Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26142
Personal Demons
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
A reasonably enjoyable stroll from our Wednesday Wizard today with nothing terribly taxing to cause grief or stress. However a few of my personal bête noires appear in today’s grid, which causes me a little irritation. I’m not keen on clues using “artificial or contrived names” and there are a couple here today, but otherwise it’s a pleasant solve. Likewise I think the clue at 17 across has the definition and indications being too close.
For our new visitors, the answer to each clue is hidden between the curly brackets – just drag your cursor through the white space and highlight it between the brackets to reveal it.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26136
Hints and tips by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Although I found this a bit on the easy side, it was nevertheless a very enjoyable puzzle – presumably from Jay, our newly installed Wednesday Wizard.
If you were wondering where Tilsit is today, he’s taking a short break in Amsterdam. According to his Facebook entry, last night he stuffed his face with a fab Italian meal and is now chilling with coffee and crosswords.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26130
Hints and tips by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
Tilsit has gone back to see the nurses again, so I am doing today’s review. An enjoyable puzzle where all of the answers are fair and obtainable with a little thought.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26124
Winding Up or Down the Year
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
Another gentle wind-down towards year’s end in keeping with the recent run of daily puzzles, which seem to be finding a good level for solvers. I am sure that most of the regulars will find this acceptable. There were a few really nice clues, but a couple of weak ones. These seem again to be the cryptic definitions.
If I have one wish for this particular puzzle in 2010, it’s that our setters will not try to outdo each other by trying to come up with smarter and smarter cryptic definitions. A good cryptic definition will come naturally and push all the right buttons, but I believe that far too many are forced and demonstrate a lack of adventure and thought on the part of the setter.
If you have finished this, and have a little time to spare, try these two challenges from the Guardian of the past two days by Giovanni and Elgar respectively. Both extremely enjoyable!
http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/12/22/gdn.cryptic.20091229.pdf
http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/12/22/gdn.cryptic.20091230.pdf
Rant over. Can I take this opportunity to wish you all a happy and challenging New Year and thanks to everyone for their kind comments and messages during 2009. See you next year!
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26119
All Puzzled Out!
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
Christmas is always a crossword fan’s dream. Lots and lots of special puzzles around and I currently have 14 waiting to be solved from last weekend. Many of them are Jumbos and barred puzzles with a theme and take a lot longer.
Of course the dailies still run on, and not many have a theme, especially here in the Telegraph. So in effect they provide a little light relief from the festive challenges. This was an OK puzzle, but didn’t really hit the heights for me and it was difficult to guess who the setter was there were no clues to really help me identify them.
One of my (admittedly small) grumbles today is with the cryptic definition at 7 down. I am a reasonably PC person and have to admit to being surprised to see that clue in the Telegraph, rather like yesterday’s CRINOLINE clue. Quite a lot of you will probably find it hilarious, but it isn’t my cup of coffee (I can’t stand tea!). Not keen on the use of “number” to indicate Personal Identification Number in 19 either. However it passed a pleasant few minutes and there wasn’t a lot to trouble me in there today.
Incidentally, if you want a cracking Christmas challenge, try Araucaria’s Christmas Cracker, which can be found here. Read that preamble carefully and get thinking!
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26113
How do you like your curate’s eggs in a morning?
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
Greetings from the Calder Valley. A curate’s egg of a puzzle today, nice in parts but in others… One or two clever clues, but a couple of the definitions were of the “hits the target but not the bullseye” sort; 17 down. for example. My other grumble is the use of almost similar words in 2d and 9 across. This is just laziness by the setter and could fairly easily have been altered.
Feel free to have your say after the blog, and mark the puzzle using the star system. New posters are always welcomed, but you may have to wait a little for your first post to appear as it has to be moderated, to ensure no silly spammers get through peddling their rubbish.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26107
Hints and tips by Tilsit
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Not the hardest puzzle in the world, but a good example of how you can make a puzzle enjoyable with good fair cluing and good accurate surface reading.
My favourite clue is 5 down, followed by 26 across. It is also refreshing to see the cryptic definition used prudently rather than overdone to death.
Thanks for an enjoyable puzzle, and I hope you find it fun too!
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26101
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
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BD Rating – Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment ***
Tilsit escaped from the Calderdale Colditz this morning and should be back with you tomorrow.
Surely no one other than Elgar could have set this puzzle [I was wrong, this is not by Elgar]. I found it to be a mix of good and bad clues, some of which seem out of place in a daily cryptic. I’m sure you will all have your favourites and your pet hates. Personally I did today’s Toughie in about half of the time I spent on this one.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26095
Let’s all play Charades!
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
Tilsit would rather go back to see the lovely nurses in the Calderdale Royal Hospital than do today’s puzzle, and I don’t blame him. It was very easy and the newer solvers should enjoy finishing it. For the rest of us it offered very little.
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Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26089
Hints and tips by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Tilsit is unable to review today’s puzzle, but he will be back here tomorrow with the Toughie.
When I solved this crossword I quite enjoyed it, but once I sat down to analyse the wordplay I must admit to being less than impressed with a few of the clues. For example most setters try not to use the same indicator twice in a puzzle but here we have “up”, a dubious anagram indicator at the best of times, in two of the across clues.
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