EV1697
The Name of the Game II by Ranunculus
Setter’s Blog
Reinstated letters give W F HARGREAVES; the perimeter quote is extended to include MORNINGTON CRESCENT, a game on the radio programme I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue
EV 1697 The Name of the Game II by Ranunculus – Setter’s Blog
I wasn’t familiar with the William Hargreaves quotation, but I happened upon it in the ODQ, and thought that it might be a good basis for a puzzle, given that Mornington Crescent is also the name of a game (of sorts) on the long-running radio show I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue.
I’d had an idea about doing a puzzle where the perimeter message ‘ate its own tail’, and this seemed like an opportunity to try it out. Having decided on the basic treatment, I did a search for ‘Mornington Crescent’ on Dave Hennings’ themed puzzle database (xwdb.info). This proved that there is indeed nothing new under the sun, the quotation having been used twice before, but happily not in the same way as I intended to use it, and not since 2003.
I found that with a 13×12 grid I could begin and end the first part of the quotation in the same cell, leaving OF MORNINGTON CRESCENT to follow. The key when filling the grid for puzzles where the contents of cells get overwritten is to give yourself as many options as possible, which means that (for instance) you don’t want a B at the end of a word needing to change to a C. I like for the most part to put words into a grid one at a time, since using software to fill the whole grid automatically can be a little like putting complete trust in a satnav. However, the powerful (and free) setting aid Qxw understands ‘either/or’ entries (‘multiplex lights’), and will also provide a ‘heat map’ showing which empty cells are getting hard to fill – I find it invaluable for steering me away from blind alleys. I made sure to include an answer (fully checked, for clarity) which, if it could speak, might say “I’m SORRY, I haven’t a clue” (which it didn’t).
I decided on the ‘missing letter in clue’ gimmick to provide the author’s name (WF HARGREAVES, as he is known to ODQ), and duly omitted the appropriate letter from each of the first 12 clues. I wanted to give an extra hint to solvers, so I dotted the remaining clues with the names of other Tube stations (12 of them), these being legal ‘moves’ in the game. I almost wish I hadn’t written the clue “Earl left in grip of loathsome medieval instrument” for VIELLE, because the mental images it kept conjuring up were quite disturbing! When it came to the title, I hadn’t been planning a sequel to my previous ‘Name of the Game’ puzzle, but it seemed the logical choice.
The editor reported that he had barely started the solve before he was able to identify the author, and thus the quote, which he rightly saw as a significant flaw. Based on this feedback, I hastily rewrote a number of clues, spreading the gimmicked ones out (but keeping the Tube stations). We also agreed several changes to the preamble, in particular to ensure that solvers would know to extend the quote within the grid rather than just within their heads. My thanks, as always, to Steve for helping to get the puzzle into the best possible shape.
I hope that when solvers identified the quotation they had a little smile, as I did when I found it. The original ditty, incidentally, was cleverly updated by Tom Lehrer (retaining the best lines), and both versions can be found online.
Ranunculus, June 2025
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A full review of this puzzle can be seen over on fifteensquared.