Never knowingly undersolved
John Since Dac’s sad death Wednesdays have been a problem. Nobody seems to have seized the day. Usually the gentle style has continued, but this crossword was an exception. Not that I have any problems though, since it was as you’d expect from Morph very good.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
Dalibor in the Indy is new to me (and evidently to anyone: he has so far been appearing at the weekends, which I don’t do). I did one of his at a Sloggers and Betters gathering a while ago — well to say that I did it ‘at’ the meeting is to pretend that I’m one of those people who can rattle these things off while chattering away and drinking beer, which I’m not, but I finished it later and it was good and rather difficult.
The difficulty seems to have eased a little, although not much, and there are again some original and very nice clues.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
The usual sharp offering from Phi. He goes on producing these things week after week (to say nothing of all his other output) and the clues remain fresh and accurate.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
Excellent crossword today from Knut, which occupied me for quite a while until its secrets were revealed, but that’s just my incompetence: everything was fair and there were plenty of very nice clues.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
The very satisfactory and enjoyable production that we have come to expect from Eccles. A good collection of convincing surfaces.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
Hob has given us a very nice workout. It was not always easy to see the answers, but once you did everything was clear. And that’s just how it should be. I have a slight criticism of 18ac and 15dn, but it is slight and the more I think about it the more I feel that it is not really justified.
Phi was not on his usual day, so I realised that something special was happening.
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
This is now the third of Radian’s crosswords in a row that I have had the pleasure of blogging: all very satisfactory, plenty of good clues, nothing controversial, and a Nina, shortly to be exposed, which wasn’t too hard to see.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
Loglady is new to me, which is not surprising since he/she has almost always appeared in the IoS, which I don’t see. Glad to have made the acquaintance: to begin with my impression was that this was an easy new setter, as the first answers went in quickly, but I ground to a halt and was defeated by 6dn. On the way there were some very good clues (1dn, 8dn).
Definitions underlined, in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
It’s always a joy to blog a crossword by Klingsor, something I don’t seem to have done for a while. Of just the right level of difficulty for me, and as usual plenty of very good clues.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
What one always experiences with Phi: a slow start, but then after a while everything runs smoothly, with a whole lot of good clues whose explanation is fairly straighforward and one wonders why they ever presented any difficulties.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
(Why have they stopped giving the number and author of the crossword, so that one has to put it in by hand?)
As always with Radian, an utterly satisfactory experience. Many can be explained very simply, although that doesn’t mean they were trivially easy. There is one (22ac) which I can’t understand, but usually in these cases the parsing is perfectly obvious once it’s explained. (There was one … but it became clear when I was looking over what I wrote. Yes quite obvious.)
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
As befits Wednesday, a very pleasant and fairly gentle crossword from Tees today, with a large number of clues that can be explained in a single short statement. Tees has a habit of stretching one’s literary-type knowledge to the limits, but not here so far as I can see. I shouldn’t have thought that Sherlock Holmes was particularly outré.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
Apart from one or two grumbles detailed below, this was all pleasantly done. Several good clues, such as 24ac. I need help on the parsing of 20ac, which is quite beyond me, but otherwise it all seemed reasonably easy.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.
As always from Phi, a pleasant crossword whose secrets are quite obvious once they are revealed, but are less obvious to begin with. I’m lost on one of them, but will I trust be helped by someone; indeed I predict that within an hour someone will have put me right and all will be clear and I’ll wonder how I was ever so stupid.
Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.