Never knowingly undersolved
I’ve not done these before but the Genius series is monthly series in the online (only) Guardian that offers a preambled themed puzzle which doesn’t require frequent round-trips to Chambers. Yet. This month’s … Read more >>
A prize crossword and I found it trickier than a weekday with some fairly current references and well hidden definitions. As far as I can see, which is not always far in such … Read more >>
Solving time: 20:15 I was pretty slow to spot the thematic bits, which were many and crucial, so I’m not too disappointed with the time. In fact I’m pleased just to have completed … Read more >>
A pretty straightforward puzzle, with no obscure German towns or archaic words and only one two fairly minor quibbles for me. A couple of the anagrams give themselves away rather too cheaply, but Chifonie makes … Read more >>
This had everything I expect from Phi, clear precise, clues, easier wordplay to the less familiar words, everything fully understood. The extra bit was that, like some other of this week’s puzzles, there … Read more >>
This was a very frustrating puzzle for me. It appeared very easy at first, but then I hit a wall with the last six or seven clues. It wasn’t that I couldn’t work … Read more >>
I expected a Pasquale puzzle to be straightforward with good cluing, and for the most part it was. However, I had to use TEA to find the final answer, 14ac. Even with maximum … Read more >>
Fairly straightforward, with the SW corner the slowest. As always with Quixote, everything stacks up unambiguously. Solving time: 21 mins * = anagram ACROSS 8 TI PP ER Slightly unusual construction in which … Read more >>
Solving time 11:07 (if correct) A theme that kept me guessing for a while, as the crucial no. 5 didn’t fall until I’d got one of the theme answers, most of which are … Read more >>
Solving time: 24 minutes (one dubious answer) Another sound puzzle from Dac which held my enjoyment right the way through. Not terribly sure about 13 across, I wondered if the countries had been … Read more >>
I was at a beer-tasting event last night, so was hoping for an easy puzzle today – no such luck! I groaned when I saw it was Araucaria, but after looking over the … Read more >>
Ah what’s the theme, I thought as I opened the back pages of the Independent. Momentarily distracted by the pictures of weekend’s big fight between Arsenal and Chelsea, I returned to wondering if … Read more >>
Apologies for the lateness of this entry, but I had technical problems earlier today, and have since had to sit through a mind-numbing Property Strategy meeting for a couple of hours. The delay … Read more >>
Another fine puzzle from Tees and, in keeping with the last few Monday puzzles, quite difficult in places. Across 1 (MARK)* in WON – “Newmark” (helped out by “Maybe”) to indicate an anagram … Read more >>
Solving time: 16:49.26 I usually don’t time myself down to the split-second but I have a new desktop timer gadget thingy, with hundredths of a second which will be useful at the next … Read more >>