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The Joy of Quiz

A jaunty journey into the world of the quiz, from the question editor of BBC2's Only Connect, sometimes in the form of 300 excellent quiz questions 
 
In 1938 Britain started to quiz. Since then, quizzes have become ubiquitous entertainment from pubs to primetime, suffered major criminal investigations, created unlikely folk heroes and been subjected to the rigours of question checkers. The Joy of Quiz tells the history of quiz and its makers, wonders how we came to make a game out of remembering scraps of information, looks at the tactics of professional quizzers and reveals the shadowy worlds of setters and checkers. Along the way, it asks questions such as 'What is a fact, anyway?' and 'Whatever happened to prizes like sandwich toasters?'

Alan Connor has been the question editor for BBC2's Only Connect and Richard Osman's House of Games. He is the author of books for Pointless and The Traitors and is the puzzle consultant for the BBC1 drama Ludwig. He writes puzzles for various newspapers and has written for Charlie Brooker series and Have I Got News for You. His favourite quiz question is: What word was intentionally omitted from the screenplay of The Godfather?

In 1938 Britain started to quiz. Since then, quizzes have become ubiquitous entertainment from pubs to primetime, suffered major criminal investigations, created unlikely folk heroes and been subjected to the rigours of question checkers. The Joy of Quiz tells the history of quiz and its makers, wonders how we came to make a game out of remembering scraps of information, looks at the tactics of professional quizzers and reveals the shadowy worlds of setters and checkers. Along the way, it asks questions such as 'What is a fact, anyway?' and 'Whatever happened to prizes like sandwich toasters?'

The Puzzling, Playful World of the Crossword

Two Girls, One on Each Knee

Alan Connor's charming, fascinating history . . . is as elegantly sprinkled with surprising gems as the most satisfying crossword . . . thoroughly, consistently entertaining . . . In a single, gloriously decipherable chapter he lays out with perfect clarity the entire range of rules and devices through which cryptic clues work their magic

It is witty, charming, encyclopaedic and highly readable - and it can be read in any order. Take a chapter or a paragraph, a puzzle or a clue. In each the reader will find something to intrigue and delight.

Two Girls is a lovingly crafted little book, from the table of contents - where chapter titles are hidden in a crossword designed by the great Araucaria - to the index, which skips from "I give up, see frustration" via "primness in American crosswords", to finish with "zookeepers, beleaguered".

A lovingly crafted little book . . . Connor's wry, good-natured tone and his commitment to the serious business of play make him the perfect guide to a great pastime as it approaches its 100th birthday

Connor writes with great flair . . . it is nice to dip in and out of his entertaining essays

The brilliant new book on crosswords that delivers fun galore whether you're a doer or a duffer

There is something to entertain even the most infrequent dabbler

In the century since its birth, the crossword has evolved into the world's most popular intellectual pastime: a unique form of wordplay, the codes and conventions of which are open to anyone masochistic enough to get addicted. In Two Girls, One on Each Knee, Alan Connor celebrates the wit, ingenuity and frustration of setting and solving puzzles. From the beaches of D-Day to the imaginary worlds of three-dimensional crosswords, to the British school teachers and journalists who turned the form into the fiendish sport it is today, encompassing the most challenging clues, particular tricks, the world's greatest setters and famous solvers, PG Wodehouse and the torturers of the Spanish Inquisition, this is an ingenious book for lovers of this very particular form of wordplay.

Alan Connor

Lee Child

The Official Jack Reacher Puzzle Book

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY LEE CHILD 
 
For Jack Reacher fans who love a brain-teasing challenge, enjoy your hero vanquishing bad guys in the form of sudokus, word wheels, word searches and Murdle-style reasoning puzzles. Puzzle solving has never been so bloody. 
 
Created by Alan Connor, puzzle setter for hit TV shows The Traitors, Ludwig, House of Games and Only Connect. 
 
You don't need to have read Jack Reacher novels to know how to play. You just need to adopt Reacher's cool, calm, matter-of-fact approach to solve the puzzles. You’ll be listening to blues following up on clues to save the day. 
 
The puzzles suit those who like to work alone in a diner with a bottomless cup of coffee as much as those who like to work in a group, sharing their knowledge to reach a solution. 
 
Remember, be on your feet and be ready. 
If in doubt, drink coffee.

Alan Connor

Books by Alan Connor

Articles featuring Alan Connor

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