December 10, 2010 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

Toughie 474

Toughie No 474 by Firefly

Hints and tips by Tilsit

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

Greetings from the melting Calder Valley. An interesting puzzle from Firefly, which in truth turned into a bit of slog for me. Some nice clues (the best shown in blue), but one of two seemed a bit forced and contrived and this took away the sense of enjoyment for me. Indeed, 5 ac is wrong and misleading, as you’ll see. A number of the clues I solved by looking at interconnecting letters and working them out, which is not ideal. Has anyone heard of the TV impresario in 20 down, 28 across?

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ST 2565

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2565

A full analysis by Peter Biddlecombe

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

Another very enjoyable Sunday puzzle – I liked the 200-year musical leap in time between the two long across clue/answer combos

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DT 26420

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26420

Hints and tips by Gazza

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

We have a typical Giovanni puzzle today. It does contain two words which were new to me, but in both cases the wordplay clearly leads us to the right answer. Let’s have a comment with your views!
If you want to see an answer just drag your cursor through the space between the brackets under the clue.

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DT 26415

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26415

A full review by Crypticsue

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

This Saturday’s Prize Puzzle was the work of a mystery setter and to start with I was a little mystified as to what I thought about it. I completed it in really quick time without really paying close attention to the wordplay and so it has taken the writing of this review for me to realise that it was a very good Saturday puzzle, by which I mean that it wasn’t too difficult, with a nice mix of clues and providing something for all levels of solving ability. So thank you Mysteron, whoever you are.

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