Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25883
Today’s hints and tips by Tilsit
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***
Tilsit joins us for the first time today. As I mentioned on Saturday, he will already be known to avid followers of fifteensquared, and his credentials include answering questions on Crosswords, as his specialist subject, on Mastermind. The standard DT Cyptic should be very easy for someone like him, but he faces sterner stuff when he does battle with a Toughie later in the week. BD
Thanks to Big Dave for his introduction. I hope these blogs live up to the high standard that he and the rest of the gang have set. Because of my other activities within the crossword world, I often get requests from solvers about the best way to start solving cryptic puzzles and my answer is invariably the same. Start with Monday’s Telegraph and Guardian puzzles, you rarely go wrong.  That’s because they are usually set by one of the doyens of the black and white squares – Roger Squires. Roger (aka Rufus in the Graun) provides some of the most accessible and solver-friendly puzzles and amongst his talents, he is a master of a type of clue known as the Cryptic Definition, of which there are a few in this puzzle.
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25883”
ScrewedUp News – Mar 22
Edition 12
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A small milestone – this is the 100th post on this blog!!
Mar 23 – Quick No 43 put in an appearance some time during today, and GK 853 was declared void – see the comments below.
What has happened to today’s Quick Crossword – No 43? Vanished without trace!!
It also seems that there is a problem in the newspaper with the grid for GK 853. You can download the online grid here: Continue reading “ScrewedUp News – Mar 22”
Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2476
Selected hints by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
After a bit of light relief last Sunday, we are back with a hardish crossword. However, the improvement in the Sunday puzzles continues as there are no tenuous clues.
For the weekend prize crosswords I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Thursday, March 26th.
Some hints to get you started: Continue reading “ST Cryptic No 2476 – Hints”
ScrewedUp News – Mar 21
Edition 11
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Mar 23 – I’m not sure when it happened, but Codewords No 1255 has now been updated, as usual it now has a completely different set of numbers.
It’s Saturday again, so it’s time for another edition of ScrewedUp News!!
If you try to access the Giant GK crossword No 12254 through the home page then, guess what? – yes, you get last week’s. You need to access it via one of the other pages, like “Play Puzzles”.
Also there are errors in GK Quick No 87 and Codewords No 1255:
Continue reading “ScrewedUp News – Mar 21”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25882
Selected hints by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Nothing too obscure this Saturday, just a good honest prize puzzle. The usual few hints to get you started.
We will get Peter Biddlecombe’s view on this puzzle, and on the “cornery” grid that has been used, in his full review – to be published at 12.00 on Thursday, 26th March.
Next Monday a new reviewer joins the team. Tilsit will already be known to avid followers of fifteensquared, and his credentials include answering questions on Crosswords, as his specialist subject, on Mastermind.
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25882 – Hints”
Toughie No 115 by Campbell
A good mix of easy and hard clues for this Toughie
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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ****
This was a pleasant enjoyable puzzle which was a little above the average difficulty for a Toughie . The usual Toughie mix of familiar and unfamiliar words, with a smile or two along the way!
Continue reading “Toughie No 115”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25881
Hints and tips by Libellule
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Another enjoyable Friday crossword, a good mix of clue types, and complexity along with one new word for me.
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Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25881”
Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2475 – Review
A full analysis by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ****
The Sunday puzzle has improved significantly over the last two or three weeks. This one was not as difficult as some of the earlier ones due, in part, to the noticeable lack of contentious clues.
Continue reading “ST Cryptic No 2475 – Review”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 25876 – Review
A full analysis by Peter Biddlecombe
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
For me, this was rather a disappointing puzzle. I’m not mad keen on the grid, with some 7-letter answers with only 3 letters checked, though some others have 5 checked letters. And like some other DT grids, it’s all short words – the longest entry is 9 letters. It does have a good side – the shortest answer is 6 letters so we get a day off from ERATO and tricky little 4-letter words.
Continue reading “DT Cryptic No 25876 – Review”
Toughie No 114 by Osmosis
Pleasant Toughie of average difficulty
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
This was a pleasant enjoyable puzzle of average Toughie difficulty. If you can do the regular Daily Cryptic then you ought to be able to do this one, but it will probably take a liitle longer.
Continue reading “Toughie No 114”