Guardian

Quite a few cryptic definitions again this week – some are good, some less so. But that judgment all depends on your mood I suppose. When I don’t like a CD, I suspect … Read more >>

Solving time: 30 minutes, but needed to look up 17ac, made a mistake (4dn) and can’t fathom 18ac. I found this pretty difficult, and took a long time to work out what ‘5ac … Read more >>

I think the theme might be music since 26 clues out of 26 are related to music. Typical fine Brendanian surfaces: sensible and consistent. In order to understand themes, PeterB always recommends taking … Read more >>

A typical Araucaria crossword, which hinges on being able to solve one key clue.  In this case the key answer was the one at 19ac.  Once you have that worked out, the rest … Read more >>

Solving time approx. 20 mins. Another excellent offering from Orlando, with some very subtle definitions that had me struggling in places. I particularly liked 6A (a subject close to my heart) and 7D. … Read more >>

I enjoyed this puzzle a lot, though it may not have been to everyone’s taste. My enjoyment of crosswords starts from the same kind of wordplay employed in puns, which often, though not … Read more >>

SOLVING TIME:  11 MINUTES Normal Monday fare, a gentle warm-up in the cryptic company of Rufus with the usual large quantity of Cryptic definitions and anagrams to encourage  solvers.  Ideal for the new … Read more >>

Solving time: 10 mins, one mistake (14ac) I liked this, lots of inventive wordplay without being too complex or convoluted like some Guardian crosswords. * = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’. Across … Read more >>

To my relief, on a day with multiple unexpected work deadlines to meet, this was one of Paul’s easier puzzles, and I polished it off reasonably quickly. Solving it depended on getting Truman … Read more >>

Sorry for the lateness of this blog; I thought I was due to do Friday’s this week, and only realised that it was my turn when the puzzle hadn’t been blogged.  Upon checking … Read more >>

Spent longer than usual since there were quite a few clues for which I understood either the wordplay or the definition but not both. One or two is par for the course – … Read more >>

Sorry for the delay – I had a veterinary emergency when I came home from work today. The cat had managed to develop an arterial thromboembolism (some sort of blood clot in the … Read more >>

Rufus at his best. Took about 15 minutes, with fewer cryptic definitions than usual, but his skill in that department evident in the ordinary definitions – well concealed, with a high proportion using … Read more >>

Avian theme. 14D (CHAFFINCH) was my way in. I solved this twice. The second time took as long virtually as the first since I’d forgotten most of the birds already. Across 1 PART,RIDGE … Read more >>

This was without doubt the hardest crossword I’ve had to blog, and almost defeated me. It took about 45 minutes, and I resorted to online aids for a couple of the final clues – I … Read more >>