Sloggers and Betters 9 + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + What? The 9th “Sloggers and Betters” gathering for crossword setters and blog contributors and readers will take place in London, following on, as last year, from the annual lunch for Times setters.
Category Archives: Highlight
Bandwidth Problems
May 15, 2012 – 11:51 am
Bandwidth Problems
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Well, I thought 30gb was going to be enough bandwidth, but you all proved me wrong! I received an email at 5:20pm advising me that I had exceeded 80% of my bandwidth (actually it was 90%) so I immediately applied for an upgrade to unlimited bandwidth. Then at just after midnight 100% was reached. I have been given a day’s grace to process the upgrade, so all should be back to normal very soon.
The All New Toughie Crossword Book
May 9, 2012 – 1:14 pm
The All New Toughie Crossword Book
100 of the most difficult crosswords
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The Telegraph has just released two books of Toughie Crosswords, covering the first 200 Toughie puzzles. I was pleased to see that, in his Editor’s Note, Phil McNeill describes Elgar as being “known to his fans as ‘Vlad the Impaler’”. You read that here for the first time in a comment that I made back in July 2011.
Email Subscriptions
May 6, 2012 – 11:14 pm
Email Subscriptions
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Keep Informed
Big Dave’s Crossword Blog is happy to offer a free email subscription service, which allows users of the site to receive alerts by email when a new post is available.
This is a free service provided by Big Dave’s Crossword Blog. Your email address will only be used to deliver the requested information or to send occasional messages about the site. Your address will not be used for any other purpose.
Brave New World
May 1, 2012 – 6:30 pm
Brave New World
A leap into the dark!
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After having availed myself of the free hosting on WordPress.com, I have decided to take the plunge into unknown territory and transfer the hosting of the site to Evohosting, based in the UK. This transfer should take place soon after midnight, in time for a fresh start in the morning.
Northern Sloggers and Betters
April 20, 2012 – 10:00 am
Northern Sloggers and Betters
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Tomorrow sees the Northern Sloggers and Betters gathering which will be held at the Bramsche Bar in Todmorden, Rochdale Road from noon onwards. Big Dave and myself will be there along with a number of other setters and solvers. These meets are relaxed, friendly and very enjoyable. It would be great if you could come and join us. We would love to see you.
Here’s the venue: http://www.bramsche.co.uk. The bar is about 200 yards from Todmorden Rail Station and parking is just across the road or to the rear of the venue off Water Street.
Live Chat with Elgar
March 23, 2012 – 9:00 am
Live Chat with Elgar
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The Guardian is opening its doors this weekend to the public, as well as doing a number of Q&A events during the week. Araucaria and Paul will be there in person on Saturday. Elgar/Enigmatist is doing a Q&A session today on the Guardian Crossword thread run by Alan Connor from 1.00pm – 3.00pm.
Recent Update to Commenting
March 16, 2012 – 1:00 pm
Recent Update to Commenting
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Some of you have been having difficulty leaving comments recently. The following has been posted in the WordPress Help Forum. Please don’t ask why, it’s a mystery to me as well.
*** The Forum post has been updated over ther weekend ***
This site uses a custom domain name (see point 3 below).
Roger Squires’ 80th birthday lunch
March 12, 2012 – 1:59 pm
Roger Squires’ 80th birthday lunch
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There is an article about this party for Rufus on the Telegraph website. Click on the picture to link to the article, which tells you all of the names of those present.
A Big “Thank You” from Rufus
February 29, 2012 – 1:49 pm
The last ten days have been very busy, and very enjoyable, for me, and so many people have taken time and effort to make it so. From the February 18th surprise party at my local pub, to a family gathering last weekend in a Derbyshire farmhouse, via a reception at the Guardian on the Eve of my 80th birthday, I have been taken by surprise by the tremendous warmth and friendliness of people in the crossword world.
Cruciverbalists’ Convention (Jan 2012)
January 14, 2012 – 3:58 pm
Cruciverbalists’ Convention
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It’s time once again for a meeting in London so come along and join us at The Bridge House, 13 Westbourne Terrace Road, London, W2 6NG on the 28th January – any time between 12noon and 7.00pm.
All are welcome and, as usual, we have picked a pub that enables you to enjoy a host of real ales. Click on either of the pictures for further details of the venue.
£1000 IT Challenge
January 9, 2012 – 4:34 pm
£1000 IT Challenge
Computer Program for a 3D blind solver
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The £1000 IT Challenge is to produce a FREEWARE computer program to enable a totally blind crossword solver to tackle a 3D crossword puzzle at no cost.
Review Dates (Christmas 2011 and New Year 2012)
December 24, 2011 – 6:00 pm
The dates for the publication of reviews of the Prize Puzzles over the Christmas and New Year period are as follows:
BBC CiNA 3D Calendar Puzzle (2012)
December 5, 2011 – 6:23 pm
BBC CiNA 3D Calendar Puzzle (2012)
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Once again we have the delicious prospect of another BBC CiNA (Children in Need Appeal) 3D Calendar Puzzle. Each day has a clue. Each month has a 3D grid to complete. Some of the best setters in the UK have given of their genius freely to provide us with enough clues to solve to keep us out of trouble for most of the year.
Liverpool Street – October 2011
November 14, 2011 – 2:45 pm
Liverpool Street – October 2011
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I’ve added some photos to the blog’s facebook page:
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