ScrewedUp News – Apr 25
Edition 17
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26/04/2009 – A new, improved, version of Codewords 1285 is now available online.
Another weekend and another screwup in the codewords. Is it really that hard to get it right?
Clue of the Week – 1
Clue of the Week
25th April – 1st May
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Results Declared!
This week I thought it would be a bit of fun to select our clue of the week.   Nominations are now in, and you can start voting.
DT Cryptic No 25912 – Hints
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25912 – Hints
Selected hints by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment *
Peter Biddlecombe’s full review of this puzzle will be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 30th April. I wish him well!
Toughie No 135
Toughie No 135 by Cephas
A puzzle that irritated more than it pleased
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment **
It’s been a while since we had a puzzle from Cephas. I found this one to have a few very good clues, but that was outweighed by the not-so-good. Particular niggles include places being clued on words like capital and wordplay which uses unimaginative constructs like inability is the opposite of ability and campaign is campaigner without the “er”. Continue reading “Toughie No 135”
DT Cryptic No 25911
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25911
Hints and tips by Libellule
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ***
Hmm, I did not think this was one of the better Friday crosswords today. However in conversation with Gazza, he seems to think it’s the most difficult one of the week. On the plus side I did learn a new slang term.
ST Cryptic No 2480 – Review
Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2480 – Review
A full analysis by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
This was the most enjoyable Sunday puzzle in a long time. It’s hard to explain how one relatively easy puzzle is more satisfying than another – it has a lot to do with the “smile factor” 
that you get when you have solved a particular clue. Continue reading “ST Cryptic No 2480 – Review”
DT Cryptic No 25906 – Review
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25906 – Review
A full analysis by Peter Biddlecombe
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
A mixed bag this one. The grid has a distinctive Telegraph style to it, with the longish answers at 12, 13, 18, 21 placed in the middle of the grid rather than at one side, and quite a few double unches. But it mostly comes up smelling of roses, with fair checking all round and very generous 80% checking for the 10-letter answers. The only niggle is that we get 12 four-letter words.
Toughie No 134
Toughie No 134 by Excalibur
Hints and tips by Tilsit
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
Greetings from the hospital again! I have quite enjoyed solving on line with the Telegraph site something I didn’t do prior to admission. Indeed my collection of 50+ pencils in their very own kidney bowl is a constant source of amusement to the nurses and worry to the Doctors, who feel I may have a touch of OCD. The fact that when I am admitted to hospital, the first thing I pack every time is my Chamber’s and Bradford’s is another worry for them too.
My initial solving reaction was that I quite enjoyed it, but as I have begun to look deeper, I find quite a few things that both trouble and irritate me.
DT Cryptic No 25910
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25910
Today’s hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
It’s St. George’s Day and Shakespeare’s birthday so the puzzle will be full of allusions to celebrations, dragons and bardic quotations, won’t it? Well no, unless you count one measly mention of a flag!
Toughie No 133
Toughie No 133 by KciT
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment ****
This is a fairly tough Toughie with a few obscure words. I liked some of the clues and disliked others, but the whole thing was certainly an enjoyable challenge.