#Cryptics

Bespoke Cryptic Crosswords  

By Matt Grey

Drawing on my lifelong passion for wordplay, narrative, and creative problem-solving, I now offer bespoke UK-style cryptic crosswords. These are meticulously crafted puzzles in the classic British tradition – fair, witty, and rewarding, with clever clues built on anagrams, charades, hidden words, and inventive misdirection.

Each crossword is tailored to your needs, weaving in themes, names, or messages that make it uniquely yours:

Business marketing assets: Company-themed puzzles for newsletters, events, team-building, or client engagement.

Personalised gifts: Celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, retirements, or milestones with clues referencing special people, places, or memories.  

Publications or events: Custom grids for magazines, websites, conferences, or private use.  

Standard Offering

15x15 blocked grid (the classic black & white newspaper style)  

- Fully original clues and solutions  

- Designed and themed according to brief  

- Delivered as high-resolution PDF (print-ready or digital) files with separate clue sheet and full solutions. 

Price: From £200 (depending on complexity, specialism)

Printed/fine art options, larger grids, barred styles, highly specialised/technical themes, or additional interactive formats are available – quoted on request.

My cryptic puzzles combine intellectual challenge with irreverent delight, crafted with the same storytelling flair I bring to art, design, branding, and digital/immersive experiences. For the love of words...

Get in touch at

matt@sharmagrey.com

Start a chat or call direct on +44 (0)7912 101 509

♥️

Introductory Guide to British-Style Cryptic Crossword Puzzles

British-style cryptic crosswords are a form of brain-teasing entertainment that go beyond simple synonyms. Originating in the UK in the 1920s, they appear in publications like The FT, The Guardian, and The Independent, and have spread worldwide. The grid is typically 15x15 with a mix of black and white squares, and clues are numbered for Across and Down entries. What sets them apart is the cleverness: each clue is a mini-riddle combining a straight definition with cryptic wordplay.

How Clues Work

A typical clue has a "surface reading" – a coherent sentence that misleads you – and a cryptic parsing. The definition is usually at the beginning or end, and the wordplay leads to the same word via linguistic tricks. The answer's length is given in parentheses.

For example: "Strange thing is it's dark (5)"

Surface: Sounds like a philosophical statement.

Definition: "it's dark" (NIGHT).

Wordplay: "strange" signals an anagram of "thing" = NIGHT.

Answer: NIGHT.

Clues may use abbreviations (e.g., "doctor" = DR, "king" = K), chemical symbols (e.g., "gold" = AU), Roman numerals (e.g., "ten" = X), and general knowledge.

Common Types of Cryptic Wordplay

Here are the main categories. These can combine in a single clue for added complexity.

Anagrams

Letters of a word or phrase are rearranged to form the answer. Look for indicators like "strange," "mixed," "confused," "broken," "out," "cooked," or "mad." As described above.

Charades

The answer is assembled by adding smaller words or abbreviations together, like acting out parts in charades. Indicators include "with," "and," "beside," "after," "on" (for Down clues, "on" means "above"). Example Clue: "Ocean fellow is sailor (6)" Answer: SEAMAN Breakdown: "Ocean" = SEA + "fellow" = MAN. Definition: "sailor."

Containers

One word or letters are placed "inside" another to form the answer. Indicators: "in," "inside," "around," "containing," "holds," "about," "swallows." Example Clue: "Diamond about right for bug (4)" Answer: GERM Breakdown: "Diamond" = GEM, "around" signals it contains "right" = R (abbrev.). Definition: "bug."

Reversals

A word or phrase is spelled backwards to form the answer. Indicators: "back," "returned," "up" (in Down clues), "rising," "overturned." Example Clue: "Evil back to survive (4)" Answer: LIVE Breakdown: "Evil" reversed = LIVE. Definition: "survive" (as in to continue to exist).

Homophones

The answer sounds like another word or phrase. Indicators: "heard," "sounds like," "audibly," "said," "for the audience", "on the radio", "reportedly." Example Clue: "Audibly view ocean (3)" Answer: SEA Breakdown: "View" = SEE, which sounds like SEA. Definition: "ocean."

Double Definitions

The clue gives two separate definitions for the same word, often short and punchy. No specific indicators, but the clue reads as two synonyms. Example Clue: "Kind sort (4)" Answer: TYPE Breakdown: "Kind" = TYPE (as in variety), "sort" = TYPE (as in class). Both define the answer.

Hidden Words

The answer is embedded consecutively within the clue's words. Indicators: "in," "some," "part of," "contained in," "from," "hiding." Example Clue: "Beverage in great earl (3)" Answer: TEA Breakdown: Hidden in "greaT EA rl." Definition: "beverage."

Deletions

Letters are removed from a word to form the answer. Indicators: "without," "lacking," "headless," "tailless," "endless," "removing," "heartless" (remove middle), "undressed" (remove first and last). Example Clue: "Headless fowl is bird (3)" Answer: OWL Breakdown: "Fowl" minus head (first letter) = OWL. Definition: "bird."

Initial Letters (Acrostics)

The answer is made from the first (or last, or middle) letters of words in the clue. Indicators: "initially," "primarily," "first," "heads," "leaders," "hearts," "tips." Example Clue: "Every animal talks initially to consume (3)" Answer: EAT Breakdown: First letters of "Every Animal Talks." Definition: "to consume."

Spoonerisms

Initial sounds of two words are swapped (after Rev. W.A. Spooner, known for slips like "a blushing crow" for "a crushing blow"). Rare but fun. Indicators: "Spooner," "Spooner's," "according to Spooner." Example Clue: "Spooner's bit tit for snack (6)" Answer: TITBIT Breakdown: "Bit tit" is Spoonerism of "tit bit" (small piece). Definition: "snack."

&lit Clues

"And literally so" – the entire clue is both the definition and the wordplay. Often ends with ! for emphasis. These are elegant and tricky. Example Clue: ""Start of spring? (4)" Answer: JUMP Breakdown: The whole clue is the definition (a "start" can mean a jump (startled)), as can "spring".

Cryptic Definitions

The clue is a punny, misleading definition without traditional wordplay. Often marked with a ? for whimsy. Example Clue: "Number of people in a row (5)" Answer: EIGHT Breakdown: Pun on "row" as in rowing boat (an "eight" is a crew of 8 rowers). Definition: a "number" (both numeral and count of people).

Tips for Solvers

Split the clue: Identify the definition (try the ends first). The rest is wordplay.

Look for indicators: They signal the device (e.g., "about" for container or reversal).

Use the grid: Crossing letters help confirm answers. Start with short ones.

Abbreviations are key: Common ones include R for "river," L for "left," E for "east," S for "son," IV for "four." Musical notes (A-G), chess pieces (K for king), countries (FR for France).

Practice patience: Begin with "quick cryptics" (simpler versions). Online solvers like Fifteen Squared offer explanations.

Common tricks: Clues can use tenses, plurals, or homonyms to deceive. Down clues may use vertical imagery like "falling" for reversal.

Cryptics reward persistence – the "Aha!" moment is addictive.

Try solving a full puzzle, and you'll be hooked x