Times Cryptic 26465
I'm subbing for Verlaine today as he's sleeping in a tent in a field somewhere, I believe, so I'm afraid those who have come here for their usual Friday fix of wit and erudition are in for a...
View ArticleTLS 1131 by Broteas, June 24 2016 — Do Not Drop
Let's try something a little different. Most of the clues are pretty straightforward to parse once the answer is there. Any questions, clues not understood, things you need to get off your chest (such...
View ArticleQuick Cryptic 614 by Mara
Some tricky, but fun, clues here. I had 11a as my LOI, not because the word play was hard, but because I had in my mind the 'doing well' meaning of flourish rather than the 'waving around' meaning....
View ArticleJumbo 1215
I thought this was one of the trickier puzzles we've had in the last few months, with a selection of unknowns and barely knowns in the answers, not to mention a good wodge of misdirection in the clues,...
View ArticleSaturday Times 26460 (9th July)
14:09 on the Club timer for this, so a tad harder than a few recent ones. 1ac was simple and brilliant, one of those memorable clues that you might use as an example to someone who doesn't do...
View ArticleMephisto 2915 - Paul McKenna
I did this in one fairly long sitting, thanks to having a rare day off in a rainstorm. I found this one tricky, and had a few incorrect answers confidently written (I seem to have scribbled over them...
View ArticleSunday Times 4702 by David McLean - special one
37:15, with one error. This was rather a controversial crossword, generating an awful lot of comment on the club site, much of it negative. The football theme was not welcomed by a lot of people, and...
View ArticleWho wants to blog the Friday Quick?
I'm handing over the reins of the Friday quick henceforth. Jackkt is standing in temporarily but if anyone out there would like to take over, please post here or message linxit or emu66. It's not too...
View ArticleTimes Jumbo 1209 - was published May 28
Although this puzzle appeared in the Times on May 28, the closing date was misprinted as Saturday 9 July (last weekend), so that's when the solution was provided. Apologies for not posting this sooner....
View ArticleQuick Cryptic 615 by Teazel
I found this one fairly straightforward, with only 15D registering on my might-not-be-familiar-to-all radar. A selection of good surfaces today, though the only biscuits I can think of that...
View ArticleTimes 26467 - Quia viderunt oculi mei explicationem ultimi indicii!
Solving time: 26 minutesMusic: Mozart, Symphony #40, Fricsay/Vienna Symphony OrchestraI found this a bit more difficult than usual for a Monday, and was stuck on 11 down for a while, finally seeing it...
View ArticleTimes Cryptic 26468
This one took me 25 minutes so I expect some very fast times from the regular hares. Whilst solving I made a note that the bird at 8dn was unknown but I checked later and found I had claimed that on at...
View ArticleQuick Crytpic 616 by Alconiere
If you're familiar with saints days then getting the long anagram quickly will speed you through this. I ended up on 14 minutes. A good crossword with plenty to work out - a good balance, I thought -...
View ArticleQuick Cryptic Number 617 by Tracy
I'm away early tomorrow so it's an early post.The most difficult crossword I’ve had to blog for a while, and very entertaining too. I couldn’t find a hold anywhere, so flitted around the grid, starting...
View ArticleTimes 26469 - wakey wakey!
Apologies for a slightly late posting. It would have been better if we had bedded down on a mattress in the cellar amid the racks of St. Emilion waiting patiently for me to live long enough to drink...
View ArticleTimes Jumbo 1214
Here's the belated blog on Times Jumbo 1214 (published 25 June). I thought this was much easier than the last one I posted about (Jumbo 1209)!As always, * indicates an anagram.Across1COUNTERACTIVE -...
View ArticleTimes Cryptic 26470 - July 21, 2016: Satis factory inter rim combi nations.
By a couple of minutes, my quickest of the week, possibly because our setter give us the chance to practice the sort of clue where two words which make one sort of sense merge into one to provide the...
View ArticleTimes Quick Cryptic No 618 by Izetti
I enjoyed this puzzle - some novel clues and lots of nice surface readings. Within the bounds of average difficulty, I'd say, almost coming witin 2 minutes of my target 10 mins. I particularly liked...
View ArticleTimes Quick Cryptic 619 by Hurley
As Emma (emu66)'s stint as blogger has come to an end I am covering Friday Quickies for the moment. I had a few problems getting started on this one and lost several minutes hopping around the grid...
View ArticleTLS Crossword 1132 by Talos - July 1, 2016
No accurate time for this but I did it in the train between Grand Central and Ossining (the tracks run right through Sing Sing) so that means under 45 minutes. I'm biased in favour of puzzles I can do...
View Article