Posted by smiffy on 17th July 2007
An unusual balance of clue types here, I thought. Not often that you see double definitions and homophones (x6 and x2 respectively, by my tally) account for over a quarter of the clues in a single puzzle. Of course, the real trick for the setter is to make these quite simple mechanisms read like completely different constructions; 24a and 19d being good examples of such.
Posted in FT | 4 Comments »
Posted by neildubya on 17th July 2007
According to the A-Z of Crosswords by Jonathan Crowther, Virgilius (in real-life) studied Maths at Cambridge and is an academic specializing in the “cultural and political aspects of mathematics education” so I suppose it was just a matter of time before we got a maths-themed crossword – and here it is. All the across answers are mathematical 15As. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Independent | 9 Comments »
Posted by michod on 17th July 2007
I enjoyed this puzzle a lot, though it may not have been to everyone’s taste. My enjoyment of crosswords starts from the same kind of wordplay employed in puns, which often, though not always, rely on homophones – used extensively to good effect here. I know there’s always a debate about homophones because of variations in pronunciation, but I think it’s worth stretching a point to let them work. I’ve randomly assigned the ~ sign to mean ‘sounds like’.
Posted in Guardian | 11 Comments »
Posted by tilsit on 17th July 2007
SOLVING TIME: 11 MINUTES
Normal Monday fare, a gentle warm-up in the cryptic company of Rufus with the usual large quantity of Cryptic definitions and anagrams to encourage solvers. Ideal for the new solvers and those wanting to make the leap across from the straightforward puzzles.
Posted in Guardian | 3 Comments »