Beelzebub 1,085 (05/12/10)
A rather overdue blog, I’m afraid, though I’ve no excuses as this was one of the easier Beelzebubs in some time. I managed all but three of four squares unaided, before reaching for … Read more >>
Month: December 2010
Everyman No 3,350
Apart from one (or perhaps two) less well-known personages, there seems to be little to complain about. ACROSS 1 CORDON BLEU Anagram (‘somehow’) of ‘old bouncer’. The definition refers to a graduate of … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1087 by Quixote
Well I found this harder than a usual Quixote, got there in the end. Didn’t help myself by tentatively putting in Peri for 1ac. Thank you Quixote Across: 1 Puck – not Peri … Read more >>
Azed 2011
I thought I was off to a good start on this one when I got 1ac straight away, but things got a bit tougher after that, and it took me a couple of … Read more >>
Independent 7537 (Saturday 11 December) – Nimrod
Solving time: just over 30 minutes – I struggled wth this, as I do with many of Nimrod’s grid stunts – this time, just 10 down answers. I guess the slight under-checking in … Read more >>
Guardian 25,191 (Sat 11 Dec)/Paul – Lizstless
Solving time: 9 mins I got in a right tangle with this thanks to 3/18dn: with ???M?? AND ????? in place and ‘drunk’ the last word of the clue, the answer was clearly … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No.944 – Standard by Samuel
A tricky one this week, or could it just be that I’m out of practice? (You should take this with a grain of salt. You might find it cheesy. But then again, you … Read more >>
Guardian 25,196 – Brendan
Enjoyable as ever from Brendan with a nice theme around a recent anniversary [spoiler]. Solved pretty quickly after the theme fell, then had to stare at 10a for a good while before the … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,571 / Aardvark
A challenging puzzle at many levels for me: words I didn’t know, devious wordplay. The SW corner was specially tricky, I have a couple of explanations pending and your inputs are very welcome. … Read more >>
Independent 7542/Phi
The usual high quality crossword from Phi. I found this a little harder than usual, but have no excuse for doing so: all the answers were perfectly obvious once you had them. I … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,570 / Falcon
Something for all levels of solvers in today’s outing. In fact, I suspect that this might be a good educational/confidence booster for relatively newbie solvers. A couple of gentle anagrams, a twinset of … Read more >>
Independent 7541 by Anax
Anax in rude health today with a few risque moments. Some lovely well written stuff but one I can’t quite figure out. Across 1 Typical – T Y + PIC + A L … Read more >>
Guardian 25,195 / Crucible
An excellent puzzle from Crucible. (I’ve been lucky with two Crucibles in four weeks :)) There’s a mini theme in 3d, 7d, 20d and 21d, but if there’s more to it, I’ve missed that. … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,561 – Mudd
Monday Prize Crossword on 5 December 2010 Quite a pleasant surprise to see John Halpern aka Paul of the Guardian in this Monday slot. Like all week-opener in the FT, this one is … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,560 by Cinephile
Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of December 4 A decent, slightly challenging puzzle from Cinephile this time. My top clue is 25A (KIBOSH). I also like 7D (DECOR) although its wordplay is … Read more >>