Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment *****
Another easy but very classy puzzle from “Sunsetter”. I wondered whether there was a little theme when the two crossing words in the middle both had two Vs and so did 8D, but I guess this could just come from the need to fit in with the two long across answers.
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
A mixed bag of clues in a moderately difficult puzzle. I’d expected the NW/SE corners to be sticking points but they fell pretty quickly – in the fact the same was true for the other pair; it was just a small handful of answers (with all checkers in place) that caused some head-scratching.
In terms of entertainment… well, it was sort of OK really; not exactly bursting with wordplay fireworks but little to complain about either, although there are a few little errors of syntax. There were five theme answers to spot (all examples of 9d).
My favourite clues are shown in blue text.
Leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
It’s Friday, so it’s Giovanni day and we have another excellent puzzle from many people’s favourite setter. As is often the case it was a couple of the short, four-letter, words which gave me most trouble – being a bit of a philistine in matters operatic, I had never heard of 1d, and I was held up for a while by 23d.
One of the main reasons for the vitality of this site is the contribution made by your comments, so please keep up the good work and let us know your views. We’re particularly keen to hear from regular readers who have yet to introduce themselves – now would be a good time to break your duck (sorry!, another cricket term).
As usual the answers are hidden so that you do not see them by accident. If you do want to see an answer, highlight the white space inside the curly brackets under the relevant clue.