An interesting puzzle where I’ve failed to parse 3 clues: 6D; 9D and 18D. On edit: all now sorted – see blog – thanks everybody In the blog, the definition in the clue is underlined … Read more “Mephisto 2994 – Paul McKenna”
Month: January 2018
Sunday Times 4781 by Jeff Pearce
An entertaining puzzle from Jeff which I (somewhat unusually) managed to complete in one sitting, which would suggest it was not too taxing. I particularly liked the cryptic device at 15ac, and I thought 9d … Read more “Sunday Times 4781 by Jeff Pearce”
Times Cryptic No 26934 – Saturday, 13 January 2018. Double the fun!
This puzzle may have set a record for the number of double definition clues – five out of 29. I found it relatively straightforward – 36 minutes on the timer. I put in 24ac on … Read more “Times Cryptic No 26934 – Saturday, 13 January 2018. Double the fun!”
JUMBO 1303
I don’t recall much on this one – just had to check the meaning of the solution at 36A to see how the clue worked as a whole. Across 1 DUCHESS – initial letters of … Read more “JUMBO 1303”
Times 26,939: A Hot Crumpet Burning My Cheeks With Shame
Last night I dropped in at the Malbec meetup where I participated in a few glasses of Magpie in the company of many, many brilliant setters and not a few notable solvers (Magoo himself and … Read more “Times 26,939: A Hot Crumpet Burning My Cheeks With Shame”
Times Quick Cryptic 1009 by Mara
A neat and satisfying puzzle from Mara, perhaps slightly harder than usual, I think, as it took me about 1 1/2 minutes over average. Do tell us how you got on. Plenty of fairly straightforward … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 1009 by Mara”
Times Quick Cryptic No 1008 by Joker
A good puzzle from Joker – I found it middle-of-the-road in terms of difficulty and a nice smooth solve, with the few trickier clues offset and interspersed with gentler ones. My only real sticking point … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic No 1008 by Joker”
Times Cryptic No 26938 18th January 2018 Tequila!
I squeezed in (just) under 20 minutes for this one, which contains a rather useful compendium of anagram indicators and a few little bits of history to keep you on your toes. It takes a … Read more “Times Cryptic No 26938 18th January 2018 Tequila!”
Times 26937 – of birds, flowers, plants and fungi, but none the worse for that.
I sat down to this and quickly had the NW corner all done, then the NE, but even then I was thinking ‘this is Wednesday, not Monday, you’re not the Friday-blogging genius, things will soon … Read more “Times 26937 – of birds, flowers, plants and fungi, but none the worse for that.”
Quick Cryptic 1007 by Flamande
I tripped myself up several times with this tricky little puzzle, what with some unfamiliar vocabulary and a smidgen of deviousness, ending up with one incorrect (I had O for A in 8dn). Quite satisfied … Read more “Quick Cryptic 1007 by Flamande”