Mostly straightforward, and I breezed through in 15.44, with minimal delays on the sinking of ships, the variety entertainment and the office of officers. I came to write up the blog thinking I was going … Read more “28186 Thursday, 13 January 2022 An unencumbered ramble”
Month: January 2022
Times Quick Cryptic 2047 by Wurm
I’ve been off the ball recently, with another sluggish solve today. Your comments will tell if we’re in a tough patch, or if it’s just me. I had to solve this grid in four quarters … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 2047 by Wurm”
Times 28185 – just follow the instructions, like an IKEA flatpack but easier.
One of those crosswords which took me a few minutes to get into and then the answers flowed quickly without a problem. Lots of ‘insert this into that’ and a few anagrams and you’re sorted. … Read more “Times 28185 – just follow the instructions, like an IKEA flatpack but easier.”
Times Quick Cryptic 2046 by Teazel
I found this a very testing tease from our setter today. I hope I was just having a bad day, because, unlike many from this setter, I found today’s puzzle rather dry and prickly (like … Read more “Times Quick Cryptic 2046 by Teazel”
Times Cryptic 28184 – University challenge
Solving time: 40 minutes with a lot of time lost toward the end on the cryptic clue at 26ac. As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and … Read more “Times Cryptic 28184 – University challenge”
Times 28183 – Happy trails!
Time: 13 minutesMusic: Debussy, Iberia, Dorati/National Orchestra. The run of easy Mondays evidently continues, with the SNITCH running at about 50. I wrote in all the answers in with hardly a pause, and there are … Read more “Times 28183 – Happy trails!”
QC 2045 by Izetti
My FOI was 1A quickly followed by several others in sequence and I thought I might be in for a sequential solve but I got derailed somewhere in the middle so didn’t quite make it. … Read more “QC 2045 by Izetti”
Sunday Times 4988 by Dean Mayer
I was wondering recently how many blogs I had done. I had never kept a record and working it out was always going to be quite fiddly, because there was a fair bit of chopping … Read more “Sunday Times 4988 by Dean Mayer”
Mephisto 3201 – Paul McKenna
Greetings barred-grid fans. For the new year, Paul McKenna has given us a fairy gentle Mephsisto puzzle, with the customary pun in the top row (SALT AWAY). The grid has 90 degree symmetry, and with … Read more “Mephisto 3201 – Paul McKenna”
Times Cryptic No 28176 – Saturday, 1 January 2022. Happy New Year, one week in.
This was a pleasant way to start 2022. It took a while to get a toehold – thank you, 26ac and 7dn – but then the bottom half flowed smoothly, and the top half followed. … Read more “Times Cryptic No 28176 – Saturday, 1 January 2022. Happy New Year, one week in.”