Solving time: 20 mins, two mistakes (10dn and 36dn) The traditional Sunday Times jumbo contained lots of thematic answers and came with the usual cringeworthy grid which I hope will see retirement soon. I thought … Read more “ST 4412 (Christmas Jumbo, Sun 19 Dec) – All at sea”
Author: talbinho
ST 4411 (Sun 12 Dec) – Parrot-fashion
Solving time: 5:18 Pretty much a bog standard Sunday Times crossword, with a decent set of clues punctuated with one or two very good ones (I liked 10ac (RAPTOR) 21ac (LIP-READ) particularly), a couple of … Read more “ST 4411 (Sun 12 Dec) – Parrot-fashion”
ST 4410 (Sun 5 Dec) – Careless stork
Solving time: about 5 minutes (interrupted) Credit where it’s due: this was a good puzzle and I enjoyed it. Ought to have been a bit quicker: I should have been confident of 1ac (DIGITATE), was … Read more “ST 4410 (Sun 5 Dec) – Careless stork”
ST 4409 (Sun 28 Nov) – Brief encounter
Solving time: 5:29 One faulty clue (19ac), as ever, plus an incorrect enumeration (1ac), but otherwise a very good puzzle. * = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’. Across 1 UPPERCUT; [s]UPPER + CUT[e] – … Read more “ST 4409 (Sun 28 Nov) – Brief encounter”
ST 4408 (Sun 21 Nov) – Batman returns
Solving time: 6:46 I suspect this was a puzzle by the editor, and if that’s the case then it was probably an improvement. There was, of course, still the usual smattering of inaccurate definitions (e.g. … Read more “ST 4408 (Sun 21 Nov) – Batman returns”
ST 4407 (Sun 14 Nov) – Silly mi
Solving time: 3:19, one mistake (10ac). A long hop pulled straight to midwicket with a spelling mistake at 10ac (‘meso’ for MISO). * = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’. Across 1 BIG TOP; 1 … Read more “ST 4407 (Sun 14 Nov) – Silly mi”
ST 4406 (Sun 7 Nov) – An ill wind
Solving time: 4:41 The clues in this puzzle are mostly accurate but some of the definitions are askew, and I’m still wincing over 8dn (WINDSURFER) which is a candidate for the worst clue I’ve seen … Read more “ST 4406 (Sun 7 Nov) – An ill wind”
ST 4405 (Sun 31 Oct) – Winston vogue art
Solving time: 5:49 Despite one or two cringes (e.g. 17dn) I thought lots of the clues in this puzzle were pretty good, although I can’t explain 9ac at all. (Yes, I know it’s really pronounced … Read more “ST 4405 (Sun 31 Oct) – Winston vogue art”
ST 4404 (Sun 24 Oct) – Swede chestnuts
Solving time: 4:12 There were some good clues this week (such as 21ac, 24ac, 27ac) but much of this was pretty mediocre with lots of extraneous words used to mould the clues’ surface readings. I … Read more “ST 4404 (Sun 24 Oct) – Swede chestnuts”
ST 4403 (Sun 17 Oct) – Pipe dream
Solving time: 4:02 Not bad but it should probably have been faster after I spotted the most difficult word (MEERSCHAUM) quickly. I don’t think anything really held me up apart from 13ac, but I was … Read more “ST 4403 (Sun 17 Oct) – Pipe dream”