Once the closing date for the championship qualifiers is safely in the past, we’ll discuss them in the usual way. I’m writing about the first two, and richardvg is covering the third and fourth ones. … Read more “Championship Qualifier 1 – a fairly easy starter”
23555 – Well done, Helen O
Solving time : 14:07 Hidden messages or tricks, sometimes referred to as Ninas, are routine in the Times2 non-cryptic puzzle, but rare in the cryptic. Today the bottom and top rows celebrate Helen Ougham’s status … Read more “23555 – Well done, Helen O”
Jumbo 686
Solving time 19:59 Another late posting. Just scraped inside 20 minutes, so not a giveaway jumbo. Clues picked out are rather good as well as possibly tricky. Across 5 S(A MARK)AND – “a mark in … Read more “Jumbo 686”
Google custom search
I’ve tried using another of those free gizmos the chaps at Google keep tempting people with. (A Google calendar is in use behind the scenes here to try to make sure we keep track of … Read more “Google custom search”
23,554 – quite tricky
Solving time 7:00 Quite a few unusual words and meanings here. Satisfied with the time considering a poor start – neither of 1 or 6 across fell on first look, and a slight delay for … Read more “23,554 – quite tricky”
Times 23553/Sicily vacation
Solving time: 55’ but not sure about one answer I did this mostly on a paper copy over breakfast in Manchester (that’s N. England not Sicily). Fortunately on my Sicily vacation I took a wrong … Read more “Times 23553/Sicily vacation”
Times Saturday 23545 – better late than never!
Solving time 14:26 I was away for the weekend and didn’t get a chance to post this entry until now, so apologies for the delay. I’ve just had to re-solve it this morning as I … Read more “Times Saturday 23545 – better late than never!”
23,552 – The Difficult Crossing
Solving time : 1hr 24I found this pretty hard going – but very enjoyable. A few I guessed straightaway from the definition and didn’t fully work out til a bit later – 1ac, 17ac, 29ac. … Read more “23,552 – The Difficult Crossing”
ST 4215 – Stretchered-owski
Solving time: 4:33 Generally straightforward, largely because of the transparency of the definitions. A couple of quibbles (19ac, 23ac, 22dn), one editing error (I think – 3dn) and one explanation I’m unsure about (25ac) but … Read more “ST 4215 – Stretchered-owski”
23,550 – Battling with action stations
Morning, all. I’m your new regular Friday blogger, and, although I don’t ever hope to fill the shoes of my illustrious predecessor, I hope that we’ll get along. Today’s puzzle wasn’t as difficult as some … Read more “23,550 – Battling with action stations”