Octofem

Not as entertaining as yesterday’s gem, with rather a lot of anagrams, and little to challenge.  One unusual word in 27a and I was not happy with 10a, but straight-forward on the whole. … Read more >>

KATZENJAMMER or GUEULE DE BOIS – A hangover in any language from this alcoholic puzzle with drinks  from many lands.  At least it ended with a coffee!  Only 20A was a new word … Read more >>

New Year Greetings to everyone.  I can find no upload of the puzzle today, so if anyone has access to the newspaper and would like to blog for me, please go ahead.  Otherwise … Read more >>

A speedy crossword this morning with very little to challenge the solver. My only concern is the three letter word at 25d.  I may not have the appropriate explanation, and am open, as … Read more >>

Not a lot to say about this one.  Some familiar words and nothing which needed a great deal of explanation. 8A was not entirely clear to me, but seemed the likely answer.  ACROSS … Read more >>

Not in the same league as yesterday’s splendid puzzle but pleasant enough.  I had constant interruptions this morning so I  apologise for the lateness and rather sketchy explanations.  One or two parsings need … Read more >>

An intriguing puzzle which proved less daunting than it seemed at first glance. Two short words in the top left hand corner stumped me most. I have included one or two probable answers without explanation in … Read more >>

Nothing very testing in this morning’s puzzle, apart from a few slang terms which may not be known to all. Much easier than last Thursday’s task. ACROSS 1.     HORNPIPE – ( ho-rn-pi-pe – … Read more >>

I found some of this puzzle quite tricky, and could not discern anything in the way of a theme.  Sharper minds  may discover one.  The bottom right corner held me up longest, with 17d … Read more >>

WATCH THE BIRDIE!   An ingenious puzzle , made comparatively simple once the bird and insect theme was discerned.  Naomi makes her appearance again – she is in this month’s Guardian Genius puzzle as … Read more >>

Plenty to think about today.  The answers came fairly quickly but not always the explanations. 30a misled me for a few minutes – I trust I now have it right.  Likewise 31a. No … Read more >>

A day late (Blame the uploaders!) Quite a pleasant puzzle but I personally would prefer fewer Proper nouns. Late in the morning – blame me.  I typed it all and then managed to … Read more >>

This was one of my least satisfactory days – most of the clues were straight forward and easy,  but several  defeated me.  I am sure they are obvious to most people.  Au secours!!!! … Read more >>

I am not sure what the theme was here : quite a number of art references, a couple of birds, and the rest a miscellany.  Some very familiar solutions made it quite simple … Read more >>

It’s a fair cop!  Theme of  ‘places of confinement’  today, but a light-hearted puzzle in spite of its subject. ACROSS 1.     PRISON – ( p-<no sir – the theme of the puzzle and … Read more >>