June 17, 2009 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

Toughie 165

Toughie No 165 by KciT

Hints and tips by Gazza

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ***

This is another good Toughie which is not as difficult as some, but is full of well-constructed and entertaining clues.

As Big Dave mentioned in his Toughie review last Friday, we are changing our approach to the Toughie reviews slightly, on the basis that solvers at this level do not need to have every nook and cranny of the wordplay explained. You’ll notice that for some of the more complicated clues I’ve still explained the wordplay in full, whereas for others I’ve just given general hints. I should really appreciate getting feedback as to whether I’ve got the blend right or not. If there is anything that needs further explanation please mention it in a comment and I’ll try to expand on it.

Continue reading “Toughie 165”

DT 25957

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25957

Hints and tips by Big Dave

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

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

What a good week this is turning out to be.  Today we have a first class puzzle with some of the best surface reading that I have seen in a daily cryptic for some time.  One or two minor quibbles where that surface reading gets in the way of the accuracy of the clue, but when you get quality like this who cares!

Following recent discussions on the difficulty rating I have increased this from two stars to three to compensate for clues like 18 down which, while making us oldies smile, will no doubt cause problems for the younger solvers

Continue reading “DT 25957”