Quick Cryptic 622 by Corelli

Author   nick_the_novicePosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
Greetings from Colombia – about to travel back to UK following a wonderful time on a remote island off Cartagena. Apologies for any slips but blogging under sub-optimal circumstances and very much in holiday mode.

Nice offering from Corelli at the easier end of the spectrum I thought. Several witty clues and some neat wordplay, and no obscurities. Thanks to Corelli for a fun puzzle.

Definitions underlined: DD = double definition: anagrams indicated by *(–)

Across
1 Illegally catching fish perhaps and cooking it? (8)
POACHING – You may wish to poach your fish instead of frying it…
5 Mineral in metal container (4)
TALC – Hidden (indicated by “in”) in meTAL Container
8 Rose has this ripped clothing Henry! (5)
THORN – TORN (ripped) going around (clothing) H (abbrev. Henry)
9 Adjust once more: study appropriate (7)
READAPT – READ (study) + APT (appropriate)
11 I was victorious, you might say (3)
ONE – Homophone (indicated by “you might say”) of “was victorious”
12 What waiter brings to finish off cake and pour (3,6)
ICE BUCKET – ICE (to finish off cake) + BUCKET (pour – as in “it’s bucketing down”)
13 Guy maybe who’s iffy — eg corrupt (6)
EFFIGY – *(IFFY EG) with “corrupt” as the anagrind; the definition is a reference to Guy Fawkes whose effigy is burned on 5th November
15 A drink for every mistake Homer makes? (6)
PERNOD – PER (for every) NOD (mistake Homer makes – i.e. the ‘Homeric nod’). Very droll!
18 Curvy French maid? (4,2,3)
JOAN OF ARC – Nice jokey cryptic based on “arc” indicating a curve
19 Instrument used in forest fire (3)
AXE – DD. ‘Instrument’ in the first definition struck me as a tad odd, but I’m sure it’s fine (the second definition is, of course, relating to terminating someone’s employment)
20 Mean lad upset old statesman (7)
MANDELA – *(MEAN LAD) with “upset” as the anagrind
21 European, however small, displaying spirit (5)
ETHOS – E (abbrev. European) + THO (however) + S (small)
22 University study’s ending with beer! (4)
YALE – Y (studY‘s ending – i.e. last letter) + ALE (beer)
23 Fly, for example, more quickly around North East (8)
FASTENER – FASTER (more quickly) goes ‘around’ NE (North East) – with the definition referring to the zip fly
Down
1 The pool transforming cave (7)
POTHOLE – *(THE POOL) with “transforming” as the anagrind
2 Stirred using a cooking pot and end of ladle (5)
AWOKE – A WOK (a cooking pot) + E (end of ladlE)
3 Working closely together, and giving great affection (4,2,5)
HAND IN GLOVE – Answer also from the wordplay HAND IN (giving) + G (abbrev. great) + LOVE (affection). Took me a while to spot the wordplay part as I was originally thinking of it as a DD (albeit the second definition did not quite stack up!)
4 Tended to turn red with sun (6)
NURSED – *(RED + SUN) with “to turn” as the anagrind
6 American boy carrying request (7)
ALASKAN – ALAN (boy) ‘carrying’ ASK (request)
7 Manage scaled-down Information Technology (3,2)
CUT IT – CUT (scaled down) + IT (information technology)
10 An attractive way of speaking that’s used in French, say (5,6)
ACUTE ACCENT – A CUTE ACCENT (an attractive way of speaking – more pleasing drollery)
14 Soft soap or a facecloth (7)
FLANNEL – Straightforward DD
16 Evidently no nudist’s item of furniture (7)
DRESSER – DD, the first an amusing cryptic one
17 Severely criticise a mother’s wide-brimmed hat (6)
PANAMA – PAN (severely criticise) A MA (a mother)
18 Lucky, like fingers getting stuck into doughnut? (5)
JAMMY – DD, second barely cryptic
19 Pale, like chicken (5)
ASHEN – AS HEN (like chicken) – rather neat, I thought

26 comments on “Quick Cryptic 622 by Corelli”

  1. Fairly smooth going, although I stopped dead at 2d (LOI) for a while, until WOK finally came to mind. DNK JAMMY, but it had to be. 5:31. And here we were worried about you coming across head-hunters, Nick!
  2. (Anonymous)
    Jul. 27th, 2016 04:40 am (UTC)
    PANAMA
    The wide brimmed hat is actually from Ecuador but is known as Panama as that is where there were originally sold to the workers cutting the canal.

    8:39

    meldrewv shanghai

  3. 9 minutes for this excellent puzzle which I’d agree is a little easier than we’ve experienced over the past few days although the Homeric NOD reference is a little on the obscure side. I expect I knew of it years ago but it had faded from memory only to be revived by a similar reference re a 15×15 a couple of weeks ago. Even then it wasn’t in a crossword as such but mentioned in an apology from the Crossword Editor concerning a mistake in a clue.

    This is only Corelli’s 9th outing since the inception of the Quickie and only his second this year. I had trouble with his earliest puzzles but he seems to have eased up a bit – or perhaps I’m on his wavelength now.

    HS: I have edited your earlier posting to remove the personal pot-shots.

    Edited at 2016-07-27 09:44 am (UTC)

  4. A DNF due to biffing AROSE at 2d even though being pretty sure it wasn’t right but then not going back. Had not heard of a Homeric nod but the wordplay and a time in my youth visiting my Paris based sister and before I discovered single malts meant it was a write in after the checkers were in place. COD 18a. Nice blog and thanks Corelli.
    1. I’ve never heard of ‘Homeric nod’ as such, but the phrase ‘Even Homer nods’–which, I just found out, comes from Horace’s Ars Poetica–has been around for some time, although it seems to have moved to the limbo of overused cliches.
  5. This is nit-picking above and beyond, but at 8ac (and elsewhere where ‘Henry’ shows up), I had assumed that H=(not Henry but) henry, the unit of inductance. (Although I suppose that any of the eight kings could be referred to as HR.) I bring this up, partly because I’m sick of grading exams, but also to remind folks that it’s OK to capitalize a word in a clue when the uncapitalized version is what’s required (Ruth for ruth), but not the reverse.
  6. Sorry, just noticed; I’m pretty sure the parsing is HANDING (giving) LOVE (great affection); G can be ‘good’, but ‘great’?
    2. Concur – handing and love is much better parsing. I agree g for great is pretty tenuous despite GB example. is to “hand in” to give? I don’t think so, to “return” perhaps.
  7. This was probably the hardest one I’ve ever done haha. Don’t know if it was just me, but just really struggled. Got all except AWOKE. Is wok really a cooking pot? HAND IN GLOVE took a while, and was convinced 12ac was something like “The Cheque”. Ah, well, good challenge, though.
  8. Relatively slow today, spent ages on 2d, had to resort to alphabet search, cannot think of a wok as a pot, more like a pan. Homer nods occasionally because Homer is/was a committee and needed a very good editor. Having once insulted the tourist office in Rouen by not understanding ‘rue Jeanne d’Arc’, I’m not sure they’d appreciate 18ac. 9’34”. Thanks nick and Corelli.
  9. Generally a walk in the park – but careful not to wrap the dog lead around your ankles. As noted by others 2d and 15a are the (erm) “potholes”. Improvers, like me, will love today’s main puzzle where many clues are very biffable. Thanks blogger
    Alan
  10. I actually found this one of the harder ones this week and struggled with some of the parsing – 3d, 15a, 7d and 19a. The blog as usual cleared up all of my doubts and queries – thanks Nick. Eventually finished in around 30 minutes over two sittings with my LOI 2d. Favourite clue was 10d.
  11. I found this one of the hardest quickies I have done- or tried to do! Definitely DNF

    Rita

  12. This may sound like plett11’s comments:I found this quite tough and solved over two sessions -was interrupted, but had drawn to a halt. There were several answers I was sure about but could not parse (unusual for me) and my LOI, 15a, was a case in point. I have never heard of Homer’s nod and was not sure whether we were looking for the Simpson or the ancient author.
    To me this was on a par with yesterday for toughness but harder for parsing -so thanks Nick.
    COD for me 23a. 25-30 minutes in total. David
  13. Certainly hardest of week so far for us. Never heard of a Homeric nod before and 2d foxed us. Sadly therefore a DFN
  14. I thought 19a might be a triple definition, with AXE meaning guitar (instrument), used in a forest (to chop down trees) and to fire someone.

    Like others, I wasn’t knowingly aware of Homer’s NOD, but it really couldn’t be anything else with the checkers and PER clued so conveniently.

    Good blog Nick, and an enjoyable puzzle, so thanks Corelli.

  15. Another single clue DNF – 15ac. Homeric nods ? What on earth is going on with the QC these days ? Invariant
  16. Unfortunately was defeated by WOK even being married to HK Wife and having lived in HK and SG. Shame on me. Some good clues today. Particularly liked AXE.
  17. Left side fine, right side tough. Many clues missing for another DNF. Homeric Nod new to me, but on reviewing the blog, most clues seem pretty fair. Just a wavelength problem, then. I thought ACUTE ACCENT was a great clue, made up for the blanks I had on the right side of the grid. I’ve been off my game for s few days, let’s hope for a good solve tomorrow.
  18. For what it’s worth Collins has: wok. a large metal Chinese cooking pot having a curved base like a bowl and traditionally with a wooden handle
  19. As a relative newbie, I usually struggle on until I have finished even if it takes several sittings… and more time than I can afford. This was the easiest (for me) in ages. I had it all finished within 25 minutes, even despite my husband interrupting with nuggets of information from the news! I have occasionally done a faster time, but not for a couple of weeks. I was beginning to think I’d lost the plot! Really grateful to Corelli for making me feel like I’m back on track.
    I have tried the 15×15 when bloggers here suggest that it is an easy day, but I have never managed more than a few words, so I think I shall have to settle for the QC to keep my spirits up. COD 10d. LOI 15a.
    1. Excellent, anon! Here’s to continued success. It’d be nice if you added a name or pseudonym so we can recognise you again.
  20. Took a number of separate attempts to finish this. Held up by 6d until the penny dropped, which helped to solve 15a. Not heard of the homer nod. A good challenge. Elin and Ian.
  21. Well I got there in the end but it took an hour and a half. RHS was the problem. Six weeks ago I was doing these QCs in an average of around 30 mins. I haven’t done one in less than an hour now for weeks. It’s not that there have been many obscure answers or over complicated clues as I can always see why the answers are what they are. Therefore it must be that I have just got out of the zone. Maybe a few days off would pay dividends!!

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