Crosswords
One of the things I do in my spare time is compile crosswords. In the Saturday edition of The Times there is a special place for what is called The Listener Crossword. The puzzles that appear there are supposed to be the world’s most difficult crosswords. Compilers always have pseudonyms – mine is Waterloo...
Music
I always liked music, but at school I learnt that I was not quite good enough. A succession of piano teachers all gave me pieces to learn that were too difficult for me to play and I was not allowed to join the school choir because I could not read music. Then my brother-in-law introduced me to jazz, and I found a book called Beginners Play Boogie that actually made sense to me.
One-liners by David Gribble
Education quotes by David Gribble.
- Adults find it extraordinarily difficult to give children the respect they deserve.
- When the problems you face are real, you really want to solve them.
- There is no point in rebelling against yourself.
- It is difficult for schools to avoid suppressing a child’s natural altruism.
Death, the Universe and Everything
At the age of eighty-four, using a walking stick, glasses and hearing aids, I have begun to think a little more about the meaning of death, and I have been surprised to find how much relevant material I had already written when I was much younger.
What follows is a collection of songs and verses, some of which I wrote when I was my forties. In spite of their serious themes, they are mostly light-hearted and sometimes funny.