After two consecutive relatively easy puzzles I thought this one redressed the balance and was of average strength. It contains two quite interesting clues. At 34A ANADEM we have two cryptic solutions, an anagram and … Read more “Mephisto 2622 by Paul McKenna”
Month: December 2010
Saturday Times 24706 (27th Nov)
Solving time 12:25. Another in a run of fairly gentle Saturday puzzles. Some GK required for this one, but none of it very 18D. Across 1 JOCOSE – JOE (i.e. GI Joe) around CO’S (military … Read more “Saturday Times 24706 (27th Nov)”
TLS 855 – let’s try again!
Another one on the easy side for the TLS, with a larger number of straight cryptics than usual. There were about half a dozen left at the end that I had to look up though, … Read more “TLS 855 – let’s try again!”
Jumbo 898
This one was fairly straightforward. Any obscure words were clued using clear wordplay. I did not record any time as I completed the crossword over a couple of sessions. There was some discussion on the Crossword … Read more “Jumbo 898”
TIMES – 24711
Time taken to solve: 45 minutes but I spent longer checking the wordplay as I went than I would on a day when I was not preparing the blog. I’d class this as another quite … Read more “TIMES – 24711”
Now we are five …
Five years ago today, this announcement with brief comments on the day’s puzzle started off the cottage industry of blogging broadsheet cryptic crosswords. (Rather like cryptic crosswords themselves, I’d seen something similar done in the … Read more “Now we are five …”
Times 24710: 14 in 17 13
Solving time : 10 minutes, slow start but a very fast finish for one of my better times. There’s some long answers that can be confidently entered from the definition alone, which is a help. … Read more “Times 24710: 14 in 17 13”
24709
Solving time: 10:12 Near enough exactly average difficulty for this one – a mixture easy and difficult clues, with the trickiest ones for me in the SW – 13 and 26. Across 1 SCHNAPPS – … Read more “24709”