Guardian

A fun crossword from Paul with a nice theme – not too difficult for a Friday. There are some excellent clues here – enough that I won’t try to list all my favourites … Read more >>

Boatman is another setter who doesn’t appear often enough for me [it’s almost three months since his last appearance]. We would normally expect a challenge and this puzzle is no exception. Boatman often … Read more >>

Typical Chifonie fare here: pleasant enough, and soundly clued, but not much of a challenge, with lots of very obvious clues that wouldn’t be out of place in the Quiptic, and a preponderance … Read more >>

What a tour de force by Crucible. I was thoroughly tested by several ingenious cryptic devices composed around the Musical Greats. Alas, not only did I have to solve them, but also to … Read more >>

Nothing very demanding – notably heavy on double definitions, and only a hint of a cryptic definition. Across 1. Influences or distorts the standard (7) COLOURS Triple definition. 5. Makes an entry, a … Read more >>

I thought that this was an easier than usual puzzle for a prize competition, and it took me about an hour and a half. The theme – Leonardo and the Ninja Turtles –  … Read more >>

We don’t see enough of Bonxie, I think, so this was very welcome: a witty and entertaining puzzle, with ingenious cluing, some excellent surfaces, several penny-dropping moments and a few smiles to end … Read more >>

I’m always glad to see Pasquale making an appearance, though ever since his Janet Street-Porter puzzle a while back I’m also a bit nervous if he turns up on one of my blogging … Read more >>

This struck me as a typical Araucaria crossword with lots of cross-referencing between clues, lots of misdirection, a few words that many people do not use in everyday language, and one or two clues … Read more >>

I am often perplexed by Gordius who must find it extremely difficult to NOT spoil an otherwise good set of clues with some horrible ones. One of his foibles is to throw in … Read more >>

I thought this was a trickier-than-usual puzzle from Rufus, but very enjoyable, as ever. I think my favourite clue here was the simple and elegant 25 across. (I had the great pleasure of … Read more >>

A themed puzzle from Araucaria this week.  The themed answers are all obvious once the theme is spotted, but some of the other clues are not nearly so easy. The theme is a celebration of … Read more >>

A momentous and (mostly) excellent week ends with this enjoyable and reasonably straightforward puzzle from Orlando. It’s all of a pretty high standard, so I won’t pick out any particular clues, though I … Read more >>