Inquisitor

I’m used to blogging Phi puzzles in the Independent, but I think it’s a while since I last blogged an Inquisitor by Phi       The preamble told us that “Four across … Read more >>

I initially thought that this was Encota‘s debut in this series, but I checked and saw that his/her first Inquisitor puzzle was published early last September.   Preamble: In 32 clues the wordplay … Read more >>

Space Invaders by Shark The unclued 1ac hints at why only one of the barred-off corners should be filled in. Clashes in the grid must be resolved to form a relevant three-word phrase; … Read more >>

Succinct rubric: When the clue answers have been entered there will be some vacant cells. Solvers must complete the grid to show five thematic names. Numbers in brackets give the lengths of final grid … Read more >>

Ifor is an innovative and challenging setter, so it was good to see his name attached to this puzzle       The preamble told us that "Across clues and entries are normal … Read more >>

eXtent makes a welcome return.   Preamble: Each grid contains two unclued entries identifying a theme (6,8); the fifth unclued entry indicates a thematic relationship. Eight clues lack definitions; their answers are thematic … Read more >>

A Major Restraint by Kruger Preamble: Answers to ten clues must have one checked letter changed to reveal ten elements of a set. Ten other clues have a single letter misprint in their … Read more >>

After a day with very little in the grid but the bottom right hand corner, I was beginning to fear that this was the one I couldn’t finish (blogger’s nightmare!). I had a … Read more >>

Seeing that it’s a Nimrod puzzle often strikes fear into the heart of a blogger       We had a fairly short preamble this time.  It stated: Clued by their initial letters, … Read more >>

Ploy is an infrequent setter in the Inquisitor series although he has been in the setting stable since 2007 when he set Puzzle no 2.  This is the eighth Inquisitor set by Ploy..  The … Read more >>

I recall that Radler‘s previous puzzle about collective nouns involved a lot of cold-solving, and to cap it all I highlighted the wrong cells in the grid to form SKEIN. Let’s see what … Read more >>

Work by Schadenfreude Single letters to be removed from 38 clues before solving (always leaving real words) spell a quotation with one word missing and its originator. Solvers must reveal the missing word … Read more >>

A difficult one from Nutmeg this week, especially if poetry isn’t really your thing. So much to keep track of and so much cold solving to do if you didn’t know the perimeter … Read more >>

We get a puzzle from Gila just over once a year, and I’ve blogged the two most recent ones.   Preamble: Single extra letters generated by wordplay in across clues provide the first … Read more >>

Shift Work II: Confessions by Ifor A song title suggests how one letter in each across answer must be treated before entry. All down clues must be modified before solving according to part … Read more >>