Guardian

Chifonie steps in on one of the occasional non-Rufus Mondays with a straightforward but nicely clued puzzle.             Across 1. PLAICE I in PLACE 4. TWO-BIT OB (Old … Read more >>

Solving time: 12 mins Another themed puzzle from Araucaria with lots of references to playing cards, both in clue answers and wordplay. I found this a pleasant enough puzzle with few significant quibbles … Read more >>

A great puzzle from Enigmatist – as always, some of the wordplay is difficult to parse, but with the help of my partner I think I’ve got them all. One of the aspects … Read more >>

What a treat! – my favourite compiler and a number of theatrical / literary allusions. I realise that, on both counts, this will not be everyone’s cup of tea but it was right … Read more >>

Another clever themed puzzle from Brendan, this time based on (mostly elementary) mathematics. Amazingly, just about every clue and answer has mathematical connections – a brilliant feat. Maybe my mathematical background helps, but … Read more >>

Solving this puzzle was pretty routine and amusing, given that The Don is always scrupulously fair. However, writing a blog and explaining each and every wordplay is another thing and took me ages. … Read more >>

A very easy start to the week and one completed rather quickly whilst watching the sun rise on the summer solstice. A typical Rufus with the odd good cd (3dn) and some less so … Read more >>

I don’t know what has happened to rightback this week unless he has been drowning his sorrows due to the recent England performances (though England have just beaten the Wallabies 🙂 ). A … Read more >>

An entertaining puzzle from Bonxie, featuring references to Guardian crossword compilers, past and present. [I must admit to having forgotten some of them.] Lots of clever surfaces and wordplay. Across 8   GADABOUT: A … Read more >>

I’m possibly a little jaded against loose setting having just come out of exams, but this wasn’t my favourite Paul. Maybe 3 and 5 will look better in the morning. Across 1 ANUBIS … Read more >>

My second posthumous puzzle in a row – Quantum died in May 2008 – and sadly another one that I can’t be very enthusiastic about. Most of the clues are fine, though not … Read more >>

What a tantalising offering from Puck who teased and tormented us with such a wide and varied array of cryptic devices …. and like all masochistic cruciverbalists, I thoroughly enjoyed each clue. ACROSS … Read more >>

As usual, good stuff from Rufus – smooth surface readings, clever constructions and plenty of smiles from the cryptic definitions. (Apologies for any errors – I’ve had to do this post very fast … Read more >>

Solving time: 16 mins (23ac wrong and another possible mistake at 10/27ac) Similarly to last week’s puzzle, this was very hard until I spotted the theme (a class of creatures like anteaters) and … Read more >>

Rover, aka Ian Morgan, died on 31 May at the age of 78 – see the posting under “Announcements”, and also the editor’s newsletter on the Guardian crossword site. I, and others, have … Read more >>