Is this our last Phi-day blog? We really hope not – but it certainly looks like it at present. Will we have a subscription app or will the i newspaper pick it up? Information on progress will no doubt be available on 225 – watch this space! Let’s hope a solution can be found.
Another great puzzle from our regular Friday setter, with the usual range of clue types, neat surfaces and a few head-scratching moments.
Is there a theme? If so, we can’t spot it – but that’s not too unusual!
Thanks to Phi for all the Friday fun over the last 40 or so years(?). He will hopefully be setting in the Grauniad and we will hopefully have some more Inquisitors in the i paper.
We will be cancelling our Indy subscription after the end of this month! (Unless there’s a last-minute stay of execution).
WILES (schemes) round (‘securing’) GG (‘a couple of grand’)
FEAR (extreme concern) round THE
APT (likely) in (‘throttled by’) CAIN (murderer – as in the Bible)
OPUS (work) after OCT (October – ’31 days’)
AD (advertisement – ‘promotion’) round (‘retaining’) MEN (workers)
A clue-as-definition: YES (certainly) ‘evidenced’ in an anagram (‘wrecked’) of RETINA
ARR (arrives) in WEN (big city)
HE’LL (man is going to) BET (risk) round (‘capturing’) N (knight)
An anagram (‘damaging’) of TO PENCIL
SER (series) round KEW (garden location)
MALADy (sickness) missing the last letter (‘endless’) + ROT (decline) round (‘keeping’) I (one)
AIL (trouble) between N and S (North and South – partners in bridge)
CAD (bounder) ‘interrupting’ ARIA (song)
An anagram (‘upset’) of HE’S TOO after L (lake)
mANAGER (organiser) with T (time) replacing ‘m’ (minute)
TEND (incline) following DIS (detective inspectors)
A reversal (‘revolutionary’) of ACC (account) after WI (Women’s Institute – ‘gathering of women’)
AP (apparently) Y (‘unknown’ – in algebra) ‘invested’ in GEAR (equipment)
The clue initially suggests that DBE (dame – of the British Empire) goes round (‘receives’) LOAN (credit) HOLD (influence) – ‘on the contrary’ swaps this to DBE inside LOAN HOLD
SON (issue) NET (lowest) – we had to check this!
FED (satisfied) round LOWER (‘cow?’)
pART (actor’s role) missing ‘p’ (power)
HE (helium) P (phosphorus) + an anagram (‘affected’) of NEAT
An anagram (‘showing corruption’) of TREASON OR
Cryptic definition
WELL (water source) MEAN (low) T (temperature)
An anagram (‘intermingled’) of SOUND and AIR
PECAN (nut tree) round L (long) I (island)
ST (street) ‘appearing’ in WHILE (a short time) – ‘Whistle and flute’ is Cockney (‘part of London’) rhyming slang for ‘suit’ (outfit)
SOLID (reliable) round T (time)
WORD (promise) after (‘given to’) S (society)
DO (exhaust) G (government)
I said last week that I was pondering how to continue Phidays. I’ve had a simple idea, though the announcement is a bit long to fit here: you can find it on my blog: https://phionline.net.nz/2026/10/phidays/. Please come along for the ride.
As for the theme, start at 1 across and think Oz.
Thanks Phi.
We had never heard of the WIGGLES but it appears they are internationally known and have won loads of awards.
So far we have CAPTAIN FEATHERSWORD, OCTOPUS, PELICAN, DINOSAUR, DOGS but we guess there may be more hidden characters. We googled WHISTLE and there appears to be a running gag about ANTONY and WHISTLE.