Quirister

I learned to do crosswords from my parents, who also introduced me to choral singing and classical languages (they met in a choir while studying Classics / History at university). Perhaps not the most obvious background for an Engineering degree, but the language and problem-solving skills turned out to be useful for working as a technical author in the software industry. Meanwhile all the fun stuff (sewing, cooking and various crafts as well as the singing) gradually took over more of my time . . . so eventually I decided that 30 years’ working life was enough. I now do a range of different volunteer tasks and need a good diary to keep track of it all. As they say: once you retire, you wonder how you ever found time to go to work.

Independent 10,297 by Flitwick

Mon October 14, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

Flitwick is a fairly recent addition to the Indy’s team of crossword setters. Pierre pointed out that he’d blogged all of Flitwick’s first three puzzles earlier this year, but I’m happy to break the pattern with this one.

Quiptic 1,037 by Pan

Mon September 30, 2019 at 10:15 am by Quirister

Thanks to Pan for our Monday morning wake-up exercise. (And hello to any Quiptic regulars who haven’t met me; I’ve been a Fifteensquared blogger for a while but haven’t done the Quiptic until now.)

Independent 10,279 by Alchemi

Mon September 23, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

Thanks to Alchemi for a satisfying Monday morning exercise session.

Everyman 3,805

Sun September 22, 2019 at 1:00 am by Quirister

I think we now know what to expect from Everyman, and this is it.

Independent 10,268 by Knut

Tue September 10, 2019 at 9:30 am by Quirister

An enjoyable puzzle from Knut, with a mini-theme; a few slightly obscure references but they’re all clearly clued.

Independent 10,261 by Tees

Mon September 2, 2019 at 1:52 pmMon September 2, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

Tees provides yet another witty puzzle for a Monday. I took a bit longer than usual to finish it, but I think that’s just my post-holiday brain; everything was clear (eventually) and fairly clued.

Everyman 3,801

Sun August 25, 2019 at 1:00 am by Quirister

An excellent and enjoyable example of what the new Everyman can do.

Guardian Cryptic 27,897 by Pan

Mon August 12, 2019 at 10:47 am by Quirister

Today’s regular blogger is on holiday so I’ve had the fun of tackling Pan this morning.

Independent 10,243 by Morph

Mon August 12, 2019 at 1:35 pmMon August 12, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

An enjoyable dose of Morph’s somewhat cheeky wit today.

Everyman 3,797

Sun July 28, 2019 at 12:15 am by Quirister

As the preamble says, this is an anniversary puzzle. And with lots of other coverage of the same anniversary in the last week or so, it’s not hard to guess the subject.

Guardian Cryptic 27,883 by Picaroon

Fri July 26, 2019 at 11:04 am by Quirister

Today’s regular blogger is away (summer holiday season) so I’m stepping in. A tricky puzzle, with one or two unfamiliar elements in the wordplay, but all very clearly clued.

Independent 10,225 by Tees

Mon July 22, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

Tees is always good value for a Monday. Mostly straightforward, occasionally slightly contrived, but always witty.

Independent 10,207 by Hypnos

Mon July 1, 2019 at 9:00 am by Quirister

A fairly straightforward Monday morning solve from Hypnos. I don’t think I’ve blogged one of his puzzles before, so this was a good start.

Everyman 3,793

Sun June 30, 2019 at 1:00 am by Quirister

Everyman has definitely settled into a consistent style now.

Independent 10,189 by Tees

Mon June 10, 2019 at 9:30 am by Quirister

As usual, Tees provides a pleasant challenge for a Monday morning: it took me a while to get going, but everything was clear enough after a bit of thought.