The official bored-at-work cryptic crossword pass it on thread.

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yes

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Monday, 26 February 2007 23:57 (seventeen years ago) link

point coldly to island (6)

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 18:37 (seventeen years ago) link

Sicily

― ailsa, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 18:49 (seventeen years ago) link

No one ever got this one from the sandbox:

Bag lady complains about her naughty bits (7)

----a--

― jaymc, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 18:54 (seventeen years ago) link

I wanna say versace, but I don't quite get it.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 19:58 (seventeen years ago) link

Nope...

----a-t

― jaymc, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:00 (seventeen years ago) link

stewart?

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:11 (seventeen years ago) link

lol vagrant

― onimo, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:45 (seventeen years ago) link

Onimo's right. :)

― jaymc, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:46 (seventeen years ago) link

dang! I thought of that but couldn't see how it worked until now

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:50 (seventeen years ago) link

i'm in on nothing, gerry! (5)

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 20:56 (seventeen years ago) link

crummy kids are Superman's cousins? (6,3,6)
bone mask (6)
-a---- --- -r--e-
-o--n-

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 21:01 (seventeen years ago) link

The second one's domino

(also, yeah, lol at vagrant - I was trying to make other rude words fit in there)

― ailsa, Tuesday, 27 February 2007 21:06 (seventeen years ago) link

yup. more letters for first one:
-a---l --- -r--e-

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 04:35 (seventeen years ago) link

(I think this is gonna be the one that finally gets me kicked off the thread)

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 04:37 (seventeen years ago) link

OK, it's Hansel and Gretel, I think, but I'm only part-way to working out why - please explain properly?

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 09:05 (seventeen years ago) link

oh god. awful! ;)

― Archel, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 09:06 (seventeen years ago) link

it has to do with Superman's name back on planet Krypton

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 12:08 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh good Lord, that is horrible! I got it from the crummy kids bit after playing around with what would fit in the spaces for a while.

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 12:25 (seventeen years ago) link

Good thing I am hiding behind this mysterious screenname ;)

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:29 (seventeen years ago) link

HA KEN-EL WE CAN SEE YOU IN THERE!

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:39 (seventeen years ago) link

I think you lot are all staggering genuises! I've never done cryptic crosswords, just never encountered them really but I'd like to try and give them a go. Can any of you recommend any of those "cracking cryptic crosswords" books? There's a whole load on Amazon if you follow the link below:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0550100539/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_cart_f/026-2542814-1547635

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:39 (seventeen years ago) link

I've never read a book about it ever, it's just something I've picked up over the years. This thread's probably not a bad way to start, since a lot of the answers are explained by the solver.

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:43 (seventeen years ago) link

Might have a punt on this one

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:44 (seventeen years ago) link

Yeah, most people learn by doing - but I got a few puzzles from a book and spent two weeks staring at them in utter confusion so I think I need some help... because I am SINGLE you see and thus have NO-ONE to PORE over CROSSWORDS with in the MORNING haha :) The book above says it comes with lots of examples and explained answers.

i got a grant total of TWO CLUES throughout that fortnight! Admittedly when I got them it was the best feeling ever!

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:46 (seventeen years ago) link

I am MARRIED to a chump that can't (or rather, can't be bothered to) do crosswords! This is WHY I HAVE ILE! AND FRIENDS! A WINNER IS ME!

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 13:51 (seventeen years ago) link

OK! I'm definitely going to get the book. Now I need stuff to qualify for super saver delivery! Of course I do. Suggest something for me! I have crosswords and "new york tendaberry" so far!

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:01 (seventeen years ago) link

Ha, the way I started was I bought earlier versions of the how-to Chambers and Telegraph books at Heathrow on the way back to States and started doing the Telegraph puzzles while we were delayed on the tarmac.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:08 (seventeen years ago) link

which means that book and its puzzles must have been pretty easy if a Septic like me could get it right away

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:20 (seventeen years ago) link

Because, as I may have said before, I''ve really gotta struggle to do the puzzles in the FT or the Times of London, and pretty much stick to the slim pickings of puzzles in American English.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:24 (seventeen years ago) link

Anyway, somebody give us a clue, please!

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:27 (seventeen years ago) link

and not a crummy one

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 14:44 (seventeen years ago) link

Witty banter becomes stale in time (8)

― ledge, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 15:42 (seventeen years ago) link

badinage!

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 15:48 (seventeen years ago) link

HOW did you get that! Explain for a thicko please :(

I was thinking ok, so you put the word "stale" inside the word "time" and get something like "witty banter"?!

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 15:49 (seventeen years ago) link

"stale in time" = "bad in age".

There's a great book by Henry Ravthon and Emily Cox that explains the idea to American types and has a bunch of their puzzles, easier ones and harder ones. They make some of the best puzzles in the US (regular style as well -- actually they made my favorite regular crossword evah!).

― Casuistry, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:10 (seventeen years ago) link

Sarah, that's why it's a good clue, because there's a couple of ways to approach it and it's not immediately obvious - your approach is also a good one, and one that's used a lot.

― ailsa, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:14 (seventeen years ago) link

Yeah, I got that Cox and Rathvon book and the Games Magazine cryptic book (I wonder if this still exist?) too.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:22 (seventeen years ago) link

What a nerd, scraping away at them books, when I should have been out parading!

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:26 (seventeen years ago) link

I was going to get one from Amazon but have decided I will just go to WH Smiths tomorrow instead and get something to try and tackle the Gruan. HOWEVER, there's another book on Amazon which says that the Gruan is especially distinctive so perhaps I'll start getting the Telegraph instead...

― Sarah, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:26 (seventeen years ago) link

Yeah, I had seen cryptic crosswords a couple of times, but they seemed so baffling that I never bothered until this thread made me curious.

― jaymc, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 16:46 (seventeen years ago) link

jaymc, you are exactly the person the Cox/Rathvon book is for

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 28 February 2007 17:33 (seventeen years ago) link

They mention you on pages 7-9 and in a footnote on page 68.

― Casuistry, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:16 (seventeen years ago) link

Awesome!

― jaymc, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:50 (seventeen years ago) link

page 68- it reminded me of you!

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:05 (seventeen years ago) link

People who spend a lot of time in pubs vomit untruths (8)

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:06 (seventeen years ago) link

I don't know - but yesterday i bought "how to solve cryptic crosswords" by Kevin Skinner so WISH ME LUCK.

Drunkzzz?

― Sarah, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:08 (seventeen years ago) link

Barflies

― jaymc, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:11 (seventeen years ago) link

Oooooohhhh so easy when you know the answer!

― ledge, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:31 (seventeen years ago) link

(not sure this works but)

Sounds like Dad's scared of Spanish rice (6)

― onimo, Friday, 2 March 2007 14:57 (seventeen years ago) link

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