Time Quick Cryptic 881 by Teazel

Author   ChrisPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
11 minutes to the second for this very enjoyable outing which kicks off with with the excellent Peanuts. A few religious references and lots of other fun clues made this a real pleasure – thanks, Teazel. 15dn pipped others at the post for COD.

ACROSS

1. Cartoon strip – of which Peanuts (featuring my friend Woodstock) is an example. Waggon (CART), anagram (shaken) of SOON, journey (TRIP).
8. Tempt – invite. Agency worker (TEMP), go(T).
9. Brioche – roll. Bachelor (B), anagram (cooked) of HEROIC.
10. Hennaed – dyed. In the clue (a little) backwards (returned) blon(DE ANNE H)as.
11. Kinda – informal word meaning sort of. Family (KIN), bill (AD) backwards.
12. Smooth – unruffled. Second from last for me as I wasn’t sure about ‘moot’. Quiet (SH) admitting legal discussion (MOOT – to plead or argue theoretical or hypothetical cases, as an academic exercise or as vocational training for law students).
14. Grieve – mourn. Religious ref 1 – first wife (EVE) on (after) Greek (GR), island (I).
17. Celeb – star. Thought I was looking for the name of a celestial star – but no – church (CE) then the starts to (L)ook (E)ast (B)ehold. Religious ref 2 – star of Bethlehem.
19. Halibut – fish. Henry (HAL), one (I), only (BUT).
21. Lincoln – city. Nearly a third religious reference – not Abraham the multi-religion kicker-off but the US president.
22. Patio – courtyard. Gently brush (PAT), one (I), old (O).
23. Lonely hearts. The clue is ‘missing partners at cards in Sgt Pepper’s club’ which seems to be a cryptic definition. Sgt Pepper very famously had a Lonely Hearts Club Band and if you’re missing partners at cards you could be said to be a lonely heart (whether that’s a person looking to play cards with someone or the suit of Hearts missing other cards out of the pack). Extra clarity from galspray – missing partners (LONELY), cards (HEARTS) with the definition of ‘in Sgt Pepper’s Club’.

DOWN

1. Catches a cold – double definition.
2. Roman – Italian. Horse (ROAN) covers miles (M).
3. Outcast – reject. Blooming (OUT as in daffodils), actors (CAST).
4. Nobody – unimportant person. A thin wine can be criticised for having no body. I first read criticism of thin wife and I couldn’t Adam and Eve it.
5. Trick – cheat. Trick has a meaning of a card that can potentially win a trick/round of cards.
6. Incense – arouse rage. Tenuous religious ref 4 (incense burnt in church ceremonies). In (IN), anagram (dreadful) of SCENE.
7. Ménage a trois – unusual relationship (even less usual, I should image, in a Tesco Extra). Anagram (going wrong) of IN A MEGASTORE.
13. Orlando – US City. LOI – I had to wait for the ‘O’ from ‘smooth’ before seeing the hidden answer (some of) mo(ORLAND O)utside.
15. Relapse – fall back. Run (R), pass (ELAPSE). I enjoyed this one – concise, clear, economic, good surface.
16. Shandy – drink. (S)eriousl(Y) receiving one’s cards (HAND).
18. Booze – alcohol. Homophone (aloud) of expresses disapproval – boos.
20. Biter – dangerous dog. Anagram (put out) of TRIBE.

20 comments on “Time Quick Cryptic 881 by Teazel”

  1. I biffed 1d from one definition, not knowing the other. HALIBUT took a while because I was taking Henry to be H, having forgotten about HAL. Nice to have an easy one today; I even spotted the hidden right off. 4:52.
  2. 30 minutes with a woozy head, nice workout from Teazel. It helps completing some of the crosswords on their app.

    Held up by 8a, temp just wouldn’t come and LOI 14a, when I remembered Eve as first wife/woman.

    10a I know henna but not hennaed, but as it was hidden it had to be.

    COD 9a brioche and the heroic roll.

  3. 8 minutes. I found this one straightforward and would undoubtedly have reported a faster solve if I allowed myself to biff answers when tackling a Quickie.

    But any or all of the four long answers at the perimeter may give trouble if one doesn’t have the requisite GK, as might HENNAED, an odd-looking past form of a verb derived from a noun. And 11ac is kinda cheeky, so I don’t think anyone who took much longer or was unable to finish should feel downhearted about it.

    Edited at 2017-07-25 07:11 am (UTC)

  4. FWIW, I had 23ac as “missing partners” = LONELY + “cards” = HEARTS.

    Interesting range of vocab today, from KINDA and CELEB to HENNAED. Not your average Quickie.

    And MENAGE A TROIS is certainly not your average Quickie!

    Thanks Teazel and Chris.

    1. As you can see from the blog, I was a little unsure on 23ac – having the either/or option. I agree with your assessment. Thanks.
  5. A nice crossword today, finished in 20. Ny LOI was LONELY HEARTS. Like the poster above, I didn’t know the card player reference and just assumed it meant one without a romantic partner, with the card bit here referring to hearts? What do others think? Gribb.
  6. A steady solve at 17 minutes. No real hold ups but I needed all the checkers for my LOI 22a, where I felt that courtyard/patio was a bit of a stretch – but I’m sure it’s in the references.
    Other than that a very enjoyable solve from one of my favourite setters.
  7. Enjoyed this one, average difficulty for a Quick Cryptic.
    Not sure why you’re so desperate to find religious references even where none is intended. (Lincoln). Most crosswords have one or two.
    1. Sorry – I hadn’t intended to come across as desperate. On Lincoln – a book in 2012 by Edward Platt – The City of Abraham sets out to tell the 5, 000 year history of Tel Rumeida, the site of ancient Hebron – ‘the cradle of monotheism’. As for ‘incense’ – well, yes, that was just a bit of fun.
  8. Also an eleven minute solve to the second!

    COD 15dn RELAPSE

    WOD 9ac BRIOCHE

    11ac KINDA not a word in my dictionary!

    Can 21ac LINCOLN CITY hnave another storming season!? Go you IMPS!

  9. I wasn’t on the wavelength today and took well over my 15 minute target time (21 minutes), which is as slow as I can remember for a QC. Nothing too difficult or unfair, the answers just weren’t coming to me. I dd manage to parse everything in that time though – like jackkt, I don’t allow myself to insert the answer in a QC unless I fully understand it.

    I hope Thursday is easier!

  10. No problems here, but I still took 9:26 to cross the line, with CARTOON STRIP FOI and OUTCAST LOI. Biffed HENNAED without spotting the hidden, and shoved LONELY HEARTS in from the mention of Sgt Pepper and enumeration. An enjoyable puzzle. Thanks Teazel and Chris.
  11. Got a bit hung up working out the anagram for MENAGE A TROIS, it just wouldn’t come, and so I was a bit slow getting the last three or four. But still finished by Waterloo East. Had spent some while trying to work a W into CRETE on 14, and on 17 tried to make it CHLOE CH church, LO start of look, E east). Anyway, there turns out not to be a star called Chloe but there is a famous fashion house!

    Chris, helpful as your blog is, I don’t find the template it follows nearly as user-friendly as the one others seem to use (eg galspray and jackkt set out the clue in full and underline the definition). Don’t mean to carp, just giving some user feedback!

    Templar

    1. I appreciate that – and your comment – but an iPad, whilst both portable and helpful, doesn’t have all the bells and whistles. I would’t do the blog at all if I had to try to cut and paste all the clues. Very happy to do my bit but also for someone else to take over.
      At the same time I do have a feeling that these puzzles are for people to puzzle over – so a bit of blog-working-out can’t be all bad.

      Edited at 2017-07-25 09:39 pm (UTC)

  12. I enjoyed this. Some excellent and amusing clues -4d and 16 down in particular- both relate to drinking I now see.
    I went on the Magical Mystery Tour in Liverpool last week so have been overdosing on Beatles; hence 23a was a doddle (I did not stop to parse).
    I should have stopped when writing in Twist for 5d. This held me up and meant that 11a was LOI. Just over 20 minutes in total. David

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