Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Once again, the highlight of the week. Excellent clues, and some tricky wordplay, for a puzzle that is ideally suited to a lazy Sunday morning.
A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 17th July.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
A disappointing crossword with some clues, like 17a and 3d, that are past their sell-by date, some, like 15a and 6d, that just don’t work and others, like 10a and 5d that are not worthy of being in a prize puzzle. And I haven’t even mentioned the proper nouns as, apart from 5d, they are acceptable.
As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. Peter Biddlecombe should, by now, have returned from holiday ready to do a full review of this puzzle in time for 12.00 on Thursday, 16th July.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Last week I asked for more of the same, and Jed has done just that. I found it a little easier than last weeks puzzle, but just as enjoyable.
A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 10th July. Continue reading “ST 2491 – Hints”
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ***
First I’d like to say a special thank you to Gazza for stepping in to help me out yesterday. It all started when I switched the computer on yesterday morning, only to find that the graphics card had given up the ghost. I did eventually manage to find a very old one, but that card didn’t know what a wide screen looked like. Off to PC World where I had to buy a new motherboard, cpu, and memory to accommodate the new graphics card. At this point the hard drive crashed for the third time in as many months, so it was back again for a new drive. By the time that I had reloaded Windows and found out that the new graphics card was faulty it was nearly midnight. Fortunately I was able to use the onboard graphics controller, so I’m able to do this morning’s blog.
A much better puzzle this week from our Saturday Supremo. There is a village, but it has an indelible place in British history.
As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. Peter Biddlecombe is on holiday this week, but a full review of this puzzle will still be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 9th July.
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
After last week’s fiasco, today we have one of the best Sunday puzzles in a long time. Please Sir, can we have some more like this?
A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 3rd July.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
A disappointing Prize Puzzle from our Saturday Supremo. As long as you know the London Underground system you should have no problems today.
As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. Peter Biddlecombe’s full review of this puzzle will be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 2nd July.
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment *
I know that recycling is considered highly desirable these days, but this seems to be a step too far!
See statement by Phil McNeill, Puzzles Editor for the Telegraph Media Group, below.
A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 27th June.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Our Saturday setter shows what can be done, with the best prize puzzle for quite a while. Put the atlas away, and those books of baby names, all you need this week is to sip on a cocktail.
As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. Peter Biddlecombe’s full review of this puzzle will be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 25th June.
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Our Sunday setter shows once more how to compile a good crossword. An all round enjoyable puzzle, with some excellent surface reading.
For the weekend prize crosswords I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 19th June.
Some hints to get you started:
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
A good puzzle which, for me, was spoilt by the return of the dreaded place names. Just to make things worse, three of the four are interlinked. As I have previously remarked, if I want a General Knowledge crossword I will do the Telegraph’s excellent Giant GK puzzle. To me it’s a lazy way of filling the grid, and I always have more respect for setters that avoid them.
As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. Peter Biddlecombe’s full review of this puzzle will be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 18th June.