The "colleague" was one of his students. Apparently the kids had lots of interactions with American GIs who were stationed in the area, and picked up code words

The "colleague" was one of his students. Apparently the kids had lots of interactions with American GIs who were stationed in the area, and picked up code words from conversations they heard. When their headmaster, who created the crosswords, asked them for words that would fit his skeleton, some of the words they suggested were these top-secret ones. The headmaster had no idea of their provenance. https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Crossword-Panic-of-1944/ https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Cross...