Good morning, and sharpen your pencils for The Globe’s giant Canada Day crossword. We puzzled out how tomorrow’s word game came together – more on that below, along with new trouble for Trudeau and a prom to wrap up Pride Month. But first:
Today’s headlines
- The U.S. presidential debate sees Biden trip over words while Trump deflects key questions
- Erin O’Toole and Bloc Québécois call for hearings on push to rescue Afghan Sikhs
- Canada’s sanctions list has grown in recent years – but experts criticize it as a largely performative approach
Diversions
Word play
The Globe has your long weekend plans sorted: Our massive, 628-clue Canada Day crossword arrives in the paper tomorrow. (If you’re itching to begin, you can find it online now.) And since building this puzzle is as epic an undertaking as solving it, we spoke with creator Fraser Simpson – who’s made The Globe’s cryptic crosswords for the past 30 years – about how he puts it all together, in four not-so-easy steps.
1. Build the grid
Once upon a time (the ’90s), Simpson did this with graph paper and a pencil, but now software programs make designing grids easier. He begins by plugging in the number of horizontal and vertical squares: 13 x 13 for a daily cryptic, but a whopping 69 x 69 for the Canada Day extravaganza. The software places the clue numbers, maintains the symmetry of the black boxes – a long-standing rule is the black-and-white pattern must look the same upside down – and suggests all the words that could fit in a given space. Problem is: “The software comes with a terrible word list,” Simpson says. “The words are too boring or abstruse or just unacceptable.” Which is why it’s important to …
2. Finesse the word list
Every crossword constructor has a word list that they’re constantly tending to, adding celebs (Timothée Chalamet) and concepts (egosurf) and swapping out names no one wants to see (R. Kelly). “I have little pads of paper around the house, where I might be reading, and in front of the TV,” Simpson says. “If I hear a great phrase, I’ll just jot it down and add it to my word list later.” Since this crossword is Canada Day-themed, he makes sure there are plenty of national icons and homegrown terms (eavestrough, serviette) on that list, ready for when it’s time to …
3. Fill the grid
Simpson begins where most solvers will end: in the bottom right corner. “I want to have something interesting and Canadian there,” he says. This time around, it’s the 10-letter Fraser Valley city east of Vancouver (that happens to be delightful to say). Filling from the bottom up is also handy because there are fewer endings to words than there are beginnings – if you’ve led from the top with “impromptu” and “chateau” and “caribou,” you’ll end up in a bit of a bind. For this puzzle, Fraser leans hard on nouns, which are easier for the whole family to get, and he can usually fill the entire grid over one marathon day. Then the last step is to …
4. Write the clues
This takes far longer – for Simpson, up to a week. Accuracy and clarity are paramount, but a crossword constructor’s sense of humour, tolerance for wordplay and even new interests will all bleed into the clues. “When I took up hockey as an adult, there was this whole other vocabulary that I found myself putting into the crossword,” he says. And sometimes, a titanically successful pop star comes along and makes everyone’s lives better. “We always clued this one name as: Fred Astaire’s sister and first dancing partner,” Simpson says. “And then all of a sudden there was a great way to clue Adele that felt fresh and new.”
Because I’ll need the full long weekend to finish Simpson’s giant puzzle, Morning Update is taking Monday off. I’ll see you back in your inbox on Tuesday.
The Shot
‘There’s no pretence here’
Padam Padam on the speakers, pure joy on the dance floor: Queer Prom celebrates a rite of passage with pride. Check out more photos from Vancouver’s festivities here.
The Wrap
What else we’re following
At home: Former B.C. premier Christy Clark believes it’s time for Justin Trudeau “to move on to other, fairer pastures” – and she’s urging Liberals MPs to have a quiet word with the PM.
Abroad: After a helicopter crash killed Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi last month, Iran heads to the polls today in a contest that will be watched as much for the turnout as for the result.
Across the border: Post-Roe, Mexican abortion advocates find themselves in an odd position. Their American neighbours, whose access they once envied, are now the ones struggling for safe ways to end pregnancies.
On the screen: Barry Hertz has unveiled his list of the 25 greatest Canadian actors. Check out the contenders – then cue up Sad Keanu.
