Author: william_j_s

Happily completed this one with my other half. Despite not being a regular solver, she completed much of it without hesitation or complaint, and only needed my (doubtful) help to crack the SE corner. COD … Read more “Quick Cryptic 897 by Flamande”

A satisfying and entertaining solve! I was immediately stumped by 1dn, having never heard of the (dictionary says “dated”) synonym for boycott, and was helped at 5dn by the very generous definition and wordplay. Final … Read more “Quick Cryptic 887 by Joker”

Mostly smooth sailing, but I suspect one’s general interests / willingness to trust the wordplay, will play a large part in the ease of solving. Embarrassingly (for someone keen on biology), it was the butterfly, … Read more “Quick Cryptic 877 by Orpheus”

I thought this was going to be a much more light and breezy puzzle than it turned out to be. The first few clues in the NW gave the impression of a break from the … Read more “Quick Cryptic 867 by Hurley”

Our good timelord notified me that we have a new setter today, who has offered up this pleasing and gentle puzzle. Perhaps a sign that those who prefer a milder challenge are being heeded? Or … Read more “Quick Cryptic 857 by Wurm”

Solved in spare moments and blogged in a hurry, hence the later-than-usual post, so it’s even more difficult for me to judge its difficulty. I thought I was getting bored of all the anagram practice, … Read more “Quick Cryptic 847 by Pedro”

Some unusual vocabulary and phrases gave me a bit to think about here, but balanced with the clearly signposted anagrams and a couple of write-ins, culminated in an average time for me. COD to 12ac … Read more “Quick Cryptic 837 by Orpheus”

Middle of the road, difficulty wise. I enjoyed the humour in 20ac and 8dn, amongst others. I have no idea why Henry = H. Can anyone explain? Definitions underlined. Across 1 Cask she’d toppled — … Read more “Quick Cryptic 827 by Hurley”

Apologies for the sparse blog. I find myself without a computer this week, posting on an iPad and in plain text. Plenty of easy starters in all corners make the longer answers solvable; a great … Read more “Quick Cryptic 817 by Orpheus”

I was very quick out of the blocks with this one, but soon found the more difficult clues and ended up with an average time. Nothing too convoluted, although I’m curious to see how many … Read more “Quick Cryptic 807 by Pedro”