A pleasantly gentle solve from Ms Curran
Winnie the Pooh was published on 14th October 2026, so this puzzle celebrates its 100th anniversary.
The rubric states: Nine characters who shared a location appear as the unclued lights (one of two words, one of three). Solvers must shade the surname of the person who wrote about them (five letters).
The characters are:
CHRISTOPHER (17d) ROBIN (12a)
WINNIE (23a) THE POOH (19a)
KANGA (2d) and ROO (15a)
RABBIT (31a)
PIGLET (6d)
OWL (26a) – though I always think of him as WOL
EEYORE (32d)
and TIGGER (33d)
(A A) MILNE is to be highlighted diagonally in the SE corner – like the stairs Edward Bear is dragged down and sometimes wonders if there is a different way of descending. I imagine the title refers to the game of poohsticks, which I have often enjoyed playing, but it might also be a reference to Pooh’s sticky fingers from continually eating honey …
So the grid looks like:
Across
4 Mistakenly re-applied to group of fliers (11)
LEPIDOPTERA
Anagram (mistakenly) of RE-APPLIED TO
11 Tall palms occasionally covered by quotes for extinct plants (9)
CALAMITES
ALAM – even letters (occasionally) of tAlL pAlMs inside (covered by) CITES quotes). Definition: extinct trees from carboniferous period
13 Sadly ageing Hon. MP using amplifier (11)
MEGAPHONING
Anagram (sadly) of AGEING HON MP
14 Part of loge exhibiting curve (4)
OGEE
Hidden (part of) in lOGE Exhibiting. Definition: an S-shaped curve18 African scraps untruths about software programme (7)
18 African scraps untruths about software programme
LAPPIES
LIES (untruths) around APPS (software programmes). Definition: (#4 in Chambers) rags in South Africa
22 Hurry or finally walk back for Reykjavik’s bread (6)
KRONUR
RUN (hurry) + OR + K (last letter -finally – of walK) all backwards. Definition – plural of krona, the currency (bread) of Iceland
24 Methodically search ordinary little band (5)
COMBO
COMB (methodically search) + O (ordinary)
27 Stretch of time limiting energy to wean bairn (5)
SPEAN
SPAN (stretch of time) around (limiting) E (energy). Definition: alternative to spane – to wean in Scotland – hence bairn
29 New things in information about outskirts of icehouse (6)
NEWIES
NEWS (information) around (about) first and last letters (outskirts) of IcehousE
34 Nibble ends of snack, green fruit with crisp flesh (7)
KNAPPLE
Last letters (ends) of snacK, greeN + APPLE (fruit). Definition: to nibble, from knap to break up
35 Fully developed including one number for entire orchestra (7)
RIPIENO
RIPE (fully developed) around (including) I (one) + NO (number)
38 Succeeded following past side issues (3)
BYS
S (succeeded) after BY (past)
39 Rebuke comrades heading west (4)
SLAP
PALS (comrades) reversed (heading west)
40 Strange PhD loathing for having tendency to combine vowels (11)
DIPHTHONGAL
Anagram (strange) of PHDLOATHING
41 Some Ayrshire potatoes put into new container (5)
REPOT
Hidden in (some) AyrshiRE POTatoes
42 Garfish, immature black one (5-4)
GREEN BONE
GREEN (immature) + B (black) + ONE
43 Cunningly detects rare plan kept from public knowledge (5,6)
TRADE SECRET
Anagram (cunningly) of DETECTS RARE
Down
1 Spiral ornaments namely creations supporting cylindrical moulding (11)
SCROLLWORKS
WORKS (creations) under in a down clue (supporting) SCROLL (cylindrical moulding)
3 Camper heard instruction to buy knapsack and amusingly got this (8,3)
SLEEPING BAG
I think this is a homonym (heard) of SLEEP-IN (camper) + BAG (instruction to buy and knapsack – double wordplay). But there may well be a better explanation …
5 Honourably discharged people; troubled dons removed from perverse modernities (7)
EMERITI
Anagram (perverse) of MERITIE – modernities with O D N S – anagram (troubled) of dons removed
7 Storehouses of French earthenware containers (6)
DEPOTS
DE (of in French) + POTS (earthenware containers)
8 Saw once posh car encased in lead (7)
PROVERB
ROVER (posh car) in PB (symbol for lead). Definition: saying or proverb – only ever used in crosswords
9 Partly lost one’s body firmness (4)
TONE
Hidden (partly) in losT ONE’s
10 Bird call, essentially loud and unknown on English lake (4,5)
RING OUZEL
RING (call) + OU (middle letters – essentially – of LOUD) + Z (unknown) + E (English) + L (lake)
15 Scrap surprisingly brief in pets’ welfare group (5)
RSPCA
Anagram (surprisingly) of SCRAP. Definition: brief indicating initials
16 Deviously stole clip-on stringed instruments’ bridges (11)
PONTICELLOS
Anagram (deviously) of STOLE CLIP-ON
20 More lavish surroundings taking in revenue administrator (9)
FINANCIER
FANCIER (more lavish surroundings) around (taking) IN
21 Being units of measurement (3)
ENS
Double definition: firstly being, secondly measurements in printing
25 Things beyond hope of recovery, no good for experts (5)
ONERS
GONERS (things beyond recovery) without (no) G (good)
28 Blackball boundlessly better lab equipment (7)
PIPETTE
PIP (blackball) + ETTE (better without outside letters – boundlessly)
30 Team regularly reported undistinguished board (7)
EMPLANE
EM (tEaM regularly) + PLANE (homonym – reportedly – of plain – undistinguished)
36 In the Big Apple now and then banning butter (5)
NANNY
Alternate letters (now and then) of bAnNiNg in NY (the Big Apple). Definition: a goat is frequently punned as a “butter” in crosswords. Maybe also a gesture to Christopher Robin’s Nanny whose dressing gown is on the door when he’s saying his prayers
37 Frustrated exclamations over wearing footwear (4)
SHOD
Reversal (over) of DOHS – frustrated exclamations especially used by Homer Simpson
This was the third puzzle in the same week (the Guardian and FT being the other two) to commemorate this particular anniversary. Not that that’s a complaint, fun puzzle I thought and at the easier end of the Spectator range.
I interpreted SLEEPING BAG as (whimsically) a “nap sack”, i.e. a sack you might take a nap in if you were camping and which sounds like knapsack.
Thanks to Chalicea and Prospero.
Many thanks, Prospero. Yes, Jay did interpret the ‘SLEEPING BAG’ clue the way I intended as a “knapack”. The Listener that week and the October puzzle in the 3D crossword calendar were on the same theme so Eeyore got a fine hundredth birthday look in.