Time taken: 17:12. I really struggled with this one and a look at the early times show that I might be an outlier. There’s a few pieces of genral knowledge that just did not come … Read more “Times 27988 – I panicked.”
Month: May 2021
Times Quick Cryptic No 1882 by Izetti
Introduction 12:16 and I felt glad to finish! Tough Quickies are, to my taste, much more frustrating than tough 15x15s, as there are fewer ways to work your way into the grid. Solutions A brief … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic No 1882 by Izetti”
Times 27987 – a Scottish symphony and a thing of beauty.
A terrific crossword, in my view, medium to hard, with a few unusual words, some misleading surfaces, a Scottish flavour in a few clues and a couple of familiar chestnuts. 32 minutes for me with … Read more “Times 27987 – a Scottish symphony and a thing of beauty.”
Times Cryptic 27986
I had all but two answers within my target half-hour but was unable to make further progress so eventually gave up on them and resorted to aids. As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, … Read more “Times Cryptic 27986”
Times Quick Cryptic 1881 by Orpheus
If Orpheus was on AM then I was on DAB. A rare dnf for me as I couldn’t solve the long 4dn without all the checkers and I felt I had no chance of 9ac … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 1881 by Orpheus”
Times 27985 – Humphry Clinker Rides Again!
A very pleasant Monday offering, which I managed to complete in a little under 20 minutes. Noteworthy I thought were a couple of inchoate chestnuts at 1 and 26 across, as well as an Australian … Read more “Times 27985 – Humphry Clinker Rides Again!”
Times Quick Cryptic 1880 by Hurley
Solving time: 12 minutes. Tricky. The long answers were a long time coming and that really slowed my progress around the grid. As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 1880 by Hurley”
Mephisto 3168 – Neil Young plays a Gibson, but Eric Clapton….
I found this one very tricky. It was easy enough to get started, and to find Paul’s usual outrageous pun, but actually chasing down the last few was pretty tough. Once found, they were not … Read more “Mephisto 3168 – Neil Young plays a Gibson, but Eric Clapton….”
Sunday Times Cryptic 4955, by Dean Mayer — slow and steady
…wins the race! The week before, I had been out of ink, so Saturday saw me working the five weekday 15x15s, plus test-solving two for my former Nation team, before looking at this stunning offering, … Read more “Sunday Times Cryptic 4955, by Dean Mayer — slow and steady”
Times Cryptic No 27978 – Saturday, 15 May 2021. Omigod, I’m surprised.
Surprised, that is, that I took so long with 20ac, where the answer wasn’t “omigod”. 19dn also took longer than it ought, but I smiled at the answer. A generous run of double definitions in … Read more “Times Cryptic No 27978 – Saturday, 15 May 2021. Omigod, I’m surprised.”