A gentle outing, even by the standards of Rufus, despite a couple of definitions that were new to me.
Month: August 2011
Quiptic N° 613 by Arachne
Several of the clues required some thought to work out the wordplay; in all this Quiptic took me longer to solve than today’s Rufus.
Private Eye/Cyclops 449 – Olympic Silver
Who would have thought in 1986 that the pudgy little chap with the fearsome wit could take on the responsibilities of the sarcastic classes and make it his own. In a way it … Read more >>
Beelzebub 1120
Never a week goes by without this setter coming up with some extraordinary stuff – like 1ac ACROSS 1 Kitchen wizard, say, to try something hard SPELL BAKER tichy 10 … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1,121 by Hypnos
Wow! Hypnos three weeks in a row. Let’s hope the IOS does not follow a four-setters cycle since the four bloggers do … then we will end up blogging the same setter. Nothing … Read more >>
Azed 2045 Plain Competition puzzle
I found this a little harder than usual for an Azed, although on reflection it is just the unfamiliarity of many of the words that creates the difficulty. As always, there are no … Read more >>
Everyman 3384 / 7 August 2011
Week in, week out, Everyman produces an enjoyable and accessible Sunday crossword. Here’s another one. cd cryptic definition dd double definition (xxxx)* anagram anagrind = anagram indicator Across 1 Polish in … Read more >>
Independent 7740 – Saturday 6 August 2011 – Tyrus
IThis puzzle was published on the first weekend of the new Football League season in England. A new team in League 2 was AFC Wimbledon. This was the club that was formed when … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations 978: Record by Loda
A fairly small grid this week, 11 × 11, and consequently fewer clues than normal as well. Across answers were to be entered with a letter missing, subsidiary indications being to the entered … Read more >>
Guardian Prize Puzzle No 25,394 by Paul
This was the hardest prize puzzle that I can remember for quite some time, made even harder by the schoolboy blunder at 20 down. I see that the web version now has a … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,770 / Bradman
Bradman’s characteristically fair puzzle with evocative and amusing clue surfaces. I started with the bottom-right and worked my way upwards, entering somewhat unfamiliar territory in the top-left with a couple of words new … Read more >>
Guardian 25,399 / Paul
As I solved the excellent Brendan puzzle yesterday, I wished it might have been mine to blog but getting a Paul on a Friday can’t be bad, either. Some clever clues here, as … Read more >>
Independent 7,745 / Phi
I feel as though I have been put through my paces this morning, by a set of Phi’s typically ultra-sound clues. As for how the solving went, it was a puzzle of two … Read more >>
Independent 7,744/Scorpion
It was nice to have bit longer to spend on this week’s puzzle and blog. And probably just as well, given that it’s Thursday and Scorpion never gives solvers an easy ride. Such … Read more >>
Financial Times no.13,769 by HAMILTON
Though England’s cities burn, the morning crossword – like the Test Match – must go on. In any case, Leeds may be grubby, scruffy, pot-holed and rainy, but I’m proud to say it’s … Read more >>