Crossing the Thames is a matchmaker-style puzzle that requires connecting people on each side with a common name. That name doesn’t necessarily show up consistently as either a first or last name (e.g. connecting John Calvin with Calvin Coolidge).
Once the connections have been made, solvers must realize that there the clues form well-known pairs of names, e.g. Calvin and Hobbes. Each pair of names crosses in the middle of the page at a letter, and reading those letters from top-to-bottom spells out the final answer: RETRO DUO
| Protestant theologian who espoused predestination | John Calvin |
| Daughter of a fast-food founder who served as the companyʼs mascot | Wendy Thomas |
| Friend of Samantha Jones, Carrie Bradshaw, and Charlotte York | Miranda Hobbes |
| Secret identity of the spectacular and amazing superhero | Peter Parker |
| Author of The Chronicles of Narnia | C.S. Lewis |
| Singer/songwriter who recorded “Something to Talk Aboutˮ | Bonnie Raitt |
| Patriarch of the Vacation series | Clark Griswold |
| Frat Pack member and director/producer of Severance | Ben Stiller |
| Former frontman of the Grateful Dead | Jerry Garcia |
| Flirtatious companion of the Doctor who got his own spin-off | Captain Jack Harkness |
| Only First Lady with a doctoral degree | Jill Biden |
| Friend of Robin, Marshall, Barney, and Lily | Ted [Mosby] |
| Companion of Blinky, Pinky, and Inky | Clyde |
| Navy admiral with a computer science conference named after her | Grace Hopper |
| NFL head coach with the most playoff wins | Bill Belichick |
| 12-year-old boy who was trapped in the upside down | Will Byers |
| English philosopher who wrote Leviathan | Thomas Hobbes |
| U.S. President during the Roaring Twenties | Calvin Coolidge |
| He portrayed T.E. Lawrence in film | Peter O'Toole |
| American astronomer who discovered Pluto in 1930 | Clyde Tombaugh |
| Vivian Leighʼs opposite in Gone with the Wind | Clark Gable |
| Author of Alice in Wonderland | Lewis Carroll |
| Sports agent who exclaimed, “Show me the money!ˮ | Jerry Maguire |
| Romantic-sounding Resident Evil protagonist | Jill Valentine |
| Frat Pack member who founded Funny or Die | Will Ferrell |
| The science guy | Bill Nye |
| Inventor of the lightning rod | Ben Franklin |
| Portrayer of Eric Forman in That 70s Show | Topher Grace |
| Baseball Hall of Famer with a nearby tunnel named after him | Ted Williams |
| Bowserʼs minion who wears a pink polka dot bow on her head | Wendy O. Koopa |
| Singer who was holding out for a hero | Bonnie Tyler |
| Actor/musician who played expert crafter Steve | Jack Black |
(In extraction order, with the crossing letter)
| Calvin and Hobbes | R |
| Peter and Wendy | E |
| Lewis and Clark | T |
| Ben and Jerry | R |
| Bonnie and Clyde | O |
| Jack and Jill | D |
| Bill and Ted | U |
| Will and Grace | O |