Putting the words to lights – crossword clues explained in plain English
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You have reached the world’s biggest and best crossword blog. If you are looking for help with the Daily and Sunday Telegraph cryptic crosswords or the Enigmatic Variations advanced cryptic, a total of 13 puzzles a week, then you have come to the right place.
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Toughie No 3777 by Dada
Hints and tips by Whybird
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BD Rating – Difficulty **/*** – Enjoyment ****
Welcome to a grey and damp Wirral. Dead calm, but that just means the drizzle isn’t going anywhere fast.… Continue reading
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BD Rating – Difficulty */** Enjoyment ***/****
A miserable, damp & somewhat chilly morning here in Harpenden so no excuses for not attending to neglected domestic chores.
Not sure if it was just me being slower on the uptake than normal but I found this one maybe a tad trickier than usual for a Tuesday & a slower grid fill than Heron’s puzzle yesterday. Unmistakably an Anthony Plumb production with all the usual characteristics of his setting style & a very enjoyable solve it was too. I’m far from confident that I’ve pegged the Quickie pun correctly – Jonathan Ross issuing advice to the remedial English Lit class is the best I can come up with. As ever I’ll be interested to hear what others make of the puzzle.
Dada is on duty over in t’other place & though I’ve only glanced at it briefly it looks reasonably accessible (late correction – first appearances can be deceptive 🤔). Tuesday Toughies are usually the day to dip your toes into deeper waters if looking for a further challenge but today’s is challenging. Whybird will be delighted to hear your thoughts.
As usual there is a selection of music to enjoy or ignore. Apologies if I’ve gone overboard a bit.
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 again. Falcon will be back blogging next week.
I’m looking forward to meeting our regular Monday setters Heron and Weatherman at the Sloggers & Betters event (it’s a Spoonerism) in York next weekend. Is today’s Telegraph Crossword by one of them? It’s hard to say, not least because I’m writing this introduction on Sunday evening, before having seen the puzzle.
The sixth Sunday Toughie from Silvanus was a pleasure to solve, but I am going to have to rush this blog a bit as I am going to the Ilkley Literary Festival to a talk about a crossword-related crime mystery that Smylers mentioned on Monday
I will add nudges and comments afterwards
Here we go…
Enigmatic Variations 1769 (Hints)
DAY JOB by ARTIX
Hints and tips by Gabriel
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AI is getting good. Very very good. Claude took about 30 seconds to figure out the theme and most of the clues.… Continue reading
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A very good Sunday morning from Winnipeg where, on some mornings this week, the mercury has started dipping below zero!
For me, and I stress for me,© Dada about the friendliest he gets again. Some guessing required and an unindicated German word. Five anagrams (no partials), two lurkers (not hinted, so don’t forget the ‘if all else fails look for . . .’, and one homophone, all in a symmetric not great value for money 26 clues; with 13 hints ‘sprinkled’ throughout the grid, all BRB verified where necessary, you should/might be able to get some of the checkers to enable the solving of the unhinted clues. I hope you have your Crimson Tomes at hand! You might even need your favourite e-search ‘assistant’!
Remember that Reading the Hints before commenting can be beneficial!
If it is some time since you read, or if you have never read the instructions in RED below the hints then please consider doing so before commenting today as my electronic blue pencil is at the ready and the Naughty Step is OPEN!
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty ***** – Enjoyment *****
I read all the clues; I wrote in the solution to 25d and then I stared at the rest of the clues for what seemed like ages before slowly and surely the grid began to fill. Although this was a proper Elgar Toughie, it wasn’t as difficult as I first thought it might be
