Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31033
Hints and tips by Huntsman
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BD Rating – Difficulty */** Enjoyment ***
Fairly straightforward Plumbing today which ought not to pose too many difficulties. That said under time pressure I couldn’t see the parsing at 8d so phoned the DT helpline (aka Shabbo). As ever succinctly clued & with the usual high quota of single letter abbreviations. I did enjoy the puzzle but also thought it somewhat lacking in the sort of witty surfaces that characterise AP’s best puzzles. It’ll be interesting to see what others think.
In the hints below the definition element of each clue has been underlined, anagrams are CAPITALISED & the crossword technique “indicator words” are in brackets. The answers are concealed under the Click Here buttons. Please leave a comment below telling us what you thought & how you got on with the puzzle.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31032
Hints and tips by Falcon
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Greetings from my lakeside retreat near Ottawa which I am visiting for one of the final times this year as I will soon have to close up for the winter.
I think today’s puzzle was well-pitched for a Monday. As X-Type seems to have been our most frequent setter recently, the puzzle may be one of his – but I have an abysmal track record when it comes to identifying setters.
While it has been a few weeks since I last reviewed a puzzle, I have been keeping an eye on what has been happening on the blog. I did note the discussion regarding lurkers and reverse lurkers and the observation that they deserved an entry in the FAQ. They now have one.
In the hints below, underlining identifies precise definitions and cryptic definitions, FODDER is capitalized, and indicators are italicized. The answers will be revealed by clicking on the ANSWER buttons.
Please leave a comment telling us what you thought of the puzzle.
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A Puzzle by Teeby
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Continue reading “Rookie Corner 595”
Sunday Toughie No 190
by Beam
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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I wasn’t expecting Beam last night, Sunday Toughie 187 was his last outing, but even without the byline, you couldn’t mis-identify this. Concise clues (I don’t need to do the math to know he is well under six words per clue) Initial letters, a few bits of “ooh er missus” innuendo, Queens, sweethearts and policemen too.
A generous 16a and 16d clues today, and I have hinted half.
Here we go, Folks…
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Enigmatic Variations 1712 (Hints)
Obstacle Courses by Luxor
Hints and tips by Phibs
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I felt that I’d set Claude a pretty tough challenge last time out, so I gave him a chance for redemption, asking “A themed crossword involves four ‘obstacle courses’, which have to be spelt out by joining 30 letters together in the grid, and includes a two-word phrase which describes what their constructors did to make them. Can you suggest what these obstacle courses might be?”
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Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3334 (Hints)
Hints and tips by Senf
A very good Sunday morning from Winnipeg and welcome to the Sunday Edition of Big Dave’s Book Crossword Club 
(Check Comment 16 in yesterday’s blog if you think I have lost my marbles, which I probably have.)
I feel a little sorry for the Wallaroos only being allowed to score one try yesterday. I wonder if Scotland will be allowed to score more than that today.
For me, and I stress for me,© Dada quirky with some strange indicators and causing me a few problems in the NW – 7 anagrams (3 partials), no lurkers, and no homophones all in a slightly asymmetric 30 clues; with 15 hints ‘sprinkled’ throughout the grid, you should/might be able to get the checkers to enable the solving of the unhinted clues. And, remember, my electronic blue pencil is at the ready and the Naughty Step is OPEN!
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A Puzzle by Jaffa
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31031 (Hints)
The Saturday Crossword Club (hosted by crypticsue)
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Toughie No 3548 by Osmosis
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
This is a proper 19d from Osmosis with loads of clever wordplay, a lack of anagrams and a minimum of obscurities. I made solid progress through the puzzle until I got held up (largely due to 7d) in the NE corner. Many thanks to our setter for the entertainment.
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