Cracking the Cryptic

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Cracking the Cryptic
The words "Cracking the Cryptic" in front of an unfinished Sudoku puzzle
Current channel logo
Personal information
Born
  • Simon Anthony
  • Mark Goodliffe
NationalityBritish
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2017–present
GenrePuzzle
Subscribers427 thousand[2]
Total views98.8 million[2]
Associated acts
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg 100,000 subscribers 2020
Updated: 16 December 2021

Cracking the Cryptic (CTC) is a YouTube channel dedicated to paper-and-pencil puzzles: primarily sudoku, but also cryptic crosswords and other types of number-placement, pencil, and word puzzles.

The channel was set up in 2017 by two friends from England: Simon Anthony, a former investment banker, and Mark Goodliffe, a financial director.[3][4] Anthony is a former member of the UK's world sudoku and world puzzle championship teams, while Goodliffe is a 12-time winner of the Times Crossword Championships and UK sudoku champion.[3][4] Each video shows one of the presenters attacking and solving a puzzle in real time, with their live commentary. The channel features both standard and variant puzzles.[5]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the channel grew in popularity, and as of 7 August 2020 it had 245,000 subscribers, with the most popular video receiving over 4 million views.[6][7][8][9][10][11] In October 2020 a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign was announced in order to produce a physical book with some of the channel's most popular puzzles. The campaign reached its initial target within 24 hours.[12] In September 2021, the channel passed 400,000 subscribers.[13]

The channel has produced seven Sudoku apps based on Sudoku variants: Classic, Chess, Miracle, Sandwich, Thermo, Killer, and Arrow Sudoku.

The music played at the beginning and end of many videos is Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 16, nicknamed Sonata facile or Sonata semplice.[14]

In addition to paper-and-pencil puzzles, the pair stream puzzle games such as The Witness, Baba Is You and Return of the Obra Dinn.[14]

References[]

  1. ^ Anthony, Simon; Hugo Schneider, Kurt. "This Puzzle Trick Is Not Cheating!". YouTube. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  2. ^ a b "About Cracking The Cryptic". YouTube.
  3. ^ a b Clinton, Jane (22 May 2020). "Suduko solving aces become unlikely YouTube stars during lockdown". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b Johnson, Tom (3 July 2021). "Fifty years of The Spectator crossword | The Spectator". www.spectator.co.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  5. ^ Bellos, Alex (6 May 2019). "Can you solve it? Sandwich sudoku - a new puzzle goes viral". the Guardian. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  6. ^ Bellos, Alex (18 May 2020). "Can you solve it? Sudoku as spectator sport is unlikely lockdown hit". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  7. ^ Usborne, Simon (22 May 2020). "Puzzled man solving 'miracle' sudoku becomes YouTube sensation". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  8. ^ Lancaster, Chris (1 June 2020). "Watching sudoku's a winner". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  9. ^ Schwartz, Nick (21 May 2020). "Watch this genius solve insanely difficult sudoku puzzles". USA Today. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  10. ^ Andrews, Farah (26 May 2020). "Puzzlingly compelling: watch a man solve 'miracle' Sudoku with only two numbers filled in". The National. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  11. ^ Marsden, Rhodri (23 January 2021). "Cracking the Cryptic: How the healing art of sudoku became a YouTube sensation". The National. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Update 2: We've FUNDED!! · Cracking the Cryptic's Greatest Hits". Kickstarter. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  13. ^ Anthony, Simon (29 September 2021). The 400,000 Subscriber Puzzle (YouTube). Cracking the Cryptic.
  14. ^ a b Bell, Alice (7 September 2021). "These sudoku YouTubers are about to become your favourite game streamers". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 13 October 2021.

External links[]


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