Beelzebub 1,243
A slightly strange week for me. On the one hand I seemed to struggle greatly, having to resort to aids with only a few answers written in, yet on the other there doesn’t … Read more >>
Year: 2014
Everyman No. 3508 (29th December)
Nick: Me again folks, Lorraine has been laid up with flu for 5 days. Fairly tough for an Everyman, I thought, but some great anagram work going on. I have a slight query with … Read more >>
Guardian Genius 126 / Crucible
Given the “Special instructions: 16 is displayed in all other solutions. All clues lack definitions.” my first step was to look at 16ac but I could not parse the clue other than to … Read more >>
Azed 2169
This was the final Azed puzzle of 2013 and was a standard plain puzzle comprising elegant cluing for a range of well known and obscure words, all of which can be found in … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1245 Kairos
There were a couple of clues that, having got the answers, required a bit more time to parse. Enjoyed the challenge, thanks to Kairos. Definitions are underlined in the clues. [[The pictures at … Read more >>
Azed 2168/CCCP
A Christmas Crossword Celebration Party! I think this one is a bit harder than the 1913 instance. Though I have to say that having struggled with Pointer’s Listener, this felt like R&R. Missing … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1101: Prevention by Charybdis
Charybdis is one of my favourite setters (mind you I’ve got quite a few). His puzzles are always sound and often quirky… like his recent Listener, #4268 Check This Out last November. Here … Read more >>
Independent Saturday Prize Puzzle 8488 / Klingsor – 28 Dec 2013
We found this a little easier than we have come to expect from Klingsor, but it was a great work-out all the same. Given the hectic activities at this time of year, a … Read more >>
Guardian Cryptic 26147 Pasquale
Quite a straightforward puzzle, with just a little more time required for parsing a couple. Thanks to Pasquale. There is a pair of twin answers which seemed to promise a theme, but it fizzled … Read more >>
Independent 8,483 by Eimi (Saturday Prize Puzzle, 21/12/13)
An enjoyable and quite manageable Saturday outing from Eimi, which brightened up another train journey in a most welcome manner. There’s a topical Nina in there too. Look away now if you want … Read more >>
Financial Times 14,510 by BRADMAN
Interesting grid from Bradman – quite a few clues with clever word plays and cluing. Quite enjoyed solving it – started off slowly but with the anagrams in, conveniently in all quadrants (3D, … Read more >>
Independent 8493 / Phi
Our first blog of the New Year and another lovely offering from Phi – the first of many in 2014 we hope! Joyce’s favourite clue is 4d for its briefness! When it came … Read more >>
Guardian Christmas Special No 26,137 by Maskarade
The setter of this year’s Guardian Christmas special is Maskarade, who does of course have a hard act to follow, the Christmas slot traditionally being allocated to Araucaria (I was fortunate also to … Read more >>
Financial Times 14,509 by Armonie
Good morning, and a very happy new year to you all. Armonie eased us into 2014 with a gentle but satisfying solve; nothing to really test the little grey cells here, but the … Read more >>
Independent 8,492 / Anax
There’s nothing like seeing the New Year in in style, and that’s exactly what Anax does with his first offering of 2014. I found this puzzle rather challenging, and not only because I … Read more >>