EV Crosswords – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

EV 1666 (Hints)

Enigmatic Variations 1666

Drop by proXimal

Hints and tips by The Numpties

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With proXimal, we know that we have a familiar setter who also sets as eXternal in the IQ and Listener series (and combines with another setter as eXtent). You might know him as Artexlen in the FT and Boz in The Herald. Big Dave’s regulars will know him from Thursday/Friday Toughies and back-pagers, where he’s also normally put in on Fridays (used to be Thursdays). With such a range of setting experience, you can be sure you are in safe hands. We remember that as the EV editor, he set that challenging and celebratory EV no 1600. Continue reading “EV 1666 (Hints)”

EV 1665 (Hints)

Enigmatic Variations 1665 (Hints)

Untitled by Luxor

Hints and tips by Phibs

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The credit for inventing the Alphabetical Jigsaw belongs to Araucaria, although his AJs were blocked puzzles with 26 unnumbered lights.

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EV 1663 (Hints)

Enigmatic Variations 1663 (Hints)

The Right Fit by Piccadilly

Hints and tips by Phibs

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I thought I’d throw ChatGPT a bit of a curveball, so I asked, “What might a sentence described as ‘apt’ that is concealed in a crossword puzzle entitled ‘The Right Fit’ be?”

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EV 1661 (Hints)

Enigmatic Variations 1661 (Hints)

Pig Latin by Chalicea

Hints and tips by Phibs

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As I understand it, translation into Pig Latin involves an initial consonant (or group of consonants) being moved to the end of a word, and the suffix -ay being added, so Phibs becomes Ibsphay and crossword is osswordcray.

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