Ali

I suspected we might get a Bonfire Night theme today, and this didn’t disappoint. There were plenty of long across answers and anagrams to open up the grid, though I did struggle a … Read more >>

As sometimes happens with Virgilius’ themed puzzles, I managed to get through this without fully understanding some of the connected answers. Probably me being a dunce, but I don’t quite get the links … Read more >>

I found this one a pretty tough challenge, but was very pleased to get there in the end after a slow start. There are some really nice clueing devices here, though a few … Read more >>

A nice and quick solve for me on this one, which then gave me some time to go back over it and marvel at just how good a setter Dac is. Wonderful stuff … Read more >>

Definitely one of the toughest Punks we have had for a while I thought, but wonderfully inventive clueing as we’ve come to expect. 14/18 is up there with my favourites of 2009! Across … Read more >>

A nice, tough puzzle from Nestor with some lovely clues. I have to admit I struggled with the NW and SW corners though and there are a few I don’t understand even after … Read more >>

Apologies for the lateness and brevity. Busy day. A fairly stiff challenge today I thought, with the NW corner proving a tough nut to crack. Excellent clueing as always from Phi. Across 1 … Read more >>

Nice stuff as always from the mid-week maestro. There are some great clues here. Across 1 HOSTA – S[-een] in HOT,A 4 RELOCATED – CO. rev. in RELATED 9 LOOPINESS – PINE’s in … Read more >>

A very entertaining puzzle with a lot of across answers connected to Steve Coogan’s finest creation (who can be seen at 1/3A). I spotted the name early on and, having seen I’m Alan … Read more >>

Nice stuff from Tees. Some excellent clues here, though there are one ot two I can’t quite piece together, so any pointers appreciated. This looks like the kind of grid which screams Nina, … Read more >>

Apologies for the late posting. Lousy workload! Nowt lousy about this offering from the mid-week maestro though. Elegant stuff from Dac, who never fails to impress. Across 1 LIBIDO – I in LIB … Read more >>

A nice end to the week from Phi. Started this as I got on the bus to work, and finished just before I needed to get off. Perfect. Across 1 SUPERCHARGED – PERCH … Read more >>

Lovely stuff once again from Mr. Halpern. I would imagine that anyone not familiar with Indie music may have struggled with some of the band-related clues, but this one fortunately played right into … Read more >>

Given the general tendency for Thursday’s puzzle to be on the tough side, it’s usual practice for me to check online at midnight. Probably just as well really, as we very rarely see … Read more >>

Pretty much everything you could want from Nimrod here – lots of 15-letter answers, some lovely anagrams, an answer that defies all standard clue-type classification and a handful that will need further explaining. … Read more >>