Times setter Don Manley (a.k.a. Quixote, Duck, Bradman, Giovanni, have I missed any? – in various other publications) is holding a one-day course in solving cryptic crosswords on Saturday 26th March. Details below.
Month: January 2011
Times 24760 – I am the walrus
Solving Time: 26 minutes Even though I wasn’t in top form (much like a certain Scottish tennis player on whom I wasted way too much emotional energy last night) most clues fell at first sight, … Read more “Times 24760 – I am the walrus”
Times Jumbo 907
36:41 according to the Club timer, which – I suspect rightly – suggests this was quite a bit tougher than usual. Certainly several clues went in without full understanding of why they were right, and … Read more “Times Jumbo 907”
Sunday Times 4417 (23 Jan 2011)
Solving time: 30 minutes exactly, with one mistake. I found this a pretty steady solve. I spent a couple of minutes staring at the last clue, before I realised I wasn’t going to get it … Read more “Sunday Times 4417 (23 Jan 2011)”
Mephisto 2630 by Tim Moorey
An essentially easy Mephisto with a smaller than usual quota of obscure words solved in 40 minutes with almost no need to reference Chambers. It is frustrating therefore to report that I have been unable … Read more “Mephisto 2630 by Tim Moorey”
Saturday Times 24753 (22nd Jan)
No exact time for this one as I was interrupted after 5 minutes and didn’t pick it up again until the Tuesday morning commute. Most of it came out fairly quickly but I got bogged … Read more “Saturday Times 24753 (22nd Jan)”
24758 – A real toughie (or just me?)
I took over 90 minutes to finish this, solving it late into the night but it was after a very long and tiring day at work and I’m not sure whether that was a major … Read more “24758 – A real toughie (or just me?)”
Club Monthly 20124 – January 2011
Solving Time: Quite a long time, again. I found getting started difficult, and then had a bit of a rush in the middle, and then had trouble finishing off. Probably nearer two hours than one, … Read more “Club Monthly 20124 – January 2011”
Times 24757: mind your homophones
Solving time : 25 minutes, 7 seconds online, though it tells me I have one mistake. I don’t know if that is a mistaken answer or a typo, we’ll find out when putting things through … Read more “Times 24757: mind your homophones”
Times 24756 — A Süs Kind of a puzzle
A new user-pic, just for today! Solving time: 27 minutes. Not a difficult puzzle over all. But there are some very smooth and potentially deceptive surfaces. Might have been a bit quicker but for the … Read more “Times 24756 — A Süs Kind of a puzzle”