some accompanying clues, he praises the ingenuity of construction of the specialized thematic crosswords in the Times Listener series, the Crossword Club magazine, and 1 Across. He himself is responsible for a number of the "special" formats which have appeared regularly in the Azed series. These include Cherchez la Femme, Eightsome Reels, Give and Take, Overlaps, and Spoonerisms. Ideas such for specials may strike him anywhere but Thames-side walks with his dog have been specially productive.
His methods of crossword composition are traditional. Many setters use computer programs to fill in one of the standardised grids imposed on them by their newspapers but Azed does not. The Observer has always allowed him freedom in construction and he strives to make interesting and varied diagrams. The grid comes first, drawn in pencil in an exercise book with squared paper. Then the bars at the end of each word are inked in for clarity. Then he chooses his words. The Chambers Dictionary
is consulted, together with Chambers WORDS and Chambers BACKWORDS to find combinations that will fit into the grid. Finally, the clues are composed in the order that the words appear in the grid, starting with the first Across clue. He deliberately avoids tackling the most interesting-looking words first. He feels that to do that leaves a morass of drab-looking words at the end, quite likely receiving lifeless clues to match. When cluing, Chambers Thesaurus is a standard aid, assisted by a wide variety of reference books (many now out of print) which he has accumulated over the years. Composing a plain crossword takes him four to five hours, spread across a week. His specials can take considerably longer.
He also sets occasional puzzles under the pseudonym Ozymandias
– "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!".
He believes that "the whole business about the setting and solving of crosswords is that it is a battle of minds – a tussle of wits between the setter and the solver. The solver should win but not without a bit of a struggle"
Azed
The Azed crossword appears every Sunday in The Observer newspaper and has a small but devoted following. Since it first appeared in March 1972, every puzzle has been composed by Jonathan Crowther who also judges the monthly clue-writing competition. The pseudonym Azed is a reversal of Deza, a...
cryptic crossword
Cryptic crossword
Cryptic crosswords are crossword puzzles in which each clue is a word puzzle in and of itself. Cryptic crosswords are particularly popular in the United Kingdom, where they originated, Ireland, the Netherlands, and in several Commonwealth nations, including Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malta,...
in The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
Sunday newspaper. He was voted "best British crossword setter" in a poll of crossword setters conducted by The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
in 1991 and in the same year was chosen as "the crossword compilers' crossword compiler" in The Observer Magazine "Experts' Expert" feature.
Career
He was born in Liverpool in 1942, the son of a doctor, and grew up in Kirkby Lonsdale in the Lake DistrictLake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
. He was educated at Rugby School
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
before going on to read classics and classical philology at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is notable as the only college founded by Cambridge townspeople: it was established in 1352 by the Guilds of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
. From there, in 1964, he joined Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
and he worked for them, in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, until his retirement in early 2000. His final position was as a lexicographer writing dictionaries for foreign students of English. Married with two sons, he lives in Oxford.
Encouraged by his father, Jonathan enjoyed solving crosswords from an early age. He caught the Ximenes
Derrick Somerset Macnutt
Derrick Somerset Macnutt was a British crossword compiler who provided crosswords for The Observer newspaper under the pseudonym Ximenes. He was one of the principal influences on the modern style of cryptic crossword.- Career :...
bug while still at Rugby and "just lived for Sundays" thereafter. His first puzzles to be published were in the university weekly, Varsity
Varsity (Cambridge)
Varsity is the oldest of Cambridge University's main student newspapers. It has been published continuously since 1947, and is one of only three fully independent student newspapers in the UK. It appears every Friday around Cambridge...
, under the pseudonym Gong and after leaving university he started submitting to The Listener. They published sixteen Gong puzzles between June 1965 and February 1972. He continued to be a Ximenes competitor until Ximenes' death in 1971.
Appointed as Ximenes' successor, he cast around for a new pseudonym. His two predecessors had taken theirs from Spanish inquisitors-general but none of the names remaining seemed suitably impressive. However, reversing the last name of one, Diego de Deza
Diego Deza
Diego Deza was a theologian and inquisitor of Spain. He was one of the more notable figures in the Spanish Inquisition, and succeeded the notorious Tomás de Torquemada to the post of Grand Inquisitor.-Early life:...
, gives (to British ears at least) the first and last letters of the alphabet. Letter manipulation and word reversal are integral parts of a cryptic crossword: thus Azed was born. Azed No. 1 appeared in The Observer in March 1972 and monthly clue-writing competitions à la Ximenes resumed. These still continue and in the monthly "slip", he gives details of each competition and discusses points of technique and more general interest relating to his puzzles. He relishes the dialogue the competitions generate and many regular solvers have become his friends. Among the technical comments can sometimes be found glimpses into his private life - he is very interested in cricket and less so in football … he took part in a performance of Haydn's
Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
Nelson Mass at Radley College
Radley College
Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
… one of his sons is a rock musician. Interesting in their own right, these snippets are seized on by the more cunning competitors as ways to make their clues more appealing to the judge and so increase their chances of success.
Tastes and Technique
Proudly Ximenean in his crossword philosophy, he favours puzzles whose setters have similar ideas (Dimitry, DuckDon Manley
Don Manley is a long-serving setter of crosswords in the UK. He has supplied puzzles for the Radio Times, The Spectator, The Independent, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, and the Financial Times and the Sunday Times among others...
and Phi, for example). Though he may not always approve of some accompanying clues, he praises the ingenuity of construction of the specialized thematic crosswords in the Times Listener series, the Crossword Club magazine, and 1 Across. He himself is responsible for a number of the "special" formats which have appeared regularly in the Azed series. These include Cherchez la Femme, Eightsome Reels, Give and Take, Overlaps, and Spoonerisms. Ideas such for specials may strike him anywhere but Thames-side walks with his dog have been specially productive.
His methods of crossword composition are traditional. Many setters use computer programs to fill in one of the standardised grids imposed on them by their newspapers but Azed does not. The Observer has always allowed him freedom in construction and he strives to make interesting and varied diagrams. The grid comes first, drawn in pencil in an exercise book with squared paper. Then the bars at the end of each word are inked in for clarity. Then he chooses his words. The Chambers Dictionary
Chambers Dictionary
The Chambers Dictionary was first published by W. and R. Chambers as Chambers's English Dictionary in 1872. It was an expanded version of Chambers's Etymological Dictionary of 1867, compiled by James Donald...
is consulted, together with Chambers WORDS and Chambers BACKWORDS to find combinations that will fit into the grid. Finally, the clues are composed in the order that the words appear in the grid, starting with the first Across clue. He deliberately avoids tackling the most interesting-looking words first. He feels that to do that leaves a morass of drab-looking words at the end, quite likely receiving lifeless clues to match. When cluing, Chambers Thesaurus is a standard aid, assisted by a wide variety of reference books (many now out of print) which he has accumulated over the years. Composing a plain crossword takes him four to five hours, spread across a week. His specials can take considerably longer.
He also sets occasional puzzles under the pseudonym Ozymandias
Ozymandias
"Ozymandias" is a sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley, published in 1818 in the January 11 issue of The Examiner in London. It is frequently anthologised and is probably Shelley's most famous short poem...
– "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!".
He believes that "the whole business about the setting and solving of crosswords is that it is a battle of minds – a tussle of wits between the setter and the solver. The solver should win but not without a bit of a struggle"