Solving time 14:42. Quite a mixed bag here, with literature and mythology well represented, but also a bit of sport, politics and science. A couple of relatively obscure words (I’m thinking DITHYRAMB and RATAFIA, which … Read more “Saturday Times 26352 (5th March)”
Month: March 2016
Times Jumbo Cryptic Crossword Book 13 – Puzzle Index
Here is an index mapping the puzzles in Times Jumbo Cryptic Crossword Book 13 to the corresponding blogs on TftT. This book contains puzzles from 2010. The editor at the time was Richard Browne, and … Read more “Times Jumbo Cryptic Crossword Book 13 – Puzzle Index”
Times Jumbo 1194
Not too difficult this time, I thought. I didn’t know the historical reference in 1ac, though. 23ac is probably the most obscure answer. As always, * indicates an anagram. Across 1 BARE BONES – double … Read more “Times Jumbo 1194”
Times 26,357: A Watched Odyssey Never Boils
It seems like an age since I’ve solved the Friday puzzle in the manner that God intended for me, that is, rolling home around midnight after a heavy alcohol-fuelled night at one of London’s premier … Read more “Times 26,357: A Watched Odyssey Never Boils”
Quick Cryptic 524 by Teazel
I didn’t do this one on the timer, so couldn’t say where it fell on the difficulty spectrum for me, but a couple of clues did hold me up – 8a and 12a – and … Read more “Quick Cryptic 524 by Teazel”
Times 26356 – for the 25 of Mr. Kite, vale George Martin
Solving time : 11:19, which places me fourth on the club timer, just over three hours after this puzzle appeared (I solved it right away but had to run some errands, so this report is … Read more “Times 26356 – for the 25 of Mr. Kite, vale George Martin”
Quick Cryptic 523 by Orpheus
A very enjoyable puzzle with a good mix of politics, art, music, science, sport, geography and entertainment. I’d thought there was no literature until I remembered that the prime minister in 6d also wrote quite … Read more “Quick Cryptic 523 by Orpheus”
Times 26355 – unpredicted outcome, unfeasible idea, all of the above
With 1a, 1d, 12a and 13d flying in, I thought this was going to be a walk in the park, but in the end it was more of a crawl through the undergrowth. There was … Read more “Times 26355 – unpredicted outcome, unfeasible idea, all of the above”
Quick Cryptic 522 by Rongo
This one had a bit of a different feel to it. A quick initial glance through the clues revealed no less than seven ending with a question mark, suggesting that this one was going to … Read more “Quick Cryptic 522 by Rongo”
Quick Crytpic 521 by Mara
One too many gods (or one O too few) combined with a crossing COD plus a quick chemistry lesson made this trickier than it might have been and I came in at 15 minutes. Well, … Read more “Quick Crytpic 521 by Mara”