Toughie No 135 by Cephas
A puzzle that irritated more than it pleased
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25911
Hints and tips by Libellule
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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.
• Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25911”
Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2480 – Review
A full analysis by Big Dave
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25906 – Review
A full analysis by Peter Biddlecombe
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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.
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25906 – Review”
Toughie No 134 by Excalibur
Hints and tips by Tilsit
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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.
Continue reading “Toughie No 134”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25910
Today’s hints and tips by Gazza
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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!
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25910”
Toughie No 133 by KciT
Hints and tips by Gazza
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
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.
Continue reading “Toughie No 133”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25909
Hints and tips by Big Dave
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ***
A very straightforward puzzle that I found quite hard, but on looking back I can’t see why. Maybe too much vino yesterday!
•
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25909”
Toughie No 132 by Shamus
A Potpourri of a Puzzle
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
This puzzle draws on a wide variety of words – two cities, a Scottish town, a Shetland fire festival, food and drink, a lake, an American President and a type of railway. All of the proper nouns are well-known apart from the fire festival, but I enjoyed reading about it.
Today is the big day when I am entitled to collect my pension, so it is a bit hectic here at the moment! The hints and tips may take a litle while to complete, but I will get them done.
Continue reading “Toughie No 132”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25908
Today’s hints and tips by Gazza
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
This is another fine Tuesday crossword, made up entirely of single-word answers. It contains some excellent and amusing clues and a number of clever attempts at misdirection. For those readers who have not read BigDave’s excellent FAQs, note that the white space between the curly brackets actually contains the answer – double-click on it and all will be revealed!
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25908”