Scripts for the film ceremony.
Arts Club with Will Gompertz | BBC Radio 5 Live
I am a guest on the first episode of BBC Radio 5 Live’s Arts Club. Tickets for the recording are available from The Bill Murray club in Islington.
Update: More episodes with me —
- 2 Feb 2018: Art for Trump, Dylan v Cohen, What does Banksy look like and is The Bayeaux Tapestry a bit rubbish? (My sacred cow: The Laughing Cavalier)
- 16 Feb 2018: Florence, portraits and the music of our youth (My sacred cow: The Great Bear)
- 18 Mar 2018: Awards Shows, the NME, and TV shows for the Obamas (My sacred cow: Julius Caesar)
- Recording: Thu 1 Feb 2018, The Bill Murray, 39 Queen’s Head St, London N1 8NQ [tickets]
- Broadcast: BBC 5 live, Sun 4 Feb 2018 and on podcast
- See also: The Will Gompertz Fringe
- Image from the RWA Exhibition, 2007
American-style crosswords | The Guardian
I’m writing some American-style puzzles at the Guardian [feed].
For British solvers, the main differences are that abbreviations and fragments of phrases are allowed. All squares are part of an across as well as a down, so there’s more ambiguity.
The puzzles are presented as printable PDFs, but are better approached as .puz files using Across Lite or better still Crossword Solver.
- And We’re Off! [ medium: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- Cheers! [ medium: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- PO… [ tougher: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- Store’s In What? [ gentler: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- Cryptic Currencies [ gentler: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- (miscellaneous) [ gentler: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- Money Talks [ tougher: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
- Shoot! [ gentler: .puz / .pdf / solution .pdf ]
See also:
- My book, Two Girls, One On Each Knee
- And also The Crossword Century
- Image taken in NYC, 5 Nov 2008, the day after the election
Masterclass: Craft of Comedy Entertainment | Bafta
Taking an evening off from editing to hear from this comedy panel at @BAFTA. Should be a really interesting evening! pic.twitter.com/24IEUXv5RE
— Mei Leng Yew (@widowedanthem) October 17, 2017
I’m part of the panel for a Bafta event:
A panel of comedy entertainment producers and writers discuss the recent renaissance in entertainment television, covering programme development, writing, casting, and the role of satire.
- 6:45pm, Tuesday, 17 October 2017
- Princess Anne Theatre, Bafta, 195 Piccadilly, St. James’s, London W1J 9EU
- Tickets
- Updated with image by @widowedanthem
Richard Osman’s House Of Games | BBC2
I’m listed as question editor for a new quiz which starts today on BBC Two: Richard Osman’s House of Games.
particularly pleasing… This is trivia, plus; it requires a bit of wit, and imagination, even, certainly silliness — Sam Wollaston, Guardian
…just how much I loved BBC2’s new quiz show Richard Osman’s House of Games… Like all the best TV quizzes, ROHOG scores very highly on the playalongability chart – so the half hour fair flies by — Ian Hyland, Mirror
the BBC’s new infectiously funny prime time show… deserves praise for finding a sweet spot which fits all audiences — Adam Bloodworth, Metro
it shouldn’t be a surprise that [Richard Osman’s House of Games] is terrific… The victor gets to choose between a dartboard, pasta maker, cushion and dressing gown, but really, we’re all winners here — Robert Epstein, Independent
viewers couldn’t stop laughing… The show’s debut was a success by all means as fans loved Richard’s new format — Helen Daly, Express
- BBC Two, 6pm weeknights from Mon 4 Sept
- See also: my book, The Joy of Quiz
- Also in quiz: Only Connect
Alternative Election Night | Channel 4
I have been enjoying working on Channel 4’s Alternative Election Night:
Jeremy Paxman, David Mitchell and Richard Osman present an all-night feast of comedy and comment in Channel 4’s very different take on election night
Election Lexicon | BBC News
By me for BBC News: Election Lexicon, the words which “caught the ear” in a week of campaigning.
27 May: [campaigning suspended]
Inside No 9 | BBC2
I am proud to have performed the minor role of “crossword consultant” for this excellent episode of Inside No 9, The Riddle of the Sphinx:
I’m further proud to have filled the role of some kind of muse:
- BBC Two, 10pm, 28 Feb 2017
- Two Girls, One on Each Knee
- Steve Pemberton set the episode’s crossword as ‘Sphinx’, which is also the Guardian’s cryptic on the day of broadcast
- Interview with Sphinx at the Guardian crossword blog
- More Inside No 9
Charlie Brooker’s 2016 Wipe | BBC2
I am a proud member of Team 2016 Wipe, which is broadcast after Christmas.
Update 14 May 2017: Bafta winner, Comedy & Comedy Entertainment Programme
Nigel Farage Gets His Life Back | BBC2
Kevin Bishop is Nigel Farage, in a programme imagining his life after resigning. Blurb:
“On the 23rd June, Britain voted to leave the European Union,” added the BBC. “Then, on the 4th July, Nigel Farage, the man who had made it all possible, resigned saying he wanted his life back. But what sort of life has he gone back to, and how does a man forever in the spotlight fill his days now he has nothing to do?”
Only Connect | BBC2
Series 12 of Only Connect, with me in the question-editor chair, begins tonight on BBC Two at 8.30pm.
“It’s a safe space, where a very specifically talented group of people get to show off in their own understated way for an audience of their peers. And this is what makes it so brilliant.” – Stuart Heritage, Guardian
“…that will surely be the highlight of the week for all lovers of uncompromisingly smart television” – James Walton, Telegraph
“What is the link between these numbers? 285,000, 684,000, 1.1m, 2.9m. The answer is they are soaring viewers figures for Only Connect, the toughest quiz on television, which began as a BBC4 obscurity and has now overtaken BBC1 in the ratings.” – Adam Sherwin, Independent
“Only Connect: the best quiz on TV?” – Radio Times
The Joy of Quiz | Penguin
Update 2 Nov 2017: Now in paperback.
My book The Joy of Quiz has been published. Here’s the blurb:
• An absolute must-read for anyone who loves quizzes. Alan knows everything, knows everyone, and writes beautifully too. I loved it! (Richard Osman)
• Alan Connor has the mind of an entertainer and the soul of a quizzer. I can’t think of anyone better placed to lead readers through this weird, wonderful, competitive and dastardly trivial pursuit (Victoria Coren Mitchell)
• 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?’
You can order from your local bookshop, or from Penguin, Waterstones, Amazon, on Kindle, at Google Play etc…
★★★★★ Connor, like all the best quiz masters, is a genial, companiable host… He writes with wit and fluency… Above all, Connor succeeds in communicating the joy of quiz without taking it all too seriously. An absolute delight. — Simon Humphreys, Mail on Sunday
Book of the Day: Connor, whose last book was a charming look into the history and culture of the crossword, has again succeeded in explaining the enduring popularity of a curious pastime. The Joy of Quiz offers an entertaining sideways social history that takes in debates over quizzing and public morals, government oversight, and – I’ve started so I’ll finish – the strange things otherwise ordinary people will undergo to win a round of drinks. — John Gallagher, Guardian
Book of the Month: Alan Connor’s hugely entertaining book… gives us a cheerfully fascinating history of the whole quizzing business — Reader’s Digest Recommended Read
An absolute treasure trove of good stuff — Stuart Maconie, BBC 6Music
https://twitter.com/AllenLaneBooks/status/763701465726803972
• Today programme, Radio 4, 25 Oct 2016, with John Humphrys and Anna Ptaszynski [audio] [video]
• Radcliffe & Maconie, 6Music, 4 Nov 2016
• Mark Forrest BBC Radio show, 7 Nov 2016
• Signing at Blackwells Holborn Book Quiz, 6.30pm, 10 Nov 2016
• Talk, Richmond Literary Festival, 7pm, 24 Nov 2016 [slides]
• Playful Book Quiz, Waterstones Guildford, 7pm, 1 Dec 2016
• The Monocle Weekly, Monocle Radio, 4 Dec 2016
• Playful Book Quiz, Waterstones Birmingham, 6.30pm, 7 Dec 2016
• Playful Book Quiz, Waterstones Brighton, 7.30pm, 14 Dec 2016
• Mid-Morning Show, BBC Radio Leeds, 5 Jan 2017
• Radio 2 Book Club, Radio 2, 6 Mar 2017
• Boring Conference, 6 May 2017 [tickets]
• Kew Bookshop Playful Quiz Evening, Tap on the Line pub, 8pm, 11 May 2017
• Talk, Festival of Learning, 7pm, 7 June 2017 [tickets]
• Chiswick Book Festival, Waterstones Chiswick, 7pm, 13 Sept 2017 [and prize quiz available at all events]
• Weekend, World Service, 4 Nov 2017
• Mid-Morning Show, BBC Radio Leeds, 13 Nov 2017
• Post-Christmas Quiz with Boatman, 6.45pm, 25 Jan 2018, Blackwells High Holborn [tickets]
Here’s a playlist of the music mentioned in the book:
https://twitter.com/ParticularBooks/status/788390197457289217
- 320 pages
- £14.99 RRP hardback; £8.99 paperback
- 3 November 2016 hardback; 2 November 2017 paperback
- Penguin Books / Particular imprint
- ISBN: 1846148685 and 978-1846148682; 0141980842 and 978-0141980843
- Goodreads · LibraryThing · Pinterest · Spotify · Facebook
- Previously: Two Girls, One on Each Knee: The Puzzling, Playful World of the Crossword
The One Show | BBC1
The Rack Pack | BBC iPlayer
Update: Luddites can see The Rack Pack on terrestrial TV during the World Snooker Championships c2130, 30 April at 10pm, 16 July, BBC2.
The first drama feature film for iPlayer is out on Sunday [ trailer | playlist ]. It’s about Alex Higgins and these men:
Just been to the premiere of Rack Pack. It's out on Bbc I player on 17 th January Whatever you do don't miss this it's totally brilliant.
— Barry Hearn (@BarryHearn) December 17, 2015
Oh my! Snooker fans! Just watched The Rack Pack. Funny early but by the end I had tears of sadness. It's brilliant! https://t.co/UM8PAmLlzb
— Steve Davis (@SteveSnooker) January 13, 2016
@jamesdanw IMHO it's an superb portrayal of Alex, Me, Barry and the snooker scene back then. The poetic license afforded it adds 2 the drama
— Steve Davis (@SteveSnooker) January 13, 2016
Detailing the complex relationship between Steve Davis and Alex Higgins, and the part played in it by Hearn, the sport’s ringmaster, the film is by turns hilarious and tear-jerking. Its re-creation of an era of quite magnificent sleaze is so precise you can almost feel your shoes sticking to the snooker hall carpets as you watch — Jim White, Telegraph
Delightful… What this is not is a cartoonish romp through snooker’s glory days. For the most part it is very moving. But despite all this, Shaun Pye, Mark Chappell and Alan Connor’s film is still a wonderful nostalgia fest for all us 1980s kids, hearing names you haven’t heard uttered for 30 years — Ben Dowell, Radio Times
Shifts beautifully between laugh-out-loud moments and characters pressing the self-destruct button — Alyson Rudd, Front Row, Radio 4
For 90 minutes of pure nostalgia, this takes some beating — Hector Nunns, Times
…hilariously recounts the tension between the pair.
Hearn has seen the film and says it is ‘absolutely fantastic‘. He goes on: ‘It captures exactly the spirit of that time, the conflict between Davis and Higgins and the birth of modern-day commercial snooker. I had to rub my eyes sometimes; it was as though I was watching the real thing. It’s sensational.
‘The film is brutally honest.’ — Tom Parry, Boudicca Fox-Leonard, Mirror
Snooker is famed as the perfect TV sport, but it never looks as good as this — Andrew Collins, Guardian
Snooker fans will have tuned in to the final of this year’s Masters on BBC Two, but over on iPlayer a more thrilling portrayal of the sport was playing out — Rachel Ward, Telegraph
…the only puzzle about The Rack Pack is why the corporation [is] uncertain how to categorise what is simply superb drama — Martin Hoyle, Financial Times
- A film by Brian Welsh
- Luke Treadaway, Will Merrick, Kevin Bishop, Nichola Burley, James Bailey
- Created and written by Shaun Pye, Mark Chappell, Alan Connor
- Producer Barney Reisz
- Executive Producer Peter Holmes
- Executive Producers Shane Allen, Victoria Jaye, Gregor Sharp
Motörhead’s Ace of Spades | BBC News
Here‘s a quickie Smashed Hits for the BBC News Magazine about Motörhead’s Ace of Spades:
Never mind what Lemmy said – with respect, Ace of Spades can be viewed as a metaphor. You could look at it as the Lemmy philosophy of living just how you want, in the full knowledge of the inevitable consequences.
Bob Dylan’s Forever Young | BBC News
A Smashed Hits piece for the BBC News Magazine about this year’s X Factor Winner’s Song, Bob Dylan’s Forever Young:
The Dylans decamped to rural New York state for some peace. They didn’t get it. The presence of Bob Dylan gave the tiny town of Woodstock such countercultural kudos that its name was given to an “aquarian exposition” – the famous 1969 festival in a neighbouring county which didn’t feature Dylan, but did bring half a million people into his back yard.
For some of them, “Dylan’s back yard” was no metaphor, and they never went away. The Dylans soon wearied of finding hippies in the trees around their home and Dylan became frightened that he might have to use his “clip-fed Winchester blasting rifle” to keep them from his family. Onwards, then, to an Arizona ranch.
