A pleasant challenge from MUDD today. Thanks Mudd.
Guardian Cryptic 28,009 by Paul
The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/28009. This took me a little longer than many of Paul’s puzzles. There was no doubt about the intent of the signature 20,12, but the ingenuity elsewhere … Read more >>
Guardian 28,008 / Philistine
A characteristically ingenious and witty puzzle from Philistine, which, as usual, I thoroughly enjoyed. Many thanks to him. There is an unfortunate and inexplicable error in the enumeration of 5,23,15, which should be … Read more >>
Independent 10354 / Punk
Punk gives us plenty to think about today. I found this one of the tougher examples of an Independent crossword, but I got there in the end. There were some … Read more >>
Financial Times 16,354 by NEO
Neo provides a straightforward puzzle in today’s FT.
Financial Times 16,353 by MONK
Sorry the post is so late. Christmas stuff has thrown my routine and I forgot what day it was. I solved and blogged this in a big rush, hopefully I have most of … Read more >>
Independent 10,353 by Alchemi
A good medium-difficulty crossword from Alchemi today. There was a bit too much cross-referencing for my tastes (it always irritates me because one is slow to get started, several clues being effectively closed … Read more >>
Guardian Cryptic 28,007 by Vlad
Tough, fun, and neatly clued as ever from Vlad. Favourites 1ac, 9ac, 12ac, and 4dn.
Financial Times 16,344 by Mudd
Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of December 7, 2019
Inquisitor 1624: Insults by Chalicea
Ah, Chalicea – known for easier puzzles and lengthy quotations along the diagonals … Preamble: Extra letters produced by the wordplay of every clue give an instruction to solvers. The Oxford Dictionary of … Read more >>
Guardian 28,006 – Crucible
A fairly gentle puzzle from Crucible today…
Independent 10,352 by Loglady
It’s Loglady today. It’s also Tuesday and Loglady has given us a themed puzzle based around TEXTILE (9ac). There were a few that needed some checking and we both hold opposite views on … Read more >>
Financial Times 16352 Slormgorm
Thanks to Slormgorm for an enjoyable crossword. There are many amusing and apt surfaces here. Definitions are underlined in the clues. Across 1 Police unit to probe a principal drug user (4-4) ACID-HEAD … Read more >>
Independent 10,351 by Tees
Tees and I often seem to meet in my Monday blogging slot. It’s always an enjoyable encounter, though sometimes trickier than one might expect for a Monday. As usual, Tees draws on a … Read more >>
Financial Times 16,351 by FALCON
Thanks Falcon for this morning’s challenge.