Bertandjoyce

There was a tradition in both our families of solving Telegraph concise and cryptic crosswords. During our student days we moved on to the Observer. When we could afford a daily, we enjoyed the Guardian cryptics until the Indy arrived on the scene. Nowadays, Saturdays are not complete without the Inquisitor in the i paper. We never time ourselves but we do feel cheated if we finish quickly and really enjoy seeking out themes and ninas etc. We are now retired and when time allows, we supplement the daily Indy solve with the on-line Guardian cryptic, Genius and the occasional Quiptic. Finding fifteensquared was a revelation – we realised we are not alone in our attempts to stave off Alzheimer’s!

Independent 10,493 by Tyrus

Sat May 30, 2020 at 8:29 am by Bertandjoyce

A pleasant solve from Tyrus today. 1/10 took longer than it should have done to solve because we could not see where the ‘Q’ would go in 10ac. We hadn’t thought about IQ … Read more >>

Independent 10,490 by Eccles

Wed May 27, 2020 at 3:22 pmWed May 27, 2020 at 8:02 am by Bertandjoyce

Another fun Wednesday puzzle from Eccles. What can we say? All good clues, smooth surfaces, no unusual words. We did have to check 5ac as it was not a word we were totally familiar … Read more >>

Independent 10,485 by Knut

Thu May 21, 2020 at 10:07 amThu May 21, 2020 at 8:06 am by Bertandjoyce

An enjoyable puzzle from Knut today. However, there are a couple of clues we are concerned about. Judi who appears in 17ac is Judi Dench but she does not spell her name with … Read more >>

Independent 10,480 by Phi

Fri May 15, 2020 at 8:03 am by Bertandjoyce

It’s back to Phi-day again this week after Hob’s tribute to ‘Let It Be’ last Friday. As usual with a Phi puzzle, it was a pleasure to solve, and on this occasion, not … Read more >>

Independent 10,471 by Vigo

Tue May 5, 2020 at 9:19 amTue May 5, 2020 at 7:59 am by Bertandjoyce

It’s been over a year since we last blogged a Vigo puzzle. Initially we were disappointed by this puzzle – maybe because we completed it very quickly. Vigo’s previous puzzles have usually incorporated … Read more >>

Independent 10,466 by Eccles

Wed April 29, 2020 at 8:01 am by Bertandjoyce

It’s Eccles again today – we’re in for a fun solve! ….and we weren’t disappointed. As usual, some great surfaces and several big smiles. 17ac was a new word for us but with … Read more >>

Independent 10,463 by Nimrod

Sat April 25, 2020 at 9:47 amSat April 25, 2020 at 8:58 am by Bertandjoyce

Oh Dear! No doubt you have come here to check the parsings of those clues you struggled with. Well, we have to apologise. It’s not often that we have such difficulty but if … Read more >>

Independent 10,461 by Serpent

Thu April 23, 2020 at 8:03 am by Bertandjoyce

The Thursday puzzle is from Serpent this week – we’re in for a challenge! An enjoyable challenge at that, as we have come to expect. We did however, have some quibbles with 6d … Read more >>

Independent 10,456 by Phi

Fri April 17, 2020 at 12:30 pmFri April 17, 2020 at 7:59 am by Bertandjoyce

Phi day again! As usual we started out looking at the clue for 1ac – and were stumped. However, once we worked our way into the grid, we realised that … Read more >>

Independent 10,447 by Radian

Tue April 7, 2020 at 8:08 am by Bertandjoyce

Radian’s puzzles appear once a month, and we hadn’t blogged one for some time, until last month – so it’s two in a row now – lucky us! We like themed puzzles and … Read more >>

Independent 10,442 by Eccles

Wed April 1, 2020 at 7:58 am by Bertandjoyce

It is very comforting in these strange times that certain regular events remain constant – Eccles on a Wednesday is one of those. It certainly raised a smile when we saw the setter’s … Read more >>

Independent 10,437 by Serpent

Thu March 26, 2020 at 1:43 pmThu March 26, 2020 at 8:08 am by Bertandjoyce

Serpent challenges the old grey matter today. As we expect from Serpent, this was a tricky but really enjoyable solve. Serpent sometimes has a theme or a nina in his puzzles, but we … Read more >>

Independent 10,433 by Dalibor

Sat March 21, 2020 at 10:58 pmSat March 21, 2020 at 8:10 am by Bertandjoyce

Amazingly, this is our 500th blog on 225! It’s Dalibor today and we knew we were in for a bit of a challenge. This was an enjoyable Saturday work-out, including some new … Read more >>

Independent 10,432 by Phi

Fri March 20, 2020 at 7:59 am by Bertandjoyce

In these very strange, surreal times it is reassuring to find Phi appearing on Phiday. No real problems today although the Biblical character in 19D was solved by the wordplay before we realised … Read more >>

Independent 10,423 by Radian

Tue March 10, 2020 at 8:14 am by Bertandjoyce

Amazingly it’s almost two years since we last blogged a Radian puzzle, so we really looked forward to an interesting challenge today. There certainly were some challenging clues, but also some straightforward ones … Read more >>