Author: branch

This was great fun, not least because I was watching replays of Wimbleton at the same time. There were several unknowns, but in each case the rest of the clue steered me straight eventually. Cats … Read more “Times Saturday 26778 – July 15, 2017. When the cat’s away, the mice will play.”

I think this will be another easy or medium puzzle by Saturday standards, at least for the expert solvers. A nice mix – some history, some geography, some languages. The SE corner took me longest … Read more “Times Saturday 26772 – July 8, 2017. One for our North American friends.”

After struggling last week, this week went very smoothly until the last answer! I started well, finishing the bottom half (all bar one) and then the NW followed by the NE, but then found myself … Read more “Times Saturday 26766 – July 1, 2017. Nothing tedious today.”

After breezing through last week, this week saw me thud back to earth! I started well, finishing the NW corner, but then gradually slowed to a standstill. My last ones in were 15ac, 6dn, 20dn … Read more “Times Saturday 26760 – June 24, 2017. Too many unknowns?”

For me this was my easiest puzzle ever on a blogging day. I barely stopped working through the grid. It seemed that either the wordplay or the definition took me straight to the answer. The … Read more “Times Saturday 26754 – June 17, 2017. Crazy as an Ottoman.”

Good to be back! Thanks to McText for standing in. This puzzle had a slightly different feel to it. The surfaces of the clues all read nicely, and some of the definitions had a nice … Read more “Times Saturday 26748 – June 10, 2017. And the polls are in!”

No exotica here, but everything was challenging. Several clues where I made a note to myself to check later that some word really can mean what the clue suggests! My COD was 4dn. I also … Read more “Times Saturday 26730 – May 20, 2017. And it’s goodbye from me for the while”

This was full of wonderful clues. Many of them seem simple as I write the blog, but felt rewarding to solve. 28ac was my LOI, and took a little time to see the wordplay even … Read more “Times Saturday 26724 – May 13, 2017. A delight of a crossword!”

This crossword certainly had its quota of obscure answers! Strangely my first two in were 22dn and 25 across, although one I only vaguely remembered from past crosswords, and the other I didn’t know at … Read more “Times Saturday 26718 – May 6, 2017. Wailing wildly!”

This was heavy in historical references and obscure (to me, at least) foreign nouns, which may have slowed down those solvers who don’t already have a Master’s rating in useless information. The rest of us … Read more “Times Saturday 26712 – April 29, 2017. Frankly, I did it his way.”