Independent 7,284/Phi
Posted by Ali on 19th February 2010
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.
Posted in Independent | 6 Comments »
Archive for February, 2010
Beelzebub 1,043 (14/02/10)
Posted by Simon Harris on 19th February 2010
A very enjoyable week, with some really nice anagrams. For my own part, I managed all but 13ac unaided, which may be a record for me, yet that one eluded me due to a crisis of confidence having guessed the correct answer but misread the wordplay.
Posted in Beelzebub | No Comments »
Guardian 24,938 – Puck
Posted by Andrew on 19th February 2010
Another very tricky puzzle to finish off the week. The many cross-references and multiple-entry answers made it hard to get started, and even after getting some of the key answers it didn’t get much easier, not helped by the fact that I was only vaguely familiar with 21/19/10/23. Nevertheless, a lot of sound and clever clueing made it enjoyable and rewarding to persevere with.
Posted in Guardian | 52 Comments »
Independent 7279 (Sat 13 Feb) by Anax
Posted by beermagnet on 19th February 2010
Sat 13th Feb was the opening day of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver so I was not surprised to find this was the main theme of the puzzle. This meant I could fill in a lot of the grid quite quickly. I started with some confidence after quickly getting the theme and several long answers. The last few were a struggle and couldn’t be found without checking a few references. Now doing the blog I find there are many where I do not fully understand the wordplay – and a few (e.g. 13A RUT & 7D TIGER) where I now wonder why I was so sure of that answer at solving time. Doubts are multiplying, so I wouldn’t be surprised if some of these answer are wrong. So, HELP!
Posted in Independent | 18 Comments »
Inquisitor 1112: Shifty Characters by Phi
Posted by HolyGhost on 19th February 2010
Some answers have a letter shifted before entry, and these letters spell out the name of a group. The members of the group form a number of other entries, but the answers to their associated clues are their disguises.
I soon discovered a few clashes (focussed on the main diagonal), and got the answers to 43a and 34d which were not the corresponding entries. A little later I tumbled (almost simultaneously) to the entries for 9d and 6a which were not the answers to the clues – and the penny dropped, giving me the name of the group … and quite a bit of tidying up to do.
Posted in Inquisitor | 3 Comments »
Financial Times 13,313 / Gozo
Posted by smiffy on 18th February 2010
Something of a class reunion for a lot of old friends here today (10A, 12A, 23A, 1D, 15D, 19D). On a related note, I did feel an unexpected twinge of childhood nostalgia courtesy of 4D.
Posted in FT | 2 Comments »
Independent on Sunday 1044 by Quixote – 14th February 2010
Posted by Handel on 18th February 2010
We were glad of a slightly trickier puzzle this weekend, as we tackled this one on a lengthy rail replacement bus service.
Posted in Independent | 3 Comments »
Guardian 24,937 (Araucaria)
Posted by diagacht on 18th February 2010
Enjoyable puzzle with some testing clues. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Guardian | 57 Comments »
Independent 7283/Nestor
Posted by John on 18th February 2010
This is one of the first Thursday puzzles I’ve ever blogged, and I was a bit uneasy, knowing that some of the more user-friendly setters were not due. Would this be something by Tyrus or Scorpion that kept me up all night? In the event it was a very pleasant crossword from Nestor, someone with whom I’m not all that familiar. An extraordinary grid, with 20 acrosses and 10 downs, suggests some devilish Nina, but I can’t see anything. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Independent | 8 Comments »
Financial Times 13,304 – Dante
Posted by Uncle Yap on 18th February 2010
Monday Prize Crossword on 8 February 2010
Dante returns with another gentle week-opener full of smooth clues and slick definitions.
Posted in FT | No Comments »
Financial Times 13,303 by Mudd
Posted by Pete Maclean on 18th February 2010
Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of February 6
Mudd gives us some jolly good double definitions here (notably 5A, 21A, 29A, 20D and 21D) but my choice for best clue is the cannibal one, 18D.
Posted in FT | 7 Comments »
Independent 7282 by Dac
Posted by nmsindy on 17th February 2010
Not sure if Wednesday would be quite the same without a Dac Indy puzzle. This, as always, was great, particularly liked the surface readings. Turned out to be quite a easy one for me, 13 mins.
Posted in Independent | 8 Comments »
Guardian 24,936 / Brummie
Posted by mhl on 17th February 2010
We get roughly a puzzle a month from Brummie in the Guardian, so I think I end up doing more of his Private Eye puzzles (as Cyclops) overall and it’s good fortune to get to do a blog post on one. I found this crossword tricky, with a few difficult definitions. It’s a bit annoying that I spent a long time staring at 9 across before discovering from the comments on the Guardian’s site that the clue had been replaced.
Posted in Guardian | 37 Comments »
Financial Times 13,312 / Dogberry
Posted by Gaufrid on 17th February 2010
Overall I didn’t think this was as difficult as some Dogberry puzzles. It seemed to be something of a mixture, some very easy clues, some more tricky ones, some good surfaces and some that didn’t make much sense (at least to me). I rather liked the wordplay in 9dn.
Posted in FT | 1 Comment »