We reach the end of another year
The end of another year approaches and it’s time for my Address to the Nation (delusions of grandeur or what?)
Firstly, on a personal note, I’m writing this from my hospital bed while recovering from surgery on my broken left ankle. Goodness knows how long i’ll take to start walking but I’m not allowed to put any pressure on it for six weeks. It’s held together with plates and screws.
Next, let’s spare a thought for those we’ve lost this year.
In February, we lost Paul Facey-Hunter (aka Puck): https://www.fifteensquared.net/2025/01/21/rip-puck/.
In May, we lost prolific commenter FrankieG; https://www.fifteensquared.net/2025/05/16/frank-greaney-frankieg-rip/.
Talking of prolific commenters, many people have asked what’s happened to a certain, often caustic, commenter, last seen in June. A controversial comment didn’t sit well with me. Despite asking for an explanation, there was none forthcoming so we agreed that future comments would require approval. I hereby offer an olive branch, let’s see what happens.
In March, I enabled avatars on the site and the fickle audience, whom I described as fickle were, unsurprisingly fickle about the whole thing. I’m glad to see that several people have taken advantage of them and that all unfounded misgivings seem to have been laid to rest. Personally, I find it so much easier to identify a picture rather than text when scrolling through a long list. Read more about it here: https://www.fifteensquared.net/2025/03/15/to-av-or-to-av-not/.
In October we started blogging the weekly Spectator puzzle, which I believe to be successful given the number of people who are reading them. It’s a pity that there are very few comments but I guess that things take a bit of getting used to. I’ve done The Spectator on-and-off over the last few years. It’s undoubtedly on the gentler side compared to Inquisitor, Listener, Enigmatic Variations and Azed/Gemelo but no less fun. Anyone who has access to 1Across magazine, can read the Spectator editor’s highly praiseworthy article.
Also in October, I made a change to comment numbering in an effort to avoid the problem (unique to this site) of comment references to other comments whose numbers had changed due to comments being deleted. I came up with a foolproof idea that went down like a lead balloon. I then came up with the system that’s currently in use, and everyone appears to be happy even though, in my opinion, it’s as flawed as (maybe even more so than) the old one.
November saw a poll on allowing people to add a country flag to their comments. Even though the majority vote was “yes”, due to the nature of some of the comments, I decided not implement the feature. Read more about it here.
And we round off the year by blogging a featured puzzle from MyCrossword. This will, hopefully, become a fortnightly feature. More details here.
Here’s to 2026
A big THANK YOU to all bloggers and let us not forget that it’s all done voluntarily.
Many thanks to those who have contributed, voluntarily, to help fund the site via the Buy Me A Coffee link.
Thanks also to those that take the time to comment and for, largely, keeping the discussions friendly and non-confrontational.
So, now it’s on to 2026 and let’s hope it’s a good one without any tears.
Hope the ankle recovers well – keep taking the tablets in the meantime!
Good luck with your recuperation, Ken. Thanks for all you do here, and Io Saturnalia! to all contributors.
Mev @2
We members of The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster agree as, today, we celebrate Robot Awareness Day.
https://www.pastafariancalendar.com
Thanks for all you do, Ken, and here’s hoping for a speedy recovery. MC & HNY to all.
Speedy recovery Ken! Thanks for giving the flags a hearing, and above all thanks for ensuring that 225 remains the gem that it is.
Good luck with your recovery and thanks for all your work in 2025, looking forward to 2026
My thanks and good wishes to you also Ken. You’re a legend (and yes that was a cryptic reference to your ankle – hey it’s what we do).
I broke my ankle once making Coffee, get well soon and happy holidays
Thanks to all of the 225 team!
Ken I raise my glash to you – a joyush and a hampy kismble to all
Speedy recovery, KenMac. And thanks for always being responsive to the wishes of us fickle community members.
[I once broke my ankle disembarking from a bus. I know the pain.]
Thank you, Ken. Good luck with your ankle. The same thing happened to me, so I fully understand.
Once, during a nocturnal trip to the loo, hopping cautiously on crutches, I slipped on an invisible puddle of my young grandson’s wee. The injured foot made contact with the floor and I roared in pain and woke everyone up. It was excruciating.
You will get through this and with good rehabilitation physiotherapy will gradually regain your walking skills. Stay positive.
<3
Sorry to hear you’re in hospital and hope your ankle is mended soon. They can do wonders with sellotape and string these days.
Oh, by the way my mother took me down Surrey St market one day and had me tested and there’s nothing wrong with me, and Sheldon says I’m a delight.
As a graduate of the D Trump School of Diplomacy, here’s wishing you, Ken, and everyone else, a very Big and Beautiful christmas and new year.
This site is an invaluable source of help and inspiration.
Thank you and best wishes for next year!
Thank you so much your hard work on this for this site and to all the bloggers – it’s my most visited website (apart from the guardian crossword website!) happy Christmas and a speedy recovery Ken
Many thanks, Ken, and the same to you and your wonderful team of volunteers.
Get well soon Ken, best for 2026
Rob
Many thanks, Ken. I’ve been a Lurker on 15-squared for a few years, but only in the last few months have I joined in the discussions. It’s a delightful, friendly, knowledgeable community you have brought together here, now part of my daily round. Get well soon!
Steve (aka Derek)
Thanks for all your work Ken – much appreciated. Best wishes all.
I hope you recover well
And I hope Roz comes back
She was always encouraging to new solvers
fwiw I always thought Roz was a troll:
– Claimed to be born in the year King Crimson’s second album was released, ie 1970
– Claimed to wear her mother’s 1960s hand-me-down clothing in the 2020s, ie >50 years on
– Claimed to teach students, but didn’t have an email address, despite 15^2 needing one to be able to post
– Claimed never to use web links – in 2025??
– Often adopted unnecessarily antagonistic positions
To me, just didn’t seem to be plausible
Wishing you a speedy recovery, Ken. Thanks for everything you and our bloggers do – and for sounding out your fickle audience! The changes to the site this year seem to be bedding in nicely (the misgivings around the avatars thing wasn’t scepticism so much as not being given up-front information about how they were shared across sites; people seem happy with them now that they know). I’m curious about the flaws you see in the new commenting system, which is at least logical, if messier, now.
Best wishes to you and all for Xmas and the new year
…and it’s nice to hear from a certain commenter again 😉
Huge thanks to Ken, all the bloggers and all the commentators. This was my most visited website in 2025 and no doubt will retain that record next year.
I hope everyone has the best Christmas and New Year they can.
Thanks, and here’s to a full recovery. I broke my ankle a few years ago and needed plates and pins too, and was heading back to full mobility a couple of months later.
Very best wishes to all.
Speedy recovery Ken, and thanks for all your hard work!
Best wishes to you, ken, and hope the recovery goes as well as possible. Thank you, too, for all you do to keep this site going.
Simon S @22 – one of my favourite, very fragile, shirts is an M&S shirt from around 1965-7, which I, just, remember my mother buying for herself; I wear it with a skirt that came from my grandmother, and who knows how old that is. I spent ages invisibly repairing the shirt to keep it in circulation, but I’ve other clothes with visible mending. Other older clothes include a tweed jacket and waistcoat I bought in 1978 that I need to finish relining, which I wore for ages, then gave to my daughter when she needed work wear in a hurry. It has come back to me in one of our periodic wardrobe swaps – which mean my daughter owns other clothes that are older than she is.
I don’t disbelieve old clothes: in certain circles there’s a cachet in wearing vintage garments – smaller sizes, better made and less wasteful to mend and continue wearing rather than throw-away fast fashion.
Many thanks to all who make this hugely enlightening site available to us all, and wishing a speedy recovery to Ken. A very Merry Christmas to all, and best wishes for 2026
Merry Christmas everyone and wishes of a speedy recovery for Ken.
Some successes for myself this year include finishing my first Enigmatist puzzle with no aids or checks and also getting through my first Listener. I am getting a printer for Christmas (yes, it is that exciting in this household) so hopefully I will be trying a few more of them.
Hoping for a great 2026 for myself and all others on FifteenSquared. Thanks to all the bloggers, setters and people commenting this year.
Gosh, Ken. Managing this site must be stressful enough – and I know a lot of that management goes on unseen by us mainstream users – but to do so without being able to walk to the drinks cabinet … Crivvens, as Pa Broon would put it. I hope someone is going to be looking after you. A happy, even if immobile, Christmas to you too. And thank you, as others have said, for your tireless dedication to fifteensquared. Roll on 2026 …
There’s a `Goldilocks’ puzzle in today’s Observer which I find impossibly difficult. Could the fifteensquared team please tackle it. And Xmas greetings and best wishes to one and all.
Apple Grandpa
Hi @CTC Wall
I just read your post and printed that Goldilocks puzzle. One tip is that in these “American-style” puzzles the word counts aren’t given, so do watch out for multi-word answers. I’ve never seen Love Island and don’t play any Charli XCX but managed to knock it off quite quickly (I’m roughly 70 years old so it’s not really just for da kidz).
Season’s greetings.
Thanks and merry Christmas to all bloggers and site visitors, and wishing Ken a speedy recovery.
Heal well. And thank you for these words. I feel more like one in a band of bloggers these days. It is good to be part of it.
Sympathies on the injury, Ken, and I hope you are soon back to full fitness and comfort.
This site is a wonderful community and resource – thank you to you for looking after us all and festive good wishes to everyone.
Thanks to all and a Merry Christmas to everyone – Nadolig Llawen!
Balfour @30
Jings, crivvens, help ma boab. I’ve no heard language like that since the last time Oor Wullie knocked off PC Murdoch’s helmet.
I think I’m goin’ to be spending Christmas Day sittin’ on ma bucket
Might I just add my thanks and good wishes to all those who keep this site running so well. And, while we’re referring to a certain Scottish Sunday newspaper, might I also say that Maggie Broon is the most beautiful woman ever.
The Ginger Tom household has been tackling the Guardian cryptic for the past six years. In 2019 we managed to successfully complete a grand total of 37 puzzles. 14 of these were set by Vulcan on a Monday, and we retain a warm fondness to him for encouraging us on our cryptic journey when all around seemed dark and unfathomable. 2020 was little better, but discovering this site was a game changer and we are now achieving our best completion rate. Doubtless our declining mental faculties will eventually overtake our upward learning curve, but in the meantime each year is better than the last. And, our fellow 225 community, you have been a big contributor to our understanding and enjoyment of this gentle pastime. So thank you all and have a Merry Christmas
Merry wotsits to one and all, get well soon Ken and welcome MOH to our stable although I’m missing blogging myself again now
I noticed that Azed/Gemelo puzzles are now behind a paywall (£16 per month). Is there a set of puzzles similar to Azed/Gemelo which can be accessed for free (or at least cheaper than £16)?
I have just asked Bert for advice about what to write. His answer…….
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to one and all.
To which I will add…….
Get well soon Ken.
I echo the last comment from bertandjoyce@42
Ref 41: You can still get the Azed PDF free!
Merry Christmas from
Multi-Don
Merry Christmas everyone and get well soon Ken Fallet!
Ref 44 What about Gemelo?
Thanks for the inspiring, entertaining, and informative address kenmac, along with all the work you do to keep this site humming. Best wishes for a happy and healthy new year, and a speedy recovery!
Thanks for doing this Ken, I unfailingly follow my daily struggle with the FT with a visit here. Happy Christmas and get well soon.
Thanks also to your bloggers!
Sorry to hear about the ankle, Kenmac. Hope you’re fit and well again soon.
Thank you for all your endeavours on 225. Very best wishes for Christmas & 2026.
Ken, thanks for enabling the most civilized and useful site on the internet!
Sorry to hear about your ankle, Ken. Hope it will improve soon and quickly.
Best wishes for Christmas and the New Year.
Get well soon Ken, and thanks for all your unsung admin work.
What? No-one’s re-done the ANELKA clue?
Can UK residents access the Gemelo/Azed puzzles free of charge? Is the paywall (£16 per month) only for puzzlers from outside the UK?
Happy holidays to all and a speedy recovery, Ken! Thank you for all your work keeping 225 thriving.
Robert@54, while I cannot give a definitive answer to your question, I was able to access the current Azed/Gemelo puzzles just now from outside the UK.
nmsindy@56. Thanks. Interesting. When I try to access the current Azed I am told I need to subscribe – £1 trial for first month then £16 per month.
Robert@57. I was able to access it and enter answers if I wished but submitting solution (which I did not get to) might be another matter.
nmsindy@58 I was just trying to download the PDF.
Get well soon Ken.
Happy New Year to all.
225 is one addiction I am always happy about.
Thanks Ken & the bloggers for your extraordinary
service. Thanks to all those who comment on this
forum and share a great deal of knowledge with
us.
Very late to the party I’m sorry, but Ken I just wanted to say how upset I was to read of your ankle surgery and to wish you a speedy recovery without too much pain and inconvenience. You do a marvellous job on this site where I still feel “at home”, despite having been out of action and “off the air” quite a bit in the latter half of this year. Go gently and heal quickly. And if anyone else comes back here to see my late postscript, I’d like to say a big thank to our dedicated bloggers and helpful contributors for the supportive and crucial roles you play in this online community.
Robert@59. The print option is there.
commiserations on the ankle and best wishes for a speedy recovery.
A big thank you for all you do – I am a frequent visitor but very occasional commenter. This is a great site and I enjoy both the blogs and the comments.
Wishing you a Happy New Year
Thanks to all involved in this site – admin first of course but all bloggers (bloody brilliant in my view) and contributors. I comment occasionally, often late (like this), because I enjoy being part of the community. Special thanks to Eileen, whose email a few years ago when I was starting out on cryptic crosswords, gave me encouragement to keep at it. My only regret is my choice of username, made before I realised how these things work in Internetland. But having started with, I’ll finish with it.
nmsindy@62. Thanks. I finally got there.
Late to the party as per usual, I too echo the thanks expressed by so many to the entire team responsible for 225. It is always a delight to read the blogs and explanations and to feel part of a community with a common, but relatively rare on this side of the pond, interest. Hope the ankle heals well, kenmac, even if it does take a while. It’s quite useful having a built-in barometer for inclement weather I find.
#31 CTC Wall: I think there are actual errors in the Goldilocks Daddybear crossword, Observer 21.12.25. Examples: 116a …Fawkes news and politics site (5) my answer Guido, their answer Tuile: 106d Fish delicacy requiring a special license to prepare (4) my answer Fugu, theirs Ettu. Others: Dodo/Lola, As Far/Knead + a few more and some answers I can’t parse at all, even with Google’s help. I’d really like an expert comment on this. Thanks for all your help over the years!
As a very average solver I thoroughly appreciate this site, many thanks to all involved
Happy New year to all crossword buffs
Wishing you a good recovery with the ankle. It takes a while, but with a bit of luck you will be back on two feet (and no crutches) for springtime.
A very happy new year to you, Ken! Hoping that you’re now up & about and wearing the Black Boot with pride …
Happy New Year Ken and everybody else even remotely connected with this lovely site.
And even later to the party can I add my thanks to you Ken for all your hard work and to the various loggers without whom I would be lost. I’ll buy you a cup of coffee to help your leg heal. I spent all of 2024 and some of 2025 on total bedrest in hospital which is how I started these cryptic crosswords. I’m hoping to finally be discharged in January 2026 to get on with my life. I truly hope you will be up and about in a month or two. Happy New Year to you all.
@73 Gosh! And there’s me complaining after only three weeks. I am truly humbled.
Getting hold of crosswords here is proving difficult. I imagine it’s similar in the UK. The only “newspapers” they tend to have are Star, Sun, Mirror etc. You might have more success asking for The Guardian than I’m likely to have in Ireland. They do sell UK “broadsheets” in supermarkets and bigger newsagents but not in a pokey hospital shop.
@74: ha, I’m in Ireland also! The Guardian online (I subscribe) is the only one I do. And the Irish Times but it’s at a different level and I find it less challenging. Get well soon!