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Maybe one for the cruciverbalists

My friend (aged fourteen) used to visit the local pub on the way home from school (55 years ago) to do the Telegraph cryptic. He told us he rarely took fifteen minutes, and usually did it in eleven or twelve.

I took it with a pinch of salt until ten years or so after we left school I was talking to some old boys who used that pub and one asked the other remember that irritating little sod who used to come in from school and do the crossword in about ten minutes? The pub had to order two copies of the paper.
 
Bob, you could have shared the results without showing the letters.
Like this

IMG_2484.jpeg

You did not spoil my fun I did it in two this morning. The above demo I did on the iPad just now. Earlier on my phone..
Screenshot_20230825-093625_WhatsApp.jpeg
 
Phil Pascoe":1be9q1mr said:
My friend (aged fourteen) used to visit the local pub on the way home from school (55 years ago) to do the Telegraph cryptic. He told us he rarely took fifteen minutes, and usually did it in eleven or twelve.

I took it with a pinch of salt until ten years or so after we left school I was talking to some old boys who used that pub and one asked the other remember that irritating little sod who used to come in from school and do the crossword in about ten minutes? The pub had to order two copies of the paper.
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I usually knock the cryptic on the head over a couple of espressos in the morning. Todays' was a bit more tricky. Needed a third :D
 
I think my brain is wired differently, I am hopeless at anything remotely abstract.
I do the Times concise every day with her majesty. I am fine with facts.

Gutta percha ( clue was rubber like substance) nearly beat us yesterday, I left it for an hour and was fiddling around in the workshop and I suddenly remembered.
 
I do Guardian quick and cryptic (because they are free) and Telegraph cryptic (cheap online sub). Not every day though - only when in the mood. Guardian is usually quite a bit easier though both depend on the setter. Some days I am useless and only get half the clues, others I zip through. Was addicted to Sudoko when I was commuting by train to the City, and set myself timed targets based on reaching stations. Rarely do Sudoko now though.
 
RogerS":24h1yroe said:
Lurker":24h1yroe said:
....
Gutta percha ( clue was rubber like substance) nearly beat us yesterday, I...
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Or even "rubber stomach thin tea (5,6)" perhaps ? :)
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I've never heard of gutta percha (or tried either of the telegraph crosswords), but this is quite a good example of where the cryptic version can actually be easier. If you've never heard of gutta percha but you've got some crossing letters then you might spot that "Gut" (for stomach) could go in the start and "cha" (for tea) could go in the end and then you might be looking for a "?a?e?" to mean thin and that (plus a dictionary to look up gutta percha) can get you there.

The quick crossword clue "Rubber (5, 6)" is fine if you know it, but you're stuck if you don't.

We do the grauniad crossword (free online) most days (usually takes us about 1/2 hour), although we operate about a month out of date, which has the advantage that the answers are available if you eventually get stuck! Fifteensquared.net is a brilliant website for explaining cryptic clues you can't quite work out - just do a google search for "fifteensquared 26090" and it'll take you straight to explanations of all the answers for guardian crossword #26090. They don't just do guardian ones; the independent are definitely there and there may be some others as well.

We also do the weekly Tim Moorey crossword in The Week (not available online and not explained by fifteensquared.net) for a bit of variety.

In case anyone on here hasn't read it, I can wholeheartedly recommend the book by Sandy Balfour titled "Pretty Girl in Crimson Rose (8)" and subtitled "A memoir of love, exile and crosswords". A really good read, even if you've never done a cryptic crossword.
 
There is also an AI online that will give you the answers! At least I think it's an AI. Or else a team of very bright cruciverbalists.
 
RogerS":2qsepnjs said:
There is also an AI online that will give you the answers! At least I think it's an AI. Or else a team of very bright cruciverbalists.
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I haven't come across that. I've seen a few websites (with "wordplay" or something like that in their URL, if memory serves me correctly) that give you the answers but no explanation. I find them really unhelpful to be honest. By the time I've got to the end of a cryptic crossword, I usually know what all the answers are but there are sometimes one or two that I can't quite work out (or there's something that seems invalid in terms of word order or something). Fifteensquared gives a full explanation, which is very helpful (they also point out when they also think there's a mistake and sometimes the crossword setter appears in the comments with an apology!)
 
Dr.Al":1vmd3zgq said:
RogerS":1vmd3zgq said:
There is also an AI online that will give you the answers! At least I think it's an AI. Or else a team of very bright cruciverbalists.
Click to expand...

I haven't come across that. I've seen a few websites (with "wordplay" or something like that in their URL, if memory serves me correctly) that give you the answers but no explanation. I find them really unhelpful to be honest. By the time I've got to the end of a cryptic crossword, I usually know what all the answers are but there are sometimes one or two that I can't quite work out (or there's something that seems invalid in terms of word order or something). Fifteensquared gives a full explanation, which is very helpful (they also point out when they also think there's a mistake and sometimes the crossword setter appears in the comments with an apology!)
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I'm also a great fan of fifteensquared as is Steve M. Bigdave is also great for the Telegraph. Friday Toughie's are usually well above my pay grade, though. :(
 
RogerS":1mi84anx said:
Friday Toughie's are usually well above my pay grade, though. :(
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As is the Sunday Azed above mine. My other half has done a few of them, but I generally prefer crosswords where I recognise one or two of the words in the answers!
 
Have you noticed how there seems to be an undeclared competition between the setters? You can have a really odd word in crossword X and then a few days later, in crossword Y with a different clue. Almost as if it's a bit of one-upmanship.
 
Dr.Al":1ibt4dts said:
In case anyone on here hasn't read it, I can wholeheartedly recommend the book by Sandy Balfour titled "Pretty Girl in Crimson Rose (8)" and subtitled "A memoir of love, exile and crosswords". A really good read, even if you've never done a cryptic crossword.
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Rebelled. I think. Do tell me if I'm wrong.

Decent book.
 
Tiresias":1235no9f said:
Dr.Al":1235no9f said:
In case anyone on here hasn't read it, I can wholeheartedly recommend the book by Sandy Balfour titled "Pretty Girl in Crimson Rose (8)" and subtitled "A memoir of love, exile and crosswords". A really good read, even if you've never done a cryptic crossword.
Click to expand...

Rebelled. I think. Do tell me if I'm wrong.
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You're not wrong.
 
Andyp":3lgukanx said:
9fingers":3lgukanx said:
No idea how to display that?
Bob
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Go to the bar chart icon top right and select share, a few options are then available to select.
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I’d assumed that was to share stats. However when i copy and paste that into a message I can preview the post ok but get a sql error message when i try and post it?
Thanks
Bob
 
Sorry Bob, I did not give you the full process there. I am so used to doing this on a daily basis, sharing results with family members.

So.
After hitting the Stats button, I select Whats App or email then send to the family. To get the image I posted above I took a screen grab of the Whats App then edited just to show the results. HTH.
 
Wordle 1,349 4/6

⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨
⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩
⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

I have managed to got 4 today, every time when playing Wordle I take help of 5 letter tool of wordslibary.
 
Damn, looked at this to see what you were all up to, went back a couple of pages and saw a link to Roger Squires on wikithing, and discovered he's been dead for a couple of years.He was a neighbour ( girlfriend and I used to babysit for him back in the early 70s, could walk to his from her house ) he became a mate, when I lived just down the road. Lost touch with him, and a lot others when I left the UK in 87.
 
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