Category: Quick Cryptic

The setter in playful mode.  Some truly excellent clues and some on the harder end of the QCs.  Sometimes you just have to slug it out, but this is one where a sort of semi-disciplined … Read more “Quick Cryptic 493 by Mara. The wordplay’s the thing.”

I thought this was a wee gem of a QC – elegant, tightly constructed and testing without (hopefully) being overly daunting for newcomers to the game. That said, probably at the trickier end of the … Read more “Quick Cryptic 492 by Izetti”

Even though I knew the Mercian King, the detective, the shrub and the film they took some time to arrive – 17 minutes. Some clever clueing made this a very satisfactory work out whilst completing. … Read more “Quick Crytpic 491 by Tracy”

I found this a fairly straightforward start to the week though there are a couple of bits of General Knowledge that may not be familiar to all. 9 minutes. Definitions are in bold italics, deletions … Read more “Quick Cryptic 490 by Orpheus”

A little easier than recent Friday offerings, I felt, about 7 minutes for me, and no going through the alphabet to find missing words. Fortunately had most of the checkers for 17a otherwise no chance … Read more “Quick Cryptic 489 by Dazzler”

Another well-composed puzzle.  A smattering of crossword conventions to be noted – the kind that old-timers take for granted. The two long struts at 2 and 5 down are a big help if you can … Read more “Quick Cryptic 488 by Flamande”

An enjoyable crossword with just a touch of challenge in the right places. I learnt some new vocabulary through very fairly crafted wordplay, which is always nice. I though 23ac was fun; not a device … Read more “Quick Cryptic Number 487 by Teazel”

The anagram at 6dn caused me so much trouble that I discovered a ‘get the keyboard out of the way on the screen’ button on the iPad keyboard which enabled me, eventually, to see the … Read more “Quick Cryptic 486 by Hurley”

I enjoyed quite a few of the surfaces in this one, in particular 24A and 6D, which always makes me feel well-disposed to a puzzle. No difficult vocabulary but the wordplay for 11A and 6D … Read more “Quick Cryptic 485 by Mara”

Some clever mis-directions in a number of clues this week. In 24a at first I took shock for the anagram indicator and looked for a treatment, though I don’t know why now – it’s a … Read more “Quick Crossword 484 by Tracy”