Observer

A mixed bag of clues from Azed this week — some that were pretty easy, and a few that held me up for a while. I had to think hard about 31a, and … Read more >>

Solving time 30:50 without books, one mistake – or c. 38 mins with confirming look-ups and one correction. Mostly fairly straightforward, but there are one or two unresolved points where you may be … Read more >>

Solving time 38:18 (with Chambers and Bradford’s) I made one mistake (9ac, SOOM for SOOP) but realised when I came to do the blog, as I’d never been happy with my original answer … Read more >>

Like Jane last week I found this Azed relatively straightforward. It had the usual mix of obscure answers, obscure elements in the wordplay and tricky devices but it was scrupulously fair and so … Read more >>

*(Ref: the late, great Ian Dury, ‘There Ain’t Half Been Some Clever Bastards’) When I say that I found an Azed relatively straightforward, I always seem to get responses from people who say … Read more >>

I was bamboozled by the NW corner and had to resort to an email friend (in this case, PeterB) largely because I fell into the trap of RUMBA for our Cuban dance at … Read more >>

Solving time: say 2 hours in a couple of sessions It’s intriguing to see the successor of Torquemada and Ximenes dedicating a puzzle to Araucaria, who some strict Ximeneans might want (metaphorically of … Read more >>

Solving time about 35 mins, with Chambers and Bradford’s. Across 1 DOG’S BREAKFAST – “Men generally” = DOGS, rest = BREAK, dissipatedly = FAST (apparently). 10 ISOBRONT (to robins)* – a contour line … Read more >>

As Azeds go, this was fairly straightforward to solve, and it had the usual quota of delightfully witty clues and elegant surface reading. I wasn’t too sure of all the wordplay, though; perhaps … Read more >>

Solving time: not recorded – maybe an hour or so. Chambers used for 3 or 4 answers at the end. This is in a bit of haste before going to Cheltenham, so I … Read more >>

A possibly error-free Azed! The usual mix of obscure words in both the grid and word play, some unusual devices and some great surfaces added up to a typically enjoyable Azed plain puzzle. … Read more >>

Solving time – about 45 mins, with Chambers and Bradfords After the two uncharacteristic faux pas the previous week, I was surprised to see yet another error creep into this one (see 6 … Read more >>

(this version added Weds 19 Sep, 8:20 p.m. – the first two comments relate to the corrected clue to 23D printed with no. 1842) Solving time: roughly 90 mins from memory This puzzle includes two mistakes, … Read more >>

Another excellent Azed with a twist. Omitted and added letters spell out: IT’S GOOD BUT LETTERS GET IN THE WRONG PLACES. The full quotation from Winnie the Pooh is: “My spelling is Wobbly. … Read more >>

Solving time 42:56 I used Chambers earlier than normal – after putting in about half a dozen answers. This puzzle seems to have a fairly high proportion of unfamiliar answers, which I think … Read more >>