Guardian 24,810 / Rufus
Back to traditional Monday fare with Rufus. Ernjoyable and pretty easy going, though with a couple of words that are perhaps slightly obscure. I have one or two minor quibbles, noted below. Key: … Read more >>
Everyman No. 3285 (September 13th)
. Lorraine: Thank you Everyman, jolly easy for me this week. This must have been my quickest solve so far. Nick: Happy Birthday Lorraine (for last Friday). . Legend to solution comments: * … Read more >>
Azed 1946: quelle surprise!
As well as the usual quota of obscure words, we have what I believe is a first, for Azed anyway, which is a clue entirely written in French (6 down). Perfectly fair, in … Read more >>
Beelzebub 1,021 (13/09/09)
The online Chambers was down when I tackled this, so it was back to the big red book, and none of the fancy advanced search features. I was pleased with how swiftly I … Read more >>
Inquisitor 141 – Formula by Kea
As indicated by the need to post a placeholder, I found this puzzle tough. We were told that: seven down answers needed processing in accordance with instructions from a Letters Latent quotation providing … Read more >>
EV 879 Homograms III by Kruger
The preamble to this puzzle confused me at first: the anagram or homonym of the required word. The answer? Indicated? Unindicated? Either way what was the rest of the clue doing? After over-analysing … Read more >>
Guardian 24,803 (Sat 12 Sep)/Araucaria – Chekh mate
Solving time: about 15 mins A while ago I was playing Articulate! when the name Anton Chekhov came up. This was described to my team as “a Russian chess player”. Easy, we thought. … Read more >>
Independent 7,153/Phi
Apologies for the lateness and brevity. Busy day. A fairly stiff challenge today I thought, with the NW corner proving a tough nut to crack. Excellent clueing as always from Phi. Across 1 … Read more >>
Independent 7,148 by Radian (Saturday Prize Puzzle, 12/09/09)
First impressions are that this is a funny-looking grid, I'll expect a Nina or two here. Aha, but it's Radian, who favours quality over quantity in clueing if I remember correctly, hence the … Read more >>
Guardian 24808 / Gordius
Not too tricky for a Gordius puzzle, but with a few that needed some time to work out the wordplay. [Links to the puzzle as HTML, PDF and Java Applet] Across 1. LANCELOT … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,185 / Orense
A super-quick solve, with pauses to smile at some amusing wordplay. I have a few quibbles here and there, like the repetition of certain devices (VICE and firm=CO) but nothing too bad. Across … Read more >>
Independent 7152 by Nimrod
Not too difficult a puzzle from Nimrod which I solved in under 30 minutes. However, there are a few clues where I think the answer is right, but I am not entirely sure … Read more >>
Guardian 24,807 – Araucaria
Quite a challenge today, mainly due to the problems with getting started in such an interlocking grid. Once 15dn was cracked the rest became easier, however. Across 7. SCARLET. A reference to Will … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1022 by Quixote (13 Sep 2009)
Not too hard, I found, solving time 17 mins * = anagram < = reversed ACROSS 6 ANDREI SAKHAROV (a risk a handover)* Nobel Prize winner (1921-1989) 9 S PINE L 10 G … Read more >>
Financial Times 13,184/Falcon
This is the first puzzle I’ve had a crack at, let alone blogged, in a little while so was relieved to be reintroduced into the shallow end of the pool. While solving, there … Read more >>