Guardian 24746 / Gordius

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Quite fun today, and not too hard… Across 1. BRONCO BRO[w]N + CO = “firm” 4. ASPIRE A + SPIRE = “sprout” (as an intransitive verb) 9. DALI Hidden answer 10. STOKE POGES … Read more >>

Financial Times 13,122 / Phssthpok

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Pretty straightforward, although 25 across still puzzles me.  Across 1 UNRECOGNISABLE *(LOG CABIN ENSURE) 10 HAWKS dd 11 COVER SLIP From COVERS LIP (what a moustache does).  A cover slip is the bit … Read more >>

Independent 7090/Tyrus

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Phew! I think that was about as difficult a crossword as I’ve ever done. After nearly an hour less than half of it was completed, so I resigned myself to the full panoply … Read more >>

Independent 7089 by Mordred

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*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, CD=cryptic def, DD=double def Doing the Monday blog, I seem to get a disproportionate number of tough puzzles and this was no exception. There was an ice-skating related NINA … Read more >>

Everyman 3724

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Definitely a bit harder to get going this week. The double definitions seemed to often require very specific knowlege for the second definition, and the two word clues (except 4dn which was my … Read more >>

Beelzebub 1,010 (28/06/09)

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*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition. Quite tough going for me this week, and there’s a couple I’m not sure about, as is usually the case! Across 1 PUDDING-TIME – PUDDING … Read more >>

Guardian 24,737 / Araucaria

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Something of a treat for me today, to blog an Araucaria prize puzzle [entertaining, as ever] in Rightback’s absence. I can’t even dream of approaching his prodigious solving time – but then I … Read more >>

Independent 7,087/Eimi

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An interesting solve. Having got the first 3 down answers immediately, I was convinced that there was probably going to be a perimeter message reading ‘HAVE….’. It wasn’t until I got WOODSTOCK and … Read more >>