Times Quick Cryptic 3058 by Pipsqueak – time to wake up

Author   KittyPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

Hi everybody.  I was on course for a very good time, but that became just a normal Monday time as I stared for ages at 2d before thinking of the right answer.  The other two cryptic definitions did not give me the same trouble.  I liked the puzzle, and the delay at the end didn’t dent my enjoyment.  Thanks Pipsqueak!

Definitions are underlined in the clues below.  In the explanations, most quoted indicators are in italics, specified [deletions] are in square brackets, and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER.  For clarity, I omit most link words and some juxtaposition indicators.

Across
7a Fifty-fifty chance rugby match doesn’t start (5)
EVENS — sEVENS (rugby match) is missing its first letter (doesn’t start)
8a Female bringing up young with pride? (7)
LIONESS — A cryptic definition which requires the solver to think of a pride of lions rather than parental pride
10a Object I briefly see in catalogue (7)
ITEMISE — ITEM (object) + I + briefly SEe
11a In the morning I leave Madrileno friend (5)
AMIGO — AM (in the morning) + I + GO (leave)
12a Leased piece of land where Swedes may put down roots? (9)
ALLOTMENT — A cryptic definition designed to make you think of nationals rather than vegetables and with a more literal interpretation of “put down roots” than at first appears
14a Replacement taking public transport back (3)
SUB — BUS (public transport) reversed (back)
15a Watch yours truly being caught (3)
EYE — I (yours truly), soundalike (being caught)
16a Feeble son stupidly sleeps in (9)
SPINELESS — S (son) + an anagram of (stupidly) SLEEPS IN
18a Rent place in Croatia (5)
SPLIT — A double definition.  (It seems such a shame that the Museum of Broken Relationships is in Zagreb rather than here)
20a Penniless old German — or someone from Moscow? (7)
RUSSIAN — Missing P (penniless), [p]RUSSIAN (old German)
22a Remarkable reason for not eating? (7)
NOTABLE — NO TABLE (reason for not eating?)
23a Musical game with many moving pieces (5)
CHESS — Two definitions
Down
1d Food shop with decent sales, I suspect (12)
DELICATESSEN — DECENT SALES, I anagrammed (suspect)
2d This is what soldiers might get up to (8)
REVEILLE — A cryptic definition of a soldiers’ wake-up call
3d Drink that’s essential for Christmas-time (4)
ASTI — This is found inside (essential for) ChristmAS–TIme
4d Claim stage is covered in beer (6)
ALLEGE — LEG (stage) is covered in ALE (beer)
5d Fight debt a lot after messing up (2,6)
DO BATTLE — An anagram of (… after messing up) DEBT A LOT
6d Hairy creature one’s pursuing still (4)
YETI — I (one)’s after (pursuing) YET (still)
9d Expose affair in entertainment industry (4,8)
SHOW BUSINESS — SHOW (expose) BUSINESS (affair)
13d Experimental equipment in trial underground (4,4)
TEST TUBE — TEST (trial) + TUBE (underground)
14d MP’s niece somehow becoming a model (8)
SPECIMEN — MP’S NIECE is rearranging to form (somehow becoming) the answer
17d Is tragic king overthrown in Middle Eastern country? (6)
ISRAEL — IS + LEAR (tragic king) reversed (overthrown)
19d Music producer’s stolen money, I hear (4)
LUTE — Sounds like (… I hear) LOOT (stolen money)
21d Charlie infiltrating established faith community (4)
SECT — C (Charlie) going inside (infiltrating) SET (established)

90 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic 3058 by Pipsqueak – time to wake up”

  1. Not the easiest of Monday quickies but everything was fair. Liked LIONESS. Spelt ALLOTMENT with two Ts instead of Ls initially. Also didn’t see REVEILLE for a while and then realised I couldn’t spell it. It gets my COD.
    Thanks Kitty and setter.

    1. Am i misunderstanding the REVEILLE clue? What is the cryptic part of the clue, reads like a straight definition to me

      1. I think the wording of the clue is supposed to lead you into thinking you are looking for something that soldiers do, as in ‘fighting/marching, etc. Pretty clever I thought.

        1. Ive been doing these too long / not had enough coffee as I could only read it as an alarm haha

  2. Right on Pipsqueak’s wavelength this morning zipping through in a very sprightly 12.50. Not a PB I think but the closest we’ve been for a long time.

    Started with evens and LOI do battle took a bit of thinking where we had the letters but somehow didn’t take account of the enumeration.

    Thanks Pipsqueak and Kitty

  3. All enjoyable, thank you, Pipsqueak. LOI LUTE, wonder how many of us on this side of the pond pronounce it the same as loot? CNP RUSSIAN, thank you, Kitty.
    Actually this is (maybe?) quite interesting: my father would say he was putting on his suit [syoot]; is it equally old-fashioned to say [lyoot] ?

      1. You’re right: I’m as old-fashioned as my suited father! My trusted 1950s Chambers gives both pronunciations equally, but by 2000 the old one has gone and only [loot] survives. Now we know – thank you!
        Correction! The 2000 dictionary I consulted (with only [loot]) was Collins. I now see the 2000 Chambers still has both versions just as it did before. What do we make of that?!

        1. Ha! I declined my employer’s dress down (‘riff-raff’) Friday option all the way through to retirement.

  4. Note to self number 4,539, if something doesn’t feel right double check it. I needed to write out the anagam fodder for 5d but did so incorrectly leaving my self with tO BATTLE, which seemed grammatically incorrect but I shrugged and moved on…

    Other than that found this fairly gentle until my last two in – ALLOTMENT and REVEILLE.

    Thanks to Kitty and Pipsqueak

  5. 8 minutes. No problems with REVEILLE learnt as a child from Westerns featuring the US Cavalry. ‘Taps’ and ‘Boots and Saddles’ were two others.

  6. 7:04 for the solve. Reached last pair of ITEMISE/REVEILLE at five mins and focused on the former in the hope the extra checker would help out with the latter. It felt like a QC with many old chestnuts in it – and I don’t mean that as a complaint as I like to reinforce learning – along with a few anagrams and cryptics to add a little difficulty. Those extra two mins on the end were enough of a struggle!

    Always enjoy ripping through a QC so many thanks to Pipsqueak and to Kitty for the blog.

  7. Short and sweet this morning. I was held up at the end (for at least 10 seconds) by ITEMISE, only then seeing my LOI/COD. Thanks Kitty and Pipsqueak.

    A stellar performance from Amoeba this morning in under 2 minutes!

    FOI EVENS
    LOI/COD REVEILLE
    TIME 3:20

  8. tI immediately assumed that ‘pride’ mean lions and that ‘Swede’ was a vegetable; LIONESS went in immediately, but ALLOTMENT took a bit of time. NHO of the musical, but figured there must be one. LOI SPECIMEN. 6:37

        1. I’ve just been off down the wikipedia rabbit hole … apparently it was both the ABBA lads with Tim. This song was released as part of a concept album a couple of years before the show was staged, as a way of creating funding. It ran in London from 1986-89 and New York in 1988 and then numerous tours around the world. Due to be on Broadway this fall.

          More interestingly, I’m wondering what the line “One night in Bangkok makes the hard man humble” means …

          2. I like to think that the line “the queens we (ie chess players) choose would not excite you” explains why! It’s a better musical than its reputation suggests.

  9. Maximum concentration to spell DELICATESSEN and REVEILLE and just slow to ITEMISE. Peaky verbs pretending to be nouns. All green in 9.19.

  10. 5.25, which makes this definitely on the easier side. I was helped by getting DELICATESSEN early. My LOsI were SPINELESS/SPECIMEN. Didn’t think much of the ALLOTMENT clue, thumbs up to ITEMISE, thanks Kitty and Pipsqueak.

  11. Thanks Kitty. Same experience as you, with the brief hold-up over REVEILLE at the end.

    Good to see three full cryptics. LIONESS was a real Quickie-level cryptic, with REVEILLE and ALLOTMENT being more of a challenge.

    4:26

  12. LUTE and ALLOTMENT last in after a little pondering. Found the down clues easier than the across.

  13. Always interesting to see how write-ins for some are not so quick for others. Raced through today, although biffed (the now very obvious hidden) ASTI. Thanks Kitty and Pipsqueak.

  14. A slowish start for me and I thought this was going to be a very long haul. However, crossers came and lightbulbs were switched on and I finished in 15.50 which is within my new target area.
    Some very good clues and some smart misdirection. My last in were ASTI, REVEILLE and ITEMISE.
    Thanks to both.

  15. 8:24. Worked through this without too much trouble (although almost put in Plett11’s TO BATTLE) until I reached 10a, being fooled by the required part of speech for ‘catalogue’ and thinking ‘in’ was going to be a containment indicator.

    Good to see the ‘Food shop’ at 1d being shown in all its spelling glory, rather than the usual abbreviated DELI.

    Thanks to Kitty and Pipsqueak

  16. 15:10. BIFD notable allotment with half parsed ideas that being not able to eat and Swedish gardener’s having something to do with it.
    So thank you Kitty for illuminating and Pip for an enjoyable puzzle and what I am taking as a nod to our wonderful European champions.

  17. 10:16 (Death of Æthelred the Unready. Battle of Assandun. Death of Edmund Ironside. Cnut becomes King of England).

    Slowed down at the end by ITEMISE, where I was looking for a word meaning Object, and trying to fit LIST into the answer.

    It’s been a bad year for swedes at my ALLOTMENT. The heatwave has meant that they have failed to put down roots.

    Thanks Kitty and Pipsqueak

  18. 7.14 with a typo

    Also struggled with 2d as the cryptic could have related to ants/pieces of toast and then both doing and ascending as well as waking up. Needless to say I went through each in turn only coming on the right one last. Not helped by ALLOTMENT being slow to come, struggling to eliminate APARTMENT from the brain. ITEMISE also caused a pause. Easy apart from those three 🙂

  19. Held up only in the NW where I was slow to see ITEMISE, REVEILLE and my LOI ASTI. Otherwise a fairly smooth Monday morning solve. I crossed the line in 15 minutes with everything parsed.

    FOI – 8ac LIONESS
    LOI – 3dn ASTI
    COD – 2dn REVEILLE

    Thanks to Pipsqeak and Kitty.

  20. Woo-hoo, zipped through that for what I am pretty sure is a PB of 04:28 and a Red Letter Day. Brief pauses for ITEMISE, REVEILLE (excellent and COD) and LOI ASTI – I knew it was a hidden but got fixated on the wrong S!

    Very good fun, many thanks Pip and Kitty.

  21. A sprightly 8:37 for a good start to the week, only held up briefly by (a) not seeing the anagram SPECIMEN straight away and (b) not remembering how to spell REVEILLE – I decided to leave it to last so I had the checkers to help me, despite guessing it pretty much on first read through, so a slightly unusual LOI.

    I note 3 full cryptic clues (8A, 12A and 2D), which is I think more than usual for a QC. This type of clue is often my downfall, but they were all nicely findable this time.

    Many thanks Kitty for the blog.

  22. I was going pretty well and heading for a solve in under six minutes, but the wheels then came off in the nw corner. Three to get only , but it seemed like an eternity before I spotted the hidden with ASTI (nothing new there). REVEILLE then followed which made ITEMISE easy to see. I eventually staggered over the line in 9.02 which surprised me a little, as the hiatus seemed longer.

  23. DNF

    Whizzed through this in 10 minutes but then simply couldn’t figure out the NHO REVEILLE. Tried all sorts of meanings of soldier and any number of letter combinations but would never have got this so threw in the towel after 30 minutes.

    That word seemed rather out of place in an otherwise exceedingly accessible puzzle.

    1. I also DNFed on REVEILLE. If you don’t know the word I think this clue is effectively unsolvable, the checkers are not helpful. If you do know the word it’s a trivial clue. Cryptic definitions like this are often unsatisfying, they are my last favourite clue type.
      The rest of the puzzle was quite easy, this clue really stands out. I assume the setter reached the last word and this was all they could fit in.

      1. The only other word I can find to match the checkers is Peterlee, as in the town in County Durham. Even Wikipedia has very little else to say about the place, so good luck to any setter trying to make a clue out of that (and to any solvers faced with what they eventually come up with!). So I suspect you are right, and that Pipsqueak was backed into a bit of a corner and reached for the only word which would fit.

        I think if a setter includes a slightly unusual word, which one can predict not everyone will know, it would be fairer to include some wordplay in the clue so it can be derived – to make it an &lit clue is a little tough.

        1. For info … REVEILLE has come up twice previously in my QC lifetime set both times by Hurley

          #2240 – Oct 2022 – “Newly relive the French morning call for soldiers (8)”
          #2483 – Sep 2023 – “Wake-up call – yell, with no introduction, I constantly recalled (8)”

          Further back we have …
          Tracy #1289 – Feb 2019 – “Wake-up call concerning girl unwell inside (8)”
          Joker #1043 – Mar 2018 – “Military call always recalled unwell European (8)”
          Hurley #1010 – Jan 2018 – “Terribly vile leer — wake-up call (8)”
          Pedro #107 – Aug 2014 – “Right to quit dream about large loch — here’s wake-up call (8)”

          Have to say though if you don’t know the word then anagrams aren’t going to help with those letters.

        2. Peter Lee as also the name of the first contestant to win £500k on Who Wants to be a Millionaire. I remember this because, as you say, Peterlee is also a town in County Durham. And the answer to the million pound question that he refused? County Durham!

  25. I zipped (by my standards) through most of that in about eight minutes and then needed another seven for REVEILLE and ITEMISE, taking me to 14:54 overall.

    Thank you for the blog!

  26. Enjoyable puzzle. Very quick then slowed in NW, finally seeing ASTI, ITEMISE, and PDM/LOI REVEILLE (pronounced Re-valley by the army).
    FOI DELI helped. Also liked SPLIT, NOTABLE, YETI, among others. NHO CHESS the musical but easy to guess. Poor old King Lear again.
    Thanks vm, Kitty.

    1. When I was younger I didn’t have much sympathy for Lear, judging he was to blame for all the chaos his foolishness unleashed. Now as an aged person myself I’m much more understanding of his actions!

    2. Thanks for the pronunciation of REVEILLE. I have not been saying it correctly! Apparently I have been speaking French.

  27. 4:38

    Very speedy start to week, squeezed in before appointment – no big hold ups. LOI ASTI

    Thanks Kitty and Pipsqueak

  28. EVENS was FOI but I had a lot of gaps after the first across and down passes. These gradually filled as I gathered checkers, but I was held up at the end by ALLOTMENT and finally, after another pause, REVEILLE. 7:10. Thanks Pipsqueak and Kitty.

  29. Quick for me today, just a few seconds short of a PB, though NHO ASTI so had to figure that from the checker. Saw ALLOTMENT almost immediately, largely because my brother-in-law kept talking about the trouble he’s currently having with his last night.

    Took a while to parse RUSSIAN, though hardest (and LOI) was REVEILLE – didn’t find E/E/L/E the easiest collection of checkers to work off. Thanks Kitty & Pipsqueak!

  30. 19 not sure if that’s a PB.

    11 first pass
    coffee
    5 second pass
    social media break
    3 final pass

    Missed five which I should have been able to parse. Bifd Russian, the parsing in the blog passed me by.

    Thanks K and P

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