Independent 8498 / Donk
Wow! It took a second or two for us to realise that the repletion of the pairs of across clues was not a ghastly printing error, but an amazing feat of setting – … Read more >>
Financial Times 14,507 – Crux
Monday Prize Crossword/Dec 30 After two Dantes we were likely to get a Crux and yes indeed! Did I like this puzzle? Not sure. My solving partner didn’t like the puzzle as a … Read more >>
Financial Times 14,506 by Mudd
Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of December 28, 2013 I found this puzzle more challenging than most but also highly satisfying. While 17D (TANGERINE) stands out as a particular gem, I think … Read more >>
Financial Times 14,514 by MUDD
An sound puzzle from Mudd with an interesting grid. I would describe this as a run-of-the-mill puzzle from Mudd, but his talent shows that every-day fare not have to be dull fare. Thank … Read more >>
Guardian 26,151 by Chifonie
Lots of fun clues and neat surfaces from Chifonie. Favourites were 10ac, 11ac, 23ac and 18dn. Across 7 Outfitter is more flexible when holding interest (8) SUPPLIER =”Outfitter”. SUPPLER=”more flexible” around I[nterest] 9 … Read more >>
Independent 8,497 / Dac
The year may well have changed, but it appears that Dac is still here to accompany our Wednesday mornings, thankfully. I progressed at a fairly measured pace through this puzzle, solving the longer … Read more >>
Inquisitor 1314: Rhyme by Schadenfreude
A relatively short rubric: Solvers are to enact a rhyme, leaving the grid with twelve empty cells. The wordplay generated by one clue overlooks five consecutive letters which carry out a supporting role … Read more >>
Financial Times 14513 Dante
A rare, if ever, Tuesday spot for Dante, which I suppose is necessitated by having to place Gaff’s puzzle in yesterday’s spot (for obvious reasons). Much has been said about Dante’s style, a … Read more >>
Guardian 26,150 – Nutmeg
A busy week for Nutmeg, with the Quiptic yesterday and a cryptic today. Some nice sound clueing here; I had a feeling as I was working though the puzzle that there were rather … Read more >>
Independent 8496 / Scorpion
Everything has settled down again after the recent festivities and we are back into a normal week of Independent crosswords. Scorpion has given us a good offering today. I managed … Read more >>
Guardian Quiptic 738 / Nutmeg
With the exception of a handful of clues I didn’t enjoy this puzzle, and thought that some of the complex wordplay was out of place in a Quiptic. I hope someone can improve … Read more >>
Guardian 26,149 by Rufus
A new year but Rufus is still going strong, lower than usual count of CD and DD clues I felt. The usual mix of stuff, was thinking there weren’t any anagrams as I went … Read more >>
Independent 8495 by Alchemi
*=anagram [] = removed e.g. char[m]=char ()=abbreviation e.g. A(mpere)=a Hom. = homophone I thought this was an excellent and well-balanced puzzle with a nice mixture of clues. There were plenty of easier clues … Read more >>
Private Eye / Cyclops 511 – Xmas 2013 – It’s a Winner
Thank goodness there were a few days over the festive period to devote to a massive puzzle or two. This one took me quite a while, not only from the sheer size … Read more >>
Guardian 26,142 / Crucible
(Apologies for the late appearance of this post – all my fault.) This was an excellent seasonal puzzle from Crucible, with a nice level of difficulty for a prize puzzle. The special instructions … Read more >>