I think I remember you from....
Yes, quite possibly.

You might know me from school where I edited the "Limpet Racing News" and the 6th Form Newsletter, wrote the school pantomime and was heavily involved in the mystery of the school Christmas tree kidnap of 1986.

Or you might know me from some of the shareware games I wrote (Jacaranda Jim, Humbug, Wibbling Wilf, and Blox) when I was a poor, impoverished student. The text adventure games in particular were quite successful in their time although I no longer sell or support them.

Maybe we met because of work. At Dr Solomon's Software (formerly S&S International) I worked my way through a number of jobs: Chief Windows Programmer, Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit Team Leader, Product Specialist, Product Manager, Senior Technology Consultant, as well as corporate presentations and media appearances.

When Dr Solomon's Software was acquired by Network Associates (formerly McAfee, now called McAfee again!). I stayed on for a short while as Senior Technical Manager of NAI Virus Labs before deciding to leave.

I now work for Sophos, one of the world's largest security companies, as a Senior Technology Consultant. I am also the company's main spokesperson in the media.

Or maybe you know me from something else entirely.

Where do you live? I may want to stalk you.
I live in Oxford, England, with my charmingly nationality-confused wife, Caroline.

I love your Jacaranda Jim and Humbug text adventure games. I wrote to you enclosing a cheque to buy the games but you never replied. You didn't even cash the cheque! What's up!?
Ah well. Life moved on. I moved house. You probably wrote to an address I don't live at anymore. That's one of the problems with shareware - you can't recall all the product out there to update the contact details. Maybe the web changes all that now, but my games were popular before the web really took off..

Anyway, you'll be glad to hear that I placed my games in the public domain some time ago and there is no need to send me any money for them anymore. All the goodies can be downloaded from this website for free (See Jacaranda Jim and Humbug for details).

I would like to write my own adventure game. What did you write your games in?
I wrote them from scratch in Turbo Pascal. Many text adventure games are written in adventure game languages like TADS or Inform. Check out the links page if you would like to read more about writing adventure games.

Why did you write your adventure games from scratch. isn't it a lot easier to use an adventure game language?
Programming is fun! Sure it took longer than writing them in a language specifically designed for interactive fiction, but it meant that I was in complete control of everything in the game - from the language parser and user interface, to how fast the cursor would blink. I didn't want to be constricted by any limitations in the language I was using, so a general purpose language suited my needs well. Anyway, I liked programming in Pascal.

Have you ever thought of making Jacaranda Jim or Humbug into a film, or writing a book?
I was once approached regarding the movie rights to Humbug, but nothing came of it. I suspect the guy who enquired was a few coupons short of a toastrack. I don't really think it's the correct medium for such an interactive adventure anyway. I'm not sure there's much merit in the idea of books of Jacaranda Jim or the adventures of Sidney Widdershins either. I mean, the game is the story - what does a book add? Wouldn't it be better to tell stories that haven't yet been told... now if you asked me about some of the adventure games I worked on that never got released like "The Case of Spindle's Crotchet" or the even less-well-known "Glumph" then maybe that would be a more interesting conversation.

Is the source code for Jacaranda Jim and Humbug available?
No. Sorry.

Why don't you write some more games?
Writing a game like Humbug took about a year. It's quite a large and complicated piece of programming, and it takes months to piece it together. With my work and personal commitments I don't think I am likely to find the time. Maybe if all the virus writers stop writing viruses, and the spammers stop sending junk mail, work will get quieter and I can write some more games. :)

If I was writing a game today I would obviously design it for play across the internet. The net makes it a doddle to distribute programs and software updates (in the past people got hold of my games because they were on floppy disks sellotaped to the front of computer magazines), easy to purchase (with my old adventure games you had to put a cheque in the post - which prevented impulse buyers), and the sense of community that the net delivers as people around the world come together to play a game has a really addictive quality that appeals to my heart and my commercial sense.

But it seems today that most people don't have much patience for text games, and need the instant gratification of graphics rather than a thorough mental workout. Hey ho.

Aren't you the Graham Cluley who is something to do with cults?
Yes, that's right. A good friend of mine joined a religious cult in 1992. In the past I have assisted support groups for those affected by destructive cults. You can find out more at "Triumphing Over London Cults" and "REVEAL". My good friend Ayman Akshar, who was the real heart of TOLC, died in 2002, and the group is no longer really active I'm afraid outside of its website.

What did you write your website with?
MS DOS Edit, and if I was feeling really crazy Windows Notepad.

How can we contact you?
As long as you promise not to bombard me with questions about my computer games (there are full hints and walkthroughs on their webpages!) you can email me at my personal email address:

Do you have a blog? I want to hear all about your cat, what your favourite brand of breakfast cereal is, and which was your favourite episode of Doctor Who season 2?
I have a personal blog on the Sophos website. It's mostly about computer security, so if you're interested in that check out Graham Cluley's blog. In answer to your specific questions my cat is doing fine, it varies, and “The Girl in the Fireplace” is a masterpiece.

I'm a member of the press - I want to pick your brains about viruses, spam, security, the latest computer threats, etc. How do I contact you?
If you are a journalist please get in touch. Visit the Sophos website for my press contact details. I am very happy to be interviewed for online, print, radio and TV on a wide range of issues related to computer security.