August 2011 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

Toughie 624

Toughie No 624 by Elkamere

It may be just a smear to you, mate!

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

We have a super midweek Toughie today from Elkamere. It’s a pangram and I enjoyed it a great deal.
Let us know what you thought and please remember to click on one of the stars below to record your enjoyment factor.

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DT 26645

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26645

Hints and tips by pommers

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

Hola from the Vega Baja.  A real piece of Wednesday wizardry today! Some very clever clues, good surfaces and some great ‘penny drop’ moments! I’ve given 3* for difficulty but I’ll leave that up to you to comment on. I don’t actually know my solving time as I got into the website, clicked print and it chucked me out. 45 minutes later, when I finally got back in and the puzzle opened, the clock was already running from my first attempt!

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Toughie 623

Toughie No 623 by Petitjean

Infamy, infamy – they’ve all got it in for me!

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

Petitjean entertains with a puzzle that has a number of cleverly worked clues – and a few old chestnuts thrown in to help you to get started!

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DT 26644

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26644

Hints and tips by Gazza

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment **

Today’s puzzle is not too exacting and doesn’t have many “penny drop” moments. Let us know your thoughts in a comment.
If you want to see an answer just drag your cursor through the space between the brackets under the clue.

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NTSPP – 081 (Review)

Not the Saturday Prize Puzzle – 081

A Puzzle by Chaz

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

A warm welcome back to Chaz with the next in the NTSPP series. As Big Dave said, this was at the easier end of the spectrum. It took me about the same time to solve as an easier Rufus crossword. It did help to have spotted the theme almost immediately with 1a and 29a. For those who need a hint, the theme is explained in the brackets below.

{The books are all titles in the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett}.

I have highlighted my favourite clues below in blue.

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DT 26642 (Hints)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26642 (Hints)

Big Dave’s Saturday Crossword Club

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As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select an assortment of clues, including some of the more difficult ones, and provide hints for them.

If you have written to me recently and not received a reply, it’s because your email was on the hard drive that crashed this week.  Please write again.  BD

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Toughie 622

Toughie No 622 by Osmosis

Hints and tips by Big Dave

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment ****

Tilsit is on holiday in the Lake District today, so I am filling in for him.  A very enjoyable puzzle with some clues that needed a fair bit of unravelling.

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