Our 2025 Holly Boughhad hardly hit the shelves when the first entries for the Diffney and Bumper Crossword started to land on our desks. 

As in previous years, we received a massive response to this year’s competitions with hundreds of entries. 

We are delighted to publish the solutions to both the Diffney and the Bumper Crossword and to announce our lucky winners.

Congratulations to Peter O’Connor, who is our Diffney Quiz winner, and to Ken Corr who is our Bumper Crossword prize recipient!

Diffney solutions

1. 100 Cent in a Euro; 2. Two Little Ducks; 3. Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan; 4. Remember, Remember the 5th of November; 5. Area 51; 6. To Go Down On 1 Knee; 7. Easter,1916 by William Butler Yeats; 8. Six Sides of a Hexagon; 9. 1936 – 1939 the Spanish Civil War; 10. 95 Came Promotion, High Up on the Win; 11. The Murray River 2,508 Kilometres Long, the Longest River In Australia; 12. the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse; 13. It takes 2 to tango; 14. Tá 27 Tír san Aontas Eorpach; 15. 66 Clickety click; 16. the Cork Jazz Festival 2025, October 23rd to October 27th; 17. 28 Years Later; 18. Another 1 bites the dust; 19. Virgo, August 23rd – September 22nd; 20. 3 Islands of the Aran Islands; 21. 2 Days into College by Aimee Carty; 22. 7 Points for a Penalty Try in Rugby Union; 23. Ash Wednesday, the 1st Day of Lent; 24. Harry Potter and the 1/2 Blood Prince; 25. 2025 the Chinese Year of the Snake; 26. n 22, an Bóthar ó Chathair ChorcaI go Trá Lí; 27. Mary Robinson, the 1st Female President of Ireland; 28. 1/2 the World Away by Oasis; 29. the Holly Bough, a Cork Tradition Since 1897; 30. the 12 Labours of Hercules; 31. the Coastline of County Cork is c.1,200 Kilometres Long; 32. 2 Wrongs Don’t Make a Right; 33. It’s Been 7 Hours and 15 Days ; 34. The 7 Heads Peninsula, County Cork; 35. Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires; 36. the 2 Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare; 37. Bus Route 251, Galway to Cork Airport; 38. 1001 Nights; 39. 22 by Taylor Swift; 40. Bunaíodh Páirtí an Lucht Oibre í 1912; 41. 3:10 to Yuma; 42. 20 Teams in Series a; 43. Mount Elbrus, 5,642 Metres High, the Highest Mountain in Europe; 44. 3 Cheers, Hip Hip Hooray; 45. Charles Fort 1st Built in 1682; 46. 30 Days Hath September, April, June and November; 47. 1593 – 1603 the 9 Years War; 48. 2 Wrecked 2 Care by cmat; 49. 12 Angry Men; 50. 2 Can Play at That Game; 51. Charlotte, Emily and Anne, the 3 Bronte Sisters; 52. Bíonn 2 Insint ar Scéal agus 12 leagan ar Amhrán; 53. 3 Sheets to the Wind; 54. the Fantastic 4: 1st Steps; 55. 18 Players on an Australian Rules Team; 56. the Barrow, the Nore and the Suir, the 3 Sisters; 57. 9 Ball by Zach Bryan; 58. 9/11/1989 the Fall of the Berlin Wall; 59. the Marathon is 42.195 Kilometres Long; 60. the Whole 9 Yards.

Crossword solutions

Across 

1. Delighted 6. Slender 10. Doc 12. Use 13. Nauru 14. Rum 15. Nib 16. Boreenmanna Road 17. Eyeliner 20. Omit 21. Piece 22. Dot 24. Attend 26. Ideas 29. Rouge 31. Plucky 32. Appetite 33. Taken 34. Arson 36. Shepherd 38. Amoral 39. Conna 42. Nobel laureate 46. Joseph 47. Raw 48. Thank 49. Fees 50. Tortilla 54. Cheshire Cat 57. Noh 58. Owe 59. Brook 60. Oar 61. Has 62. Dog Star 63. Concordat. 

Down 

1. Dancer and Prancer 3. Gaudi 4. Three 5. Dumb 6. Secret 7. Eire 8. Drummer 9. Reindeer 10. Donald Duck 11. Cobh 18. Nod 21. Pax 23. The English Market 25. Napkin 27. ESP 28. Stephen 30. Stud 32. Ache 33. Tomato 35. Sandwiches 37. Rib 40. Antlered 41. Ask 43. East 44. Feel-good factor 45. Dashing 46. Jar 51. Ocean 52. Taboo 53. Inch 55. Rest 56. Torc