Again, we have a rather easy Monday puzzle, with many of the clues eminently biffable. I did in fact biff my way through this puzzle, which is probably the best approach as some of the cryptics require a lot of cruciverbal gymnastics.
Author: vinyl1
Mephisto 3426 – Alcohol free!
This is as easy as Mephisto gets – I filled in most of the answers without cracking my Chambers. I would expect many of the regular Mephisto fans to be a bit disappointed, but we do need to refresh the pool of Mephisto solvers, and you have to start somewhere.
Times Cryptic 29527 – Some political commentary?
Due to a busy weekend, I haven’t solved a puzzle since Thursday, but this one is a moderate Monday, easy without being too easy. The early solvers did well, but there are a few tricks and obscurities that may catch the less able.
Mephisto 3424 – John Blackham….you could look him up!
This medium level puzzle by Robert Teuton was not too difficult to solve, although parsing some of the more difficult clues was another matter. I think I’ve finally got it all, after doing some research.
Times 29515 – All mod cons
This puzzle was pretty easy, typical Monday fare, but there was a sting in the tail that I will deal with in due course. I was more than half done shortly after the seven-minute mark, but the last two took nearly as long.
Mephisto 3422 – Allegro moderato
This was a pleasant puzzle from John Grimshaw, a good challenge but not excessively difficult. There were some good starter clues, such as….
Times 29503 – What we do on Fridays? No.
If you are Quickie solver who wants to move up, this is your chance. This is another mild Monday where experienced solvers will see the answers very quickly.
Mephisto 3420 – The Joke’s on Us
This one was rather straightforward, and didn’t take long. The pun is worse than usual, and wasn’t of any help in solving.
Times 29491 – Kicking myself
This should have been rather easy, but after racing through about two-thirds I became most thoroughly stuck, and could just not see some very simple clues.
Mephisto 3418 – If you are a Kiwi familiar with Scots….
…you might do well. But I found this one rather chewy. While there are a few easy clues to get you started, there is some difficult vocabulary and some tough parsing here.