Alan Connor talks to the Guardian setter Paul about his recent TEDx talk and his new book Centenary of the Crossword
John Halpern – known to Guardian setters as the incorrigible Paul– recently stood on the stage at the Royal Albert Hall in a pleasingly snazzy suit to talk to 4,000 people about the joy of crosswords. It was part of TEDxAlbertopolis, a sister event to the brainy Technology, Entertainment, Design series of talks known as TED, slogan "ideas worth spreading".
I caught up with Paul to hear how it went and to ask about his new book, Centenary of the Crossword.
Well hello again Paul. So how does the brainy reputation of TED affect the way you structure a talk? Do you feel an urge to be more erudite than you normally would?
It would never occur to me to be erudite. Also, the structure of a TEDx talk is laid down by the organisers. My first draft was a schmaltzy chestnut-stuffed turkey, until the fantastic TEDTalks geniuses got hold of it. The editing process is long and thorough.
Yikes. You insist that we're all secret wordplay lovers. What outlets do you think that love has for non-solvers?
Most people don't have access to the fun we have – simply because no one's pointed it out before. Once we spot the rude word in CHARDONNAY, our perception of wine is never the same again. And most people named Melissa probably wouldn't know that it's an anagram of AIMLESS. Or that "Among apostles, I'm one (5)" has hidden within it a certain SIMON.
To have everyone look at the words on road signs, maps and so on, and to see wordplay in everything around us is such a joy – and I want everyone to have that. When we are having fun with them, words become friendly and accessible. Crucially, reading and conversations become more fun.
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In the talk, you also discuss your recent crossword tour. There's an image of solving as a solitary discipline, but you've witnessed a lot of co-solving and even co-setting. How does the experience differ when it's a group activity?
It's a riot. Adults become kids again, and connect with one another. Ask me to explain why this happens, and I'm clueless. But, just being the connector who can cause friendships to occur – and like-minded types to meet – is a privilege.
I enjoyed your message that it's OK to fail. Does that mean that you think it's OK to leave a puzzle unfinished, or do you prefer the idea of every solver of your puzzle cracking every clue?
Thank you! I'm an utter failure at solving. More often than not, I don't complete a puzzle. We have a very human trait that tends to consider ourselves inadequate if this happens. Not so. It's also the setter's responsibility to get us over the line. If someone hasn't completed one of mine, it's me who must try harder!
We also tend to back down after failure. The voices in our head trick us into confirming our stupidity. But everyone fails first time. Personally, I usually fail on the sixth and seventh times too. It's worth persevering, for that eighth time, when you succeed and a new world of adventure becomes possible.
So fail, and smile. Learn from it, and don't let anyone tell you – including yourself – that it's not possible. It is. Ask yourself what you want in life, and what you want to create for others, and then keep failing until your dreams come true. Failure means nothing about your inability. It just means you haven't succeeded – yet.
I'll remember that the next time I'm staring at the Listener trying to find the hidden message. And you cheekily claim that the crossword is a British invention, despite the fact that the Liverpudlian who created the first puzzle did so in the US, for the New York World newspaper. Do you, as a solver, enjoy the American form of puzzle?
Cheeky question! And Americans think they invented the pizza!
I was surprised how much fun the New York Times is, but I found solving it impossible, with all those tiddly abbreviations unfamiliar to Brits. Just because they are unfamiliar to me doesn't make the puzzle a bad one, though. It was also a joy to see that lovers of the NYT crossword enjoy groan-inducing forced punnery – as do I.
Now, we've each written a book about crosswords, both pegged to the centenary in December. Mine is from a solver's perspective and yours could only have been written by a setter. How did you decide what to include and what to leave out?
Yes, I must read yours! I'm sure it'll be a hoot. I wanted to answer the questions I most often get asked by solvers, such as: "How do you set a puzzle?", "What's going on in your head?" and "Are you nuts?"
All good questions, and addressed with aplomb. Finally, how did you pick the puzzles for inclusion in your book?
Some setters were asked to provide one of which they were most proud, others because they were typical of a crossword mindset at the time and some simply because I liked them.
• Many thanks to Paul for dropping by. Do you know of other talks and events which are approaching along with the crossword's centenary? Let us know!