Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword
A short, fun and occasionally not unintentionally educational podcast in which two fans of the New York Times crossword describe their puzzle-solving travails.
Episodes
1967 episodes
Monday, February 23, 2026 - Alright, there's a DELOREAN in the grid!!
It's hard not to like a crossword with a DELOREAN in the grid, as we can attest: we adored today's puzzle, the fourth in the NYTimes by Hannah Binney. There was a certain...
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Season 15
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Episode 73
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12:26
Sunday, February 22, 2026 - A crossword of biblical proportions (no, jk, it's 21x21 as usual π)
This was a delectable Sunday crossword by Jill Rataloff and Michelle Sontarp, who happen to both work at the same law firm. That might explain 21A, Certain head jurors, F...
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Season 15
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Episode 72
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18:50
Saturday, February 21, 2026 - Now *that's* a Saturday crossword!
Traditionally, NYTimes crosswords increase in difficulty from Monday to Saturday*. So, if you had problems with today's puzzle, that's perfectly normal and by d...
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Season 15
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Episode 71
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16:01
Friday, February 20, 2026 - Miracle on the MARNE
This was a very pleasing Friday crossword by Kate Hawkins. Being Friday, there was no theme, but that just meant that the rest of the clues had to pull their weight, and they cert...
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Season 15
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Episode 70
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15:37
Thursday, February 19, 2026 - Laila ALI is back in the ring ... er, make that the grid!
There were so many great clues and answers in today's puzzle, it's amazing that John Ewbank managed to wrestle them all into a 15x15 grid, but somehow he did. We appreciated the a...
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Season 15
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Episode 69
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15:04
Wednesday, February 18, 2026 - A HUMDINGER of a Wednesday crossword
If Emojis make your heart go pitter-patter, then put your cardiologist on speed dial because today's puzzle β the fourth by Victor Schmitt β is teeming with them. OK, "teeming" mi...
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Season 15
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Episode 68
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17:49
Tuesday, February 17, 2026 - A 99.9% SNAFU-free crossword π
If this crossword was a car, it would be a Bugatti; if it was a watch, it would be a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime. In short, this was a top-of-the-line Tuesday crossword, buil...
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Season 15
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Episode 67
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14:04
Monday, February 16, 2026 - Ian Livengood is baaaaaack!
Ian Livengood had written a SLEW of NYTimes crosswords between 2010 and 2016. Then, most mysteriously, he vanished β nary a puzzle in sight until, after almost a decade of radio silence, he is back with
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Season 15
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Episode 66
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10:27
Sunday, February 15, 2026 - A masterpiece in a 21x21 grid
Michael Lieberman and Rebecca Goldstein are, individually, great crossword constructors: together they are greater, as today's puzzle makes abundantly clear. We ...
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Season 15
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Episode 65
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19:03
Saturday, February 14, 2026 - A *lovely* Saturday crossword π«Ά
This was a fine crossword by David Carp, his sixth for the NYTimes and his third to appear on a Saturday. The crossword was not outrageously difficult by Saturday standar...
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Season 15
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Episode 64
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14:30
Friday, February 13, 2026 - In which we celebrate a great crossword *and* the Winter Olympics βΈοΈ
This was just what we want out of a Friday crossword: daunting, deliciously deceptive cluing and not an iota of crosswordese anywhere in the grid. Evan Mulvihill has succeeded on ...
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Season 15
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Episode 63
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19:57
Thursday, February 12, 2026 - An early Valentine's Day present π
Kareem Ayas has delivered a Valentine's Day present two days early, and both cohosts fell in love with it. The theme is a real chef's kiss, and the rest of the grid equally sweet....
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Season 15
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Episode 62
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11:41
Wednesday, February 11, 2026 β A walrus, a carpenter and an oyster walk into a bar ...
This was a terrific mid-week crossword by Joseph Gangi, number seven since his auspicious debut in March of 2022. The theme was ... magnificent. It is almost guaranteed to make yo...
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Season 15
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Episode 61
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9:18
Tuesday, February 10, 2026 - A round of applause for the ol' CLAPOMETER! π
Any time a Hasbro toy makes an appearance in the grid it puts a smile on our faces, and so we are grinning as a consequence of today's crossword β a collaboration between Sarah Si...
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Season 15
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Episode 60
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15:24
Monday, February 9, 2026 - SADIE Jones is in the grid (and ought to be on your reading list!)
It never ceases to amaze, how crossword constructors can take a simple phrase and spin it out into as good a puzzle as, say, this one, by Matthew Stock. We liked the theme, and, fr...
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Season 15
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Episode 59
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11:16
Sunday, February 8, 2026 - Go, [Insert your favorite team here], Go!
This was a Super Crossword for a Super Bowl Sunday. The theme was straightforward but cute, and the rest of the puzzle featured a SEA of crafty clues. For instance, we had 24D, Qui...
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Season 15
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Episode 58
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16:12
Saturday, February 7, 2026 - Mark Diehl is back, and better than ever!
Mark Diehl has been writing NYTimes Crosswords - predominantly Friday and Saturday puzzles - since 1984. He's eased off as of late, his last appearing in 2020. But he's back with an ingenious Saturday crossword that charmed both cohosts. Check ...
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Season 15
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Episode 57
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15:26
Friday, February 6, 2026 - Look, it's a TINYHOME: π π
There were some truly awesome clues in today's crossword. We definitely hit the highlights in the podcast, but we'd be remiss if we didn't mention 44D, Stage name of South Korean r...
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Season 15
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Episode 56
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16:01
Thursday, February 5, 2026 - Beep, beep! Honk, honk, honk! Beeeeeeep!
Today's crossword, a debut (huzzah!) by Dario Salvucci, was one of those puzzle-in-a-puzzle challenges that we just adore. In this case, one had to decipher some emoticon-like clue...
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Season 15
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Episode 55
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20:24
Wednesday, February 4, 2026 - Et tu, CATO?
Today's crossword leveraged a hilarious line from a very well-known sitcom, and with just the slightest change in syllabification, turned it into the foundation of a terri...
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Season 15
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Episode 54
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11:05
Tuesday, February 3, 2026 - Shimmy on over to the SHAKESHACK! ππ§
It's been almost 2 years since Nate Cardin last graced the pages of the NYTimes, and from our perspective that's almost 2 years too long. But he's back now, and in excellent form, ...
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Season 15
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Episode 53
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15:16
Monday, February 2, 2026 - BOOYA β BOOYA was in the grid! π
The Cardinal Rules of Crossword Construction:Rule # 1: never repeat an answer in the gridRule # 2: ignore rule 1 if it'll make for an especially awesome crosswordWe are pleased as punch to report that the...
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Season 15
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Episode 52
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13:47
Sunday, February 1, 2026 - PIMLICO, home of Seabiscuit's greatest triumph!
Both cohosts found today's crossword, a collaboration between Lance Enfinger and John Kugelman, to be a real workout (mentally, of course: physically they were pretty much doing th...
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Season 15
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Episode 51
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17:07
Saturday, January 31, 2026 - The Snellen chart - the one you *know*, but can't *name* π§
This was a strenuous Saturday workout, no doubt, with more misdirection then you'd see at a Penn & Teller performance. Consider 15D, "Science is ___ that works": Kurt Vonnegut...
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Season 15
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Episode 50
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14:02
Friday, January 30, 2026 - Rejoice, rejoice, Robyn Weintraub has struck (gold) again π
Robyn Weintraub is one of our favorite constructors, and today's crossword shows why. It is, in a word, the clues. OK, technically that's two words, but we're feeling gen...
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Season 15
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Episode 49
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11:02