Cryptic crosswords are a great challenge for the brain, but they needn’t be scary. They’re not as deadly as the puzzles in the Exxilon City! Below are some hints and tips on how to complete them – Code Nine Anagrams: If a clue contains a word meaning “change”, such as “upset”, or “disturbed”, that means there is an anagram to solve. The words which require your attention are usually right next to the indicator word. Read more…
Cryptic Who has regenerated! Welcome to the new Cryptic Who website! The crosswords are now interactive, meaning you can complete them on your tablet or phone on the go, making it easier to complete the challenges your erstwhile compiler sets you and to tax those little grey cells. I know change can be strange, but life – and Doctor Who – relies on change. Don’t worry, though, the old blog Cryptic Who will remain online Read more…
Tom Baker hit the ground running as the Doctor in the previous season, but it was Season 13 where he arguably became fully fledged, laying the ground work for his as yet unsurpassed lengthy tenure as the Doctor. How lucky we are to have all these adventures at our disposal. In this week’s quick crossword, Code Nine is testing your knowledge on Season 13 ahead of the release of the Blu-ray release. Enjoy! Code Nine Read more…
Are you all looking forward to Season 13 being released on Blu-ray? I know I am! It’s a cracking season chock full of classics and every single story is a banger. The Doctor and Sarah are in full flow, battling Zygons and androids and big nasty plants! To whet your appetites, have a go at this Season 13 crossword! And remember – NO TOUCH POD! – Code Nine x
Hello, Sweetie! A whole crossword dedicated to yours truly… I keep meeting with Him Indoors in the wrong order, so perhaps a crossword is the only way to make sense of our lives. Or perhaps a flowchart? I keep a handy little diary myself, but he’s had so many faces, I need the spotter’s guide. However, this crossword is about me, not him. Within these clues, you will find references to people, places, and monsters Read more…
For me, the Eleventh Doctor can be grouped together with the Second and Seventh Doctors as a particular side of his personality – a scruffy little academic who is much cleverer than he lets on. In fact, he’s a genius. I loved the Eleventh Doctor as he really embodied that Target Books description of being old and young at the same time. It’s hard to believe that the Eleventh Doctor era is so long ago Read more…
The thing about mad scientists in Doctor Who is that they have a habit of unleashing all kinds of nasties on the world. Some are cast-offs and some are everything they hoped for. From Daleks to Vervoids, the Whoniverse is full of unintended – and fully intended – scientific consequences. Most of the time, this spells danger for anyone who happens to be nearby at the time. This week, we are writing up those weird Read more…
Speaking as a (social) scientist myself, it always strikes me as obvious how the Whoniverse is completely devoid of ethics in science. Trust me, in our universe, ethical science is a very big thing, and ethics applications take a long time. Not so for our favourite mad scientists – and thank goodness really, or we’d never have had had the Daleks, Cybermen, Vervoids, killer robots… red tape is a lot less exciting than being shot Read more…
