Quick Cryptic 445 by Hurley

Author   mohn2Posted on Categories Quick Cryptic
An odd grid, with two clues (11A and 18A) that didn’t actually need to be solved because their solutions could be completely filled in via their crossing answers, which always feels like a bit of a swizz. I was held up at the end by the 9A/3D intersection, where in both cases I took words in the clue to be anagram indicators when in fact they weren’t. Thanks to Hurley for a not-too-difficult challenge.

The crossword can be found here if the usual channels are unavailable: http://feeds.thetimes.co.uk/timescrossword/20151123/10823/

Definitions are underlined.

Across
1 Staid set’s unusual aversion (8)
DISTASTE – anagram (unusual) of STAID SET
5 Agreement leads to peace and calmer times (4)
PACT – first letters (leads) of Peace And Calmer Times
7 Calm Scot, bold internally (4)
COOL – inside letters (internally) of SCOt bOLd
8 Use it to communicate secure policy (4-4)
LAND-LINE – LAND (secure, as a verb) + LINE (policy)
9 Excited, bet after ace appears (8)
AFLUTTER – FLUTTER (bet) after A (ace). I don’t think we often see A=ace in either the Quicky or the main cryptic so I didn’t spot what was happening here, despite playing card games since I could count to 31. Instead I initially tried to make an anagram of BET AFTER and, having headed down that path, even when the checking letters showed that it couldn’t be an anagram I was still looking for a word meaning ace …
11 Article used in Athens (3)
THE – hidden (used) in ATHEns
13 Get away from ultimately remote southern headland (6)
ESCAPE – E (ultimately remote, i.e. the last letter of “remote”) + S (southern) + CAPE (headland)
16 Encourages outsiders in crunch elite races (6)
CHEERS – outside letters (outsiders) of CruncH ElitE RaceS
18 Favourite verse writer, not old (3)
PET – PoET (verse writer) without the O (not old)
19 Unexpected reason to embrace It girl (8)
SENORITA – anagram (Unexpected) of REASON around (to embrace) IT
20 Strive to protect vehicle – silver – in cleric’s house (8)
VICARAGE – VIE (Strive) around (to protect) CAR (vehicle) + AG (silver)
22 Secure period of abstinence (4)
FAST – double definition, the first an adjective
23 Place (Old Testament) small land area (4)
PLOT – PL (Place) + OT (Old Testament)
24 When speaking, you’re candid about a Pole, for example (8)
EUROPEAN – EUR (homophone (When speaking) of you’re) + OPEN (candid) about A. I pronounce “you’re” the same as “your”, i.e. not quite the same as the EUR at the beginning of “European”, but the Internet tells me that that is by no means universal.
Down
1 Announce editor’s upset Irish county (7)
DECLARE – reversal (upset) of ED (editor), + CLARE (Irish county)
2 It’s tied over in Chelsea ground (8)
SHOELACE – O (over) inside anagram (ground) of CHELSEA
3 Spills liquid on small dishes (9)
SPLATTERS – S (small) + PLATTERS (dishes). I spent much too long thinking that the “small” was giving me the final S in the answer, not to mention assuming that “liquid” was an anagram indicator.
4 Renown oddly ignored for long time (3)
EON – even letters (oddly ignored) of REnOwN
5 Artist’s equipment Dad authorised with note (7)
PALETTE – PA (Dad) + LET (authorised) + TE (note)
6 Have discussion about island tree (7)
CONIFER – CONFER (Have discussion) around (about) I (island)
10 Storyteller near court, upset (9)
RACONTEUR – anagram (upset) of NEAR COURT
12 Recluse, not married, to get older evidence from past (8)
HERITAGE – HERmIT (Recluse, not married, i.e. “hermit” without the letter M) + AGE (to get older)
14 Glib talk about a northern dog (7)
SPANIEL – SPIEL (Glib talk) about A + N (northern)
15 Draw an area of land when talking (7)
ATTRACT – homophone (when talking) of A TRACT (an area of land)
17 Fight nationalist who’s rising, austere (7)
SPARTAN – SPAR (Fight) + reversal (rising) of NAT (nationalist)
21 Measure of land General brings up (3)
ARE – hidden reversed (brings up) in GenERAl

19 comments on “Quick Cryptic 445 by Hurley”

  2. I made a number of mistakes before seeing the light–‘atwitter’ before I remembered ‘flutter’ (not in my vocabulary), starting 2d with STI (it’s tied over; don’t ask), thinking of ‘chatter’ at 6d and getting nowhere, of course. But recovered quickly enough from each. 5:40.
  3. Some quite tricky clues, I thought. Haven’t heard of ARE. SENORITA makes me a bit uneasy since in Spanish the third letter is ‘ñ’, which is a different letter of the alphabet to ‘n’ (the former pronounced ‘ny’). 59m
    1. I don’t know how often these things come up in Quickies, but e.g. umlaut is ignored as well: Dürer will show up as Durer not Duerer, etc. Perhaps more troublesome is that, while hyphens are indicated in the enumeration (4-5), apostrophes are not, as in OTOOLE (6). verb. sap.
    2. Surely only a separate letter in Spanish?

      In English it is quite properly Senorita, or with an ‘n’ with a tilde? An adjusted letter, not a new letter?

  4. I’m currently not receiving notifications, due to a known LiveJournal issue, but rest assured that I will read comments at various points during the day.

    This is the first time I’ve done the main cryptic early on a Monday for ages, so I will take the opportunity to warn successful Quicky solvers that it’s certainly worth a try but is a bit trickier than the average Monday.

  5. 9 1/2 mins. Some quite tricky clues. 7a LOI as I failed for a while to see it was the middle letters.
  6. No fewer than three clues using measure of land/land area (23a, 15d, 21d). Too many clues where you find the answer from letters in the clue (5a, 7a, 11a, 16a, 4d, 21d). All a bit samey.

    I did enjoy 2d and 3d, though.

    1. Sometimes the writers like to give the clues a ‘theme’. In the Times2 you sometimes see about 6 clues which are all the same, like ‘Sea bird.’
  7. Aflutter – good but too obscure for me to get
    European – ditto
    Splatters – good, should have got. Couldn’t get past splashes and splashes.

    And ARE??

        1. Point taken. Sorry, I was confusing this with another clue featuring ‘European’ that I have before me at the moment in a completely separate puzzle.
  8. Took a bit of time over this one. My last one in was 2d as it took me forever to realise it was an anagram. I was most pleased with the fact that I finally managed to remember that note could mean a word from that annoying song – I’m clearly a slow learner as I’ve lost count of the times that particular device has appeared in the QC!
  9. Who knew ARE was a measure? Kept trying to derive answer from AREA or ACRE. Also inexplicably had SENORINA instead of SENORITA. Not easy this quickie.
  12. For 2d, with s?????ce, I was convinced that Chelsea ground was a reference to the Shed.
    I failed on 2d,3d,7a &9a which is the most I’ve had missing from a Quick Cryptic for quite sometime.
  13. ARE! Learnt that one today – shame to have to guess the very last clue, in desperation, and get it wrong.

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