Sunday Toughie No 52 by Robyn
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Not as tricky as the New Year’s Day Robyn, but lots to like. Very musical today with lots of earworms from The Lone Ranger, Supertramp, Hall and Oates, Elvis and any beat 21a of your choice. Shakespeare gets a couple of look-ins too. I tried to take a pic of my BD 6d without revealing too much but I see I have revealed a crossing letter. They are both hinted so San Fairy Ann.
A balanced 14a and 14d clues today. Half hinted. Hopefully, you will get enough checkers to get the rest, but if you want another nudge just ask.
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 51 by Zandio
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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A tricky little devil tonight, I was hoping that a good lie-in would help me parse the final few. I think I have mostly got it but parts of 15a elude me. I have enough to at least hint you in the right direction. There are a couple of lurkers and at least three double definitions unhinted so keep your eye out for them. I have hinted half of an even 14a 14d clues but if you have any queries just ask, someone will help.
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 50 by proXimal
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Welcome to Sunday Toughie 50. A bit of a brain mangling last night and the ensuing lie-in have put me a bit behind so I better get on with hinting half of an uneven 14a/16d clues. No booze today and even the “leaf soup” at 18a is not strong enough to refresh my brain this morning. A couple of Americanisms and a couple of “Canadianisms” too. Some trademark proXimal clues too, extraction anagrams and removal of covering letters
Here we go, Folks…
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Sunday Toughie No 49 by Robyn
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Happy New Year to all.
I found this a bit of a grind last night but maybe because my nightcap of Bunnahabhain Toiteach a Dhà (smoky too) was delayed by some noisy fireworks and tricky parsing.
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 48 by Zandio
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Here we go with the first Christmas Sunday Toughie, This is online only today, which probably cuts the audience a bit. As Gazza said in his last blog, now would be a good time to emerge from the shadows and comment. there will always be someone to answer your queries even if postprandial naps and visits from Santa Claus may delay response at times.
I found this a quite gentle toughie but some of that may be because Chris Lancaster at Telegraph Towers was good enough to provide an advance copy of this and other Christmas puzzles. I was able to solve this at my leisure. I thank him and wish him a speedy recovery from a lurgy that is going around at the DT. Thanks also to Crypticsue for liaising the early delivery of puzzles to me and other bloggers.
We have an evenly balanced 14a and 14d clues and I have hinted at half. I can’t decide if any of the unhinted clues merits a hint so will offer a bonus hint to the first lurker to ask. (my own postprandial naps permitting.)
Many thanks to Zandio, proXimal and Robyn for improving my crossword skills with the excellent Sunday Toughie series. I wish them and all the other setters, bloggers, commenters and lurkers here a very merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 47 by proXimal
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Welcome from a frosty Yorkshire, but far from the Canadian level of cold Senf is enduring.
I could have saved myself from the final tricky solves last night if I had noticed the view answers button that was available on the old website, but when I got to the tricky ones and saw it I was determined to not succumb to the temptation. This morning the new website seems to be behaving itself and I have submitted my answers as normal. I think I will revert to scanning and emailing my entry until they sort out the websites
Not a lot of Christmas in today’s clues, those Christmas fruits I don’t like make a reappearance in 27a, but the holly that lurks in 5d is not the lurker (or direction) you seek.
I guess that next weeks online toughie will be a little bit more Christmassy (and tougher) I wonder who will be setting that?
Anyway this isn’t getting the baby bathed
Here we go, Folks…
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Sunday Toughie No 46 by Robyn
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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We really need a 1a here as our boiler has just broken down, I need a 22a to keep me going. I have hinted about half of an evenly balanced 14a/14d clues and a few bonus pics as well. If there are any problems with the remainder please ask and I will try and guide you to the right solution between bouts of shivering. I hope the shivering is due to being overcaffeinated, I have swapped from a Kenyan Wanjegi to a Brazilian Single origin but wonder if the capital city we need for 24d produces coffee.
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 45 by Zandio
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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I found this quite tricky last night, but sitting here and parsing it I don’t know why (I do now – I cannot spot an &lit for toffee). Zandio brings us a nice even 14a and 14d clues and I have hinted half (with a few bonus picture hints along the way)
Here we go…
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Sunday Toughie No 44 by proXimal
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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It is Mama Bee’s 86th birthday today so I may be a bit tardy in responding to comments, as we are taking her out for afternoon tea at (where else) Betty’s.
I was expecting a Zandio today but instead, we have a proXimal, maybe he wanted to give 5d an airing before he disappears into the political wilderness again. A broad stripe from top left to the bottom right came quite quickly but the other corners exercised the grey matter a bit more. Christmas rears its head a couple of times as do our near neighbours across the channel, but the city of Paris refers to the location of the mythological soldier who gave his name to the French capital.
Here we go, Folks…
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Sunday Toughie No 43 by Robyn
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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I found this at the difficult end of the Toughie spectrum, equivalent to a Thursday or maybe Friday Toughie rather than the somewhat gentler Tuesday level that Zandio says Mr Ed. is aiming for. I needed my dictionary for a couple of obscurities, (if the unit of magnetic field strength was the first thing to mind you are a better cruciverbalist than I)
When the long down clues revealed themselves I picked up the pace a little but it was still a bit of a grind (rather like an 8d innings!) With 20d I have a definition and an answer but the wordplay eludes me, any ideas?
Anyway, this isn’t getting the baby bathed.
Here we go…
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