I found this harder than usual. I made a decent start but then had to come back to the puzzle quite a few times to finally finish it off. Thank you Azed
Guardian Prize 27,447 by Philistine
I enjoyed this. All good, and I’ve not much else to say except thank you Philistine.
Independent 9,799 by Tyrus
Drawing a Tyrus on blogging day can be a little daunting, though in this case I seemed to make steady progress from the start. Spotting the nina helped somewhat, of which more later. … Read more >>
Enigmatic Variations No. 1319: Vive la Différence by Harribobs
Oh dear…this makes three of the last four EVs that I have failed to complete… Am I losing my touch? Should I be handing in my pencil and heading for the rocking chair, with a … Read more >>
Guardian Cryptic 27,452 by Picaroon
Tricky and good fun, with lots of smiles and particular favourites 9ac, 18ac, 1dn, 2dn, and 21dn. Thanks to Picaroon.
Independent 9798 / Phi
Friday is the beginning of my four week blogging cycle and not surprisingly it’s a Phi puzzle that gets me underway. We have a well signposted theme this week with … Read more >>
Financial Times 15,802 by ARTEXLEN
A rare Friday appearance from ARTEXLEN, thanks to whom for a good workout. One of those puzzles where the parsing took as much time as the solving did for many clues, if not longer.
Independent 9,797 by Tees
There was a time when Tees always presented a stiff challenge, with various bits of arcane knowledge required. In recent crosswords I have found him much easier. That this is the result of improvement by me I somewhat doubt; it is more likely that Tees has decided to become a bit kinder.
But there has been no diminution of quality. Easy enough his crosswords may be nowadays, but they are still excellent: still tightly-produced clues and the occasional classical reference.
Definitions underlined in maroon. Anagram indicators in italics.
Guardian 27,451 – Shed
I always enjoy Shed’s puzzles, but this one was over very quickly, being distinctly on the easy side, with quite a few clues that wouldn’t be out of place in a Quiptic. Thanks … Read more >>
Financial Times 15,801 by JASON
The puzzle can be found here.
Financial Times 15,791 by Rosa Klebb
Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of February 24, 2018
Financial Times 15,800 by JULIUS
I always enjoy Julius’s puzzles as they have a definite character. I never feel like I’m just churning out another FT post which can sometimes happen. As usual with Julius there are a couple of clues that I can’t fully explain – any thoughts welcome. Thank you Julius.
Independent 9796 / Eccles
By some freak circumstance, we’ve had the pleasure of blogging Eccles’ last three puzzles. This one was up there with the others – all good fun – we particularly liked 26ac. Hoskins’ puzzle … Read more >>
Guardian Cryptic 27,450 by Brummie
Today’s puzzle can be solved online here.
Inquisitor 1531: Don’t Get Me Wrong by Opsimath
Don’t Get Me Wrong by Opsimath Ignoring obstructive bars and replacing letters in barred-off and corner cells with the letters IN GRIM AUTHOR’S CV, three sides of the completed grid will reveal a … Read more >>