Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
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BD Rating – Toughie difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Typically sharp but fair definitions from Dharma with some knotty wordplay. For some reason, I found this slightly harder to break into than usual but once the top fell, it was a brisk-ish solve. All yours.
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BD Rating – Difficulty 2.5* – Enjoyment 4.5*
A very good Thursday morning from Winnipeg where with rising day time temperatures but below zero overnight temperatures we are getting into freeze-thaw cycles.
For me, etc© (I have to say that for Terence), the Master of Brevity has given us a very enjoyable puzzle. The usual one word clues and answers in the Quickie, but only the sweetheart appearing in the back pager with an average of 5.27 words per clue. I hope you have your Crimson Tomes at hand!
Remember that Reading the Hints before commenting can be beneficial!
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty ***/**** – Enjoyment ***
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** Enjoyment ****
Good morning everyone, and welcome to the Wednesday blog. I found today’s puzzle to be quite tricky, but that may have been because I was still half asleep when I started solving it! A couple of the answers were new to me, and several clues took me a while to parse, pushing my solving time into 3* territory. There were plenty of concise and elegant clues and I found it difficult to pick a winner. I particularly liked the podgy husband in 27a, the binge session in 1d and the tipsy Democrat in 16d, but my favourite today is the naked Beatle in 13a. Many thanks to today’s setter. Continue reading “DT 31160”
Sunday Toughie No 210 by proXimal
Review by
Sloop John Bee
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This puzzle was published on the 1st February 2026
Sorry it’s a bit late, I thought I scheduled this with the other BB puzzles
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This puzzle was published on 1st February 2026
BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Greetings from Kolkata. A slightly tough but intelligible puzzle from Dada this Sunday that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a full review of the puzzle for your meticulous perusal and valuable feedback. Continue reading “ST 3354 (Full Review)”
Toughie No 3633 by Shabbo
Hints and tips by Whybird
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment *****
Warm wishes from a damp, grey Wirral!
We have a wonderful puzzle from Shabbo today – Floughie it ain’t, but equally there is no obscure GK or archaic vocabulary required. With the possible exception of 26a, the toughness arises mainly from the very cleverly constructed clues, all with very smooth surfaces. Many of them are set up so they look like they should be solved one way, which turns out to be a dead end, but then turns out to be “clearly” something entirely different. And all done with a remarkable economy of words, too.
I struggled to get going, eventually getting a foothold with 23a, and then worked from SE to NW as the respective pennies went clunk. 1a gets my top spot today, as well as being my last one in, but there are too many other very good clues to list – smiles all over the age today.
Thank you, Shabbo, for an excellent challenge.
Please let us know how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
I have a short break from the Blog for the next couple of weeks whilst I have a tour around India trying to see, but avoid being eaten and/or trampled by, various large felines, canines, reptiles and herbivores. You will have the pleasure of Gazza on a Tuesday for the rest of the month, so thanks to him for stepping into the breach.
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment *****
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BD Rating - Difficulty **** - Enjoyment ***
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Friday. Continue reading "DT 31156"
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This puzzle was published on 31st January 2026
BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Greetings from Kolkata. A lovely straightforward Saturday puzzle from the setter that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a review of the same for your kind perusal and significant feedback. Continue reading “DT 31151 (Full Review)”