Clues by Enigmatist and Grid by Calluna
Theme: Thirteen
Winner: Manuel Guerin of Courlay, France.
Review of the March 2026 3D crossword
A 9 x 7 x 5 puzzle this month, so you already know you’re in for a lot of lights to fill. It also has thirteen disembodied clues by the diagram, which each contain a superfluous word — and one of the clue’s answers itself is unused in the grid. There are several Easter Eggs. It’s complicated, certainly, but will we need to be lucky to finish it?
Putting aside those gimmicked clues, the solve of the rest of the puzzle is straightforward. I didn’t mark any clues for review. I did get a chuckle from 18 and its slapstick imagery, and from 14 that reminds us someone has a monopoly on dancing on the sand — at least since 1982.
The vocabulary is wonderfully varied because of the longer word lengths available — although we still had room for our old friend COL — both as an answer and an ingredient for Day 7. I particularly liked the 9-letter words like BLINDSIDE and CARJACKER that we rarely get to see in these pages.
But the gimmicked clues and words are where all the thematic fun is. Each definition involves the number thirteen. So for each brief definition given in the legend or the answer itself, add a thirteen to tighten it up. Thirteenth State? RHODE ISLAND. Fallible prediction method? 13 KEYS (ask Kamala Harris). It’s not enough to get you all the way there, but that’s what cryptic clues are for.
The cryptic parts each have an extra word, and I did encounter one that tripped me up. The clue for KNICKERBOCKER COTTAGE certainly has an extra word (or two), but I originally tried “Make”, but “Make … bats” is the complete anagrind and “out” is the interloper.
Other than that, those weren’t hard once you lined them up with the definitions and their checks in the grid. The thirteen-month calendars, thirteen-year-olds, and the Thirteenth Amendment along with Route 13 and The Thirteenth Doctor cover a lot of different fields. It’s a deep well and we get a good drink from it.
The first and last letters of those extra words spell the big Easter Eggs (mysteriously, not asked for in the entry form). I took to writing the extra word in the calendar spaces under the answer so I could see them more easily (and in order). They spell THE LAST SUPPER (a notorious gathering of thirteen on a Friday that immediately preceded the corporeal demise of a couple of them) and JASON VOORHEES (the mythic killer from Friday the 13th film lore).
And those point us to Friday the 13th, the allegedly unlucky day that we’re treated to three of this year (November as well as this month and last). Day 13 couldn’t be entered in the superstitious entry form, but appears to be DOZEN FOR BAKER, our “vocational number 13”.
The other Easter Eggs are THIRTEEN and TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA (but not paraskevidekatriaphobia). That gets us up to at least seventeen thirteens which is more than enough to scare the phobic away.
The pictorial clue encourages us to remove ice cubes and a snake from a message board and add a Spanish 8: NOTICEBOARD – ICE BOA + OCHO = NOTOCHORD.
My late partner’s favorite horror movie series were Jaws (see last year’s calendar) and Friday the 13th. I’m not sure there’s enough meat on the bone to make a puzzle for general audiences based on the Jason movies, but there’s more than enough to play with from thirteens in general. We were treated to a good many in this puzzle.
The founding fathers of the US were obsessed with thirteen. Taylor Swift says it’s her lucky number. But elevator manufacturers and others shun it whenever possible. If you aren’t troubled by it, this puzzle’s an interesting challenge. For the rest of you, I extend our deepest apologies — and an ending before I reach a thirteenth paragraph.
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Grid solution
Visual clue
Take a noticeboard and then remove ice and a boa constrictor, replacing them with the Spanish word for 8 (indicated by the map of Spain), to get:
NOT [ice boaOCHO] RD = NOTOCHORD
Background image
The backdrop to this month’s puzzle of a black cat is by Angeles Balaguer (Pixabay licence).
Clues and explanations
Thematic solutions are indicated with an asterisk.
| Day | Solution | Clue | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ANDIRON | 4aw Domestic supporter soon adopts Free Left (7) | Domestic supporter. AN[RID<]ON |
| 2 | AZTEC* | 32up Thematic Like judgment announced by PI | AZ/TEC i.e. “as”
Superfluous: JudgmenT The Aztecs used calendars that were based on 260 days divided into 20 trecenas — a 13-day period. They also believed that the heavens were constructed and separated into thirteen levels. |
| 3 | BACK-TO-BACK | 16d,5aw-2,8d Support for spine as duellists start? (4-2-4) | as duellists start? BACK,TO,BACK |
| 4 | BAR MITZVAH* | 24ba,22to Thematic “Counter”, set by Mass for the Listener: although it’s very hard, answer’s clocked | BAR,M/ITZ/V[A]H i.e. “it’s”
Superfluous: AlthougH A Jewish coming-of-age ceremony for boys at age thirteen. |
| 5 | BASER | 37up In here’s a blackguard, backsliding, plumbing new depths? (5) | plumbing new depths? heRE’S A Blackguard hidden rev |
| 6 | BATELEUR | 24ba-2,23to Pub receives TV uniform flier (8) | flier. BA[TELE,U]R Short tailed African eagle |
| 7 | BICOLORED | 27ac I pass over in black and red, like Alabama’s flag (9) | like Alabama’s flag. B[I,COL,O],RED |
| 8 | BLINDSIDE | 37ba Wait to catch opera-singer’s weak point (9) | weak point. B[LIND’S]IDE ref Ref. Jenny Lind |
| 9 | CARJACKER | 31ac Knave who’s managing requisitions? (9) | &lit. CAR[JACK]ER, requisitions = vb |
| 10 | CARRION | 28aw Rotten film series altering the bounds of immorality (7) | Rotten. CARR[I (for Y)]ON |
| 11 | COL | 18d Army man’s brief depression (3) | Double def. |
| 12 | COVEN* | 31up Thematic Eleven-plus test abandoned by English city | COVEN(try) Superfluous: Eleven-pluS A group of 13 is known as a “coven,” traditionally referring to a gathering of witches. |
| 13 | Thematic Frozen oatmeal bread OK to cook | (FROZEN BREAD OK)* = DOZEN FOR BAKER Superfluous: OatmeaL Red herring, not to be entered | |
| 14 | CURIO | 28up This is unusual, someone dancing on the sand with copper (5) | This is unusual. CU,RIO Ref Duran Duran song |
| 15 | DISBAND | 30up,4aw-3 Bids to restructure then split (7) | split. BIDS* AND |
| 16 | DRAFT | 34up GP behind plan (5) | plan. DR,AFT |
| 17 | DREAR | 9d Poet’s gloomy daughters breed (5) | Poet’s gloomy. D,REAR |
| 18 | DURABLE | 30aw Ends of board with which Laurel almost clobbered Hardy (7) | Hardy. (BD LAURE)* |
| 19 | ELKHOUNDS | 42ba Hunters embattled, holed and sunk (9) | Hunters. (HOLED SUNK)* |
| 20 | ETHIOPIAN* | 11ac Thematic One American in The Piano cast | I in (THEPIANO)*
Superfluous: AmericaN The Ethiopian calendar consists of thirteen months. |
| 21 | HARD CASES | 17ac Has scared off difficult folk (4,5) | difficult folk. (HAS SCARED)* |
| 22 | ICENI | 33up Old Brits occupying office nightly (5) | Old Brits. offICE NIghtly |
| 23 | INKPOTS | 14to Down jar after spinning bottles of the Black Stuff (7) | bottles of the Black Stuff. (s)INK POT/S(ink pot) |
| 24 | KEYS* | 41up-4 Thematic They access various low islands | Double def. Superfluous: VariouS The Keys to the White House, also known as the 13 keys, is a prediction system for determining the outcome of presidential elections in the United States. |
| 25 | KNICKERBOCKER COTTAGE* | 41to,27aw-6,18aw Thematic Make Grace book out Kent cricket bats | (MAKE GRACE BOOK KENT CRICKET)*
Superfluous: OuT In 1880 Captain William Fowler decided to test some of the superstitions concerning the number 13 and prove them false by creating a social club known as the Thirteen Club which met for the first time on Friday, January 13th 1882 at Fowler’s hostelry Knickerbocker Cottage in Manhattan. He decreed that his club would meet on the thirteenth day of the month, and he would have thirteen people sit at a dining table in room 13. Should none of his 13 members die during the year after the meeting, it would show that the superstition around the number 13 was unfounded. |
| 26 | NEAGH | 39up Expanse of water split kiln leaving one aghast (5) | Expanse of water. oNE AGHast – oast Lake in Northern Ireland |
| 27 | NIXER | 35ac-2,36up-4 Reportedly takes a job in Kerry? (5) | job in Kerry. “nicks a” |
| 28 | NOOSE | 15d Thematic Zero odours picked up by snout | NO[O]SE
Superfluous: OdourS There is an urban myth that all hangman’s nooses contain thirteen loops. |
| 29 | NOTOCHORD | 6ac Forerunner of column, Thunderer has original chapter included in #500 (9) | Forerunner of column. NO.{T[O,C]HOR},D |
| 30 | ODDBALL | 40to Strange, partnerless dance (7) | Strange. ODD,BALL |
| 31 | OSTRICH | 2aw Maximally fertile, burying head – as one does (7) | burying head – as one does. (m)OST RICH |
| 32 | OUTACTED | 12to,3d-2 Stole the show from laid-back couple, maintaining diplomacy and energy (8) | Stole the show.[TACT,E] in DUO< |
| 33 | OXYMEL | 26ba-5,25d-2 Acid-sweet mixture? Lab’s rating down after head of Operations axes me (6) | Acid-sweet mixture? O,XY,ME/L(ab) |
| 34 | OYSTERS | 26to Revolutionary soy dressing, oddly secret, banned East Caribbean seafood (7) | seafood. S(ec)RET* in SOY* |
| 35 | POMELO | 13ba-2,12d Fruit Mr Gibson’s dropping round (6) | Fruit. PO[MEL]O |
| 36 | REHAB | 1d The chap’s back in pub, reversing this? (5) | &lit. HE< in BAR< |
| 37 | RENOWN | 1aw-6 Notoriety enough for old people to join the Navy (6) | Notoriety. R[ENOW]N |
| 38 | RHODE ISLAND* | 1ac,4aw-3 Thematic Close to lobster also hidden under rocks | R HODE ISLAND Superfluous: UndeR The thirteenth state to join the Union. |
| 39 | RISKS | 29up Ask teacher about America’s missing dangers (5) | dangers.([a]SK SIR)< |
| 40 | SLAVERY* | 19aw Thematic Prudish Serbian perhaps finally fully extended | SLA(v):VERY
Superfluous: PrudisH Abolished by he 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution. |
| 41 | SOMME | 38up Frenchman residing in an unspecified department (5) | department. SO[M]ME Department of France |
| 42 | TEENAGERS* | 21ac Thematic Agree purse nets should be spread | (AGREE NETS)*
Superfluous: PursE 13 to 19 year-olds |
| 43 | THEIR | 7d His and her first-born son succeeds leader of Tories (5) | His and her. T HEIR |
| 44 | VIENTIANE* | 20ac Thematic Things carried by effective climber | VI[ENTIA]NE
Superfluous: EffectivE Capital of Laos. It sits on Route 13, the most important highway In Laos. |
| 45 | WHITTAKER* | 10ac Thematic Person accepting the smallest possible rewards | WHIT-TAKER
Superfluous: RewardS Jodie Whittaker was the thirteenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who. |
| 46 | WITHE | 10d In a band, sticks by Earl (5) | In a band. WITH E |
| Easter Egg | TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA | Yellow cells (17) | The irrational fear of the number 13 |
| Thematic phrases | JASON VOORHEES | First letters of superfluous words | Main character in the Friday the 13th films |
| THE LAST SUPPER | Last letters of superfluous words | Thirteen people |
Solvers’ comments
Tough workout: I had no idea about the theme until I’d solved all the clues (including all the thematic clues except the red herring). [NI]
Wow, what a theme and how many connections can there be. Really clever and a delight to work out and get the last few clues solved. Thanks to Enigmatist and Calluna [GW]
Fascinating and very witty. Loved Day 13. Clue for REHAB raised a smile. [NB]
Superb puzzle – wonderfully challenging! [AJ]
That was tough but we love a challenge. A little put out we spent a whole heap of time trying to figure out what to put in day 13 to then find out the vital piece of info “not to be entered on this entry form” was missing from the printed calendar. It only became apparent when reading the online form. Even more aggrieved to realise we need not have bothered working out the easter eggs of The Last Supper and Jason Voorhees. Still, it was, after all that, very enjoyable. [SC] [The extra thematic phrases are there to help you figure out the theme and identify the red herring. Given the already challenging nature of the puzzle, we thought it would be too much to ask that these extra phrases also be submitted. Kudos to you and other solvers who did manage to work them out. – Ed.]
Possibly the most enjoyable puzzle that I’ve done in the three years that I’ve been a subscriber! Great theme, fiendishly difficult and kept me going for a couple of days. Even the picture clue helped!! My only gripe is that I spent an age working on all the thematic clues, working out the superfluous words and the hidden answers, only to find that I didn’t need to do any of that to fill in the answer form. It was rather deflating. The additional pain of realising that I didn’t need to submit the answer to day 13 deflated me even more. where was the reward for all that effort?? But many many thanks to Enigmatist, Calluna and Frank all the same. [JC] [We hope the reward is in the solving itself – Ed.]
Good, nice and tricky! [AC]
Great puzzle, richly thematic. [TH]
Excellent, though I question whether d can represent daughters (plural) – Day 17 clue. [PB]
Bloody hell. Never mind a three pipe problem, I’m off to Screwfix to see how much pipe they’ve got. As ever, amazing work from Enigmatist and a great grid from Calluna. I’m unconvinced by the entry form – I spent quite a while checking everything only to realise that I had to miss out DOZEN FOR BAKER (which goodness knows took me long enough to crack!) [HS]
Wow! [JT]
This was definitely the hardest one I have attempted! Thanks for the great workout. Struggled to get some of the normal clues in the first place. Finally got the link between the theme words via the red and yellow cells. Worked out the anagram for The Last Supper but not the other one before realising that the letters were in the correct order to produce Jason. Finally read the instructions properly “…. and not to be entered in the grid (or this entry form).” for Day 13. All in all, a lot of fun and feel lucky to be part of the 3d community. Thank you. [HH]
Having seen the setter’s name, I started trying to solve this puzzle early in January. I am glad that I did, as it took me to mid-February to solve it completely. The theme finally hit me after I did some research on the five or six thematic clues that I had solved and noted that the number thirteen appeared more than once in the results I was finding. That helped check the remaining thematic answers as they gradually emerged before the puzzle was finished. Seeing the build-up of letters in the yellow cells, TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA came to mind. The red cells spelling THIRTEEN was a final bonus. I had to look up JASON VOORHEES to understand his link to thirteen. The link between THE LAST SUPPER and thirteen was more obvious. I also noted that 2026 is one the rare years where there are three Friday 13ths, which is no doubt the reason for the theme. I enjoyed this puzzle. Solving it spurs me on to solve the future months’ puzzles. [DS]
As you can see from my submission I am foxed by this puzzle & have been unable to finish it – a first for me! Looking forward to the Hints & Tips xx [RE]
Overcomplicated for a Match grid. Too many thematic words and clues for these. Didn’t need an extra word as an extra puzzle. [PD]
I thought this was a suitable date to send in my entry (Friday the thirteenth). I had fun figuring out the thematic clues’ connections to the number thirteen. Thanks to Enigmatist and Calluna for an entertaining puzzle. [RS]
Fiendishly fun. [MG]
Never got 13, but it appears it wasn’t required. No Length, No definition, Cryptic part can be 1 of several (after removing a unspecified word). I’ve spent way too much time trying to work it out. [KD]
Ooh, that was tricky. A tour de force. [DR]
I am still bamboozled by a couple of the clues; this was HARD. [RS]
Probably the hardest 3D puzzle I’ve had to solve! Thoroughly enjoyable. [RG]
Quite a challenge, particularly the solving without definition part. [JP]
Goodness me, very enjoyable but what a work-out! I pondered so long on a solution to Day 13, decided to enter but with a guess for that one, and it still took a second reading to spot that the online instructions tell me not to enter the answer to the red herring – doh!!! [SB]
Amazing puzzle! Hats off to both Enigmatist and Calluna for a very intricate and satisfying construction. [HJ]
Quite a struggle this month, particularly the thematics. I’m glad I don’t need to solve 13, as I haven’t. The hints and tips gave me the construction of the otherwise incomprehensible 26. I’m not sure I’ve seen this before. Doesn’t 24 (KEYS) have two definitions rather than none? Would it help to have seen (one of) the films? [MJ]
Found this one very difficult & spent far too many hours, determined to finish. Sending off with little confidence of it being correct and acknowledging that would have not got this far without the hints and tips. [DB&MJ]
Definitely one of the toughest 3-d puzzles I’ve ever completed, but some fabulously intricate clueing! The beautiful photo should have helped identify the theme, but I was just mesmerised by it. Incredible ingenuity in all the different components of the puzzle, and I am still not entirely sure about some of the thematic answers (ie how they relate to the main theme). I got one of the thematic phrases from the letters of leftover words, but not the second one. Also hoping we are meant to leave day 13 blank (like not stepping on the pavement cracks). Thank goodness for the hints and tips this month is all I can say, and thank you for posting them on the early side… [MS]
I must be missing something here. Why would the year 2026 be difficult for those with triskaidekaphobia? [CF] [There are three Friday the 13ths this year – Ed.]
Took a while to get the theme of 13 but like the subset of clues and the black cat picture helped – thank you – loved it. [LB]
Who on earth can compile a puzzle of such complexity with so many interconnecting strands? Enigmatist of course! Coloured cells, superfluous words, missing definitions, a red herring, thematic phrases from anagrams… this puzzle has all these and more! And it all came together with such precision at the end – amazing! My dislikes? Clues 37-46 at the back of the calendar and the thematic clues on a black background – hindrances I could have done without! Nevertheless, this one will stay in my memory for a very long time, I’m sure. [JB]
This convoluted puzzle made me quite dizzy – help! [SF]
This took me a very long time to nut out. I eventually seemed to work out most answers but didn’t want any more BAD LUCK so I took the advice from the Hints and Tips and left the “red herring” at 13 blank. Hoping I have all the solutions correct now but I’m not entirely confident. A fiendish and very clever challenge from Enigmatist and Calluna! [JA]
Probably, the hardest cryptic I’ve ever solved, but so enjoyable! [Off-topic: why was 13 required to be left blank in the form?] [CPP] [The form is a stand-in for the grid, and the instructions were that the red herring was not to be entered. Leaving Day 13 blank is the crossword equivalent of a hotel skipping the 13th floor due to superstition. – Ed.]
An excellent 3D puzzle, rich in thematic content, reminiscent of a puzzle by this setter in last year’s calendar. A lot of thought, as well as skill, evidently went into making the clues to this puzzle both challenging and fair, and it was rewarding to have solved all the numbered clues as well as all the thematic ones (following the hints given). Fully resolving the theme was even more challenging than completing the grid. To get TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA (!) I had to look up the history of ‘unlucky 13’. Also, I had to put the pairs of superfluous letters into Day order to eke out THE LAST SUPPER, which was the only way to reveal the unfamiliar name JASON VOORHEES. (I naturally assumed from the start that these two thematic items were required!) [AB]
As expected very clever. Thought I’d need the two ‘phrases’ The Last Supper and Jason Voorhees. Spaces don’t work as you suggest. Knicker Bocker Cottage gives wrong message as too did Risk s. [KNICKERBOCKER is one word, as is RISKS – Ed.] Form wouldn’t let me submit Dozen for baker or anything in 13! [DM]
Sometimes this feels like a work of pure fiction. The words I have fit in, but how correct they are is up to you. What an amazing puzzle. The saving grace has been publishing the hints and tips early. That changed an almost blank grid into something more presentable. [MM]
Difficult! [RL]
Sorry, but I find this too hard, obscure and convoluted to be pleasurable. I solved most of the normal clues but got nowhere with understanding the rubric or the thematic clues until Hints and Tips came to my aid – but rather by revealing that we didn’t actually need to solve much of it to submit! If I get the green light I doubt whether I’ll make much more effort to plug the gaps in my understanding. But if you list the names of all those (if any) who submitted a correct solution before Hints and Tips came out, I will happily lead a nationwide roar of admiration and approval for them at a prearranged time. I suspect from the timing and the nature of Hints and Tips this month that the incoming traffic was very sparse. [EF] [Warm up your vocal chords — quite a few solvers successfully rose to the challenge before the hints! – Ed]
By far the most challenging, in my opinion, of any in the past five years of tackling these brilliant crosswords. If I have completed it successfully, it is despite not having parsed all the clues, I’ll be very happy. [RP]
Tricky but enjoyable. I needed the hints and tips to give me an in on the extra thematic clues. Having struggled with sorting out the words to miss out of the clues to get final answers you didn’t ask for them! [JC]
This was the most difficult puzzle I have done in a long time! Very entertaining but I needed the hints and tips to show me the way through it all. Very enjoyable – my thanks to all involved. [BS]
Tricky! [JC]
Difficult but rewarding aha & tie in. Some very obscure answers but masterful construction and informative theme. [SS]
Devilish! [JG]
Excellent puzzle, and incredibly clever! The most challenging one yet, a real mind-bender – thanks to setter and designer! [SH]
Very tricky ending for this to really sort out the clues without days/mixed definitions. Fingers crossed for correct solutions. [JN]
Best puzzle ever. The theme so cleverly and intricately interwoven into the grid and the clues. I was really struggling until we got the hints and tips, and then it all started to fall into place. Finding the answers to the thematic clues was a Wikipedia joy. Brilliant 👏 [SB]
What a fantastic puzzle, so much going on with some pretty fiendish clues, thoroughly enjoyed it. [MD]
Wow! That was the hardest I’ve completed yet, in fifteen months. Some of those thematic clues were pretty mindbending to unravel… [MH]
An amazingly well put together and clever puzzle, but a few too many things going on for the taste of these solvers! We needed several extra pieces of paper to keep track of all of the different tasks we were supposed to do and it felt like a bit too much effort was needed in the end (but that’s probably because we always leave the solving until too late in the month!). Kudos to the setters though. [AR]
It was a clever and unexpected theme thoroughly concealed in the grid and clues! It was a bit too tough, though – it took roughly the thematic number of hours to solve even with help from Hints & Tips (thank you!) and a family member. In particular, we struggled to solve the thematic clues without assigned definitions, even once we had guessed the theme. [J&JH]
I found it way harder than Jan & Feb. The theme was fun and once I had figured it out, the thematic clues fell quickly into place but I was very confused until I figured it out! The red squares were what made it finally click so very grateful for that. I did manage to complete it without looking at the hints & tips (though after I finished I had to use the hint for day 26). I do not feel as confident in my answers as previous months though. The hint & tips looked like it would have been really helpful if I had got stuck – seems like there was a lot of explanation for the themed answers. [HM]
Jolly tricky! But very clever. No requirement for us to enter the two ‘thematic phrases’? [DW]