Solving time: 8:40 As Peter says, a relatively easy puzzle. That is a pretty good time for me. I had a good start, getting the first nine clues I looked at (which in this grid … Read more “23633 – 4D and not at all 22D”
23632 – 2ing my 1A
Solving time 12:00 This felt a slightly better solving performance than a couple of recent slow times, but maybe Tony will be along later to say that he took 9 minutes. There are lots of … Read more “23632 – 2ing my 1A”
Times 23631/inspiring
Solving time: 40’ Unsure about one answer: 22D. Otherwise, on the relatively easy side (e.g. easier than yesterday’s). The top-left held a couple of inspiring poetical refs (6D and 7D) – the latter had to … Read more “Times 23631/inspiring”
Jumbo 702 (Sat 2 Jun) – Love it or hate it
Solving time: 17:37 [This posting is a few days late, for which my apologies.] Most of this was straightforward; it would have been a PB (just under 14 minutes) except for 22dn and 46dn. Some … Read more “Jumbo 702 (Sat 2 Jun) – Love it or hate it”
Times 23,630 – May have stumped some
Solving time : 53 mins – not the easiest of crosswords, but I was well in the zone after doing quite a few old ones over the weekend. There were a few I didn’t entirely … Read more “Times 23,630 – May have stumped some”
Mephisto 2,441 – Tim Moorey/ Help!!
I read somewhere that the most doodled word in the English language is HELP. My print-out of this puzzle has several masterpeices, all centred around that word! Since coming back from my holidays, I have … Read more “Mephisto 2,441 – Tim Moorey/ Help!!”
ST 4228 (Sun 10 Jun) – Off Rhoda
Some very loose clueing in this puzzle and a few obscure answers & wordplays, 1ac probably being the hardest clue. * = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’. Across 1 PAN + SOPHY – luckily … Read more “ST 4228 (Sun 10 Jun) – Off Rhoda”
Times Saturday 23623 – the train takes the strain!
Solving time: 6 or 7 mins. I solved this on the train down from Coventry to Euston last Saturday. I don’t know what it is about trains, but my solving skills are always greatly improved … Read more “Times Saturday 23623 – the train takes the strain!”
Championship qualifier 4
Solving time: 11:07 There is a link to the puzzle here: Fourth Qualifier When I came to write this blog I found there were few clues that I could leave out as entirely straightforward. Most … Read more “Championship qualifier 4”
Times 23,628 – Better late than never?
My apologies for the lateness of this post – I couldn’t post while at work and then went to the cinema with my family. Despite a low start, I solved this one in less than … Read more “Times 23,628 – Better late than never?”