Toughie No 656 by Excalibur
Bob’s Your Uncle
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
Well, there’s one example of a weird surface (22a) and a couple of cryptic definitions which don’t work very well in my opinion, but on the whole I thought this one was pretty reasonable if not too stimulating. It’s not terribly difficult – I completed three-quarters of it in almost record time but then slowed down in the NW corner, so I think this setter definitely belongs to Tuesdays rather than Wednesdays (Puzzles Editor please note) – perhaps a swap with Beam would be in order? 
Let us know how you got on and please take the time to record your enjoyment of it by clicking on one of the stars below.
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Toughie No 635 by Excalibur
Don’t blame the messenger!
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment *
Same old grid, same old clues, same old …….
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Toughie No 616 by Excalibur
Rubber Chicken’s on The Menu
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
What a difference 24 hours makes. Yesterday I had a superb cryptic puzzle to blog and today I have a Toughie which (how can I say this without offending?) lacks sparkle. You may agree or you may have found it dazzling and stimulating – in either case give us your view in a comment.
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Toughie No 596 by Excalibur
C’est la Vie
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment **
This was a game of two halves for me, with the bottom half going in fairly quickly but the top half holding out for some time. Excalibur’s puzzles tend to polarise opinions – although this one has some clues which I don’t like much (15a and 23a, for example) others are fine.
Let us know your views on the puzzle and please remember to click on one of the stars below to indicate your enjoyment factor.
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Toughie No 581 by Excalibur
Hints and tips by Bufo
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
Although I had no problem solving this one or understanding how the clues worked, I felt there were quite a number of weak clues that detracted from the enjoyment.
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Toughie No 563 by Excalibur
What Do You Think of it So Far?
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment *
Same old same old.
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Toughie No 547 by Excalibur
An analysis of the wordplay
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment *
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Toughie No 525 by Excalibur
Hints and tips by Bufo
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
BD apologised when he sent me this Excalibur puzzle to blog but, in fact, I didn’t find it too bad. I didn’t care for some of the definitions used and I could nitpick and find fault with several of the clues. But overall I thought it was fair enough
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Toughie No 509 by Excalibur
Hints and tips by Bufo
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BD Rating – Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment **
I found this a real struggle especially down the left-hand side. In the end I gave up with two clues to go and consulted the oracle (i.e. BD). Because of the problems I had I feel obliged to give it 5 stars for difficulty. But it wasn’t a very satisfying solve and I think I’m probably being generous in giving it 2 stars for enjoyment.
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Toughie No 491 by Excalibur
If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment *
I leave you to give your own opinions on this puzzle – you know mine!
Continue reading “Toughie 491”