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- Torquemada's successor at The Observer was Ximenes (Derrick Somerset Macnutt, 1902–1971), and in his influential work, Ximenes on the Art of the Crossword Puzzle (1966), he set out more detailed guidelines for setting fair cryptic clues, now known as 'Ximenean principles' and sometimes described by the word 'square-dealing'.
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Ximenes 1902-1971
Ximenes was the crossword pseudonym of Derrick Somerset Macnutt. Hetook over as crossword setter of the The Observer after the deathof Edward Powys Mathers in 1939. Powys Mathers had chosen as his pseudonymthe name Torquemada, a grand inquisitorof the Spanish Inquisition and Macnutt chose the name of Torquemada's successoras Grand Inquisitor, Ximenes.
Derrick Macnutt was educated at Marlborough College and Jesus College, Cambridgewhere he took a double first in classics. From 1928 to 1963 he wasa Housemaster, and Head of Classics at Christ's Hospital near Horsham inWest Sussex. He began his setting career emulating the style of Torquemadabut was influenced by the ideas of Afrit (Alistair Ferguson Ritchie) whohad introduced a more creative and inventive style to his Listenerpuzzles. He succeeded Torquemada in 1939 as a composer of crosswords in TheObserver, and started the Ximenes series of puzzles in 1945. Ximenesfelt that the earlier puzzles of Torquemada were unfair and he set his ownstandards which he explained in his book, Ximenes on the Art of the CrosswordPuzzle, (Methuen 1961).He was to insist on symmetrical diagrams, a maximumnumber of unchecked letters and rigidly fair clues. Normal clues hadto contain a definition and a subsidiary indication of the word. ThePenguin Book of Ximenes Crossword Puzzles, published in 1972, contains100 of his best puzzles. Ximenes also published puzzles in theListener under the pseudonym of Tesremos, a reversal of hismiddle name.
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Derrick Macnutt's hobbies were golf and gardening. He was married andhad two daughters and one son, six grand-children and two great grandsons.He lived near the school at Buckmans, Five Oaks, Billingshurst, Sussex.
He established close contacts with many of his regular solvers. Hewas five times entertained by his regular solvers who organised dinners tocelebrate puzzles No. 100, 250, 500, 750 and 1000. At the celebrationof No. 1000 in 1968 nearly 400 solvers were present. These Ximeneans(as the regular solvers styled themselves) were proud to wear the Ximenestie - all black with small white Xs and the ladies, of whom there were many,had a white silk scarf with black Xs. His puzzles were witty and inventiveand it was he who instituted the standard variations of the Printer's Devilryclue, the Playfair code square, the Definition and Letter Mixture clue, theMisprint clue and many others. He had a huge number of enthusiasticsolvers, including PG Wodehouse, Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim and,of course, Sir Jeremy Morse and DW Lewis, top prize winning solvers whosenames Colin Dexter uses in his famous detective stories.
He died in 1971 and his last puzzle (no. 1200) was published in 1972. Hewas succeeded by Azed (Jonathan Crowther) who maintains Ximenean standardsevery Sunday in TheObserver.
Shortly after Ximenes died, N.C. Dexter sent this poem to the letters pageof The Observer
XIMENES |
'It just won't do,' said the angel crew, 'To go on with our present compilers: It's getting much harder for Torquemada And Afrit can no longer beguile us.' |
'The judging, too, has gone all askew And the lists grow quite absurd: A crafty sinner was last month's winner, With God's clue only third.' |
'I'm on your side,' St Peter cried, 'I'd hoped for a V.H.C., And the last bit of luck for old Habakkuk Was in 1953.' |
So loud and long the heavenly throng Debated some fresh nominees; Then with one voice they agreed on a choice - And sent for Ximenes. I am indebted to Mary Macnutt for vetting and amending this page. DH. |
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