Daily Telegraph – Page 894 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

DT 26325

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26325

A full review by Gnomethang

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

Afternoon All!. There seemed to be an awful lot of heads and tails being cut off in this puzzle which may have made it easier for some. I personally thought that a couple of the Cryptic Definitions were a tad weak but as usual from Cephas there were a few charades that were not so easy. On the whole I found this as enjoyable as ever. I selected 3 stars for difficulty based on my head-scratching whilst mopping up the last few.
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DT 26329

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26329

It’s all Greek to me!

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment ***

A Greek (and Latin) influence in several of the across clues today. This puzzle, by one of our mystery setters, contains a number of hoary old chestnuts – but they are bound to be new to some!

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

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Toughie 412

Toughie No 412 by Osmosis

Less is More

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

Although I do enjoy doing Osmosis puzzles, I think that his trademark type of clue, where the answer has to be built from lots of small bits with single letters being either added or removed, can be a bit overdone. What do you think? Tell us in a comment, and please remember to click on one of the stars at the bottom to show much you enjoyed it.

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DT 26328

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26328

Hints and tips by Crypticsue

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment ****

Our setters are giving us some very enjoyable puzzles so far this week. Today Jay has given us some great clues and, in my opinion, just the right amount of anagrams, including some of those part-anagram, part-something-else clues. Didn’t take too long to solve but still great fun – ideal for when you are supposed to be getting on with the day job!!

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

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Toughie 411

Toughie No 411 by Warbler

Warble a happy tune!

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment ****

OK, it’s a corny subheading but I couldn’t think of anything else!  Give me something better and I’ll change it.

A straightforward but pleasurable puzzle from Warbler today. About on a level with today’s regular cryptic in terms of difficulty (but only warranting two difficulty stars as it’s a Toughie). I understand some entered a musical note at 27a, a trap I didn’t fall into as I already had 20d.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

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DT 26327

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26327

Hints and tips by Gazza

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ****

I’m confused (nothing new there you’re probably thinking!) – Since we had a Ray T puzzle last week it should be a Shamus puzzle today if the usual pattern is being maintained. However, some of the clues have a Ray T feel, and even though not all the answers are single words the Quick Crossword definitely looks as if it’s a Ray T production. Whoever the setter is, he (or she) has given us an entertaining puzzle today with a good mixture of clues, including a few easy ones to get you started. Let us know what you think of it in a comment.
If you want to see an answer, highlight the space between the brackets on the line under the relevant clue.

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DT 26326

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26326

Hints and tips by Libellule

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BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ***

Classic Rufus today, although 7d seems to raise a few questions about anagram indicators, placement and fodder.

If you are struggling to work out what the answer is from the hint, just highlight the space between the curly brackets.

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DT 26325 (Hints)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26325 (Hints)

Big Dave’s Saturday Crossword Club

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As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them.

Don’t forget that you can give your assessment of the puzzle. Five stars if you thought it was great, one if you hated it, four, three or two if it was somewhere in between.

A full review of this puzzle will be published on Thursday, 26th August.

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Toughie 410

Toughie No 410 by Micawber

Hints and tips by Bufo

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BD Rating – Difficulty ****Enjoyment ****

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It was a real toughie but very accessible. The clues were all perfectly fair and I could understand them all after a little thought.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

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DT 26324

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26324

Hints and Tips by Gazza

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ****

A pleasant, gentle stroll from Giovanni today should please the Clueless Club. I wavered between two and three stars for difficulty, but I had no doubt about the four stars for entertainment because it has many enjoyable and amusing clues. Let us know what you thought of it by leaving a comment.
If, in spite of the hints, you still need to see an answer, just highlight the space between the brackets under the relevant clue.

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