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Puzzle sources (newspapers and magazines) |
There's already a list of books about cryptic puzzles on this site, including those just containing reprinted puzzles.
The ones listed here are those whose puzzles I've tried and enjoyed. Those whose puzzles are available on the net have links to the paper's home page. In some cases you need to provide information about yourself before you can get to the crossword page.
| Daily Papers | |
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| The Times | This paper actually prints three different cryptic puzzles, two
of which appear in the Weekend section on Saturdays. These two are not available
on the web site. The daily 15x15 puzzle is probably the world's best-known cryptic crossword. It's not as difficult as many people think, especially when you get used to some of the tricks not used much elsewhere. The level of difficulty is more even than in the Guardian, as there are fairly comprehensive house rules for the Times puzzle, and editing to ensure they're followed. Each year, there is a championship for those who take pride in solving this puzzle quickly.
Jumbo puzzles use 27x27 grids and a similar clueing style to the daily puzzle. The increased grid size makes it possible for some setters to include thematic groups of words - one had 12 classical composers with (7,6) names. Vocabulary in these puzzles can be a bit more difficult than in the daily puzzle. The Listener puzzle used to appear in the magazine of that name formerly published by the BBC. It presents a different challenge every week, and includes some of the most difficult cryptic puzzles you could hope to find. Any correct solution is recorded, and summaries of your performance are available annually. These include a thorough statistical analysis of the solutions submitted during the year, and a list of the most successful solvers. As well as the puzzles, there is a weekly "Cross Words" column on the same page as the Listener puzzle. |
| The Guardian | These puzzles are attributed to individual setters, unlike
those in the Times. There is less editing, so the style of clues is up
to the setter. Cross references between clues are quite common in Guardian
puzzles, and these often mean that the puzzle is built around some theme.
Extremely long phrases are another feature of some Guardian puzzles.
The puzzles printed on Saturdays often have these features, or are sometimes
Alphabetical Jigsaws - you're told the first letter of the answer to each clue
(but not the answer's length), and have to work out where the answers fit into
the grid. Bank holiday weekends normally have a thematic puzzle, often
involving two grids.
My personal favourites among the Guardian setters are Araucaria, Enigmatist, Fidelio, and Shed. Custos (Alec Robins, who died in 1998) is sadly missed. |
| The Independent | These puzzles are somewhere between the Times and Guardian in
style - puzzles are attributed to setters, but don't often include
multiple cross-references or other Guardian features.
My favourite Independent setters are Phi, Spurius, and Mass (though his puzzles can be pretty difficult). The Independent Magazine, in the Saturday edition, includes a barred-grid puzzle based on some theme, which is a good introduction to thematic advanced cryptic puzzles. |
| The Daily Telegraph | Probably the world's most popular cryptic puzzle. I see more people solving this one than any other broadsheet newspaper puzzle. Not very fashionable among cryptic whizzkids, but if it gets people interested in cryptic puzzles, then it's doing a good job. |
| The Financial Times | Varies in style - many puzzles are similar to those in the Telegraph, but setters include Araucaria under a different name, and puzzles sometimes involve a theme. |
| Sunday Papers | |
| The Observer | Prints two cryptic puzzles.
Azed is the third setter in an illustrious sequence (following Torquemada and Ximenes). These puzzles are all barred-grid advanced cryptics, and about one in eight is some kind of 'special', some types of which are only found in this series of puzzles. Once a month, solvers submit their own clues to one word in the puzzle, and the winner keeps a coveted trophy for the month. The Everyman puzzle is a fairly easy 15x15 puzzle which is a good starting point for beginners. Although the Guardian and Observer share the same web site, neither of these puzzles appears on it. |
| The Sunday Times | Also contains two cryptic puzzles.
Mephisto is similar in style and difficulty to Azed. Each puzzle is by one of three setters - Chris Feetenby, Mike Laws and Tim Moorey. The Sunday Times Crossword has a rather loose clueing style which has generated a few baffled questions in rec.puzzles.crosswords. It also has a clue-writing competition. |
| The Independent on Sunday | Two puzzles again.
Beelzebub is the barred-grid puzzle, similar to Azed and Mephisto.
Even-numbered Beelzebub puzzles are by Paul Henderson, aka Phi. Odd-numbered
ones are by Michael MacDonald-Cooper, aka Spurius and Calmac.
The 15x15 puzzle is by Quixote - Don Manley, who also writes elsewhere under other Don-related pseudonyms. |
| The Sunday Telegraph | This has two puzzles as well.
Enigmatic Variations is a series of barred-grid puzzles at
about the same level as those in the Independent magazine.
There's also a 15x15 puzzle, similar to the one in the Daily Telegraph. |
| The Spectator | Barred-grid thematic puzzles by three different setters. Themes can be quite subtle, but the puzzles avoid many of the difficulties added to the solving process in Listener puzzles. |
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| New Statesman | Barred-grid puzzles by Salamanca once a month, and 15x15 cryptics by Setsquare once a month. |
| Private Eye | The rudest commonly available cryptic puzzle. Makes considerable use of the magazine's own private slang, so if you don't understand why "Brenda" = ER, this may not be for you. |
| The Week | Weekly (surprise!) magazine, with a puzzle by Tim Moorey. Includes a "clue of the week", which Tim selects from paper publications or the net. |
| Crossword,
One Across |
Monthly subscription magazines. Crossword is published by the Crossword Club, and includes two puzles, usually barred-grid advanced cryptics. One Across has puzzles by Araucaria and other Guardian setters, and some setters not yet published elsewhere. There are details of these and other subscription magazines on Ross Beresford's site. |
| Puzzler | Included as a representative of various monthly puzzle magazines easily obtainable in newsagents. This one usually includes one or two cryptic puzzles along with other crosswords and puzzles, including various ways of making plain definition puzzles more interesting. |
| Irish Times | 15x15 cryptics by Crossaire - roughly similar in style and difficulty to Daily Telegraph puzzles. Crossaire is reputedly just one person. |
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| Times of India | A puzzle with a slightly old-fashioned flavour. |
| Harper's Magazine | Has a rather individual puzzle by Richard E Maltby Jr. I found the November 99 puzzle quite an interesting challenge, though I grumbled a bit about some of the clues. |
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| Atlantic Monthly | Contains the best barred-grid thematic cryptics published outside the UK. Some of these puzzles are on the magazine's web-site. If you start here then you should be able to find them. |
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Internet Puzzle resources |
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The bad and the ugly |
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YAGCC Contents Page |
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Other material about cryptic puzzles on this site |
