Times Cryptic 29276

79 comments on “Times Cryptic 29276”

1. 16:01, with the upper-left corner holding me up the longest. Yes, I felt the puzzle was not too strenuous, but I did not notice how samey the clue patterns were. Thank you for pointing that out! (And for parsing COMMITTING!)

2. 20 on the dot. Held up by, among other things, assuming I was looking for a Scottish word, which of course struck fear into my heart. Luckily only left ARTHRITIC in for about 30 seconds before realising it was wrong. SEIGNEUR and such have been top of mind since Kingdom Come: Deliverance II came out, although I haven’t encountered the word itself in the game yet (‘burghers’, on the other hand…).

   Quite a lot of unknown knowledge for me here, including EQUESTRIENNE (NHO), DONATORY (NHO), SENNA (only heard of the driver!). BEBOPPER certainly my biggest double-take, as I am very familiar with bebop as a (famously not very danceable) jazz genre.

   Thanks all!

   1. Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band (Aussie skiffle band) had a song about a bushranger (outlaw) who was ‘always on the run, with senna pods in his damper (bread) and licorice in his tea’.

   2. Indeed, a web search turned up jazztree referring to bebop as turning away from previous dance-friendly styles.
      I biffed this and searched later, as my interest in jazz starts and ends in the New Orleans 30s and 40s.

3. Around 50 minutes I was able to parse most as I did them. I didn’t notice the definitions at the beginning but I did see the definition fairly quickly and I had constant solving pace.
   Thanks Jack

4. 21:50
   DONATORY was new to me (not in ODE); it doesn’t look like it should mean recipient. Evidently, MUSCOVADO wasn’t new to me, as I biffed it, only parsing it later. DNK BAIL.

5. All very straightforward today, bar for a couple of NHOs but which had helpful wordplay. SEIGNEUR was the first and DONATORY the other. Having looked up the latter it seems it is Scottish legal as you say. EQUESTRIENNE was a bit of an IKEA clue but I liked it. Liked the triple definition BASH and BAILS. I can never remember MUSCOVADO. Jack, I think in BEBOPPER the PP is from ‘pages’ as two are required.
   Thanks Jack and setter.

   1. Thanks. I made a pont of correcting that on my marked up printout but then wrote the blog without referring to it!

6. 34:08 for a clean solve.

   I had heard of SEIGNEUR as droite de seigneur is a plot device in Braveheart. Was held up by DEBAUCHERY, as I had the HE attached to the wrong E. LOI GOBI.

   I’m ok with elicit sounding like illicit, it’s just an unaccented schwa at the start. Is an EQUESTRIENNE frowned upon like aviatrix and authoress?

   COD CALEDONIAN

   1. Droit de seigneur is a theme in the Marriage of Figaro.

      1. Arguably ‘the’ theme, with various sub plots. Just been to a terrific production at Glyndebourne. Probably my favourite opera.

7. I found this tough, although I did well enough until the end. In the NW, I thought I was looking for answers meaning overcome by drink and rider’s mission. I wasn’t expecting pen friend, either, and couldn’t remember bail until I got the B.

   Time: 39:33

8. 31.37, with GOBI causing all sorts of problems at the end. Several others, such as MUSCOVADO, OSTENTATIOUS, CALEDONIAN and EQUESTRIENNE, also required quite a lot of work. I know about bebop, but BEBOPPER? I’d like to see that. Actually I probably wouldn’t. Thanks Jack.

   From Subterranean Homesick Blues:
   Get sick, get well, hang around a ink well
   Ring bell, hard to tell if anything is gonna sell
   Try hard, get barred, get back, write braille
   Get jailed, jump BAIL
   Join the army if you fail
   Look out kid…

   1. Maybe it’s like the Big Bopper?
      (He wasn’t a visual feast either)

      1. I’m sure people danced to Chantilly Lace, not sure if anyone danced to Charlie Parker! I also just noticed your earlier ref to Capt Matchbox, that’s what I call kinda niche…

         1. Dancing to Bird would be a bit like this line from Victor Borga: ‘The next song is a two-step . . . it’s a very fast two-step . . . in fact, if you want to dance to it, you better start now’.

            Night all . . . it’s 11-ish here in Oz.

9. Got through this one OK in the usual couple of hours and pretty much fully parsed. Always keen (often necessary) to get the blogger’s perspective.
   Not too much amusement overall but fairly clued and not too arcane.
   Rather fond of 20ac CO-ORDINATION and 16ac RHUEMATIC.
   Actually thought 24ac ELICIT was reasonably straightforward.
   Not sure why 25ac DONATORY was LOI as the cluing was generous.
   Slight MERs on TECHNICIAN as a synonym for ‘mechanic’ (8d) and 1ac BEBOPPER as a ‘dancer’, not sure ‘statesman’ was needed/justified in 27ac.
   Managed to remember HE for ambassador in 13d which fortuitously provided the ‘c’ to reveal 20ac.
   Think anyone should be forgiven for researching 9ac and 17d which were NHO for us.
   Bit of an admirer of Jacques Tati, so happy to see a mention (11d).
   Thank you setter and Jackkt.

   1. Yes, the synonyms setters use for ‘mechanic’ usually give rise to comment along with ‘engineer’ but I gave it a pass in my blog today.

      1. Interestingly enough, no-one else seems much bothered by it either.
         Will bear this ‘site view’ on these two terms in mind for future.
         Thank U again.

      2. Calling an engineer a mechanic always irritates me. Engineer is at least a degree-level qualification. In Germany, which knows a thing or two about engineering, it is a term equivalent to professor.
         But calling one a technician I think we have to put up with. My local Toyota garage does that.

         1. The term ‘fitter’ seems to have fallen into disuse.

            1. Apologies for my earlier misunderstanding and flight of ego.
               A fitter (and turner) in Oz would usually not be a mechanic in the usual sense of vehicles.

            2. There is a fabrication workshop near where I live that is often advertising for a fitter/welder. They seem to go through them pretty quick ..

               1. They’re obviously in a state of flux….

                  1. Ho ho…

                  2. I have this vision of them working away, and suddenly there is a huge crash and a bang, and a silence, and somebody says “Jim, time to put the sign out again…”

10. 11:12. I’m surprised more people haven’t mentioned ELICIT as a dodgy homophone! I certainly sound that and ILLICIT differently at the start. Anyhow, I got the answer so won’t complain too much.

    1. Homophones are meant to be dodgy ..

       1. Hi Jerry, I have just posted a new thread on this.

11. 30 minutes but also cooking dinner in parallel so 20-25 minutes of actual solving. I had a MER at the ELICIT/illicit thing but it was close enough for me to realize what was intended despite my pronoucning the two words differently. Like everyone else, never heard of DONATORY but it was so likely a word it didn’t cause a holdup. I was also doubtful if BEBOPPER is a dancer. A bopper, sure. But I think of BEBOPPER as someone who plays BEBOP (or perhaps just enjoys it).

    1. Great names and all that… I was going to comment on the Bopper / Bebopper difference below. Now I don’t have to. I wondered if it was a UK/US usage difference I wasn’t aware of.

12. 43 minutes but 25 of them were in the NW corner.

    Incorrectly biffed ARTHRITIC on the basis it contained the letters of attic. Removed quickly once I returned to double check.

    SEIGNEUR and EQUESTRIENNE had to be constructed. Not NHOs but also not words that readily come to mind.

    BEBOPPER took an age but 3 of the 4 connecting downs dropped immediately afterwards. Is a BAIL a bar? I guess so. Spent far too long trying to remove on from something to get the name of a cricket pitch after I resisted the urge to biff OVAL.

    ELICIT/ilicit just the right side of acceptable to me but I can’t think of any accent in which they would sound the same. It was straight in without doubt so it couldn’t have been too bad.

    COD GOBI

    I think all parsed fully today (although had to trust Tati was a French film director) but thanks blogger and setter.

    1. Yes, as a cricketer in my time, ‘bail’ did not suggest itself as being on the ‘pitch’.
       Took my friend to ask the question and then the penny dropped re the rest of the clue.

       1. Maybe you were a better batter than I ever was. The bail was usually on the pitch pretty soon after my arrival at the crease, maybe dropping as fast as your penny.

          1. Lol

             1. I should perhaps avoid the old chestnuts that cricket is a game where U can be both caught in slips and bowl a maiden over. (Not at the same time!)
                Normos’ offering clearly demonstrates more innovation and style!

                1. you can also be at cover point

                2. You are very kind. I used to dream about being caught out, but for that to happen one first has to hit the ball. Bowled and lbw were my usual fates.

13. 22’39 with LOI GOBI. Well hidden definition there for me – had to do an alphabet trawl in the end which cost me some minutes!

    Probably COD too. Thanks B&S

14. 12:11
    That is about as quick as it gets for me. SEIGNEUR was the only unknown but that even maybe rang a faint bell.

    Re Triple definitions, they are maybe my least favourite type of clue but I think that’s because I’m so terrible at spotting them, as proven once again today. At the very least they’d get into the final against Spoonerisms.

    A pleasant solve so thanks to both.

15. 29 minutes with LOIs MUSCOVADO and EQUESTRIENNE. COD to BEBOPPER. I think I’ve seen CALEDONIAN before or that would have won the prize. I liked this, a steady solve. Thank you Jack and setter.

16. 7:55. Steady solve, no major hold-ups.
    ELICIT/illicit is one of those frequent cases where many people (not necessary all) think they make distinctions of pronunciation that they do not in fact make. Don’t take my word for it: look at all the dictionaries.

    1. I think I do .. but elicit is not a word I use much (unlike the other one 🙂
       But I prefer the dodgy ones, anyway .. nobody is going to get this clue wrong

17. 41 mins with L2I BEBOPPER & EQUESTRIENNE. Tough those two.

    DNK SENNA or DONATORY but worked them out somehow. MER here too re ELICIT.

    Thanks Jack And setter.

18. Just under 20 minutes

    – Was glad I didn’t biff ARTHRITIC for 16a, and with a couple more checkers I eventually parsed RHEUMATIC
    – Not familiar with DONATORY but the wordplay made it clear and it sounded plausible
    – Missed that BASH was a triple definition as I thought it was a double (“Attempt to criticise” / “Party”)
    – Not sure I’ve ever seen EQUESTRIENNE in the wild
    – Biffed MUSCOVADO once I had enough checkers

    Thanks Jack and setter.

    FOI Technician
    LOI Equestrienne
    COD Atomic

19. 22 mins. Exactly as Jackkt called it, I found it easyish but a bit flat without spotting any of that technical analysis.
    I certainly start ELICIT with a distinctly ee sound which is the problem with homophones especially where vowels are concerned. Grass vs grarse?
    Disliked the unnecessarily feminised horsey person. The clueing is fine, just a clunky word.
    OTOH, ATOMIC will leave me with Blondie going round in my head. There are worse ways to start the day. Thanks Jackkt and setter.

    1. Used to like Atomic, looked up the video. Oh, my! What fashion: clothes and dancing and hair and make-up. One thing Burgess and Kubrick got right with Clockwork Orange was to make up their own language and fashion, so it never seems dated in the same way (though it does in other ways).

20. 31:19 – struggled with this in the long down clues. Caledonian and Debauchery were my last ones in. I enjoyed the puzzle though and it helped pass a very slow tube journey! thanks!

21. 20 minutes. Getting the triple def BASH early on gave me some confidence and I didn’t have too much trouble with the rest, even with uncommon words like DONATORY.

    I’ll try to remember MUSCOVADO for the next time it appears. About as much chance as remembering the order of all the E’s and A’s in DEMERARA – I’ve just had to look it up.

    Thanks to Jack and setter; I don’t know if 5a is any clue to your identity.

22. 15.47 Only hold-ups ( apart from my computer’s unwillingness to enter letters when I press keys) were MUSCOVADO, which I initially spelled with a middle A, and a geographical diversion from MACEDONIAN to CAMERONIAN to the correct Scot. Mac, Don (sort of) and Cameron both contributed to the Scottish theme.
    Clouseau made a welcome appearance asking for a rheum, did he not?

23. Not a bother with this one, 17 minutes, would have been less except I had pencilled in ARTHRITIC at 16 too soon and had to revise for the much better RHEUMATIC. No problem with elicit / illicit, not identical but close enough to work for me. SEIGNEUR known from “droit de seigneur” of old, when the lord of the manor could have his way with whoever he fancied.

24. BEBOPPER = dancer? I don’t think so.

25. 17:02

    I didn’t notice any samey-ness with the clueing – perhaps because I managed only three answers on my first pass of acrosses (RHEUMATIC, AMENDMENT, ESTONIAN) as well as a tentative -ATORY at 25a. As with the QC, did rather better on the downs which made the next pass of acrosses that much more comfortable. Finally I was left with the unfinished 25a, plus four in the NW corner. BEBOPPER went first, before BASH, the S of which prompted SEIGNEUR (as with Merlin, I think, heard of from ‘droite de seigneur’), and EQUESTRIENNE, leaving just the mystery teacher to pencil in for DONATORY.

    Thanks Jack and setter

26. Finished in about 80 mins, after spending ages on debauchery (I got stuck on the idea it started with HE), elicit and Gobi. I had arthritic for quite a while before seeing ostentatious.

27. Not too difficult. NHO 25a, it is rather specialised. Wiktionary has “Noun … donatory (plural donatories)
    (Scots law) A donee of the crown; one to whom, upon certain conditions, escheated property is made over.”
    1a Bebopper, I wasn’t aware that these people are not dancers; I know nothing of music.
    20a Co-ordination. Cheating Machine didn’t have the hyphen, so added. Whilst I knew the verb to priest I hadn’t noticed that subtlety in the clue, I just bashed it in and moved on.
    NHO 25a Donatory, added to CM.
    13d Debauchery WOD.
    Many thanks to jackkt and of course the setter.

28. Visitor here from the QC – don’t always attempt the longer form of the game but I liked this – very accessible all green in 26:10 for me which a year ago would have been unthinkable. Also had the incorrect ARTHRITIC for a while which held me up. LOI for me was BOBCAT.

    Thanks setter and Jack.

29. Much nicer than yesterday’s, which was a relief. NHO Jacques Tati, though – still making my way through American/British film history, barely got started on other countries yet! Quite a few that dropped into place with just a few checkers, like BEBOPPER, CO-ORDINATION and ESTONIAN (and I’d say it’s nice to have Eton mentioned here when ‘school’ in today’s QC let us down, no?) for a few.

    Only real problem for me was BOBCAT, LOI not seeing former pupil as OB, so getting the ‘Unlucky!’ screen on my phone a frustrating number of times before finally getting it in. Thanks, jackkt and setter.

30. As one who suffers from arthritic joints, it took OSTENTATIOUS to correct my biff at 16a. BAIL was FOI but the rest of the NW stayed stubbornly blank until much later. OPTIC got things moving in the NE. CROSS SECTION enabled PEN FRIEND, which eventually led to SEIGNEUR. Had to carefully assemble MUSCOVADO. DONATORY rang a very faint bell. ELICIT caused an eyebrow to twitch. EQUESTRIENNE eventually put in an appearance and then BASH and BEBOPPER (really?) finished the job. 23:31. Thanks setter and Jack.

    1. I made the same biff!

       1. 🙂

    2. I think it must be my age, but as I thought of Bebopper I found myself singing Be-bop-a-lula, the Gene Vincent song. That’s decided me; I’m from the ‘Six Five Special’ generation.

       1. Lol

31. Well i quite enjoyed that, not hard but not too easy either, at least for me.
    I notice today’s FT crossword is by BOBCAT .. just a coincidence, or did s/he do both?

32. 21:28, NHO MUSCOVADO but was easy to construct from the clue once I had every sscond letter, agree elicit / illicit are not homphones.
    Thanks setter and blogger

33. 27 minutes for a pleasant crossword, whose lack of variety passed me by. I noticed the elicit/illicit difference, but nice to see that people have largely accepted it, as I have with room/rheum. BEBOPPER wrong? although it was obviously the intended answer. Surely a mix-up of bebop and bopper. It was obviously EQUESTRIE…, but I was slow to see the last three letters for a word that is probably hardly used nowadays.

    1. Illicit/elicit is alright, even though I suspect that I normally say them slightly differently (though I may not in quick speech) but I didn’t even consider the posh/cockney pronunciation of ‘room’, I’d say that homophone is even less controversial.

34. 21.06 This was quite biffable and mostly parsed after the fact. DONATORY was new. LOI CALEDONIAN. Thanks Jack.

35. About 22′ so not too tough for me, but agree generally that nothing really grabbed me clueing-wise. Nevertheless thanks Jack and setter

36. I either had the GK, had checkers in the right spots to be suggestive, or got decipherable cluing, so Gobi was the only one which slowed me down.
    I will admit that I came here full of expectations for discussion of illicit/elicit pronounciation, and I am (once again) not disappointed.

37. 12.30

    More of those sorts of clues please 🙂

    I rarely/never moan about homophones but was planning to say that ELICIT/ILLICIT crossed the boundary of acceptability…until I read Keriothe’s post and tried saying the two words. Remarkable!

    Thanks Jackkt and setter

38. DNF – defeated by 22d GOBI. 11d my COD, simply because any reference to Jacques Tati puts a smile on my face.

39. 21:13. Smooth solve and fast for me.

    Would have ducked under 20 but held up by the dancer and party at 1a and 1D.

    Thanks all.

40. Not held up much by this one.

    “What rhubarb, senna, or what purgative drug/ Will scour these English hence”

    (Macbeth, inevitably)

41. Pleasing to see that most commenters here know more about Bebop than our setter – perhaps he’s confusing it with Swing, or a bop? Anyway, this was one of those where I checked the head of the page to make sure it wasn’t the Quickie as the NW corner went straight in, 1a notwithstanding. No unknown vocabulary. I didn’t biff ARTHRITIC, as I got to the ‘atic rheum’ first via the C. LOI was GOBI, which took some time to separate out correctly. Agree it was a bit samey, but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

    1. Wot u said!

42. 22.50. Left half took a lot more time than the right. Yankee LOI but that was not so hard as equestrienne, bebopper or my favourite co ordination.
    Thanks setter and blogger.

43. I finished under target at 39.45 but got a little bogged down towards the end. DONATORY was my LOI where I struggled to think of ‘don’ for teacher for some reason. I was also another who biffed ARTHRITIC for 16ac which didn’t help. I was unsure about ELICIT as a homonym for ‘illicit’ although it occurred to me fairly quickly as a possibility.

44. About 40 minutes, but a DNF, because I couldn’t think of any other “extract” than ELIXIR and supposed there might be some very subtle wordplay to justify it. I guess there wasn’t. Otherwise, I agree with Jack that there was nothing really exciting in this puzzle, and yes, I biffed many of my answers before deciphering the wordplay.

45. 28:28
    Yet another one delayed by biffing ARTHRITIC at 16a.
    COD to COMMITTING.
    LOI was GOBI.

    Thanks Jack and setter

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