shuchi

Many roundabout definitions today to add zest to our solving, such as  ‘where Spanish sailor lands’, ‘least likely to be a beggar’. Also a bigger than usual helping of homophone clues (e.g. 20d, … Read more >>

Alberich challenges and entertains, and altogether gives us a very satisfying puzzle. A trademark of this setter is the seamless joint between definition and wordplay, and you can relish many examples of it … Read more >>

A typically classy puzzle by Viking. It is with a heavy heart that I blog this, knowing that Viking will not be delighting us with new puzzles or leaving a comment on the … Read more >>

A straightfoward, elegant puzzle from Cincinnus. It is a high point in solving when the last few answers come not with looking up aids for unfamiliar facts but with delightful ‘aha’ moments. This … Read more >>

Mudd’s puzzle brims with wit and laugh-out-loud moments. The top-right gave me with some moments of anxiety with words for Portmouth and Ireland that I didn’t know, and 4A took a long time … Read more >>

A transportation-themed crossword from Orense, with clues as well as solutions covering the spectrum from airplanes to bicycles. Nice and gentle to solve. No obscure vocabulary – a commendable feat for a themed … Read more >>

I worked my way up from the lower half of the grid and was stuck on the top-right for a while. Great stuff from Bradman, and I’m happy I get to blog his … Read more >>

The confidence that the first two Across clues gave me soon vanished as I progressed with this crossword. This was a slow solve with aids needed to check on the slang and music … Read more >>

Easy anagrams and cryptic definitions, and a liberal helping of hidden word answers, made this a quick solve most of the way. I came to a halt at the last two and had … Read more >>

It is befitting that we have a lovely Bradman puzzle to solve on Don Bradman‘s birthday. Many anagram clues today, some excellent ones like 27a and 17d. Across 1 DEVILS ADVOCATE (ADVISED LOVE … Read more >>

The top-left of the grid held me up with an unfamiliar synonym of ‘river’ and some tricky wordplay. 9A is still waiting to be annotated. Tougher than Falcon’s usual, with all his elegance … Read more >>

3-4 clues into this crossword and I had a strong sense of déjà vu. A quick search told me why. This is a repeat of FT 13391 published on May 21st, 2010. This … Read more >>

A mix of simple and tricky clues, with uniformly clean surfaces. Specially enjoyed the devious definition in 19A. Across 1 GARLIC L (leaf) in (CIGAR)*. I’ve not seen leaf = L before but … Read more >>

A very entertaining puzzle, my picks for favourites today are 12a, 28a, 20d. I started from the bottom of the grid and worked my way up, with a pause to check the answer … Read more >>

John Henderson (IO) is getting married to Jane Teather (known in crossword circles as jetdoc) today. This puzzle is a tribute. 15A sets the theme of the puzzle and 12 other clues refer … Read more >>