Author: william_j_s

A proper laugh-out-load crossword with many of those penny dropping moments. Easily my favourite for some time. No obscure vocabulary, but plenty of deceptive wordplay and wit. Thank you, Grumpy. Due to my not being … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 457 by Grumpy”

A nice, straightforward crossword. Even including some unknown references (as the spy and the poet were to me) it should not take so long to solve that fun gives way to inconvenience. Definitions underlined. 1 … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 447 by Flamande”

Well, nowhere near as difficult as yesterday’s but Tracy had me stumbling over several clues. Unknowns (golf clubs, plants) aside, even the charades, where all I had to do was put words and synonyms in … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 437 by Tracy”

I struggled with this one much more than usual. The type of legal hearing was new to me, and I was on a very different wavelength at 5dn and 19dn, which all held me up. … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 427 by Hurley”

A brief blog due to lack of time this morning. I struggled to get into this one (1ac requiring all the checkers, and not seeing 3dn for the longest of times). Plenty to get your … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 417 by Orpheus”

A nice variety of clues including more than the usual number of homophones and many classic devices. I though this was going to go in a flash, but I definitely slowed down in the bottom … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 407 by Joker”

Following the quick entry of 6dn (in this unusual grid) there were no hold-ups until my last one in – 7dn. Fairly straightforward then, but entertaining. I especially liked the translation from possession (in the … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 397 by Rongo”

I got off to a good start with this (and even chucked 10ac into the grid from the wordplay alone) but slowed down in the bottom half. And I’m very glad I did – the … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 387 by Mara”

I consistently struggle with the main cryptic to the point of failure, so I enjoy these Quickies best when they’re testing, and this certainly was a stretching but satisfying crossword. I suspect the other novices … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 377 by Izetti”

This detained me slightly longer than normal on account of the SW corner mostly. All of the wordplay is very precisely indicated, as usual, with just a tiny amount of sporting general knowledge required (not … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 367 by Pedro”