RatkojaRiku

It has fallen to Dac to compile today’s landmark puzzle: the 9,000th Independent cryptic crossword! I wonder if the entry at 1A was chosen to mark the occasion or whether this was pure … Read more >>

Klingsor’s graces the crossword page of today’s Independent, as he often seems to do on a Thursday. I thoroughly enjoyed this puzzle, which I found easier than some of this compiler’s earlier crosswords … Read more >>

Friday wouldn’t be the same without Phi now, would it? And here he is with his latest end-of-week offering. I found this a medium-difficulty Phi puzzle and made steady progress through the first … Read more >>

Hieroglyph is occupying this week’s Tuesday slot, with one of his themed puzzles for us to crack. Like the themed puzzle of his that I blogged on bird species, there are a couple … Read more >>

Dac has provided this Wednesday morning’s cruciverbal workout. For me, this was a typical Dac solve, as I worked my way through the clues, admiring their smooth surfaces and unambiguous parsings as I … Read more >>

It is Klingsor’s turn to occupy the Thursday slot this week. I found this a really enjoyable solve, pitched at what I consider to be the appropriate level for a daily cryptic: far … Read more >>

Predictably, the job of compiling today’s puzzle has fallen to Phi. I found I had to work steadily away at these one, from beginning to end, with no single solution triggering a slew … Read more >>

Today’s cruciverbal challenge has been provided by Knut, a setter whose work I have only limited experience of. Perhaps due to that limited experience, I didn’t feel that I was really on Knut’s … Read more >>

It wouldn’t be Wednesday without Dac now, would it? This was another vintage Dac, in my humble opinion, this time one of medium difficulty on a grid that I did not recognise, with … Read more >>

Scorpion is this week’s occupier of the Thursday slot, although I am more accustomed to seeing his work appear on Tuesdays. I thought this was pitched at the right level for a mid-week … Read more >>

Independent 8,942 / Phi No surprise to find Phi occupying this Friday morning slot. For once, even I spotted the theme today – the musical West Side Story – which was less well … Read more >>

I was somewhat surprised to find Quixote occupying this week’s Tuesday slot, since he tends not to appear on Tuesdays. However, as we have learnt in the past, such scheduling, far from being … Read more >>

Quixote is occupying this last Wednesday slot of the month, when Dac typically enjoys a well-earned break. I found this puzzle towards the easy end of the Quixote, and indeed Indy, spectrum. There … Read more >>

Klingsor has provided us with our cruciverbal workout this Thursday. I thoroughly enjoyed this puzzle, finding it medium-to-hard on the difficulty scale and definitely a puzzle that I had to chip away at, … Read more >>

Today saw my monthly Friday encounter with Phi. I found this to be a medium-difficulty Phi puzzle. I made steady progress through it from the start almost to the finish, faltering only in … Read more >>