Puzzles, posts, news and general word-chat.

Diabolically Arcane

Bingo. You’ve reached David Astle dot com, a carnival of words, puzzles and more words. Welcome aboard, and have fun.

Loading tweet...

SK Esquire

31 January, 2017

He's back - that forum stylist and frequent Storm champ, the one they call SK. (Cue Ennio Morricone score...) Back with an entertaining themeless puzzle to savour instead of a Storm this week. 

So hit this link, and feel free to share your thoughts, or beg for hints, in the Comment section below. My hunch however says you'll unravel this little gem in good time, as I sense SK is playing nice (3dn, 13dn, 22dn...) now and then.

Plenty to like, including a couple of silky segues between wordplay and definition, the sort of sleight that marks a polished compiler. Hope you enjoy the solve.

And I look forward to  hosting a few more guest puzzles this year. (Regular players, feel free to send in your best example, or perhaps another style of word puzzle, to see if you can join the sushi train.) And of course, if you're keen for more homegrown diversions, then head across the the cruciverbalist site, run by our own CB and SL.

And last up - if you didn't know - the same classy trio (CB, SL and SK) is also the crossword pool for The Big Issue: an extra reason to snag the magazine. Making a positive difference, and solving some excellent puzzles as well.

comments powered by Disqus

Rewording The Brain

Focus & memory, lateral leaps & logic - every aspect of cognitive health is lit in Rewording The Brain, a book revelling in how puzzles boost your brain. Part 2 equips your brain to conquer any twisty clue, plus the wild crossword finale. Pop science meets neural gameplay, Rewording is rewarding, and out now.

Medal

Rewording The Brain

Care to renew your noodle? Rewording The Brain explores the latest neural studies, seeing how puzzles (and twisty clues) boost your neurons. Part 2 helps you crack such clues, and prep the grey matter for the crossword showcase to finish. More here

read more +

101 Weird Words (and 3 Fakes)

From Ambidextrous to Zugwang, this mini-dictionary teems with rare or alluring words, plus bonus riddles, puzzles and fun word-facts. Dictionary detective will also nab the collection's three fakes. Ideal for late primary schoolers, or word-nuts in general.

read more +

Gargantuan Book of Words

Sneeze words. Fake pasta. Viking slang. Gargantuan is a jumbo jumble of puzzles & games, mazes & quizzes, tailor-made for that wordy wonderkid in your life. Or anyone in love with letters, secret codes, puns, rhymes, emoji & all things languagey. More here 

read more +

Recent Comments

Riddledom Rave

If you missed my riddle chat with Richard Fidler, then feel free to slurp the podcast at http://ab.co/1I9t1x5

Text-speak is creeping into Scrabble. Where do you sit?
OBVS I'm fine with it
Entrenched stuff - like LOL and OMG - but no more.
Words With Friends, maybe. Scrabble, no
Let the 'real' dictionaries decide first
Just the handy stuff, like FAQ and EUW
I mean, WTF?! No way
See Results