Independent

This seemed quite a bit easier than previous Scorpion puzzles but still provided lots to chew over. I liked 23a and the definition in 17d is excellent. Across 5 MIR[-ror],AGE 10 UNION CARD … Read more >>

A very tough puzzle by Bannsider.   Solving time, 64 mins.    Tremendous rigour and invention in clueing.   Just two that I do not fully understand, though I got them from definitions and crossing letters.   … Read more >>

Solving time, 24 mins. * = anagram < = reversed ACROSS 1 DEB T OR 4 M ERIN O 8 VICIOUS CIRCLE 10 BRA (w) N 11 SERBO-CROAT (a rector sob)* 12 WO … Read more >>

A classic themed puzzle from Virgilius, which I was on to before I’d filled a single answer in as I saw “Idiot” twice in the Across clues, plus “nincompoop” and then quickly realised … Read more >>

* = anag, < = reversed, () = dropped A moderately difficult puzzle with a couple of excellent clues in 3 and 22 dn. There was one I didn’t quite follow (12 down). … Read more >>

Solving time: 29 minutes I found it quite a challenge today and a suitable warm-up for the new Listener due in a wee while.  Am a bit baffled about parsing 9 down, my guess … Read more >>

4/14 provided the theme for this enjoyable puzzle, which I found a bit tougher than usual for this setter. What’s a bit strange though is that I count 13 men’s names in the … Read more >>

Slowed up by 7 down which was new to me and had to look for help even when I’d all the crossing letters and knew it was an anagram. Solving time, 25 mins. … Read more >>

Across 1 (TURN TAIL HOME VIA)* – ITALIAN VERMOUTH, otherwise known as IT as in “Gin and It”. But how can “orbital” be an anagram indicator? 9 RY in TON – not difficult … Read more >>

Very tough today, and some excellent misdirection by Dac.  Solving time, 39 mins.    A little rushed today- one not fully understood yet, but verified using ‘Reveal’ that I got it right. * = … Read more >>

I didn’t do this quickly, although looking at it now I bet some people did. One problem was that I wrote an answer in the wrong place, and when I transferred it to … Read more >>

* = anag, < = reversed, () = dropped The bird theme made this crossword the easiest Monday puzzle for some time, but the clues were all well-constructed and there were some good … Read more >>

So now we see why Phi was on Tuesday: Eimi had ready a nice 28ac crossword. I hesitate to say that it was tough, but it took me ages, and some of the … Read more >>

I wonder if anyone will solve this without realising there’s a theme? There are a number of 6d 14a in the grid (highlighted in bold below) as well as in almost every clue, along … Read more >>

Nimrod’s puzzles have a very individual style, rarely more exemplified than here. Found it very hard, but got there in the end, but decided I’d better verify in some cases by using the … Read more >>