June 18, 2013 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

TEDxAlbertopolis (September 2013)

TEDxAlbertopolis – 23rd September 2013

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

Perhaps best known under his Guardian pseudonym ‘Paul’, John Halpern is a cryptic crossword setter for The Guardian, The Times, The Financial Times, The Independent and The Daily Telegraph.  Halpern is to speak at TEDxAlbertopolis on on 23rd September and create a fiendishly difficult crossword especially for the event.  Held in the prestigious Royal Albert Hall, TEDxAlbertopolis will be an afternoon of inspiring, thought-provoking and entertaining talks exploring how art and science fit together in the modern world.

Continue reading “TEDxAlbertopolis (September 2013)”

Toughie 998

Toughie No 998 by Giovanni

Phew!

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

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

When I arranged to swap this week’s Toughie blogging duties with BD I was anticipating the usual Tuesday stroll in the park. Instead Giovanni has apparently taken it upon himself to expand my vocabulary – there are half-a-dozen words in this one that I didn’t know. It makes one fear for the rest of the week. Amongst all the new words there are a number of good and enjoyable clues.
Continue reading “Toughie 998”

DT 27207

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 27207

Hints and tips by Deep Threat

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

Good morning from South Staffs, on a dry but cloudy morning.

I gave this puzzle *** for difficulty because I struggled with a couple of clues, notably 1d, which was the last in because I simply couldn’t parse it at first.  The penny finally dropped when I realised that the construction was similar to 6d in yesterday’s Cryptic (which I struggled with until I read Libellule Gazza’s explanation).

Continue reading “DT 27207”