A neat and entertaining puzzle from Mara this morning, with no hold-ups or unfamiliar vocabulary. Thanks to our setter. Definitions underlined. Across 1 Hanger-on, where jumping soldiers found? (8) PARASITE – cryptic definition. One might … Read more “Quick Cryptic 987 by Mara”
Month: December 2017
Times 26913 – TTC Finals puzzle #1. Calm before the storm?
For some reason I whizzed through this (by my standards) in just under the par of 20 minutes. Some nice clues but not the spectacular I was expecting for a Finals puzzle. Can’t find anything … Read more “Times 26913 – TTC Finals puzzle #1. Calm before the storm?”
Times Cryptic 26912
My solving time for this was an hour, give or take a minute, but it was actually a case of DNF as I resorted to aids for the unknown plant at 11ac (1 of 5 … Read more “Times Cryptic 26912”
Times Quick Cryptic 986 by Joker
This one just squeaked within my ‘quick’ category but it felt along the way that I was riding a wavelength with Joker. Having completed the blog I see quite a lot of multiple word play … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 986 by Joker”
Times 26911 – And to all a good night!
Time: 45 minutesMusic: Beethoven Piano Sonatas, Backhaus. Well, owing to various problems, my blog will be a little terse tonight. The puzzle itself was not that difficult but circumstances definitely conspired against the blog. However, … Read more “Times 26911 – And to all a good night!”
Quick Cryptic 985 by Teazel
Before getting into the meat of this puzzle I must say hello and introduce myself as your newest blogger. Having hung around on the periphery of this community for a few years, I finally plucked … Read more “Quick Cryptic 985 by Teazel”
Mephisto 2989 – Don Manley
I did this one pretty early since I was snowed in (thankfully mostly with power and internet) last weekend. I had a bunch of question marks around the outside, which usually means that I got … Read more “Mephisto 2989 – Don Manley”
Sunday Times 4776 by Dean Mayer
13:49. Not too many problems with this: a relatively straightforward solve by Dean’s standards. Some interesting and unusual usages though – ‘function’ for CUBIC, ‘pie’ as an anagram indicator – and a couple of unusual … Read more “Sunday Times 4776 by Dean Mayer”
Times Cryptic No 26904 – Saturday, 09 December 2017. Diamonds are forever.
Times Cryptic No 26904 – Saturday, 09 December 2017. Diamonds are forever. I struggled with this crossword at the end of a long hard week. Others may have found it easier. Lots of general knowledge … Read more “Times Cryptic No 26904 – Saturday, 09 December 2017. Diamonds are forever.”
JUMBO 1296
Season’s greetings all. This puzzle appears to have detained me for a little over 50 minutes so I’d say that put it just on the easy side of average. In places there seem to be … Read more “JUMBO 1296”