Quick Cryptic Number 447 by Flamande

Author   william_j_sPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
A nice, straightforward crossword. Even including some unknown references (as the spy and the poet were to me) it should not take so long to solve that fun gives way to inconvenience.

Definitions underlined.

1 Cattle going round English port (5)
COWES – COWS (cattle) round E (English).
8 Wartime leader unwell after Sunday service? (9)
CHURCHILL – ILL (unwell) after CHURCH (Sunday service?).
9 Force smallest possible wage increase? (5)
PRISE – as in, ‘1p rise’.
10 Famous person without talent (7)
NOTABLE – double definition, the second being ‘not able’.
11 Door repaired by your old woman (7)
DOROTHY – anagram of (repaired) DOOR and THY (your (old)).
12 Platoon ordered to carry equipment (7)
BRIGADE – BADE (ordered) with RIG (equipment) inside.
16 Self-important person, and what he needs when using pens? (3,4)
HIS NIBS – double definition, straight then cryptic. My LOI.
17 Type of lettuce that’s reduced in very warm weather? (7)
ICEBERG – double definition, straight then cryptic.
20 Capital city rebuilt there, near Afghanistan’s borders (7)
TEHERAN – anagram of (rebuilt) THERE, next to outermost letters (borders) of AfghanistaN.
22 Fish starters in top restaurant no longer fashionable (5)
TROUT – first letters (starters) of Top Restaurant, and OUT (no longer fashionable).
23 Early dish, mixture of tripe and peas (9)
APPETISER – anagram (mixture) of TRIPE and PEAS.
24 Representative, a courteous fellow (5)
AGENT – A plus GENT (courteous fellow).
1 In mixed school pupil initially got by (5)
COPED – first letter of Pupil inside CO-ED (co-educational, mixed school).
2 Café employee with a sister in trouble (8)
WAITRESS – W (with), A, and an anagram of (in trouble) SISTER.
3 Perfume put in the post, you say? (5)
SCENT – homophone of (you say?) “sent” (put in the post).
4 The art of comedy? There’s something fishy here (5,8)
FUNNY BUSINESS – double definition.
5 Dog that is trailing Antarctic explorer (7)
SCOTTIE – I.E. (that is) after (trailing) SCOTT (Antarctic explorer).
6 Learner doctor bandages one leg, perhaps (4)
LIMB – L (learner) and MB (doctor) surrounds (bandages) I (one).
7 Spy resting in overnight carriage (7)
SLEEPER – double definition.
13 Horny creature and social worker run off together (8)
ANTELOPE – ANT (social worker) and ELOPE (run off together).
14 Western assassin who was a poet (7)
WHITMAN – W (western) and HITMAN (assassin).
15 Heard of my fantastic move abroad (7)
MIGRATE – homophone (heard) of “my great” (my fantastic).
18 One with small part in film run? (5)
EXTRA – double definition, the second referring to a run awarded in cricket.
19 Implied farm animal can carry tons (3,2)
GOT AT – GOAT (farm animal) carrying T (tons).
21 Beer ingredients used by teashop sometimes (4)
HOPS – hidden in (used by) teasHOP Sometimes.

17 comments on “Quick Cryptic Number 447 by Flamande”

  1. I found this marginally trickier than yesterday’s puzzle and needed 12 minutes to complete it. I’m no expert, but in every military sense that I can think of a BRIGADE is not the same thing as a ‘platoon’, the former being much larger than the latter and commanded by an officer of higher rank. There may be a case for them both being used colloquially to mean a body of men (and or women) assembled to carry out a particular task, but then I would have expected a question mark or ‘perhaps’ or some other indicator that the definition was a bit on the loose side.

    Edited at 2015-11-25 06:13 am (UTC)

    1. Certainly the two things are not equivalent in a military sense. However, my Chambers gives ‘a group of people acting together’ and ‘a band of people more or less organized for a specific purpose’ for platoon and brigade respectively, and in this (non-military) context, I guess they can be seen as equivalent.
  2. Two seconds over my 5 minute target – yet yesterday’s took me 16 minutes!
    I totally agree with Jackkt about 12a – unless the British Army has downsized so much due to the recent defence cuts that a brigade is now the size of a platoon!
    I am sure some retired general even as I write is spluttering over his tea and toast at this clue.
  3. 12 minutes for me. I was on for a record time (for me) until held up by 14d and 16a. Was thrown briefly by 12a but it couldn’t be anything else.
  4. 7 1/2 minutes. I foolishly bunged in MARTIAL for 14d, which made 16a a bit mysterious until I corrected myself. I liked 13d.
  5. I finished this in the same 30 minutes as yesterday,
    but didn’t seem to enjoy it as much. Perhaps some of the definitions were too easy, and some didn’t make sense to me, like the already mentioned Brigade and I can’t see ‘Got at’ for ‘Implied’. Could someone also explain why W is short for ‘With’ in 2D (apart from just being the first letter)?
    The poet is the american Walt Whitman, regarded as one of the ‘greats’.

    Brian

    Edited at 2015-11-25 11:39 am (UTC)

    2. It works perfectly in expressions such as “what are/were you getting at?” but you may have a point when it comes to the past tense. I’ve been trying to think of an example where ‘got at’ can be substituted for ‘implied’ but without success. In theory it ought to be okay but perhaps not in practice?
  6. Well I am no general, but the structure typically is: a platoon, comprising three sections, that is led by a 2nd/Lt; a company, comprising three platoons, led by a major; a battalion, comprising about four companies plus odd bits, led by a Lt.Col; then a brigade with about three battalions, led by a brigadier. So, to equate a platoon to a brigade is like calling a two-bedroom bungalow a stately home.
  7. Following yesterday’s success I can boast my first sub-hour solve at 50 minutes whilst also eating lunch. Then again, in my eagerness to finish I had “Got it” for 19D, so maybe it doesn’t count.
  9. I really struggled with this one, it took me at least four sittings to finally complete. With hindsight I can’t really see what held me up so much, with the exception of 14d and 16a. I also didn’t realise that there was an alternate spelling to 20 so I just took a hopeful punt at it as my LOI.
    Add me to the list of people confused by the definition of brigade.

  10. No particular problems today and content that platoon can mean brigade (as I know not nearly enough to question it). Good to see ” His nibs” in the answers;can’t remember when I last saw it. David
  11. 30 minutes over my 3 minute target. Though actually a DNF after staring at 14d blankly for 10 minutes. Cheated and used Google to check that “HIS NIBS” was an actual phrase, because I’ve never heard of it.

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