Due to a slight technical problem I am posting this on behalf of william_j_s. I’m never sure what sort of difficulty to expect from Orpheus (who has in the past set us both gentle and … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 977 by Orpheus (blog by william_j_s)”
Month: December 2017
Times Cryptic 26900
This followed a familar pattern for me in that I solved all but a handful of clues within a gnat’s whisker of my target 30 minutes but then ground to a halt and needed nearly … Read more “Times Cryptic 26900”
Times Quick Cryptic 976 by Mara
The debate on completion times last week established that some find them off-putting whilst others find them helpful or irrelevant. In order to try to please most of the people most of the time I’ll … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 976 by Mara”
Times 26899 – What a fool conceives?
Music: Love, RevisitedTime: 50 minutes I found this one really tough, mainly due to several answers I simply did not know. As in Mephisto or the Club Monthly, it is possible to laboriously construct unknowns from the … Read more “Times 26899 – What a fool conceives?”
Quick Cryptic 975 by Grumpy
This appears to be Grumpy’s first puzzle for over a year and perhaps that lack of recent familiarity contributed to me finding it a bit harder than average. There’s little that could be described as … Read more “Quick Cryptic 975 by Grumpy”
Mephisto 2987 – Tim Moorey
Greetings all, running way behind. Here’s a placeholder for the Mephisto, feel free to ask questions of the hive mind, but I don’t think I’ll be able to get to this until Monday morning. Or … Read more “Mephisto 2987 – Tim Moorey”
Sunday Times 4774 by David McLean
9:27. Straightforward stuff from Harry here. I have been very busy this week, so didn’t get to the blog until yesterday. When this happens I can seldom remember anything about the solve, and so it … Read more “Sunday Times 4774 by David McLean”
Times Cryptic No 26892 – Saturday, 25 November 2017. Give it to me straight, doctor!
Harder than last week for me, but very enjoyable. Every clue was solvable, even the beast at 18ac, and every answer went in with that satisfying feeling, “yes, clearly that’s it”. I didn’t know a … Read more “Times Cryptic No 26892 – Saturday, 25 November 2017. Give it to me straight, doctor!”
Times Cryptic Jumbo No 1294 (18/11/17): Feline Groovy
I really enjoyed this Jumbo which went in easily, not I think because it was overly simplistic but because it was well clued and entertaining throughout. There was an archaic feel to some of the … Read more “Times Cryptic Jumbo No 1294 (18/11/17): Feline Groovy”
Times 26,897: Divided By A Common Language
I don’t know if I’d call this puzzle fully Fridayish (pace 8dn), but it was at the very least Tuesdayish, slowing me up with some trickier clues towards the end to a final tune of … Read more “Times 26,897: Divided By A Common Language”