Quick Cryptic 586 by Alconiere

Author   ChrisPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
It took me a long time to click into this one and then I mistyped a letter so didn’t get a time – but I’d guess about 15 minutes. I expect some fast times from the regulars but more recent crossworders may find this a bit chewy. It’s full of good stuff though.

ACROSS

7. Yoga – a lot of posturing. The answer is in the clue (find) but backwards Chic(AGO Y)ou.
8. Appeared – turned up. Anagram (in chaos) of A PAPER followed by a paper’s boss (ED).
9. Kimono – garment. As(K), one thousand (IM), or nearest offer (ONO).
10. Salary – pay. Sadly (ALAS) backwards (the wrong way = SALA), railway (RY).
11. Abut – neighbour. An objection (A BUT).
12. Squadron – RAF unit. Small (S), courtyard (QUAD), boy (RON).
15. Hebrides – in British Isles. Chap’s (HE’S) holding (taking) new wife (BRIDE).
17. Mayo – Irish county. Is likely to (MAY), homophone (from reports) of be in debt (owe = O).
18. Jabber – double definition. I thought there would be a poker call I hadn’t heard of but it’s just a straight poker which you can jab a fire or anything else with or someone who does such poking.
21. Accept – take. Anagram (off) of CAP ETC.
22. Outsider – underdog. Anagram (awful) of ROUT around team (SIDE).
23. Each – a head. Inside (content) t(EACH)er. COD for me for the silky surface – not ‘head teacher’ but ‘a head’.

DOWN

1. Sociable – friendly. Note (SO), one (I) inside telegram (CABLE).
2. Way out – double definition.
3. Vamoosed – fled from. A large deer (A MOOSE) inside the outside letters of VolgograD.
4. Opus – work. Anagram (involved) of SOUP.
5. Pallid – pasty. Gave money (PAID) holding a couple of litres (LL).
6. Weir – dam. (W)ith (E)xtension (I)n (R)iver.
13. Upstairs. – on the first floor. Anagram (fresh) of PUTS, displays (AIRS).
14. Olympics – games. Most of (OL)d, photos (PICS) holding MY – upside down (topsy-turvy).
16. Robust – durable. OR upside down, broken (BUST).
17. Mickey – cartoon character. Satirists ‘take the mickey’.
19. Arum – lily. Gardeni(A), unusual (RUM).
20. Rode – travelled up on (say, a horse). Homophone (we hear) of motorway/road.

16 comments on “Quick Cryptic 586 by Alconiere”

  1. A good workout, JABBER delayed me, as have solid memory of the twisted iron thing that used to be in the hearth. COD VAMOOSED. Interesting name for setter, what’s its derivation? 6’54”
  2. Yes, a little harder than some of late and it delayed me 12 minutes, missing my target by 2. Can we have a break from ARUM for a while please?

    This is only Alconiere’s fourth outing as a QC setter , two puzzles in 2014 and one in 2015 preceded today’s.

    Edited at 2016-06-07 09:06 am (UTC)

  3. Alconiere was a nineteenth century Austro-Hungarian painter.
    I found this difficult – just not on the same wavelength at all but would like to see more of this setter.

    Rita

  4. may gave cropped up recently but it’s a pretty rare flower all the same in the Times crossword garden

    RR

  5. Severely delayed by biffing AMICABLE at 1d on the basis of CABLE for telegram. COD either 3D or 8a, both slyly smooth. FOI 1d wrongly, LOI 1d rightly! 11 mins.
    GeoffH
  6. Took a while to get on setter’s wavelength today but got there in the end. COD was vamoosed as well.
  7. 3 short, so a DNF. Did not know ARUM, and could not get CABLE, for Telegram, even though I figured out the clue structure. Was pleased to see VAMOOSED, and liked 15a, HEBRIDES, so COD. This is a new setter for me, although I don’t usually think I need a different approach for different setters, but I definitely needed a bit of ‘fine tuning’ today.
  8. 21:42 – so I suppose that’s average to quick. I enjoyed this one, with some nice clues. Took a while to get going, and was made trickier by the grid shape, I think.
  9. Interesting puzzle from, to me , a new setter.
    Got it all fairly steadily until 19d; not helped by having Gibber at 18a.
    So two wrong in the end.
    I nearly completed a recent Saturday crossword and the only one I got wrong was Arum. I won’t forget it again! David
  10. I thought this was going to be a stinker after my first run through only revealed about 4 clues, but I then tuned into the wavelength and completed it in 19 minutes. I was held up by 1d which I was sure would start with the ‘c’ from cable. I had my usual brain freeze when confronted with a plant at 19d, my LOI, but was chuffed to figure it out from the wordplay. COD 3d – not a word I’ve heard for a while
  11. Mostly good fun, but didn’t like ‘jabber’ – not a word I’ve ever heard or seen in that context. Also Arums are not lilies despite the name.
    1. I have a feeling that the context you’re thinking of isn’t the one intended by the setter.
  12. I found this difficult and even with the help,of the excellent blog could not understand how.23a came to the answer of “each”? Chris RS.
    1. Each can mean ‘a head’ in the context of per person – ‘how much is it a head?
  13. A challenge to find time to attempt this but ultimately a DNF as pretty useless on horticulture so missed out on 19d arum, and missed the homophobe 20d rode and so missed 18a jabber. All gettable so no complaints!

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