Elgar – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

Toughie 3032

Toughie No 3032 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty *****Enjoyment *****

Joy, we have a 7-word Nina today. 5* time but steady progress. Enjoy. Continue reading “Toughie 3032”

Toughie 3008

Toughie No 3008 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty *****Enjoyment *****

Elgar back to full-on toughie style. I was left with about 5 unsolved well after 5* time, when I eventually saw 23a and 5d, giving me the rest.… Continue reading

Toughie 2999

Toughie No 2999 by Elgar
Hints and tips by Gazza

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty *****Enjoyment ****

Elgar makes a rare sortie outside his usual Friday beat to accommodate what we’re promised will be a special puzzle tomorrow to celebrate Toughie number 3,000. This is no walk in the park but I did slowly and surely get to the end and very enjoyable the journey was.Continue reading

Toughie 2992

Toughie No 2992 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty *****Enjoyment *****

Ah – I just realised when publishing this that it’s Friday 13th – oh, the perks of blogging!  We have another display of inventive and precise clueing by Elgar.… Continue reading

Toughie 2984

Toughie No 2984 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty ****/*****Enjoyment *****

This enjoyable puzzle from Elgar will keep you on your toes for a bit during the festive season and has a few simpler clues to get you going.… Continue reading

Toughie 2976

Toughie No 2976 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty *****Enjoyment *****

A fun puzzle with a (2,5,2,2’1,4) Nina that relates to 8 & 13d. Enjoy. The Nina helped me in SW. Took me a while – I got stuck after about 7 entries, then the delightful 22d got me started again.… Continue reading

Toughie 2960

Toughie No 2960 by Elgar

Hints and tips by Dutch

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty **/***Enjoyment *****

To my surprise I had a full grid in 2* time, which is definitely a first for me with an Elgar. However, it then took me quite a bit more time to parse 24a properly!… Continue reading