manehi

Lots of fun and clever cluing from Paul – favourites were 1dn and 6,23 and biggest groan was for 8dn. Across 9 A BIT STEEP =”Just too much” (pie at best)* 10 EPOCH … Read more >>

This looked quite tricky at first but once the theme became clear it all began to fall into place. 11ac, 14ac, 18ac and 22ac are thematic instructions that are applied to the other … Read more >>

As expected for a Rufus, a pleasant and straightforward start to the week. I liked 2dn and 15dn. Across 7 RESTRAINT =”reservation” REST=”No action” around TRAIN=”coach” 8 REPEL =”Ward off” EPE[e]=”shortened sword” inside … Read more >>

On the easy side for a Puck, partly because 2 and 8 went in immediately. Favourite clues were 12a, 19a and 18d. Thanks to tupu for pointing out that this is also a … Read more >>

I’d not heard of the long (53 letter!) solution to 16 et al, but managed to fill it in at the end. Impressive as it is to fit such a long phrase into … Read more >>

I only have a slight knowledge of the theme and twigged it late leaving me struggling with some of the across clues, several of which I guessed from the wordplay and had to … Read more >>

The usual gentle but pleasant start to the week from Rufus. Favourite was 15 Across 1 GRATIFY =Please. (Ray gift)* 5 APOSTLE = a missionary who may appear on a spoon handle 10 … Read more >>

Found this on the easy side for an Araucaria, which still meant a pleasant challenge. Favourite clue probably 14dn. Across 1 ANNE FINE 2001-2003 Children’s Laureate. [ch]ANNE[l] + FINE=excellent 5 GLIDER =aircraft. LID=cover … Read more >>

Not too difficult, a fun theme and some great cluing – my favourites were 1a, 18a, 3d and 13d. Across 1 FLAVOUR L[amb] in FAVOUR=”something curried” 5 MAMMOTH MAM + MOTHer are the … Read more >>

Challenging but enjoyable with a lot of clever surface cluing. Across 1 CLEAVE C[hop] + LEAVE=”up sticks” 4 ETCHINGS ETC=”and more of the same” + [t]HINGS=”items needing no introduction” 9 MOSES Grandma MOSES … Read more >>

Found this very tough but enjoyable, especially 16a, 7d and 21,3. Still unsure on a couple of clues. Across 9 EXTENSION =Annexe. “ex-tension” might be a state of relief 10 SLO-MO [O]SLO is … Read more >>

Very gentle Monday puzzle from Rufus with plenty of anagrams, double and cryptic definitions. I liked 5d and 13d. Across 1 BENEFIT double def 5 EXCERPT EXCEPT=”but” around R[ight] 9 NORSE (reason)* minus … Read more >>

Apologies for the late blog of an entertaining puzzle, especially 2dn. Across 7 NUMERATE (true name)* 9 BENGAL BEN + GAL 10 ECHO =Reflection. Hidden in “for thE CHOp” 11 TWIST DRILL A … Read more >>

Not a surprising choice of setter following yesterday’s rather special crossword – this puzzle looked a little daunting at first but wasn’t too tricky once the grid began to fill. Slightly unsure on … Read more >>

Solved most of this quickly but couldn’t get a foothold in the NW for a good while. Some nice clues (26d my favourite), but some (6d, 14d) were a bit shaky. Across 1 … Read more >>