Gaufrid

Smiffy has had to get his priorities right and put business before pleasure today so unfortunately we won’t be seeing his cheerful avatar. I found this an interesting and entertaining set of clues from Bradman, … Read more >>

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve seen Monk in the FT (just under six to be precise) so this came as a pleasant change. Some easy clues, some harder ones and some … Read more >>

It wasn’t too difficult to spot this week’s theme! (as if we haven’t seen enough water this summer 🙂 A couple of the rivers are a little obscure but easy enough to determine … Read more >>

A themed offering from Cinephile today with the instruction that ‘the parts share the stage’. This meant that having determined the first character (in my case Marcellus) the rest were relatively easy to … Read more >>

I don’t think I have ever completed an FT quite so quickly, the answers just seemed to enter themselves. Some of the clues felt so familiar that I began to wonder if an … Read more >>

As indicated, Smiffy is tied up with work so I will offer my blog instead (I hope I haven’t trodden on his toes!) because some potential solvers may be wondering why the clues … Read more >>

This one doesn’t need my usual detailed analysis and so there are few comments (it’s not just laziness on my part 🙂  A good starter for those new to cryptic crosswords but hardly satisfying … Read more >>

After yesterday’s slog, a more enjoyable offering from Sleuth for my scheduled blog this week. One or two words or usages I had not come across before (boss, Jewry) but otherwise fairly straightforward. . … Read more >>

I wasn’t scheduled to blog today and so didn’t make any notes whilst solving. I am therefore relying on my somewhat deficient memory for the following. I found this harder than usual to … Read more >>

A crossword from Monk is always a challenge and this was no exception. One or two clues did appear to be recycled, however this was offset by some fine, and sometimes misleading, cluing elsewhere. … Read more >>

It’s now well past 7pm and the scheduled blogger hasn’t put in an appearance so here is a substitute. As this has been prepared in some haste there are not many comments. . … Read more >>

A tricky one from Araucaria in the Guardian yesterday and a similar offering from Cinephile in today’s FT. There was a gentle hint at the beginning that ‘the works are similar’ which helped … Read more >>

A bit of a mixed bag from Mudd today. Some good clues and one or two where I am a little less than happy with the wordplay or definition. Nothing too difficult and … Read more >>

An interesting challenge today with some misleading clues and a few imaginative definitions. Whilst solving I thought that in one or two places the cluing was a little liberal but with hindsight I … Read more >>