Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
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You have reached the world’s biggest and best crossword blog. If you are looking for help with the Daily and Sunday Telegraph cryptic crosswords or the Enigmatic Variations advanced cryptic, a total of 13 puzzles a week, then you have come to the right place.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31347
Hints and Tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** Enjoyment ***
The additional star I’ve awarded for difficulty today is wholly down to the problems I had with 24a which were largely due to the positioning of the comma. Many thanks to our setter.
Continue reading “DT 31347”
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ***
Weatherman set us what I thought was a particularly tricky Wednesday Toughie, including a couple of words where I presume he ‘painted himself into a corner’
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ****
Good morning everyone, and welcome to the midweek back-pager blog. Today was a definite step up in difficulty from the previous two days, with some excellent misdirection and one or two clues requiring some general knowledge. My favourite is the cat-sitting Reverend in 1a. I also enjoyed the Quickie pun. Many thanks to our setter.
Sunday Toughie No 241 by Zandio
Full Review by Gazza
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This puzzle was published on 06/08/26
A very enjoyable puzzle from Zandio this week.
Across Clues
1a Dad writing stuff, more unwell apparently – here’s the solution (10)
PAINKILLER: assemble an affectionate word for father, some liquid writing stuff and a comparative which could conceivably mean (apparently) ‘more unwell’. Continue reading “Sunday Toughie 241 (full review)”
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This puzzle was published on 6th September 2026
BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Greetings from Kolkata. Dada has given us a very enjoyable solve this Sunday and now I present to you a full review of his puzzle. Hope to have your valuable feedback and comments. Continue reading “ST 3385 (Full Review)”
Toughie No 3757 by Shabbo
Hints and tips by Whybird
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***
Welcome to the Toughie week. Autumn is advancing on the Wirral, and the first pink-footed geese have made their return to the Dee estuary from the Icelandic summer holidays to brighten the region’s soundscape with their squeaking.
Shabbo has given us an enjoyable, and not-too-tricky puzzle today, although some of the parsing took me a little bit of head scratching. 5d, 6d, 9a, 10a and 24d all get honourable mentions, but I’m giving my top spot today to 8d. Thanks to Shabbo for easing us gently into the week.
Please let us know how you fared and what you thought of the puzzle.
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BD Rating – Difficulty * Enjoyment ****
It looks like there is a bit of damp stuff later this morning here in Harpenden but the forecast for the afternoon looks fine.
We have yet another light delight to roll off the Anthony Plumb production line. As ever some witty & misleading surfaces & impeccably clued throughout. I thought it was maybe a wee bit trickier than Heron’s puzzle yesterday but still on the gentle side so I’ll be interested to hear what others make of it.
Our old Thursday blogger has popped up over in t’other place with one of his elegantly compiled & very accessible Toughies that deserves a wide audience. Well worth having a stab at & Whybird is on hand to provide nudges if required.
As usual there is a selection of music to enjoy or ignore.
In the hints below the definition element of each clue has been underlined, anagrams are CAPITALISED & the crossword technique “indicator words” are in brackets. The answers are concealed under the Click Here buttons. Please leave a comment below telling us what you thought & how you got on with the puzzle.
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***
Greetings from my lakeside retreat near Ottawa, where I have enjoyed a beautiful late summer weekend. Sadly, my time spent here will soon come to end and I will close it up until spring.
Once again, we have a gentle, fun puzzle to warm up the little grey cells to face the challenges headed our way later in the week. I’ll be checking Bluesky in the morning to see if it is the work of the setter I suspect.
In the hints below, underlining identifies precise definitions and cryptic definitions, FODDER is capitalized, and indicators are italicized. The answers will be revealed by clicking on the ANSWER buttons.
Please leave a comment telling us what you thought of the puzzle.
Silvanus was here for the Friday backpager, with a great Nina to honour the “Mutch Admired” Jeremy Mutch AKA Jay. I thought we were starting along a tribute to the equally admired Mr Manley AKA 1a, but that is as far as I got with setter spotting. A couple of former PM’s appear but don’t be fooled by the former Chancellor; it isn’t Rachel in 4d
I am finding Silvanus with his Sunday Toughie hat on quite tricky to parse, but that is as it should be with toughies. 7a and 2d in particular, and I have given my best guess in the hints. As a consequence, some other quite tricky constructions have hit the cutting room floor, so I will try and give a nudge if asked
The mental image of George proposing to Daisy at an Elizabethan-themed ball will live in my mind for some time, so 7d gets my COTT
Here we go…