Financial Times 12494/Crux – Not quite an 1A 27A.
Another FT, another new name for me. I really enjoyed this one – lots of excellent clues and just the right amount of difficulty. Across 1 (PUT ONE’S HAND)* – nice anagram and … Read more >>
Month: June 2007
Guardian 24113/Paul – are you a salopette?
Felt a bit Araucarian today – surfaces sacrificed at the altar of clever wordplay. I had to look up SALOPETTE – which I think is contrived (derived from SALOP which I recognized as … Read more >>
Independent 6455 by Tees
Some pleasing material here from this inventive setter. Solving time: 25 mins * = anagram ACROSS 1 COAT OF ARMS (A from Ascot)* Did not see this till late on. “becomes” indicates … Read more >>
Guardian 24,112, Rufus: Man is an Island
A pretty straightforward Monday solve (10 mins-ish), tightly clued and accessible as ever, with quite a few anagrams and lots of cryptic definitions – some very good, others a tad obvious. About half the answers came … Read more >>
Everyman 3168
Not too taxing and therefore perfect for a Sunday morning, especially if Saturday night went on too long and you’re in desperate need of a 23A or similar restorative. Across 8 AIR<,LAND in … Read more >>
Inquisitor 24/Loda – Mucking About
Sorry for the delay in getting this blog ready, but I struggled with this puzzle, because I couldn’t work out the device required to fill the grid. As usual when I seek inspiration, … Read more >>
Guardian 24,105 (Sat 16 Jun)/Araucaria – Green lights
Solving time: 7:16 I’m not sure I’ve ever solved an Araucaria puzzle faster than this. ‘Collie’ was my first solve, followed (via a look at 27ac) by ‘flour’ and then somehow an inspired … Read more >>
FT 12491 by Falcon
An enjoyable puzzle and just about the right degree of difficulty for a Friday, I felt. A pretty eclectic spectrum of clues, including everything from a couple of pre-historic chestnuts (e.g. the ETON/NOTE … Read more >>
Independent 6453/Nimrod
When I swapped to Friday this week I expected a nice Phi puzzle, instead I got Nimrod! A little more difficult than Phi for me with some clues still a mystery. However, much … Read more >>
Guardian 24,110, Brummie: Numbers game
My blog day falling conveniently on a day off, I settled down at 8.30 to get the crossword out of the way,but it was not to be. Several hours of partner stranded by tube … Read more >>
Guardian 24109/Araucaria
Apologies for this being a day late. I had to go to a customer site yesterday and didn’t get back till 8pm, when I found that my ADSL connection was still down. I … Read more >>
Independent 6448 – Eimi
Solving time 11:40 Here’s the explanation for the gentle ribbing about “strange characters turning up on Saturday” in the comments on last week’s Virgilius puzzle. For those who don’t know, Eimi is Indie … Read more >>
Independent On Sunday 905 by Quixote
Solving time: 26 mins * = anagram ACROSS 1 CU POL(e) A 4 S CRAM S The athlete Steve Cram 11 PA THAN(e) 12 ERLANGEN (Greenlan)* D = Germany German university city. 16 … Read more >>
Independent 6452 by Monk
Monk is among the toughest setters, with some very original treatments, and very rigorous logic in the clues. Usually his puzzles in the Indy are themed, but I cannot see one here. (Later … Read more >>
Guardian 24108/Orlando – nippy
Some nice well-disguised wordplay here – especially wrt use of head and tail letters – while preserving good surfaces. Two identical nippy clues here which are well-handled. Across 1 DAWDLER – (Edward, L)*: … Read more >>