Solving time: 14:38 A fast start with the two easy 15-letter downs. Then I slowed myself up pursuing red herrings that probably existed only in my mind. Four easy but good cryptic definitions at 4, … Read more “23663 – No time Toulouse”
23,662 – fiendish
Solving time 25:46 As tough for me as for some others…. Across 5 BABYSAT – I nearly slipped into the wrong ‘babysit’ but then saw the significance of ‘minded’, past tense. 9 ELMER GANTRY – … Read more “23,662 – fiendish”
Times 23631/needed an eolith
Solving time: 28:30 Needed an eolith to crack a few of these: in particular, I’m not convinced I understand 10A for which I’ve guessed OUTLAWRY. I’ve started sort of recording my times to include seconds … Read more “Times 23631/needed an eolith”
Mephisto 2446
Solving time: about 2 hours with C used from the start This will teach me to leave Mephistos unstarted on the Sunday! It turned out to be very tough, with lots of stuff that was … Read more “Mephisto 2446”
23660 – Our Father’s Lift
Solving time: 33:40 (recording seconds as well now!) I found this pretty straightforward – lots of fun clues and interesting wordplay, but nothing too difficult.New things: marge=margin, ‘Beau’ Nash; lift=paternosterFavourite clue: 16D, the clue made … Read more “23660 – Our Father’s Lift”
Unofficial Times cryptic RTC contest No. 1 – results
With consistently good times for the mid-week puzzles that slowed most people down, this was an easy win for Mark Goodliffe who wins the inaugural star. Yours truly did consistently badly with these three, and … Read more “Unofficial Times cryptic RTC contest No. 1 – results”
ST 4233 (Sun 15 Jul) – A cruciverbal revolt
Solving time: 5:34 I don’t know why mistakes in Sunday Times crosswords contain to surprise me, but they do. See 17ac for this week’s gaffe. * = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’. Across 11 … Read more “ST 4233 (Sun 15 Jul) – A cruciverbal revolt”
Times Saturday 23653 (July 14)
Solving time 10:46 Not too much difficulty here for a Saturday puzzle, and I would have gone under 10 minutes but for spending a while trying to decide what the first letter of 21ac should … Read more “Times Saturday 23653 (July 14)”
Times Jumbo 707 (Sat 7 July) – Moth balls
Solving time: 32 mins, one mistake (42ac) Definitely not at my sharpest when solving this, having suffered a spectacular bout of food poisoning the night before. The top left corner in particular took me ages, … Read more “Times Jumbo 707 (Sat 7 July) – Moth balls”
Unofficial Times cryptic RTC contest No. 1 – your solving times please
In July 2007, someone commenting on Tony Sever’s Times 2 RTC blog suggested having a competition like RTC for the Times cryptic. The same request has been made more than once on the Times club … Read more “Unofficial Times cryptic RTC contest No. 1 – your solving times please”