beermagnet – Page 18 – Fifteensquared

Private Eye / Cyclops 551 – Brandish spider

Mon July 20, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Well over half this puzzle was filled-in by the end of the first pass. I got going again with DISGRACED at 10 which I considered earlier but couldn’t see where the S came from, but … Read more >>

Independent 8955 Sat 27-June-2015 Tyrus

Wed July 8, 2015 at 10:32 amSat July 4, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Something very fishy about this crossword. Very fishy indeed. I think we should call in the Feds to find out what’s going on because it looks like someone has ended up sleeping with the … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 549 The Urban Turban

Mon June 22, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Whistled through this one quickly getting over half in on the first pass and dealing with the remainder without too much fuss, until stuck trying to work out how the wordplay of 11A could possibly … Read more >>

Independent 8925 Sat 23-May-2015 Monk

Wed July 8, 2015 at 10:40 amSat May 30, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

I was glad when I found it was Monk today as he is one of my favourite setters. But this feeling changed as I discovered how tricky this one was. I had read all the … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 547 Ashdown Allergy

Mon May 25, 2015 at 8:05 pmMon May 25, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Sorry, sorry, sorry – late blog – with no excuse at all. I had this blog ready to go apart from the words at the top and simply forgot. I seem to have … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 545 Meltdown Climax

Mon April 27, 2015 at 8:29 pmMon April 27, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

I forgot that I was down to blog this so I solved it in the normal manner, in an easy chair, rather than in front of a computer to make notes. I remember … Read more >>

Independent Sat 18-Apr-2015 8895 Anax

Wed July 8, 2015 at 10:42 amSat April 25, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

When I saw the name Anax I thought I was going to be in for a rough ride. It meant I approached the puzzle with caution taking ages over each clue, trying to … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 543 Campaign Phobia

Mon March 30, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Cyclops reminds us that we mustn’t believe anything we hear from politicians over the next 6 weeks. Solving went like this: Most in after the first pass including all right hand side. 9 … Read more >>

Independent Sat 14-Mar-2015 8865 Tyrus

Sat March 21, 2015 at 10:10 amSat March 21, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Ooo, I struggled a bit with this one. I had what felt like a slow start, but then cold-solved a clutch of down clues which led to a few others, so was happy enough … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 541 Tragic takeover

Mon March 2, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

With apologies to anyone who struggled, I found this Cyclops puzzle quite easy. There were a couple that I only pencilled-in early on because I couldn’t see the wordplay at the time or thought there … Read more >>

Independent 8835 (Sat 7th Feb 2015) Jambazi

Sat February 14, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

Jambazi (a.k.a. Tramp) is one of my favourite setters and one I’d like to see more of in both the Indy and the G. He is known for hard puzzles, and if I … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 539 Stopcock dictatorship

Mon February 2, 2015 at 12:02 am by beermagnet

This was a solid Eye crossword which had me getting many answers quite quickly but having to stretch to get those last few, particularly in the top right corner. Across 1 ABSCESS Miley’s arse … Read more >>

Independent 8805 (Sat 3rd January 2015) Tyrus

Sat January 10, 2015 at 10:57 amSat January 10, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

As is usual from Tyrus this was a pretty hard puzzle. Maybe not as hard as 8776 back in November which had me terribly stuck, but at the start of this one … Read more >>

Private Eye/Cyclops 537 Xmas Special Look-a-likey

Fri January 9, 2015 at 11:57 pmMon January 5, 2015 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

The usual massive festive grid with a hark-back to some feature or other from the Eye from the previous year – this time, lookalikes. Also, the traditional massive prize for one lucky solver: £250 prize. … Read more >>

Private Eye / Cyclops 535 Bare cheeks

Mon December 8, 2014 at 7:11 amMon December 8, 2014 at 12:01 am by beermagnet

One of those weekends where I found myself tackling the Eye crossword just after struggling with Cyclops’ alter ego Brummie in the Guardian. So by comparison this seemed easier than expected. More than … Read more >>