Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
Hints and tips for completing the regular Daily Telegraph Cryptic crosswords
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
A very enjoyable crossword today with a good variety of clues. By that I found that both the variety of types of clues and the complexity of clues was very well balanced.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
This one is not overly difficult but has some cleverly-worded clues. I found it very enjoyable.
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***
Tilsit joins us for the first time today. As I mentioned on Saturday, he will already be known to avid followers of fifteensquared, and his credentials include answering questions on Crosswords, as his specialist subject, on Mastermind. The standard DT Cyptic should be very easy for someone like him, but he faces sterner stuff when he does battle with a Toughie later in the week. BD
Thanks to Big Dave for his introduction. I hope these blogs live up to the high standard that he and the rest of the gang have set. Because of my other activities within the crossword world, I often get requests from solvers about the best way to start solving cryptic puzzles and my answer is invariably the same. Start with Monday’s Telegraph and Guardian puzzles, you rarely go wrong. That’s because they are usually set by one of the doyens of the black and white squares – Roger Squires. Roger (aka Rufus in the Graun) provides some of the most accessible and solver-friendly puzzles and amongst his talents, he is a master of a type of clue known as the Cryptic Definition, of which there are a few in this puzzle.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Another enjoyable Friday crossword, a good mix of clue types, and complexity along with one new word for me.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
For me, this was rather a disappointing puzzle. I’m not mad keen on the grid, with some 7-letter answers with only 3 letters checked, though some others have 5 checked letters. And like some other DT grids, it’s all short words – the longest entry is 9 letters. It does have a good side – the shortest answer is 6 letters so we get a day off from ERATO and tricky little 4-letter words.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
Nothing too taxing or obscure and a few nicely-worded clues – what more could you want for a Thursday?
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
This one is a fairly typical Daily Telegraph cryptic crossword – workmanlike with nothing too complicated. As usual, the answers are hidden inside the curly brackets – select the white space inside if you’re totally stumped.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Don’t forget – just highlight the space between the curly brackets to reveal the answer.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
Another good solid puzzle, following on from yesterday’s, with a good variety of clues, spread thoughout.
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