Fifteensquared – Page 580 – Never knowingly undersolved

Genius No 199 by Crucible

Sun March 1, 2020 at 6:27 amSun February 2, 2020 at 12:05 am by bridgesong

Another tough Genius this month, after last month’s relatively gentle puzzle. This puzzle was of a kind that we have seen before in the Genius series, with a number of solutions representing partners … Read more >>

Everyman 3,824

Sun February 2, 2020 at 12:01 am by PeterO

The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/everyman/3824. Here we have the linked answers 8D ON THE LEVEL and 14D OFF THE WALL. Everyman also seems to be making almost a theme of &lit … Read more >>

Azed No. 2,485 Plain

Sun February 2, 2020 at 10:46 amSun February 2, 2020 at 12:00 am by PeeDee

I found this easier than usual. Azed has one of the most consistent levels of difficulty of any setter I know, so I attribute this quick solve to my being in a sharper … Read more >>

Independent 10,391 by Dalibor (Sat 01-Feb 2020)

Sat February 1, 2020 at 7:00 am by beermagnet

I found this pretty tough. Maybe Dalibor’s puzzles are getting tougher. His clueing is as sound as ever and clue surfaces continue to tell stories in little vignettes. I see from my notes … Read more >>

Guardian Prize 28,039 / Philistine

Sat February 1, 2020 at 8:43 amSat February 1, 2020 at 12:02 am by Eileen

A celebratory puzzle from Philistine to mark January 25th with a theme that would be hard to miss, I think. My late Scottish husband would have really loved this! I was enjoying it … Read more >>

Enigmatic Variations No.1418 – Accident of Birth by Chalicea

Sat February 1, 2020 at 12:01 am by Mister Sting

“Extra letters produced by the wordplay of every clue, when read in clue order, give a version of a misattributed quotation about an ACCIDENT OF BIRTH and the person to whom it is frequently misattributed. Solvers must resolve ten clashes in the grid by selecting what he is. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.”

Guardian 28,044 / Paul

Fri January 31, 2020 at 1:25 pmFri January 31, 2020 at 10:02 am by Eileen

After two successive Saturday Prize puzzles by other setters, it was a surprise to see Paul turn up today. All pretty straightforward, I think – thanks, Paul. Definitions are underlined in the clues. … Read more >>

Financial Times 16,388 by WANDERER

Fri January 31, 2020 at 9:14 am by Turbolegs

A solid work out dished out by Wanderer this Friday. Thanks Wanderer.

Independent 10,390 by Phi

Fri January 31, 2020 at 1:45 am by John

The usual tidy crossword from Phi. Things work smoothly almost every time. Phi often uses grids with unchecked letters at the sides, yet he always (I think) has at least 50% checking, which … Read more >>

Guardian Cryptic 28,043 by Picaroon

Thu January 30, 2020 at 9:41 am by manehi

Quite tricky, and an enjoyable solve with some very neat surfaces. Favourites 1ac, 5ac, 10ac, 11ac, 14ac, and 7dn. Thanks to Picaroon.

Independent 10,389 by Serpent

Fri January 31, 2020 at 10:19 pmThu January 30, 2020 at 8:17 am by Bertandjoyce

We realised that we were in for a bumpy ride when we saw that today’s puzzle is a Serpent In the event, we found this to be less challenging than we had expected, … Read more >>

Financial Times 16,387 by CHALMIE

Thu January 30, 2020 at 7:30 am by loonapick

Chalmie tries to add some flavour to a wet Thursday morning.

Financial Times 16,377 by Redshank

Sun February 2, 2020 at 7:01 pmThu January 30, 2020 at 12:01 am by Pete Maclean

Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of January 18, 2020

Independent 10,388 / Morph

Wed January 29, 2020 at 12:54 pm by RatkojaRiku

Morph has provided our Wednesday workout this week. It hasn’t fallen to me to blog a puzzle by Morph, who never disappoints a solver, for quite some time, so I was relishing this … Read more >>

Guardian 28,042 – Nutmeg

Wed January 29, 2020 at 9:06 am by Andrew

I got off to a promising start, with 1a and 5a going in immediately, but then slowed down somewhat. However, Nutmeg’s elegant and clear clueing gradually led me satisfyingly through to the finish, … Read more >>