kenmac

In early 2022 I took over administration for this site. Born 1954. I've been fascinated by cryptic crosswords since childhood. My mother used to attempt the Daily Mail cryptic every day but I don't remember her ever finishing one. Then, when I started working, a colleague would bring in The Telegraph every day. It wasn't till my daughter started to get interested, when I bought her a "how to" book that I realized that the definition is "always" the first word (or words) or the last word (or words) of the clue. In 2000 I discovered the, then, Independent Weekend Crossword (now Inquisitor) and later Enigmatic Variations and The Listener. I solve The Inquisitor most weeks and won the Champagne once. In 2005 I achieved an ambition by having a barred crossword published in The Independent using the pseudonym Cayenne. Then I had another one in 2015 in collaboration with Anax. This was Inquisitor 1839.

Sloggers and Betters Ireland Meet (provisional)

February 14, 2012 at 11:15 pm by kenmac

Hi, Just putting the feelers out to see if there is enough interest in meeting up somewhere in Ireland. Having been at the one in Birmingham last summer and having a great time. … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1211: Anticipation by Nutmeg

January 18, 2012 at 1:23 am by kenmac

We have to find two quotes (from the same source) around the perimeter and then, cryptically, three down clues will combine to deliver the first. The allusion has to be completed by filling … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1207: A First Centenary by Schadenfreude

December 22, 2011 at 9:06 pmDecember 21, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

Inquisitor 1207 An unusually shaped grid this time. Also, it turns out, some of the bars and borders were missing from the published grid, which is a shame. On inspection, the grid is … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1203: Caveat by Hypnos

November 23, 2011 at 7:08 pmNovember 23, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

The title is “CAVEAT”, which means a notice or a warning! According to the preamble, the wordplay, in thirty clues, generates an extra letter giving a variant of a quotation. There are four … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1199: In Attendance by Phi

October 27, 2011 at 7:35 pmOctober 26, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

The preamble tells us that significant points (we’re not told how many) of a trajectory using a “33” (10 letters) and implied by a song are omitted from wordplay. (Yikes, what the H … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1196: Seriously … by Loda

October 5, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

There are four unclued answers, all fairly long, and all made up of multiple words. It seems that our setter, Loda, takes these four phrases seriously. Then there are six symmetrically placed answers … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1191: A Dream Holiday by Kruger

September 1, 2011 at 3:20 pmAugust 31, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

The preamble, rather vaguely, tells us that we need to highlight 23 squares and blank out 1 row. These items depict a musical reference and express the sentiment leading directly to the return … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1187: Not Funny by Loda

August 3, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

There are nine unclued entries. Eight of them represent eleven from a set and the ninth represents the last line of a quote formed by superfluous words in across clues. In the same … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1183 – Ignore Diddly? by Samuel

July 6, 2011 at 9:48 pmJuly 6, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

The blog now arriving on platform 152 is the late running 1183 from kenmac. What a tough offering from Samuel! This puzzle came out on the day of the Sloggers and Betters do … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1179 – Five Characters in Search of an Author by Samuel

June 8, 2011 at 10:56 amJune 8, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

Unusually, I think, the title virtually gives away the theme. Certainly I wasn’t at all surprised when the theme revealed itself. Twelve of the clues lead to an extra letter which spell … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1175 – Left Out by Nimrod

May 11, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

The perimeter is clued thematically while the numbered clues (to the remainder of the grid) have a redundant letter in the wordplay, which spells out a message indicating what to do with the … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1171 – And a Prayer by Nutmeg

April 13, 2011 at 8:40 pmApril 13, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

What rotten luck, to have to blog a reasonably difficult Inquisitor in a week where I had to drive to both Galway and Dublin for “all day” appointments. When I finally got time … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1167 – Film Club by Kea

March 16, 2011 at 8:32 amMarch 16, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

With apologies to Kea, I have to say that I didn’t really enjoy this puzzle 🙁 but I’ll try not to let it influence my blog too much. The preamble tells us that we’re looking … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1163: Common Knowledge by Samuel

February 17, 2011 at 1:13 pmFebruary 16, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

A nice easy preamble for a change. We’re told that six entries are clued without definition and all the other clues generate an extra letter. The extra letters generate a “line”, which identifies … Read more >>

Inquisitor 1159: House Call by Schadenfreude

January 19, 2011 at 1:23 am by kenmac

Ah, Schadenfreude, probably my favourite Inquisitor compiler! I tend to find the clues seem very hard on first or second reading but on third or fourth (or fifth, etc.) reading, they start to reveal all. We’re told … Read more >>