Author: branch

The north-west corner gave the most opposition. In contrast, the other long clue at 7dn was clear from the helpers, but needed time to decipher the wordplay. I had to consult my brains trust about 24ac!

I thought this puzzle was easy, until I went to prepare the blog and found two clues yet to do!

There were several astronomical references here, which had me wondering if July 1 had some particular significance in that sphere?

I had no idea what was going on with the “ace” clue at 9ac. I could see what the answer must be, but the word-play whizzed straight past me for the ball-kid to catch.

I needed some helpers to g-g-get the stuttering clue at 14dn. That in turn gave me enough helpers to finally smell the flowers in the Greek clue at 20ac. The definition at 8dn was a mystery!

I’ve heard Montana called Big Sky Country. I suspect the same could apply to Arizona, but I’m not aware of any major observatories there, despite the reference in 12 across.

I found this easy for a Saturday, although there were a few pieces of wordplay I put aside to think about while writing this blog.

There are some delightful definitions today! 1, 16, 18, 20 and 27 across, and 5 and 12 down all made me smile. The wordplay in 13ac also stood out.

I had to think hard about some of this wordplay. Perhaps it qualifies for a master class, not a regular workshop!