Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31244
Hints and Tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ****
Deansleigh is on holiday (and probably without Internet access) this week so I’m standing in for him.
Thanks to today’s setter for a very enjoyable challenge which is fairly gentle. All three of the long anagrams fell quickly based on the enumerations and a few checkers so that was a big help in completing the grid.
Continue reading “DT 31244”
Toughie No 3689 by Shabbo
Hints and tips by Whybird
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BD Rating – Difficulty */2 – Enjoyment ****
We have another excellently-clued puzzle from Shabbo today. Apart from a piece of parsing that gave me brief pause, and a piece of not-too-obscure Classical knowledge, the puzzle is very gentle. The principal issue I had was in treating Shabbo’s wonderfully constructed clues as actual crossword clues, and forcing myself to break them down into their constituents, as opposed to just taking them as statements in their own right. My favourites today, amongst many contenders, are the 1a/5a combo, 19d and 27a. Thank you (again), Shabbo, for a very enjoyable puzzle.
Please let us know how you fared and what you thought of the puzzle.
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BD Rating – Difficulty * Enjoyment ****
A damp start to the day here in Harpenden but at least it’s much needed wet stuff for the golf courses though the sun has just made a welcome appearance so hopefully not confined to barracks.
I’m pretty confident that today’s puzzle is unmistakably an Anthony Plumb production & very enjoyable it was too. By no means difficult but impeccably clued throughout with a nice mixture of clue types & the usual high quota of single letter additions or subtractions.
Plenty of ticks on my page including 6,15,19&22a + 16&23d but my favourite has to be the pun in the Quick crossword which may well prompt seeking out an old episode of Minder to watch later today. Please let us know which clues you liked best.
We also have the added treat of our old Thursday blogger over in t’other place & as ever with Shabbo the puzzle is very accessible, a light delight & highly recommended.
As usual there is a selection of music to enjoy or ignore.
In the hints below the definition element of each clue has been underlined, anagrams are CAPITALISED & the crossword technique “indicator words” are in brackets. The answers are concealed under the Click Here buttons. Please leave a comment below telling us what you thought & how you got on with the puzzle.
Hello. Here are hints and explanations for today’s Telegraph crossword. This took me a little while to complete, but if you’re the kind of solver who does the anagrams first, rather than needing to leave them till later when there are lots of crossing letters, then you can probably knock off a difficulty star.
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment *****
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BD Rating - Difficulty *** - Enjoyment ***
Hello, everyone, and welcome to a solid Friday puzzle. Continue reading "DT 31240"
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This puzzle was published on 9th May 2026
BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Greetings from Kolkata. A nice and 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 31235 (Full Review)”
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BD Rating – Toughie difficulty * – Enjoyment **/***
Pleasantly straightforward. 1a is arguably the trickiest clue but, having seen “birdwatching” used in a similar way recently, it flew in. Otherwise it will need checkers and/or some lateral thinking. A quintessentially Kcit puzzle, I’d say: all his usual traits are here and I can’t imagine (m)any problems. Still, you’ll be the judge of that! The floor is yours. Continue reading “Toughie 3687”
Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31239
Hints and Tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ****
Thanks to today’s setter for an enjoyable and reasonably gentle challenge.
Continue reading “DT 31239”