Spelka

Spelka is the first modern letter game, older than Scrabble, Lexicon, even older than the crossword. It was invented in the 1890s by Eille Norwood, the first actor to play Sherlock Holmes on film. Released by Jaques in 1900, for a while it was the informal house game at the Savage Club amongst the actors and writers there, and was very popular in the West End green rooms throughout the Edwardian Era.