iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I was waiting to put out my puzzle with words all containing MMMM. But then realised that's not valid, and anything over 3999 needs a viniculum (overline) like I̅V̅ ... not sure I'll have time to get the MMMCMXCIX puzzle ready though, as I don't think there are enough candidate words 😕

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

What about pork bellies and frozen concentrated orange juice?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Yay, good stuff. Needed to look up the key term, then couldn't spot them all ... but now all is clear with a little online help 🙂 (Fun to look into these: one of them is a 'twin xxx', and one is both an example and an 'anti-xxx')

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Very good clues from MC both yesterday & today ... things are looking up! 😄

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Feature request: submit a puzzle in advance for a specific numbered slot? 😜

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Back to usual today - a decent clue, but why the jarring past tense? So easy to 'fix' it so the grammar works properly (i.e., "losing") but MC consistently plumps for the suboptimal 😕

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Oh it's a *lot* better than those - as you say/imply, great fun & too good to quibble about possible grammatical shortcomings, but also definitely a 'one-off'. (First really good MCI can recall for ages!)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Not sure I quite understand these diagrams, but I like the way they look! 😄

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Can't you read "out-of-bounds" as an adverb, I think it's fine that way?

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Reposted by CranberryFez

Malcolm Dixon @malcolmdixon59.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Two books on offer for the price of one! “Brilliantly written…” “Totally compelling…” “Infectiously funny & thought provoking!” See: tinyurl.com/Everywhere-S...

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

A great example & good to see such initiatives. But I think the point wasn't that 'gender isn't important re transport', but rather ... why "as recorded at birth"?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Haha, nice. Maybe even more of a stretch but keeping the bunny, the FatKookaburra-Rabbit

Sausage-loving kookaburra "too fat to fly", also looking a bit like a rabbit

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Was that something like 'cherrysenpai' (note last two letters?) ... there were some very odd clues in there that really did feel like they'd been done by AI, so I wouldn't worry about it!

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Thanks Liari - was away taking eldest to uni yesterday but enjoyed catching up 🙂

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Relieved at your choice of cover image

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

"clearly gettable so maybe people are okay with it but is likely a bit of a bodge and so a little unsatisfying" = standard reaction to 90%+ of Minute Cryptic clues

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Jokes about 'wizard school' - at first, they might frustrate Potter (4)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Agree no link is preferable option. "and" / "or" fine as they're 'non-directional', not implying one part somehow 'leads to' the other, just that they're equivalent. "in" / "as" / "with" / etc I'd avoid as even though they could be read either way def->wp or wp->def they still imply one bit is wp.

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Now with lovely comprehensive (well, almost ... 😜) blog from Quirister at 225, many thanks! fifteensquared.net/2026/09/07/m...

fifteensquared.net

MyCrossword Featured crossword No 19 by Fez – Fifteensquared

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Fez in the MyCrossword 'Featured' slot today - many thanks to @mycrossword.co.uk Number Ten cool lying about Partygate, essentially (6) Plant root and branch, with leaves (5) As if they had time to be worried about ballet dancing! (6,2,3,3) www.mycrossword.co.uk/featured/19

mycrossword.co.uk

Featured crossword No 19 · MyCrossword

Solve Featured crossword No 19 on MyCrossword. 15x15 grid with 34 clues by Fez. Published Mon 7 Sep 2026. Free to solve online.

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Crucial (def. 5 in Chambers) = "of the nature of a crux", with "crucially" the adverb form. So it's a definite 👍 from me, but would reserve for 'tough' puzzles ... and can appreciate why it might be a 'no' but I think 'essentially' then would have to be 'no' on similar grounds (i.e. too whimsical)?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Agree with The Void - gettable, but "our faculty centres" is a bit of a fudge without any indication of 'possession'

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Great preparation for life, having her staring into The Void

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

I casually rib Nigel about goodness being beyond Reform (12)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

New Fez - and completely plain, no shenanigans, promise. (Well, at least until you hit the 'Check' button, when thematic gremlins may emerge.) Unsteady bit is sealed off (11) Find out if case is dismissed by Thursday (7) Just cycling around in French city (4) www.mycrossword.co.uk/cryptic/3775

mycrossword.co.uk

Cryptic crossword No 3,775 · MyCrossword

Solve Cryptic crossword No 3,775 on MyCrossword. 15x15 grid with 30 clues by Fez. Published Fri 7 Aug 2026. Features annotated solutions and special instructions. Free to solve online.

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

You *were* warned about that in advance! 😜

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Yep, "Chap accepting independent European state" 'fixes' it :-) Although the form of "independent" in the *surface* isn't the issue - it is (in the cryptic reading) a noun anyway, "something that 'independent' represents", i.e. "the letter i". So, "[letters] accept*ing* [letter]" = noun.

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Agree with Dmitry here re "Periodical Location" - the huge preamble is worth it. Absolutely stunning.

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Yes a super clue, but I find the punctuation *more* than misleading - it disrupts to the extent that you don't really 'say what you mean' any more. "Returning late, getting in drunk ... here, drink more water! (9)" keeps the surface without resorting to (too much, borderline 'unfair') 'trickery'?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Oh yes, definitely agree ... but that def just feels a bit *too* out there to me! (Wondered about possibilities with something about "an unusual hand"?)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

I think the wordplay is sufficiently fun to get away with ... but despite the clever pair of 5s referencing the wordplay 'hand', it's the definition that I think stretches things just a bit too much! (Would "A pair of fives?" seem like a reasonable definition in a non-cryptic clue?)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

I probably should've researched the term more thoroughly, to give proper credit where it's due! (Does a "plonker" perhaps only refer to the case where the construction is used *badly*?) And yes, I'm sure I've written more than just a few too ... will now be avoiding, which is a nice new challenge! 🙂

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

"never an easy solve" is key I think ... if you're going to be *tough* (which I love!) I'd say there's even more of an obligation to be scrupulously fair and accurate, so when things are loose in a Vlad puzzle it's jarring, even with pedantic nit-picky things that might be glossed over otherwise?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

oops, yes - it was 1d & 6d that should've been grouped under 'lack of possession' (arguably 26a's "neither partner" too, though I think that is nicely whimsical enough to get away with), with just the one nounal anagrind. 12a & 20a I did think very good though, so all forgiven 🙂

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

I was ok with that one ... a 'yard of ale' is indeed "long", "for a drink" (as opposed to "for a walk", say). The 'parts of speech' perhaps unconventional - really you'd want a nounal def, eg "That's long for a drink", but I think reasonable in circumstances with question mark doing a lot of work!

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Is it 1a, lacking definition? That stands out, but perhaps you mean the nounal anagrinds in 6d & 22d? Or "attract" for insertion (28a) or the "to" in 4d? Or 1d's arguable letter selection? As ever, always plenty to enjoy but a bit loose. The G *does* have some excellent setters too!

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Generally, an indirect anagram is a no-no because it is usually unfairly difficult to have to find the right synonym and then also anagram it. And where it's not difficult (eg CAT->ACT) it's unsatisfying because it can't be much of an anagram - eg a letter movement or swap would be more appropriate

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

That one *just about* works because the ET is retained in the answer - so it is another 'block' of anagram fodder alongside the letters, much like you'll often see a simple abbreviation included in the fodder. But would be fairer/clearer if the ET was inserted after anagramming the rest ...

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

I liked the cover image. I was reminded of my &lit attempt from a while back, "Farage regularly perceived to possess face of one? (4)" 🙂

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

GREASY SPOON certainly fits the definition better but I guess is very UK-centric! I also found this tough, not just the stretchy definition but the F for failure I think must be a US thing (over here, whilst F is a poor grade an actual 'fail' would usually be a U)

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

ok, I guess I just don't get it, I can't really see any reading of that definition (essentially, "pricey") that suggests upward or reverse *movement* 🤷‍♂️

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

Hmm, not convinced ... as an adjective it'd just mean upmarket/posh, even as a verb (which it can't really be because of the "It has an...") it'd mean make bigger / increase the scale? Just because it contains "up" I don't think there's any sense of actually moving up ... maybe it's a US thing?

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CranberryFez @cranberryfez.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

I may be missing something here, but how/why does "upscale" indicate a reversal?

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Reposted by CranberryFez

Unch Crosswords @unchcrosswords.com · 09/06/2026

Keep it quiet but UNCH ISSUE FOUR PRE-SALES ARE OPEN NOW unchcrosswords.com#shop

unchcrosswords.com

Unch Crossword Magazine

Unch, the clued-up crossword magazine

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