Financial Times 13,318 / Gozo
A pleasant, gentle stroll today with nothing too 13ing, but I think there is an error in one of the clues (20dn) unless my parsing is incorrect. It became clear quite quickly that … Read more >>
Guardian 24,942 – Quantum
Maybe it’s the time of night, but I found this quite a slow solve for a Quantum and got held up in a few places despite the long clues falling early. A few … Read more >>
Independent 7288/Dac
Typically mellifluous surfaces. I found one or two of the clues unusually hard for Dac. Across 1 I would never have got this, because I never knew that a bertha was a woman’s … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,317 / Phssthpok
A good offering from one of the less frequent FT setters. Apologies for the late posting; I had solved this last night but didn’t have a chance to fill in the explanations until … Read more >>
Independent 7287 by Virgilius
You could not ask for much more from a puzzle than is in this one. I found it quite difficult, solving time, 48 mins. 7/1 is POETS’ CORNER and the name of several … Read more >>
Guardian 24941 – Gordius
A mixed bag from Gordius. Some excellent clues, somewhat spoiled by a couple of mediocre ones. ACROSS 1 SEPTIC TANKS Ins of TANK (reservoir) in *(cesspit) Nice surface 9 NOISOME Ins of OM … Read more >>
Independent 7286 by Raich
*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def, sp=spoonerism There was an Irish provinces theme to this and, although I can see three of the four Irish provinces, I haven’t noticed the fourth … Read more >>
Guardian 24940 / Rufus
A fun puzzle from Rufus – I had a bit of trouble with the bottom-left corner (21a and 24a) but otherwise this was pretty easy and satisfying to solve. Across 1. ORCHESTRA OR … Read more >>
Guardian – review of 2009
I thought it would be interesting put together some statistics about how many puzzles there were from each Guardian setter in 2009, and how many comments the blogs have attracted on this site. … Read more >>
AZED No. 1,968 Plain
Nick: I am trying a new format here, with the full clue next to the clue number and the solution with word play/comments underneath. Often when reading other blogs on this site, I … Read more >>
Everyman No. 3307 (14th February).
Lorraine: Thank you Everyman once again for a wonderful puzzle. I must add that although some people might find Everyman not taxing there are those of us who find that this puzzle is … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations 901: Time for Action by Raich
Five clues have no definition. That sounds easy, since that leaves over fifty other normal clues that presumably do. Little did I know …! Despite seeing some 4-letter words beginning with I, a … Read more >>
Guardian 24,933 (Sat 13 Feb)/Araucaria – Zend sinister
Solving time: 35 mins, 3 mistakes (ZEND, YAWL and COMPRADOR). This was a tough and enjoyable ‘Araubetical’ with a well-constructed grid and about the right amount of obscurity for a prize puzzle. I … Read more >>
Independent 7,284/Phi
Just as Wednesdays wouldn’t be the same without a bit of Dac, so Friday = Phi day. Great stuff as ever with some excellent anagrams. Across 9 BORACIC – CAR rev. in BO … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,314 / Flimsy
Quite straightforward except a few clues in the top-right. Clues for compound words/phrases in this puzzle (1A, 10A, 28A, 5D, for example) split the answer along its natural join. Some of these clues … Read more >>