Independent 6633/Nimrod
Having just blogged Nimrod’s Thursday puzzle (6637) I can say that I found this one the easier of the two. I’m not really a big fan of long anagrams and I was lucky … Read more >>
Month: January 2008
Inquisitor 55 SLOPING OFF by Kea
This was a corker!! I’m still not completely convinced that we’ve got it right, but here goes. The missing letters of the across clues instructed you to “INCLUDE PUNCTUATION” while the down clues … Read more >>
FT 12,674/Bradman
As one has come to expect from Bradman (or any other of his pseuDONyms), flawless technical merit receives a healthy dollop of creative/lateral thinking. ‘Twas ever thus, it seems. Across 10 L(I)LAC – … Read more >>
Independent 6637/Nimrod – Double Trouble
Some clever grid construction here as one phrase appears twice in the grid and there’s a Nina too (see 5a below for an explanation). I found this quite hard going in places – … Read more >>
Guardian 24293 Brummie : Tree or False
As previous discussed, I’m not a nature-boy, but “False Acacia” seems a tad obscure – oh well, thanks for the Botany lesson, Brummie. Otherwise quite a blood-thirsty set of clues todays with some great wordplay. … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 936 by Quixote (20/01/2008)
Some unusual words made this one a little harder for me than some recently from Quixote. Solving time, 21 mins Notes on some clues below, happy to explain others if asked. * = … Read more >>
Financial Times 12,663 by Cincinnus
A moderately easy and thoroughly splendid offering from Cincinnus this week. It is a bit heavy on double-definition clues but there’s nothing wrong with that especially since only one of them is a … Read more >>
Guardian 24292/Paul – The truth hurts: money talks
A classic Paulene challenge though no Araucarian cross-refs nor complex multi-word anagrams. But still some charming and clever clues… as per usual I always feel entertained and gratified having solved Paul. Lots of … Read more >>
Independent crosswords now online
The cryptic puzzle is here and the concise/simple puzzle is here. Each puzzle is currently a day late – so the one on the website right now is yesterday’s Virgilius. Prize puzzles will be published … Read more >>
Independent 6636 by Dac
This had everything you could ask from a daily cryptic from this top setter. Excellent misdirection, great variety, and all with everyday words. Flawless construction. Solving time, 25 mins. * = anagram ACROSS … Read more >>
Independent 6635/Virgilius
A tour de force from Virgilius. Somehow he has managed to get some reference to a topic that continues to increase in importance into every clue, either in the answer or in the … Read more >>
Guardian 24291/Gordius
Quite a lot of general knowledge required to complete this one, although the trickier answers all had friendly wordplay so it can’t be accused of unfairness. Across 1 NICODEMUS (I,consumed)* – Nicodemus was … Read more >>
Private Eye/Cyclops 356 – Beetle or Beatle
Sorry this is late. I should have posted this yesterday but simply forgot. This seemed so small after the Xmas monster. I’m not sure I’ve chosen correctly on 29A. Across 1 COMICS (SO … Read more >>
Azed 1859 (Plain)/ Tricky Stuff
Solving Time: around 75 minutes. A tough challenge from Azed this week with some straight-forward stuff, but one or two really tricky clues that took me a while to work out. Music: Maria Callas giving her … Read more >>
Independent 6634 (Glow-Worm)
A solid puzzle by Glow-Worm, but I didn’t really understand the logic behind either of the 12 clues. Across 1 Curriculum Vitae: Cryptic def (possibly more of a reference to its latin meaning … Read more >>