Derek Arthur/Viking
Posted by clanca1234 on 9 October 2010
I was very upset today to hear the terribly sad news that Derek Arthur has passed away. Derek set not-too-tricky but fun puzzles under the pseudonym Viking, but will be better known to all Listener setters of the past decade as the second Listener vetter. I can only speak for myself, but he was immensely helpful to me as a new setter when I first started out, and was unfailingly cheerful and encouraging in every word that he said or wrote. I only met him in person a few times, always at Listener Dinners, and found him to be as nice a man in the flesh as he was when hammering my puzzles into something publishable.
Many thanks to Derek for all that he did, and my sincere condolences to his family. He is a great loss to the ‘crossworld’.
Dave Hennings said
Upsetting news indeed, Chris. Derek was a great help when I was getting the Crossword Database up and running, but I did not meet him until my first Listener dinner this year. I was looking forward to getting to know him better in years to come but, alas, that is not to be.
My sympathy to his family at this sad time.
Phi said
I was stunned to hear of this; Derek had been over here visiting NZ not so long ago, and had looked set fair for many happy years’ retirement. He was unfailingly courteous in his dealings with setters, and his passing is a great loss to crosswords.