Observer

Everyman 3,910/19 September

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Another pleasing Sunday offering from Everyman, somewhat marred by a lack of editing leading to a clue having to be corrected after publication (on the website, at least).   Abbreviations cd cryptic definition … Read more >>

Everyman 3,909

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The problem with the current Everyman crosswords is that their difficulty varies so. There are some easy enough clues, of which many are quite good I think, but one or two really difficult ones. The aim, surely, is to have some sort of a gateway crossword which encourages new setters (yes I mean solvers, silly mistake, thanks Michelle@3) , and in its present form the Everyman crossword fails to do so, I should have thought. I’m not a fast solver at all, but the old Everyman used to take me about 20 minutes. This one so far (and I seem to have solved it and spent much time on the blog, but there is still quite a bit of tidying up remaining) has taken me about 2½ hours. If I weren’t doing the blog I’d probably have taken approaching an hour if I wanted, as I do (unlike most speed solvers), to be sure of the parsing at all stages.

Definitions in crimson, underlined. Indicators (anagrams, hidden, reversal etc.) in italics.

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Azed 2570

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It is a plain Azed puzzle that forms the basis of the blog this week       I got quite a long way through the puzzle without looking in Chambers, but as … Read more >>

Everyman 3,906/22 August

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A well-constructed puzzle from Everyman this week, which I enjoyed solving and blogging.   Abbreviations cd cryptic definition dd double definition cad clue as definition (xxxx)* anagram anagrind = anagram indicator [x] letter(s) … Read more >>

Azed 2567

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A rather busy week meant that I solved this in several short sessions, which perhaps made it seem more difficult than it actually is, but in retrospect most of it looks fairly straightforward, … Read more >>

Everyman 3,905

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All was pretty straightforward and it seemed that this was another crossword from Everyman that maintained the recent good standard. But, although they were both quite sound, I took absolutely ages on a pair of clues that I just couldn’t do. One of them was fine really, and I kicked myself afterwards; the other was rather obscure I thought; if an answer is going to be an obscure word, then in my opinion the clue should be pretty straightforward. This one wasn’t. Thank goodness I eventually got there.

Definitions in crimson, underlined. Indicators (anagrams, hidden, reversal, etc) in italics. Anagrams indicated *(like this} or (like this)*

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