18:22 on the club timer. Slower than I might have been on a non-blogging day, partly because I thought this was quite ticklish, especially in the NW corner, and partly because I had trouble getting … Read more “Times 25,600”
Month: October 2013
Times 25599 – A Hat-trick of Hard Ones
That is, counting Saturday and Sunday’s, which were both very chewy. Several unusual items of vocab in this one, and some canny cluing, took my time to 1’18”. While the NW put up the most … Read more “Times 25599 – A Hat-trick of Hard Ones”
Sunday Times 4557 (29 Sep 2013) by Dean Mayer
Solving time: 1:13:17 I found this a complete nightmare, taking me well over an hour. There were a few I wasn’t keen on, so not one of Dean’s better efforts in my opinion. That said, … Read more “Sunday Times 4557 (29 Sep 2013) by Dean Mayer”
Mephisto 2770 by Tim Moorey – из России с любовью
This I thought was a bit harder than average with some good wordplays. I had to Google the Russian car (where Lada was about the extent of my knowledge) and the American novelist. With a … Read more “Mephisto 2770 by Tim Moorey – из России с любовью”
Times Jumbo 1055 (21 Sep 2013)
Solving time: 1:53:04 I wasn’t keen on this one. Some of the general knowledge required seemed very obscure – particularly in 12d & 33d. I also have issues with the spelling in 53a, and the … Read more “Times Jumbo 1055 (21 Sep 2013)”
Saturday Times 25592 (28th Sept)
Solving time about 13 mins, so not a hard one last week. I actually only got round to solving it yesterday afternoon, so it’s still fresh in the memory for a change. However, I’m working … Read more “Saturday Times 25592 (28th Sept)”
Times 25597 – Wrong side of the blanket
Around 40 minutes for this fairly straightforward puzzle. The answers in the top half almost wrote themselves in but I lost time further down, particularly in the SW corner. I suspect we shall see some … Read more “Times 25597 – Wrong side of the blanket”
Puzzle number 25596: A first time for everything
In this case, my first attempt at blogging the solution, and I think the first time I’ve tried solving at midnight. Since it took 17’14” on the timer, it might show that’s a propitious time, … Read more “Puzzle number 25596: A first time for everything”
Times Crossword 25,595
Solving Time: Quick one this, somewhat under 15 mins, but none the worse for that. A number of deft touches (eg 5 & 28ac, 14dn) made it a pleasure to solve. I dare say there … Read more “Times Crossword 25,595”
Times 25,594 – Of Rastafarian Dreadlocks
On the day the US celebrates the birthdays of Bonnie Parker and Jimmy Carter (oh, and also starts to grind to a halt) we have a middle of the road puzzle that shouldn’t cause too … Read more “Times 25,594 – Of Rastafarian Dreadlocks”