21:08 – this wasn’t especially hard, with some helpful checking letters rendering a good deal of the wordplay less than critical. But pretty entertaining stuff, with a couple of very interesting clues. I can’t fully … Read more “Times Saturday 24,299 (Aug. 8th 2009)”
Month: August 2009
Times Jumbo 827 – Get Weaving!
The usual Jumbo rubric: as the solution is available alongside (or indeed before) the blog, comment is confined only to references that might remain obscure to overseas / inexperienced solvers even with the answer visible, … Read more “Times Jumbo 827 – Get Weaving!”
Times 24304 – OOH ER!
Time taken to solve: 32 minutes again. A fairly straightforward puzzle to solve which required a bit more thinking about in order to write it up with a degree of confidence, however after all that … Read more “Times 24304 – OOH ER!”
Times 24303 – getting wet all over again
Solving time : 27 minutes with one phone call distraction. I found this the hardest of the week so far, grinding to a halt with 9, 17, 16 and 23 unfilled. The break for a … Read more “Times 24303 – getting wet all over again”
Times 24302
Solving time: 12:38 Found this quite tricky, with a minute or so of mild panic before getting 19 to start the SE corner clean-up (followed by 27, 15, 25). Answers entered without full wordplay understanding … Read more “Times 24302”
Times 24301 Oban Viaduct
Solving time : about 12 minutes A very easy and rather corny puzzle with little to commend it. Across 1 PALL,MALL – PA’LL + MA’LL; famous Westminster street home to gentlemen’s clubs as well as … Read more “Times 24301 Oban Viaduct”
Times 24300: But is he below the Mendoza Line?
Solving time: 32 minutes (one answer corrected while blogging) Music: Wilco, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot This one was a little trickier than the most of the previous Monday puzzles that have fallen my way. Some of … Read more “Times 24300: But is he below the Mendoza Line?”
Mephisto 2553 Paul McKenna
I found this relatively easy. For the second week running I wrote 1A straight in and followed it immediately with 6A and 1D. With both 3D and 16A easy to solve the top half was … Read more “Mephisto 2553 Paul McKenna”
ST 4340 (Sun 2 Aug) – Ugandan discussions
Solving time: 8:48, one mistake (17dn) Not the easiest Sunday Times puzzle although a better grid than usual, with only 1dn and 18dn breaking the rule that half or more letters in a grid entry … Read more “ST 4340 (Sun 2 Aug) – Ugandan discussions”
Saturday Times 24293 (1st Aug)
Solving time 13:45, so a bit easier than the previous two weeks. A fairly steady solve, no major sticking points, just a few places where I had to go back for another look when there … Read more “Saturday Times 24293 (1st Aug)”