Financial Times 13,545 / Cinephile
It’s Wednesday so there is a good chance that we will see Cinephile, this time with one of his ‘XX has the same meaning throughout’ puzzles. A pleasant stroll on a very wet … Read more >>
Inquisitor 1151 – On the Rebound by Kruger
This puzzle contained a device I’d never seen before, which, at first glance looked like it was going to prove troublesome. In the end, however, it was fairly easy-going. Each entry had to rebound off … Read more >>
Independent 7,515/Scorpion
A quick scan of the 3 most recent blogs on Scorpion puzzles reveals ‘perfectly all right, ‘a remarkably quick solve’ and ‘a bit easier’. Today’s offering – which I found really hard – … Read more >>
Guardian 25169 Orlando – As Merry As A Grig
Last Monday, the FT changed the usual setter and gave me Cincinnus to blog. Today, I got a double with his Guardian alter ego, Orlando. Double helping of steak and kidney pie! And … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,544 / Phssthpok
No shortage of cleverness here! Some of these clues needed a second (or third) look before I could be sure I had parsed them correctly. My clear favourite is 17 down: natural surface, … Read more >>
Guardian Quiptic 574 / Arachne
No problems with today’s offering from Arachne. My favourite clue was 9 across. All definitions given are from Chambers 11th Edition or the Oxford Dictionary of English. Most of the standard abbreviations used … Read more >>
Guardian 25,168 – Rufus
Typically easy Monday fare from Rufus today – not much else to say, really, except that I’m dubious about the construction of 3dn. Across 1. OUTCAST OUT (striking) … Read more >>
Independent 7514 by Mordred
*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def, sp=spoonerism Enjoyable puzzle by Mordred of middling difficulty. It was probably a better puzzle for more experienced solvers because it had a few old staples … Read more >>
Everyman No. 3345 (7th November)
Lorraine: Good day to you one and all, lovely well balanced puzzle this week. Nice to see the return of my favourite clue types, lots of anagrams. Thank you Everyman I thoroughly enjoyed … Read more >>
Azed 2006 — ‘Spoonerisms’
Azed’s last competition puzzle was (of course, 2000) a special and I’d been expecting a little run of plains, but his specials, although they always take a bit longer than usual, are well … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1082 by Quixote — 7 November 2010
As far as I can remember, this is the first time I’ve tried an Independent on Sunday crossword, and I found it surprisingly easy for a prize puzzle. *(••••) indicates an anagram Across … Read more >>
Independent 7,507 by Nimrod (Saturday Prize Puzzle, 06/11/10)
I would normally panic at seeing Nimrod’s name appear on a blogging day, but with a two hour train journey ahead of me, this was a welcome challenge. I’d filled about two thirds … Read more >>
Guardian 25,161 (Sat 6 Nov)/Paul – Forsyth Saga
Solving time: 9 mins The second appearance in a couple of weeks for Paul (the last as part of Biggles) and I really enjoyed it – there were loads of inventive clues in … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No 939 An Impassable Door by Shark
So an impassable door this week, 23 misprints to spell out a quotation then find the quotation’s author and highlight AN IMPASSABLE DOOR. Chambers is defined as the only reference, so, logically, the quotation … Read more >>
Independent 7,512 by Phi
I don’t know about you guys, but I found this remarkably hard, and I struggled to get anywhere today. This is not least due to the quantity of unfamiliar vocabulary in there. This … Read more >>