Sunday Times 4364

[bamberger]

Not a request for any answers , but just to ask if this is is really hard . I've spend 30 mins and only solved one anagram and have seen the answer on here to 21a which seems hard in that you have to know or look up who Ralph Nickleby's son is, then make an anagram out of it and then add another letter on.

[mikey4444]

The Sunday Times was never easy but it is much more difficult than it used to be because the setter uses such convoluted clues. Every week there are a few which defy any logic to solve.

But look at 14d and 23a, both anagrams !

[ashmckee]

And 13a? I can only think of duellist?

[kayakamina]

Yes DUE +L + LIST

[Jumbuck]

ashmckee 13a you're correct = due + l + list

[ashmckee]

But how does 'he demand satisfaction'?

[mikey4444]

Because a duel normally arises from some body demanding "satisfaction" after an insult.

[welshbrie]

Finished it, but took longer than normal. Different setter?

[MarkRae]

Lots of anagrams today... 24a (chart a MO), 26a (spasm he I) etc...

[bamberger]

24a is another example of what I find difficult - it is not simply spotting an anagram but it is also spotting that doctor =mo and not mb ,dr or any other possibility.

[Jumbuck]

But all those possibilities for doctor have been around for ages...

4364 seemed fairly average so perhaps you should look for something simpler if it's too difficult.

[MarkRae]

Yep. Apart from a total senior moment with 18d, I thought it was around the usual level of difficulty today.

I usually find the Sunday cryptic quite a lot easier than the Saturday one(s)...

[bathtub]

It's no more difficult than usual this week. The main problem with the ST cryptic is errors. It's plagued by poor (or non-existent) checking.