Category: Daily Cryptic

Solving time 7:38 Well, easier than the last couple of days for this solver at least. I got off to a reasonable start, not getting 1A immediately, but deciding to look at the downs for … Read more “23,949 – the easy one you hoped for …”

Solving time : a slightly longer than usual 30 minutes. One answer I was unfamiliar with and checked, but the construction meant that with the checking letters in place it literally couldn’t be anything other … Read more “Times 23,948 – Play Your Cards Right”

Solving time: 6:10 (solved online) Some decent clues in this puzzle, and nothing too difficult; TIMAEUS at 4dn was the only clue that really held me up, and 23dn (TROLL) might have caught some out … Read more “ST 4281 (Sun 15 Jun) – Troll booth”

Solving time:36 mins POONA was last one in and I wasn’t terribly confident of it. A few bits and pieces I am not sure about. Interesting to see that a few phrases were needed to … Read more “23,947”

This took me a little under 30 minutes. It all seemed pretty straightforward though a couple of clues highlighted some gaps in my knowledge of Geography. Nothing really stands out as COD, but maybe at … Read more “Times – 23945 – No sweat”

Solving time : 38 minutes! Usually I’d have given up and headed for the solving aids on this one, but that would have meant getting out of my chair and that wasn’t happening. Another Thursday … Read more “Times 23944 – the Thursday annihilator!”

Moderately difficult puzzle with what seems like a good balance between snippets of knowledge and wordplay – the knowledge is mostly in half points I think. Solving time 8:30 Across 1 CHAR IS MA – … Read more “23943”

Solving time : 30 minutes A compiler who likes double meanings and homophones but who also knows what kinetic energy is.This is mostly a standard daily cryptic. I don’t fully understand 13A, which I have … Read more “Times 23942 Double Meanings Galore”

Solving time: 6:28 (one mistake – 15ac). 27ac in this puzzle was NAOMI, clued as ‘I MOAN’ backwards, which pretty much says it all, I think. A few more difficult words (tondi, maenads, colobus) but … Read more “ST 4280 (Sun 8 Jun)”

Solving time: 41 mins so far Still two missing! Don’t think I’ve written one of these blog posts without completing the crossword – but I don’t have time to sit and think today – can’t … Read more “23941 – strange birds”