Independent 6519/Phi – Land of the Long White Cloud
This made a quick solve for me – possibly because two of my grandparents were from New Zealand and I’m more familiar with the cities than I might otherwise have been. I think … Read more >>
Guardian 24176/Brendan – polyglot
Three alphabets used here: English, Greek and Hebrew though I have a quibble about use of the latter. The preamble made this puzzle quite easy I thought – I suspect it would have … Read more >>
Beelzebub 915/Columba (26-08-07)
This was definitely trickier than the last few Beelzebub puzzles but still very enjoyable. Not sure about the wordplay for 11A though. Across 5 N in UP,LACE – LACE can be a verb … Read more >>
Inquisitor 35 – Three Sixes by Loda
I lied when I said I’d solved this and lost it – I solved most of it and lost it as I discovered in my re-solve. The theme was very easy to spot … Read more >>
Independent 6514/Bannsider (01-09-07)
Very tough but lots of fun. There are a couple of things I’m not sure about here and there and one answer I can get at all (10A) but I thought this was … Read more >>
Independent 6518 by Punk
An excellent puzzle from this very talented setter. Getting some of the longer phrases quickly made it a faster solve than usual for me in the case of the occasional Indy setters. Solving … Read more >>
Guardian 24175, Paul: Going bananas
I’m struggling with computer problems (a dead monitor), so was relieved that this one was pretty straightforward. Across 1 RUGBY FOOTBALL — *(golf brutal boy) 10 TOP BANANA — The star entertainer (see … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 916 by Quixote
I found this fairly straightforward. Solving time: 16 mins. In line with recent practice, will note a fairly small number of what may have been the trickier clues, but happy to explain others … Read more >>
Financial Times 12,546 by Cincinnus
Yet another beauty from Cincinnus. This one had several words/terms that I did not know but they all proved fairly easy to figure out. My favourite clues are 12A, 24A and 25A. Across … Read more >>
Chumbawamba
It’s good to see that even the crazy anarcho-punk-folk ensemble Chumbawamba like to turn to a decent cryptic puzzle in between demos and gigs… scroll down a little …it would appear to be … Read more >>
Independent 6517/Dac – About a boy
I don’t think this was as tough as some recent Dac puzzles but I have a feeling that 9A will trip some people up… Across 1 COMMOD[-or]ES 6 SHREW,D 9 BADLY DRAWN BOY … Read more >>
Guardian 24,174, Araucaria: Disraeli Gears
Despite some complex wordplay, I found this less difficult than the average Araucaria (a relief after yesterday’s Pasquale, where I failed on four clues). The theme is the 19th century Tory PM Disraeli, so … Read more >>
Guardian 24,173/Pasquale – Tuesday toughie
(Apologies for the late post – solved the puzzle earlier today, and forgot to write the blog!!) This was a toughie, especially after the usual Rufus romp yesterday. Some very unusual words and … Read more >>
Independent 6516/Virgilius
Something of a rarity for me: a Virgilius puzzle I didn’t enjoy all that much. I got the three thematic clues fairly quickly, probably because they’re not all that cryptic and I knew … Read more >>
Guardian 24172/Rufus
Solving time 4:32 I suppose I should thank Rufus after last Friday’s battle with a really tough Araucaria, but this was just too easy! I’m no speed demon, but I got nearly every … Read more >>