NealH

I've been doing crosswords off and on since university back in the 1980s. I used to do the Guardian, but defected to the Independent a year ago. My solving standard is still not what I'd like. I'd love to be able to knock off a crossword in 10 minutes, but find I'm still getting stuck for long periods when the inspiration doesn't quite arrive. I once had a go at compiling crosswords but, after a very rude rejection for the editor of the Telegraph, I didn't bother any further.

Independent 12,124 by Hoskins

Mon October 27, 2025 at 7:02 pmMon August 18, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This was a fairly gentle puzzle with no particularly difficult clues.

Independent 12,106 by Italicus

Mon July 28, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

There were some great clues in this puzzle from Italicus and the surface readings were all very plausible.

Independent 12,088 by Coot

Mon July 7, 2025 at 9:35 am by NealH

This was an excellent puzzle from a very consistent setter.

Independent 12,070 by Mog

Mon June 16, 2025 at 10:20 amMon June 16, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

I found this quite hard-going in places but the clues were very well-constructed.

Independent 12,052 by Methuselah

Mon May 26, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This was a very clever and interesting puzzle.

Independent 12,034 by Mog

Mon May 5, 2025 at 2:42 pmMon May 5, 2025 at 12:15 pm by NealH

Yet again, my failure to check that the utilities site had the right puzzle meant I originally blogged an IOS puzzle from long ago. Apologies for that.

FT JUMBO Crossword 18030 by Leonidas

Sun April 20, 2025 at 9:15 amSat April 19, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This is new ground for me. I don’t think I’ve ever attempted a cryptic of this size before and I’ve only done the FT a few times when I’ve found copies of the newspaper lying about on trains.

Independent 12,016 by Bluth

Mon April 14, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This was another excellent puzzle from Bluth with lots of inventive clues.

Independent 11,998 by Italicus

Mon March 24, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This was a high-quality puzzle from a consistently good setter.

Independent 11,980 by Kairos

Mon March 3, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

This was largely a gentle puzzle with lots of clues and no long answers.

Independent 11,962 by Skinny

Thu February 27, 2025 at 10:06 amMon February 10, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

Skinny seems to be coinciding with my blog spot fairly regularly now and this was another high quality puzzle.

Independent 11,944 by Skinny

Mon January 20, 2025 at 9:00 am by NealH

I’ve blogged Skinny puzzles before and they are always entertaining. This one was no exception.

Independent 11,926 by Gila

Mon December 30, 2024 at 9:00 am by NealH

Another brilliant and enjoyable crossword from Gila.

Independent 11,908 by Coot

Mon December 9, 2024 at 9:00 am by NealH

Coot is an occasional setter on Mondays and provides well-written clues. There was not much to complain about and plenty to enjoy.

Independent 11,890 by Tees

Mon November 18, 2024 at 2:02 pmMon November 18, 2024 at 9:00 am by NealH

There was a good deal of fun to be had in this, with lots of inventive clues and a few political references as well as a nice bunch of connected clues.