Independent

Extremely impressive by Nimrod.    Fitting about a dozen examples of the themed answer LAND OF MAKE-BELIEVE into the grid.    Made very little progress till I worked out that thematic answer after about 20 … Read more >>

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def, sp=spoonerism This was an excellent puzzle celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall. There were some tough clues but the presence of a theme which … Read more >>

Unusual crossword in that it said “For ATS, remembering particularly those clued across without definition” It turned out that every across answer was the first name of a person.   I guess ATS refers … Read more >>

The usual very pleasant offering from Phi. One or two I’m not quite clear about, but that will be me not him I’m pretty sure. Across 7 BI(R)D LIME 9 appaREL IS Hard … Read more >>

I suspected we might get a Bonfire Night theme today, and this didn’t disappoint. There were plenty of long across answers and anagrams to open up the grid, though I did struggle a … Read more >>

This blog is scheduled a week later than normal as the entry date was put back to Wed 4 November because of the postal dispute.     I found this a very easy puzzle, 13 … Read more >>

Excellent crossword, as usual, from Dac which I found easy enough, solving time 16 mins. * = anagram   <  = reversed ACROSS 1 C (AND) ID 5 JEREMIAH    Book of the Bible, my … Read more >>

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition. A bit of an epic challenge this one. The theme is PEOPLE OF NOTE, so we have several composers, and also several US presidents, whose … Read more >>

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def, sp=spoonerism Apologies for the late post, but I’ve been really under the cosh at work today and haven’t been able to find the time.   … Read more >>

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition. A solve of two halves for me – I raced through most of this in minutes, then ground to a halt on the remaining few. … Read more >>

We haven’t seen Tyrus for a while. When we have it has been tough, as this one proved to be. I was pleased to get a good handful on the first pass over … Read more >>

Anax has fairly recently joined the Indy team and also, I believe, sets for the Times and set one of the three puzzles used in the recent Times Crossword Championship won by Mark … Read more >>

Excellent puzzle as ever from Dac – I found it on the easy side, 17 mins * = anagram ACROSS 1 S NATCH (naturally = of course) 4 KNOCKER’S 9 TOAST boY 10 … Read more >>

How clever. All the across answers except 16ac consist of something repeated, as indicated by 16ac (DOUBLE-DEALING). Quite an achievement to fit them all in, so one can be lenient about the obscurity … Read more >>

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def, sp=spoonerism I found this very challenging, but there were some very imaginative clues. Some of the references were a little obscure (literally in the case … Read more >>