Category: Daily Cryptic

No time for this very nice example of the art of crossword setting, as I bombed out on one of the downs, where I did my best with all the crossing letters, but still came … Read more “Times 28765 – Getting my knickers in a twist”

After 1ac went straight in, I should have noticed that the setter was toying with me.

  Well that was fun, though my time of 28.21 suggests I also found it challenging, which I did, especially getting going at all in the top half. But I liked it: the clues are … Read more “28762 Et in Arabia ego”

The third and easiest of the three Championship “heats” puzzles, I thought, I saved a few minutes against my allowance of twenty for this one.

Pretty straightforward fayre.

I don’t think there will be much to slow down the top solvers here, no strange vocabulary, and relatively straightforward cryptics.

Yes, I took a nap in the middle. Most of this puzzle went fine, but by the end I was shouting unspeakable vulgarities at the computer, trying to get my brain to come up with the right synonyms. I finally got there in 37:56.

Time taken: 10:28, though distracted by a conversation while I was trying to solve. Fun puzzle, not too difficult, but most clues require a fair bit of thought, I doubt there will be a lot … Read more “Times 28756 – spring break?”

The second puzzle in the heat of the Crossword Competition, I thought slightly less ‘hot’ than the first; I’d have just fitted it into a twenty-minute slot if pushed to hurry and skip some parsing.

I found this easy.