A nice easy monday puzzle from ARMONIE….
Guardian 27,867 / Pan
It’s Pan’s turn to kick off the cryptic week, with a puzzle just right for a Monday. I found this quite straightforward, with one or two more unusual words, which were clearly clued … Read more >>
Quiptic 1,025 by Carpathian
Carpathian’s turn in the Quiptic slot this week.
Independent 10,213/Tees
Tees can do mainstream; Tees can do left-field. In places this was the latter. This took me a long time to solve. Tees will always reward your patience and lead … Read more >>
Cyclops 654 – Born Leader – In Error
Cyclops taking his usual side-swipes at the establishment, with a spoonful of smuttery and cultural zeitgeist… The big ticket clue is a nice composite anagram, incorporating DISCOURAGEMENT into NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT – OK Harvey … Read more >>
Everyman 3,794/30 June
Another enjoyable puzzle from Everyman, but one where I suspect less experienced solvers will be saying ‘too hard’. I could be wrong. Abbreviations cd cryptic definition dd double definition … Read more >>
Independent on Sunday 1532 Phi
Thank you to Phi…is there a particular reason why he’s appearing on Sunday, which is not his usual spot…? Definitions are underlined in the clues. … Yes there is. On this date (7 … Read more >>
AZED 2,455 – Plain
Another treat for word lovers. Thank you Azed.
Independent 10,212 by Filbert (Saturday 6th July 2019)
Since appearing on the scene sometime over a year ago Filbert has appeared about once a month, and though I’m sure I haven’t tackled all of them, when I see the name I … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1388: The End by Stick Insect
Warm greetings to you all from a sunny London, where I have landed myself in comfortable air-conditioned lodgings for a long weekend. Purr! Stick Insect has relatively recently added blocked puzzles to his … Read more >>
Guardian Prize 27,860 by Shed
I can’t remember when I last tackled a puzzle by Shed, as he doesn’t feature in the Prize slot very often so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but there were no nasty surprises and it was all over pretty quickly (too quickly for some, no doubt).
Independent 10,211 / Punk
My apologies for the late posting of the blog today, on what turns out to be a Punk-day rather than a Phi-day! I found this to be very much at the difficult end … Read more >>
Guardian 27,865 / Philistine
What a treat! Picaroon is followed by Philistine to round off the week. I really enjoyed this, as expected. Many thanks, Philistine. [I think it’s generally known that Philistine also finds time to … Read more >>
Financial Times 16,211 by ALBERICH
A typical Alberich offering this Friday, lots of fun with clever cluing and nothing too inscrutable. Thanks Alberich!
Guardian Cryptic 27,864 by Picaroon
What a lovely puzzle – I particularly enjoyed 12ac, 23ac, 24ac, 2dn, and 7dn. Thanks to Picaroon