The Baffler

Borders river--Tweed
Madeira like wine ---- Casava
In unison, In ----- Sync
Santorini other name ---- Thera
Once lord of the isles base ---- eigg

Hello Carditel

Wondered where you'd got to, haven't heard from you for a couple of days. Thanks for your answers all were correct except Madeira like wine which was of all things Canary. I've completed the Baffler now and am going onto Colossus. Well done as usual.

carditel wrote:

"Madeira like wine ---- Casava"

Casava is a type of vegetable. That answer runs through 'Santorini's other name" and would make that "TheVa" instead of "TheRa"

A Madeira-like wine is CANARY which has the 'R' in the correct place for 'Thera'.

Thanks for 'EIGG', though. It was the only word I hadn't filled in. I thought that was the answer but couldn't find confirmation in my dictionaries. I logged on and came straight to Able2Know - it hasn't let me down yet!

Now - onward to the Stinker!

Hello Shekeda

Yes I'm about to start the Stinker in the Colossus Issue 159, are you ahead on issues or behind than England, the closing date for this issue is 24th March. I'm curious as to how many countries have the Lovatts Puzzle books. Do you know. And which one's they get.

Hi Debbie,

Sorry to take so long to reply. Haven't been online much recently.

I've mostly come online tonight to get the final answers to the Stinker. Only a few to go and I can get my entries into the post later today (it's just on 1am Sunday as I write this).

The issue number for this Australian edition of Colossus is only 96. I don't know how the UK seemingly got so far ahead with issue numbers but it is the same issue otherwise. It has Ada Nicodemou (Home & Away) on the cover. The closing date for Aust & NZ entries is this coming Thursday, March 10. I usually like to post mine the Thurs before they're due but this stinking Stinker has put me a little behind.

I already have the next issue of Colossus, entries for which are due by May 12. Looking at the Lovatts webpage for the UK, you have the same cover on BIG as here - the girl with blonde hair and freckles. That's issue #145 here, closing March 31. Another book I have, ready to be started on (after the 2 Colossus and the March Big) is ClueWords #54, with Raymond's Patricia Heaton on the cover, entries for that are due by April 7.

I know it's a big waste but, unless it's a type of puzzle I *really* like doing, I only do the competition entries. I have stacks of mags full of blank crossword grids. I'll probably end up donating them to hospitals etc - won't just throw them out!

Australia, of course, has the full range of Lovatts books (seeing as the Lovatt family live here - but Christine and James are English). New Zealand had their own issues of Big but they now share the Aust publication although they often have their own prizes, so the Aust and NZ readers aren't always competing against each other. The UK and NZ each have their own web pages, off the Aust 'mother' webpage. There are also ways for people in other countries to subscribe.

Every month there are prize puzzles, where people from all over the world have a chance of winning something, at www.lovatts.com.au. That also has very handy publication dates and all sorts of other stuff!

Hope this helps - sorry I took so long to see your post!

Sue (from Essex - been to Dorset)