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Diabolically Arcane

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Cold Case Crack'd

15 December, 2012

Midweek we applied our wits to an old murder mystery. A body found on Somerton Beach in Adelaide had the alias, Taman (or Tamam) Shud. This is Sanskrit for ‘it is finished’, owing to the victim’s tampered copy of The Rubbiayat, where those words were missing.

Also on his person were letter strings with no apparent meaning. It was all very odd, a paradise for conspiracists, but now our own Storm is tamam shud, with a few notable mentions, and one clear winner. The notables

WRGOABABD: Wear red gown on a bed and breakfast date [Em, using props]

WRGOABABD: With regrettable grief over a bloody awful business deal [Grimmer alternative from AC]

WTBIMPANETP: With the best intentions, my plans are now ending too prematurely [Brilliant theory from CL]

But the winner of the Puzzles & Words could only be the evergreen inventor, SK, owing to a suite of anti-Adelaide propaganda that warrants showcasing in toto:

WRGOABABD: Wife regularly goes on about bloody Adelaide being dreary

MLIAOI: My life in Adelaide’s occasionally interesting (crossed out….changed mind)

WTBIMPANETP: While the blokes in Melbourne party, Adelaide never ever takes part

MLIABOAIAQC: My Lord, in any bloke’s opinion Adelaide is a quiet city

ITTMTSAMSTGAB: I thought that moving to South Australia might stem the gloom and boredom

Kudos to all cryptologists. I shall submit your eurekas to Federal Police and let’s split the reward. More fun next week, in some shape or form.

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If you missed my riddle chat with Richard Fidler, then feel free to slurp the podcast at http://ab.co/1I9t1x5

Text-speak is creeping into Scrabble. Where do you sit?
OBVS I'm fine with it
Entrenched stuff - like LOL and OMG - but no more.
Words With Friends, maybe. Scrabble, no
Let the 'real' dictionaries decide first
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