Inquisitor

This was a real fun puzzle, I thought. Solving time: 3 hrs 45 mins The preamble said (with words in capitals the unclued answers that appeared in the grid). 36 (SEXIST) 18 (LANGUAGE) … Read more >>

Note: This was actually posted early in January 2010.   Whilst compiling an index to the Inquisitor blogs, I noticed that there was an early one missing from May-07. So here’s a highly … Read more >>

Solving time: 36 minutes A simple but original gimmick and fairly easy clues to non-theme words combined to make this a quick but still entertaining solve. Experience of Azed’s Spoonerism puzzles also helped … Read more >>

For reasons I still don’t quite know, this puzzle took me ages to solve. When I look back on it now, it appears to be fairly straightforward as far as themed puzzles go. … Read more >>

Solving time: an hour or so Approached with trepidation, having downed a convivial pint or two with Ploy at Sloggers and Betters 2, but also having missed the final step in his “Travelling … Read more >>

I thought this was an excellent puzzle from Dysart who debuted in the Listener last year and has since appeared twice in the Indy, this being the second one, and also very recently … Read more >>

Solving time: c. 80 mins A fairly gentle puzzle this one – thematic clues just lead to phrases of words associated with the school subjects mentioned. Enumerations for these indicated which phrases had … Read more >>

Solvers’ hint #1: Check the date before tackling a crossword – sometimes it makes the theme blindingly obvious very quickly.Bloggers’ hint #1: If you take your crossword folder on a plane, complete with … Read more >>

Solving time: 43 minutes – and should have been faster One of those puzzles where the setting achievement seems considerably greater than the solving one. The unclued entries that must be “expanded to … Read more >>

Just in time for Easter, Nutmeg provided us with a crossword about that most ubiquitous of nannies, Mary Poppins although more exactly, it was based on one word used in that movie. Generally, … Read more >>

Solving time: 10 hours plus, with assistance After bragging somewhere about finishing the first 12 Inquisitor puzzles, I guess it was inevitable that I’d come unstuck on no. 13. This time, it’s my … Read more >>

Despite the sombre occasion which inspired the theme of Phi’s puzzle, this was an enjoyable crossword to solve.  The clues were not overly complex, and, despite taking an inordinate amount of time to … Read more >>

Solving time: about 5 hours, but I cheated. I found the end of this puzzle extremely difficult, not being able to spot the novel for ages. After finding answers to all but a couple … Read more >>

This was the easiest Inquisitor of the year so far in my opinion. Once I had worked out that the entries at 13ac and 43ac led to the Seven Sages, and that 42ac … Read more >>

Solving time: 3-4 hours An nice example of a fairly standard advanced cryptic puzzle type – “entries mangled according to a theme to be identified”. In this case, there are some thematic entries … Read more >>