Your setter/compiler deal with/pseudonym/alter ego Buccaneer.
Why? I had been Picaroon on the Guardian for years, and a few solvers referred to me there as “the pirate”, so I ran with the thought.
Actual identify: James Brydon.
The place are you? I dwell in St Albans.
Years compiling I had my first crossword revealed within the nationwide press in 2004, within the Spectator.
And measured in variety of crosswords Throughout all the nationwide broadsheets, I’ve now revealed near 700 cryptic crosswords.
Full time or part-time with one other job? Compiling is my foremost job now, however I nonetheless educate some French, German and Mandarin Chinese language, as properly.
Did your faculty point out crossword compiling in profession discussions? Oddly — and possibly correctly — no.
Who/what received you into cryptic crosswords? I received hooked on them as a young person. They appeared filled with problem and engaging bits of data I might by no means have heard about elsewhere.
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Stroll us by way of your compiling technique It’s positively a query of sitting down and dealing constantly, not of ready for inspiration. I at all times begin with looking for good clues for lengthy solutions, ideally avoiding anagrams as they’re the simplest sort of clues to assemble. At first, I search for good concepts: misdirection, placing pictures, humorous concepts and so forth. Then, as a believer that crosswords usually are not merely a riddle however have technical and aesthetic qualities as properly, I’ll spend time sprucing the clues, aiming for accuracy, class and succinctness.
So that you suppose you’re onerous After I was employed by the FT, Colin Inman, the crossword editor, mentioned he would love puzzles to be accessible to a great cross-section of solvers. I’ve tried to stay to that, inasmuch as it’s potential to evaluate this stuff.
The clue you wished you’d written The place to start out? I like this one from Arachne within the Guardian: “Two idiots stripped Mini’s bumpers off” (9) (Reply under).
And the clue you’re glad you probably did Following the Euros last, I used to be pleased with the very topical: “Variety of England followers, tolerance-wise, needing reform” (5,8) (Reply under).
What’s the subject of dialog once you come throughout different compilers? I don’t suppose I’ve truly met one nose to nose since earlier than the pandemic, sadly!
Any recommendation for solvers? A crossword is sort of a backyard path sentence, so the trick for fixing is to isolate particular person phrases within the clue and work out how their meanings is likely to be totally different from how they seem within the floor studying.
And for wannabe compilers? Pay cautious consideration to grammatical and lexical precision initially as it’s the foundation for all the things else. And be persistent!
Your favorite/least favorite different phrase recreation To be sincere, the one different issues I play are chess and the piano.
Solutions Assassins, Candy Caroline (anagram of tolerance sensible).
