Talbinho, your usual blogger, has been struck down by yellow bird syndrome on the Times Crossword Club site, so I’m standing in for one week only. I flew through most of this in about 7 minutes then took another 11 minutes to complete the bottom left corner, especially 17d (tricky), 24a (also tricky), 26a (maybe dodgy) and 22d (easy enough but just couldn’t get it). Reading Talbinho’s blog it seems that wrong clueing is far from unheard of on the Sunday Times puzzles and this one doesn’t disappoint.
Across | |
---|---|
1 | CANAPES – (AS PECAN)* a really easy start |
5 | ROSETTE – SET in ROTE. I think this is the first error as I can’t find evidence that ROTE = memory. Use of memory, yes, but not yer actual memory. |
9 | BUM,PIER |
10 | OWN G(O)AL |
11 | SWEEPING CHANGES – probably a cryptic definition |
12 | SPOT ON – POT in SON |
14 | ROPINESS – PINE in ROSS, an area of Northern Scotland inextricably linked with Cromarty |
17 | OVERT,ONE |
18 | BOTTLE – double def |
21 | COLLISION,COURSE |
24 | A,TOM(IS)E – IS being the biblical abbreviation for Isaiah |
25 | BREATHE – B +(HEATER)* |
26 | DOSSERS – is a single brief made up of several dossiers? I’m a little dubious |
27 | THAT’S IT – two defs, one the answer to “What’s all this PC stuff?” |
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Down | |
1 | CUB,I(ST)S |
2 | NUMBER ONE – I was quite surprised (but pleased) to see one of the definitions as “pee” |
3 | PR,1,MP – PR being PRince. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before but I eventually managed to confirm it here |
4 | S,PRANG – a definite wrong ‘un. The clue gives “move suddenly”, so unless a crash can also be a PRING there shurely shome mishtake |
5 | ROOT CROP – crop as in “this year’s crop of gradates” |
6 | SAN MARINO – (ROMANIANS)* |
7 | THONG – “song” to a lisper |
8 | EN,LISTS – EN being EN(glish) |
13 | ON THIN ICE – cryptic def. I took far too long on this wanting the “cracking future” to have something to do with eggs |
15 | ENTER,IT IS |
16 | INSIDERS – “In ciders” |
17 | ORCHARD – a really tricky clue, “source for supplying cooker direct”, a cooker being an apple unsuitable for eating raw |
19 | ELEMENT – two def, one slightly tricky – “I perhaps” refers the the element iodine on the periodic table |
20 | IN (h) A BIT |
22 | LOOPS – SPOOL rev |
23 | O,PER,A – A here being the last letter of saunA |
I had DOSSERS down as iffy. I don’t think a single brief can really be made up of several dossiers – after all, the whole point of a brief is that it’s supposed to be brief.
I quite agree with jackkt that the continuing run of cock-ups in the ST puzzle makes you doubt every clue you have difficulty with. Very unsatisfactory.
I am told the ST has an editor, so what does she do? I count at least three clues that only needed a letter or word changed to make them legitimate. In 26ac for example the only complaint is that it says brief, and not briefs. Also in 4dn, moved instead of move is all that seems needed. Why not get it right? I hereby offer my services in pointing these simple corrections out beforehand, instead of afterwards, if required..
I thought “inspired” was an inspired containment indicator..