Quick Cryptic 1454 by Alfie

Author   CuraristPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
This one was fun, and a pangram no less, which helped when I was staring at 2dn and realised I still needed a Q. A good range of difficulty, 11 min for me.

Across

7 Copper outside, look, to employ a bungling inspector (8)
CLOUSEAU – Copper is CU, outside LO + USE.
8 Polish face of yellow gemstone (4)
RUBY – RUB + Y
9 Some withdrawing support sacked old world leader (6)
CASTRO – Looked at this for ages before spotting it was a reversed hidden word, despite the universal trigger word ‘some’. suppORT SACked
10 Drab and dull old woman depresses you, first of all (5)
DOWDY – first letters of Dull Old Woman Depresses You
11 A sign of pride? (3)
LEO – whimsical definition. ‘Sign’ very often means astrological house
12 FBI agent backed objective to protect (6)
DEFEND – FED backwards + END
14 Classes rise to welcome king and son (6)
GROUPS – GO UP with R inside, then S
16 Trembling like a fish (6)
ASHAKE – AS HAKE
18 Insect that buzzes around girl in the country (6)
BELIZE – BEE round LIZ
19 Fix something to eat with bread (3)
JAM – double definition
20 Second rate garden tool that will slow you down (5)
BRAKE – B-RAKE, as opposed to the presumably higher quality A-rake
21 Warning sign about endless trouble for well owners? (6)
OILMEN – OMEN outside IL (i.e. ILL shortened)
23 This boy has turned a shade of green (4)
EMIL – LIME backwards
24 I rate inn poorly lots of years (8)
TRIENNIA – anagram (‘poorly’) of I RATE INN

Down
1 Fish left in straw hats (8)
BLOATERS – L inside BOATERS
2 Leave? Absolutely, but not the end (4)
QUIT – QUITE without the last letter
3 Les and Rod punished, getting flogged again (6)
RESOLD – anagram (‘punished’) of LES + ROD
4 Hunter’s assistant to reverse into gee-gee (6)
GUNDOG – UNDO inside G + G
5 Old pack leader’s forehead now large (5,3)
BROWN OWL – BROW NOW L, a unit commander of the scary paramilitary organisation known as the Brownies.
6 Do as told and honour Yankee (4)
OBEY – OBE + Y
13 Queen with a fur that can be removed (8)
ERASABLE – ER + A + SABLE
15 Nothing American about unusual Azeri restaurant (8)
PIZZERIA – ZIP is an American word for nothing, reversed + anagram (‘unusual’) of AZERI
17 Red jeep city’s regularly used for drives out (6)
EJECTS – alternate letters of rEd JeEp CiTyS
18 Bad vibe about second supporting film (1-5)
B-MOVIE – anagram (‘bad’) of VIBE with MO inserted
20 Little sign one’s expecting to make an impact (4)
BUMP – double definition
22 Heard couple’s cat (4)
LYNX – This one again. Sounds like LINKS

42 comments on “Quick Cryptic 1454 by Alfie”


  1. ‘Alfie’ has set us only two puzzles previously and both were spectacular in that they involved special tricks. I am tempted to call them ‘Ninas’ although not quite in the usual form of hidden message or theme. The first was QC 676 (11 October 2016) in which the first letters of the Across clues ran in sequence A-Z and those of the Down clues ran N-Z. The second was QC 1124 (29 June 2018) which had the last letters of the 26 answers making up a pangram. I hadn’t actually remembered all this but when I saw ‘Alfie’ as today’s setter I looked him up in my records to find out how many puzzles he had set for us and I found I had noted this additional information. This immediately put me on the alert for something similar today which may have proved counterproductive as I needed 19 minutes to complete the puzzle breaking my run of 10 consecutive ‘green’ solves as mentioned here yesterday and sending me straight into the ‘red zone’ bypassing ‘amber’ in my traffic-light system indicating levels of perceived difficulty.

    Anyway, for all that, I have been unable to find any hidden business today other than this is a pangram, but I’m still not entirely convinced there’s not something going on that I have missed.

    I might also mention that Richard Rogan, the Times Crossword Editor, has told us that ‘Alfie’ also sets QCs as ‘Noel’, another rare visitor who has supplied only four puzzles to date, two of which appeared on Christmas Days, the most recent being in 2017. ‘Noel’ has also given us an excellent ‘trick’ puzzle ( QC 357 on 22 July 2015) which was so nearly a pangram but missing the letter L (No L – geddit?). I did notice that in today’s grid in Row 5 the name NOEL appears in reverse which would surely be a coincidence but for the fact that we are dealing with a very devious setting brain here, so who knows?

    Edited at 2019-10-04 06:31 am (UTC)

    1. I remember that Noel puzzle well… QC Number 357, if anyone wants a go. The compiler dropped by in the forum to explain that a piece of text with a single letter missing is called a “lipogram”. What is remarkable about it is, not only is there a Nina which explains the theme (I won’t spoil by saying what it is), but there isn’t a single L in any of the clues either!

      Edited at 2019-10-04 07:28 am (UTC)

    2. You are a mine of information, Jack – how interesting, thanks! I can’t see a Nina either – because of Clouseau and Emil (“Emil and the Detectives”) I wondered briefly if there was a sleuth thing going on but I can’t see it. I’m sure the NOEL is deliberate though!

    3. Further to my comments above, the explanation has now been added towards the end of the discussion below, identified by a truly anon Anon and then explained in full detail by another Anon who identifies as Nina Palin and is a semi-regular here and poster on other crossword blogs. Many thanks to both.

      I am posting Nina’s explanation here to give it prominence towards the top of the discussion:

      Good spot, Anonymous. (In case anyone else is still wondering, there are 26 solutions. The first horizontal one in the completed grid (7ac) includes A, the second (8ac) includes B and so forth… The penultimate vertical solution, L to R, (6d) has Y, and the last (15d) has Z).
      – Nila Palin

      Edited at 2019-10-05 05:25 am (UTC)

        1. Many thanks, Jerry. Now amended where possible but not in the above posting unfortunately as it has been replied to.
          1. Never mind, it was kind of you, to point out this fascinating QC to those of us who don’t often go there. Once my current backlog has been cleared up, I shall give the QC daily attention ..
  2. This was different I thought. A bit of the right GK helped as I did not spot all the parsings.
    I thought Clousseau was spelt with two Ss but now stand corrected; I did parse that one. LOI was CASTRO and I failed to spot the hidden. Next to LOI was QUIT; not easy.
    I always struggle without first letters and this grid was tough.
    Was happy to finish all correct in 16:14.
    David
    1. I forgot to say that today’s grid with its unchecked letters all around the perimeter was another reason I suspected Alfie was up to one of his tricks, as that could have been the ideal place to hide something in full view.
  3. As I was unable to sleep, I came downstairs to have a cup of hot chocolate and did the Concise and QC to tire my brain out. No problems with the Concise, but I found the QC quite a challenge, taking 19:08 to solve it. Unfortunately despite trying to insert the cat rather than the golf course at 22d, I managed to create anew hybrid LINX. Doh! I also flirted with OUZERIAS, and struggled with GROUPS and TRIENNIA. Not quite what I needed under the circumstances. Only managed a couple of hours sleep altogether. Fortunately our golf outing has been postponed due to the weather, so I may go back to bed now. Thanks Alfie and Curarist.
  4. Managed to persuade myself that restaurant could be plural and that OUZERIAS was the answer – which does fit the clue if you’ve convinced yourself about the plural- but makes getting the crossers very hard. Ended up with a DNF due to that and the need to hit the road and failing to crack CASTRO. Knew something different was happening today and I liked it. Harder than recent Telegraph puzzles in my view as a few recent QCs have been. See you Monday, Mendesest
  5. A fascinating outing – very quirky but enjoyable. Like quite a few contributors above, I took longer than usual today (I was in the SCC – over thrice my time of yesterday) but I cannot quote a multiple of Kevin’s time because he hasn’t yet posted. I can’t pick out CsOD either (there were too many) but my LOsI were CASTRO, QUIT, BUMP, and EMIL. Great stuff! Thanks to both. John M.

    Edited at 2019-10-04 08:43 am (UTC)

    1. I meant to congratulate you on your time yesterday, John – greased lightning!
      1. Thanks. I don’t often manage a completion in less time than you.
        I see that the norm has been restored today with your impressive time for a testing QC. John.
  6. Dont often comment as I tend to solve late on in the day. But on holiday in beautiful Corsica this week so plenty of time to solve early. Enjoyed this QC. Clouseau and Ruby FOI. Saw a possible Pangram early on with Belize. Took ages to unravel Triennia and enjoyed the moment when the Pizzeria penny dropped. LOI Castro – well hidden. Time 90 mins ish! Thanks to Alfie and Curalist. Also to Jakkt for details of Alfie/Noel’s back catalogue. Will look them up.

    Btw – note of encouragement, perhaps, for newbies who may be concerned about time etc. After 2 years of daily QCs I now finish 4 out of 5 in a typical week. Typical completion time is between 30 and 90 minutes. So not so much of a ‘Quick’ Cryptic for me but i enjoy even the more challenging puzzles and this blog has helped me considerably. I even finished two of the 15×15 puzzles in August (probably the easiest of the year)

    Ged

    1. I too have been doing these for a couple of years and still struggle. Today’s wasn’t too bad, probably a bit over half an hour but with some unparsed – castro, for example.

      FOI clouseau and then quit.

  7. Terrific puzzle; half a dozen clues in I thought “this is a cracker” and looked to see who it was, assuming Izetti. Lots of really neat clues; I particularly liked LEO, RUBY and RESOLD but my COD was also my FOI, CLOUSEAU. LOI was DEFEND (when I had -E—D I was sure that the FED was going to go round the outside).

    I managed to slow myself up by entering “pizzAria” and by writing CLOUSEAU in at 1dn instead of 7ac … dear oh dear. But still brisk enough to satisfy myself at 11 mins for an estimated 2.2K and a Very Good Day.

    Thanks very much to Alfie aka Noel for a super puzzle and to curarist for an excellent blog.

    Templar

  8. ….and most enjoyable, making me think a lot harder than usual, and taking me just over my personal target. Missed the pangram though.

    FOI RUBY
    LOI QUIT
    COD BUMP

    Edited at 2019-10-04 12:01 pm (UTC)

  9. Got about 70% done but struggled. I am new to this game but can crosswords have non words like ashake. I cannot find this word in a dictionary. I also put trienniai in but thought it would be wrong as it is specifically 3. I have never heard 3 described as lots. I would call that a few. As I said I am new to this so I just want to understand how much leeway can be taken with language and are non words fair game.
    1. ASHAKE is in my Chambers, even if marked as “archaic”! (“The leaves were ashake in the wind”). I’m afraid setters do slip in the odd unusual or archaic word, though less so in the QC – t’s all part of the fun. And I think the point on TRIENNIA is that it is the plural. A triennium is one period of three years; TRIENNIA are two or more periods of three years.

      Do keep doing the puzzles and reading the blogs to understand any clues that beat you, and you’ll gradually find that fewer and fewer clues do beat you. Good luck and enjoy.

    2. Lots of leeway is the answer
      Get used to 1930s slang, americanisms (picked up during ww2 I guess) nothing to do with anything scientific or practical and loads and loads of “non-words”
  10. A hard work out today after a good run of within-target solves. An alphabet trawl with the fifth letter of 9a, finally sparked Castro in my brain and I then went to parse it and saw the reversed hidden, which resulted in a few choice expletives and a final time of 64:47. It wasn’t the only reverse indicator I missed either, as having accepted in my mind that ‘piz’ was a vaguely remembered American expression for nothing, I briefly wondered what the about in 15d was doing before circling the clue and moving on. Like someone else commented, seeing the probable pangram was a great help in getting 2d. I think I’d still be puzzling over that and 9a otherwise. Triennia was a bit obscure I thought, but didn’t hold me up too long. Erasable took a while before I thought of putting the R in after the E. I then saw what the answer was and realised that my answer for 23a was wrong. Following my query about vert earlier in the week, which Jack kindly answered, I’d put that in as the green shade, with Trev being the boy who turned. Correcting this allowed me to get bomb for 20d which didn’t sound quite right for a ‘little sign’ but an alphabet trawl revealed my COD bump.
  11. I didn’t recognise the setter’s name, and after the first few answers realised that this was a cut above the usual type of QC, but certainly no less enjoyable for it. Fortunately I didn’t know/remember the Alfie/Noel connection – I often over-complicate clues as it is. A slow but steady solve, finishing just the wrong side of 30mins as a result of struggling with the Bump/Emil pairing, and not being able to parse Pizzeria. Thank you Alfie, you really must come back more often. Invariant
  12. Actually spotted the pangram. The first time ever, which gave me QUIT. ( Although one should always look for ‘Q’ in front of a ‘U’.) Really enjoyed this. A most unusual style. Missed the reverse hidden.
    PlayUpPompey
  13. I was delayed for ages by 23a since I was convinced Emil contained a final e, as in Emile Heskey (footballer) or Emile Ford (1960s pop singer). Not for the first time, my assumption proved incorrect and I should have checked before ignoring the fairly obvious reversal. My COD: Bloaters.
  14. After seeing Jackkt’s comment, I went away to see if I could find anything hidden, but couldn’t… and failed to share my experience of the crossword, so here, a bit belatedly, it is… Nice puzzle without any alarms. LOI LYNX after TRIENNIA, which took a bit of constructing. COD to PIZZERIA, although I liked BUMP and BLOATERS too. 5:18.
  15. I was going to attempt this before work but when I saw that it had taken Verlaine over 4 minutes I figured I would need to dedicate a decent chunk of time to it. I’m glad I did as it was tougher than average and there weren’t many gimmes. I finished, after a battle with ASHAKE, ERASABLE and EMIL, in 19.20 with my COD going to GROUPS.
    Thanks to curarist for the blog an Alfie for an excellent puzzle
  16. There is something else to this, I think.

    Just checking how many clues blogger had to write about.

  17. Subtle, but worth looking at completed grid in order, across answers, then down answers in turn. Will be in same order as in blog for acrosses, though slightly different for downs.
  18. There are 26 clues in which each of the letters of the alphabet appear in turn. In down clues, you have to look at the columns successively top to bottom, then left to right so slightly different from the blog but a natural order for the theme.
    1. Thanks. However, it would have saved me a couple of mins if ‘clue’ had not been used in place of ‘solution’. The next post is clearer.
      1. Yes, I should have said “solution” or “answer” rather than “clue” – apologies for any confusion
  19. This was tough, and I was tempted to think some of the clues must be impossibly obscure, but all came good in the end. Made the mistake of having LIME rather than EMIL (both seem valid to me), which made 13 and 20 down rather tough. Spent a lot of time on 20 down, because as B_I_ it didn’t seem there could be that many options, but the clue was hard to decipher. It was only near the end when I settled on ERASABLE that I realised that EMIL was the correct orientation, at which point BUMP became evident. Both for the difficulty it caused me and the cryptic nature of the clue, this is my COD, although there are plenty of other candidates. My last pair in were QUIT and CASTRO. I couldn’t parse CASTRO – too well hidden. I was toying with SURE for two down at an early stage (SHORE leave? SURELY not! – I know it doesn’t really parse but the puzzle was evidently different, and nothing else came to mind – at that stage there were plenty of other places the Q might be hiding). I suspected the pangram early on, but the final revelation of the successive letters in the across and then down clues blows my mind. Amazing!
  20. Good spot, Anonymous. (In case anyone else is still wondering, there are 26 solutions. The first horizontal one in the completed grid (7ac) includes A, the second (8ac) includes B and so forth… The penultimate vertical solution, L to R, (6d) has Y, and the last (15d) has Z).

    I’m glad I wasn’t the only one to put TREV in at first for 23ac!

    – Nila Palin

  22. Trelawney and Alfie made an excellent way to end the week, relatively easy (for me) following Pedro and others which were much too hard – couldn’t get started. More please!
  23. Not long been doing these puzzles and finding the explanations really helpful. But please can someone explain what their mysterious letters mean – LOI, FOI, COD? I assume DNF means Did Not Finish – all too often my fate!
    1. There is a link to the Glossary on the right hand side. I tried including the link but my comment was marked as spam.

Comments are closed.