Author: piquet

Solving this, I found it somehow frustrating and at times annoying, but when I came to blog it I wondered why, there’s nothing really unfair or obscure, even if some of the definitions are a … Read more “Times 28011 – assemble from the blue and yellow store.”

This was one of those puzzles, for me, where the entry points are slow to arrive, then the answers come thick and fast, until you’re left with a couple of obstinate ones (2d, 4d) which … Read more “Times 28005 – right on the money.”

I would have come close to a PB with this puzzle, until I was slowed down by the 23d and 26a crossers, and 21a which required all the alternate letters in place before I saw … Read more “Times 27999 – a gentle end to the 27th millenium.”

Well, one thing this puzzle wasn’t, for me, was boring. it took me over half an hour, nearer to forty minutes, because I was led off in the wrong direction a couple of times and … Read more “Times 27993 – did it bode well, or bore you?”

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.”

I enjoyed this one, nothing too obscure or contentious but plenty of clever clues, some of which like 6a and 20a had neat surfaces which read well and are relevant to the answer. I thought … Read more “Times 27981 – scrumptious clueing this week.”

You don’t have to be a Hebrew scholar to finish this puzzle, the wordplay can see you through, but I think our setter must be much more erudite in such matters than I am; I … Read more “Times 27975 – thank goodness for Wikipedia …”

Four anagrams for you, and plenty of “put this into that” wordplay, all making for a mostly straightforward puzzle which took me about twenty minutes, and no problems with the parsing. I tried to spell … Read more “Times 27969 – here’s Archie Medes, the chap who brought screws to Greece.”

A pleasant if unexceptional workout, an X short of a pangram. Nothing obscure, if you know your antelopes. Across 1 Brilliant wool supplier fills empty jail (5) JEWEL – Put EWE into J(AI)L. 4 Hard … Read more “Times 27963 – carry on with The Times”

I’d a prime time in sunny Broadstairs near the ‘arbour over the weekend, saw lots of beachwear, had a pint in the Smugglers, and ended up acquiring a new (rescue) dog – a poodle not … Read more “Times 27957 – Anky Panky”