Fifteensquared – Page 1229 – Never knowingly undersolved

Independent 8197 / Scorpion

Tue January 22, 2013 at 12:54 pmTue January 22, 2013 at 8:02 am by Bertandjoyce

This was an enjoyable, not too tricky, themed offering from Scorpion. The theme at 10 / 8 was relatively straightforward, and the thematically connected 7ac was moreorless a write-in. Seven of the … Read more >>

Financial Times 14217 Crux

Tue January 22, 2013 at 5:55 pmTue January 22, 2013 at 7:46 am by scchua

Though quick, solving this was quite enjoyable with some clever surfaces and devices. Thank you to Crux. Definitions are underlined in the clues. [[The pictures at the bottom have unidentified links to the … Read more >>

Guardian 25,851 – Puck

Tue January 22, 2013 at 5:43 amTue January 22, 2013 at 1:57 am by Uncle Yap

It is always a pleasure to solve and blog Puck, my magic dragon from the Land of Guinness. I am always reminded about a lazy afternoon spent in a Dublin pub, drinking pints … Read more >>

Independent 8196 by Quixote

Mon January 21, 2013 at 1:09 pmMon January 21, 2013 at 10:47 am by flashling

It’s that Monday morning feeling again today, slightly delayed as I’d forgotten it was my turn….. The usual fine sound stuff from Quixote but I just don’t get 9dn Across: 1 DISTRICT D … Read more >>

Guardian Cryptic 25850 Rufus

Mon January 21, 2013 at 5:19 pmMon January 21, 2013 at 8:18 am by scchua

The usual Monday fare from Rufus. Not everyone’s cup of tea, as the many cds do not allow the solver to synthesise the answer from scratch, but require one to take a macro view. Thanks … Read more >>

Guardian Quiptic 688/Pan

Mon January 21, 2013 at 2:37 am by Pierre

A bit tricky for a Quiptic, I thought, but perhaps you think differently. Abbreviations cd cryptic definition dd double definition (xxxx)* anagram anagrind = anagram indicator [x] letter(s) removed … Read more >>

Cyclops 486: Hacked off to the back teeth

Sun January 20, 2013 at 11:50 pm by jetdoc

This was numbered 469 in the magazine, but is correct on the website. Cyclops on pretty good form, I thought — some good clues, of which I particularly like 23a, for its sheer … Read more >>

Beelzebub 1,193

Tue January 22, 2013 at 10:49 pmSun January 20, 2013 at 2:01 pm by Simon Harding

This was a particularly challenging week, I found. In fact it’s rare that I’m completely beaten by a clue even as I blog the puzzle, but two have come along at once. At … Read more >>

Everyman No. 3458 (13th January)

Sun January 20, 2013 at 6:30 am by The Trafites

Lorraine: Good morning to you all, I romped through this, this morning, took approximately three quarters of an hour to complete. Some lovely clues, some of which made me smile when I solved them; … Read more >>

Independent on Sunday 1,195 by Crosophile

Sun January 20, 2013 at 2:02 am by Simon Harding

I must admit to finding this one relatively tough for a Sunday. That isn’t a complaint since it was terribly good, but it did take a little longer than usual and one or … Read more >>

Azed 2119

Sun January 20, 2013 at 12:03 am by John

The usual excellent crossword from Azed and as usual I won’t give detailed descriptions of all the very unusual words, in the knowledge that anyone interested enough in this crossword to look here … Read more >>

Independent 8189 / Morph (Saturday Prize Puzzle 12/01/13)

Sat January 19, 2013 at 8:04 am by Bertandjoyce

A good challenge from Morph this week, with the expected standard of well-constructed clues. We were held up for a while in the NW corner until we solved 8ac which included a good … Read more >>

Guardian Prize Puzzle 25,843 by Paul

Mon January 21, 2013 at 7:08 pmSat January 19, 2013 at 1:31 am by PeeDee

Enjoyable, inventive, topical and a little cheeky; Paul doing what he does best. I pick 23, 24 and 16 as my favourites. Thank you Paul. Across 1 Boy with great expectations owed extraordinary unknown … Read more >>

Financial Times 14,214 by Orense

Fri January 18, 2013 at 9:32 am by Jed

Straightforward and enjoyable Across 1 MORASS confused situation OR (men) in MASS (service) 4 EMISSARY government agent E (Spain) MISS (young lady) A R[ac]Y 10 SEPTEMBER 30 days (PEST)* … Read more >>

Guardian 25,848 – Tramp

Fri January 18, 2013 at 11:43 amFri January 18, 2013 at 8:38 am by Andrew

What a treat to have a Tramp puzzle to blog on this chilly morning. I took a while to get started, not helped by putting in a plausible but wrong answer for 7d, … Read more >>