Clues & Culprits › Archive › October 2026 › Oct 18, 2026 Evil
Oct 18, 2026 — Evil case
Circus Fantasia's acrobatic trio won the television contest 'Big Top Star' and its £1 million prize with 2.3 million phone votes — more than the show had ever received for any act, and nearly all of them cast from within a mile of the circus field.
This Evil case seats 25 suspects on a 5×5 grid. 20 of them carry a clue; the other 5 only have something to say about themselves. 6 of the steps can only be proven by reading two or more clues together. Every verdict you enter is checked against all the scenarios that still fit the statements on file, so a move only sticks when it is proven.
The opening statement
Hana the popcorn cook starts the case already proven innocent:
The person between me and Felix is a criminal.— Hana, popcorn cook (C2)
The lineup
Suspects stand in alphabetical order, left to right and top to bottom. Each belongs to one of Clues & Culprits’ twelve character classes — the badge on their nameplate. This case uses 7 of them, each cast as a role in the setting: magicians, ushers, clowns, ringmasters, popcorn cooks, weightlifters, acrobats. Clues about a role (“exactly one of the popcorn cooks”) count everyone in it.
| Seat | Suspect | Role in this case | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Amir | magician | Rogue |
| B1 | Bea | usher | Servant |
| C1 | Cora | clown | Artist |
| D1 | Dexter | ringmaster | Noble |
| E1 | Ezra | clown | Artist |
| A2 | Felix | magician | Rogue |
| B2 | Gus | popcorn cook | Cook |
| C2 | Hana | popcorn cook | Cook |
| D2 | Iris | clown | Artist |
| E2 | Jasper | weightlifter | Laborer |
| A3 | Kofi | usher | Servant |
| B3 | Lionel | ringmaster | Noble |
| C3 | Marco | ringmaster | Noble |
| D3 | Nico | clown | Artist |
| E3 | Olive | ringmaster | Noble |
| A4 | Pia | magician | Rogue |
| B4 | Queenie | popcorn cook | Cook |
| C4 | Rufus | weightlifter | Laborer |
| D4 | Sadie | usher | Servant |
| E4 | Tess | acrobat | Courier |
| A5 | Ugo | acrobat | Courier |
| B5 | Vik | usher | Servant |
| C5 | Wren | weightlifter | Laborer |
| D5 | Xander | magician | Rogue |
| E5 | Yusuf | acrobat | Courier |
Stuck?
The in-game hint first points at the statement to re-read, then at the suspect you can prove, then shows the proof. For a gentler nudge, open the spoiler-free hints for Oct 18, 2026, or press Share to send a friend your exact board. New to the format? The deduction-puzzle guide covers the habits that unlock every step.
More cases
- Same day: Easy case · Medium case · Hard case
- Previous Evil: Oct 11, 2026 — The Beast of Hampstead Heath
- Next Evil: Oct 25, 2026 — Duck 1,417 Wins by Thirty Yards
- Clue types in this case: Odd and even clues · Profession clues · Above, below, left and right · If–then clues
- All October 2026 cases · More cases in circuses · Meet the cast