Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30138
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
Hola from Vega Baja where the warm autumn seems to be coming to an end. I had to dig out some long trousers on Saturday evening, which is something I haven’t done since the middle of May, but it’s still pleasantly warm in the afternoons.
Maybe it’s just me but I thought today’s puzzle was a tad trickier than the usual Monday fare but looking at the clock I see it didn’t actually take me very long. Four anagrams and three double definitions give plenty of ways in so I don’t think many of you will need these hints.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30126
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from Vega Baja where the warm autumn weather still continues. We had 30°C yesterday afternoon which is very unusual for late October. No doubt we will have to pay for it come January!
Today we have the usual Monday fare with some gimmes, a couple of old chestnuts and a few head scratchers to keep you on your toes. There’s only three anagrams and they don’t give many useful checkers so it’s the gimmes which will give you a start.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30114
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from Vega Baja. Falcon is otherwise engaged today so I’m sorry but you’ll just have to put up with me for the second week in a row.
Today we have the usual Monday fare with a lot of gimmes and a few head scratchers to keep you on your toes. As usual I enjoyed it and hope you did too.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30108
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ****
Hola from a rather noisy Vega Baja! Our electricity went off at 1830 this evening and at about 2300 a lorry came and parked a massive generator outside our bedroom window (our house is next to the village sub-station). The generator is now wired in and providing electricity but I really don’t need the noise so I’m doing the blog in the small hours in the hope of getting a bit of a kip later on. On a lighter note today has been a perfect autumn day in Spain, 27°C with just a hint of a breeze and not a cloud in the sky.
You might say today’s crossword is perfect too. It’s not very hard but there are a couple of head-scratchers and nearly every clue is worthy of the blue treatment. I’ll be finding it hard to pick a podium three.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30096
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from the Vega Baja on a rather sad day. The UK may be at a standstill but the crossword must go on and this one is a pretty good tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and I think 7d and 9d might count as a Nina. Maybe I’m having an off day but it seemed a tad trickier than normal so I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30086
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
¡Hola a todos! Bet you weren’t expecting me again so soon! The 2Kiwis are otherwise engaged today so I’m afraid you’ll just have to put up with me again as stand-in. Sorry and all that but I’m pretty sure the Kiwis will be back next week.
A pretty good puzzle today from the Wednesday Wizard. A tad tricky in places but overall not a brain bender. Not many anagrams so I’m afraid you’ll have to do it the hard way.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30084
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment *****
Hola from a cooler Vega Baja. The temperature is still topping 30°C every afternoon but it’s cooling down in the early hours. … Continue reading
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30080
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from a rather cloudy Los Alcàzares where I’m standing in for the Kiwis. Earlier this week Colin experienced some chest pains so went to the local medical centre where a minor heart attack was diagnosed. He has been transferred to a hospital in Wellington for further tests. I’m sure you will all join me in wishing them well and sending hopes for a speedy recovery.
As to the crossword it’s a bit of a homecoming for me. Those of you who have been around the blog for long enough may remember that I started my blogging career doing the Wednesday puzzle and I did it for quite a few years before the Kiwis arrived and I moved to the Thursday slot. I’m pretty sure this puzzle’s by Jay and it shows why I used the refer to him as “The Wednesday Wizard”. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30072
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from the Vega Baja where we’ve had a few days when the temperature hasn’t topped 31°C, which was a welcome relief after the heatwave. However yesterday it got up to 41C° so the summer isn’t over yet!
Today we have the usual Monday fare which is mostly fairly easy but with a handful of head scratchers. There are eight clues involving anagrams so I know some of you will be pleased. As far as I can see there are only two puns in the Quickie which makes a change from my last blog when there were five!
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30054
Hints and tips by pommers
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Hola from the Vega Baja where the very hot weather is continuing. In fact, last Monday was the hottest day since I moved to Spain with the temperature up to an unprecedented 44°C (that’s 111°F to our American readers) in the afternoon. It’s been a more normal mid-thirties since but the forecast is for hotter weather from next weekend. In this part of Spain statistically August 6 is the hottest day of the year so it will be interesting to see what we get next Saturday.
Today we have a typical Monday puzzle which is mostly fairly easy but with the usual handful of head scratchers. Not too heavy on the anagrams and there seem quite a few clues where part of the answer is lifted directly. Still, an enjoyable puzzle while it lasted.
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