Solving time: 57:56 – with three wrong!
I found this something of a struggle. There were several that I put in without full understanding as I went through, plus a couple of wild guesses. I got three wrong in total. One (13a) I spotted straightaway, but the other two (4/9) it took me quite a while to spot.
There were a number of words that were unknown to me – EVERT, MASH-TUN, LUNGI, PASHTUN, ANNAPURNA & DIXIES
cd = cryptic def., dd = double def., rev = reversal, homophones are written in quotes, anagrams as (–)*, and removals like this
Across | |
---|---|
1 | CAGE = C |
3 | CLOCK RADIO = CLIO (Greek Muse of history) about (DARK + CO) rev |
9 | MASH-TUN = M + |
11 | IN-BOXES – I’m not sure of the wordplay here. I think it’s I (one) + N (new) + SEX (the other) + OB (he passed on, i.e. obituary) reversed. Thanks to Jack for the correction. |
12 | TWINKLING = TWIN KING about L |
13 | EVERT |
14 | SCHMALTZIEST = (LISZT ETC HAS + M)* |
18 | ACADEMY AWARD = ACADEMY (school) + WARD (charge) about A |
21 | HIND + U – U is a good luck charm in as much as it looks like a horseshoe, I suppose |
22 | ANNAPURNA = ANN + (RAN UP A)* |
24 | COAL-TIT = COAT (jacket) about (LT + I) |
25 | B + ED + TIME – a well-disguised definition |
26 | OUT OF ORDER = OUT (to expose) + O (old) + FORDER (person crossing river) |
27 | BETA = “BEATER” – a computing term. A Beta Test version of a piece of software is the final test version before it is released. |
Down | |
1 | COMATOSE = I don’t get this one. COME (arrive) about (guards) ATOS must be ‘busy with ciphers’ but I don’t see why. It’s AT (busy with) + OS (ciphers, or 0s) I’ve not come across cipher meaning zero before. Thanks to Jack again who got in first with this one. |
2 | GASLIGHT = G |
4 | LUNGI |
5 | CLINGFILM = (FILLING)* in CM |
6 | RUBBERS + TAMPE |
7 | DI(XI)ES |
8 | ON-SITE – rev hidden |
10 | TAKE ACCOUNT OF – dd |
15 | TAD + CAST + ER – a Town in North Yorkshire |
16 | H + AIRLINE – a couple of well-disguised definitions |
17 | NDJAMENA = DJ in NAME + NA – I’m pretty good on my capital cities, so I got this one quite quickly. It’s the capital of the African country of Chad. |
19 | THICKO = THICK (as in ‘as thick as thieves’) + O |
20 | INFANT = IN FONT with the O replaced by A (both being blood groups) |
23 | NO |
1dn. Busy with = AT and Ciphers = 0S (zeros)
A similar tale here except I didn’t get any wrong because I resorted to aids for the last two or three in the SE where I had become completely stuck. I simply didn’t know the capital or the ridge and was unable to unravel the wordplay.
Before coming to an ignominious end I had been making steady if somewhat slow progress and felt I was achieving something despite a lot of answers going in not fully understood.I had been on course for a 40-45 minute solve but in the end I needed 70.
I don’t see 1ac as &lit but rather as a literal plus wordplay that involves C doing double duty.
I was going to query the definition at 3ac because a CLOCK RADIO isn’t ‘a wake-up call’, but then I tried reading it as “it HAS a wake-up call” and that seems to work.
I was amused by SEX as ‘the other’ although perhaps it’s come round again rather too soon.
Edited at 2012-12-07 03:57 am (UTC)
I did like the puzzle, I just didn’t quite have the knowledge needed to finish.
25:17 … a seriously clever puzzle. Some of the disguised definitions are terrific.
I only got started by working at the multi-word clues. And I’ll admit to Googling N’DJAMENA before hitting ‘submit’.
COD .. probably BEDTIME. That’s just great. I loved solving this. Thanks, setter. And thanks, Dave P, for taking the short straw with the sang froid one would fully expect of a man who blogs in black tie. And I’d like to thank the editor, and the subeditor, and the typographer, and all the wonderful people in the technical department, and the … [cut to commercials]
– Vince in Syracuse, NY
Not a puzzle for a day when time is limited — which it very rarely is these days.
1 tamthebamiam *3m, 35s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 882
2 mistigris *12m, 8s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 839
3 Spurius *22m, 8s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 789
4 neilr *25m, 5s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 775
5 sotira *25m, 17s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 774
6 andyt *28m, 3s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 760
7 zythum *29m, 59s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 750
8 FunnyBunny *42m, 47s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 686
9 cassandra *43m, 38s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 682
10 Ben Ganly *48m, 13s Fri 7th Dec 2012 0 659
(plagiarised from The Times at 08:18 GMT.
Super puzzle, this. I started reasonably quickly but then was slowed to a crawl by all the difficult ones. The SE corner was the hardest, where ANNAPURNA was only vaguely familiar and I didn’t know the capital. LUNGI, DIXIES and MASH TUN were new to me.
I came quite close to inventing a fictional/mystical/religious trial called the KEPA at 27ac. Fortunately I kept thinking.
Edited at 2012-12-07 08:45 am (UTC)
As far as “U” is concerned, under “horseshoe” Chambers gives “a representation of it as a symbol of good luck” so your parsing is correct Dave
Andy B
Andy B.
A friend of mine and his girlfriend trekked the Annapurna circuit in October, so that mountain came to mind readily given the jumble of As, Ns and a P.
We’ve had the exotic capital before, here or in a Sunday Times puzzle. Probably clued in a very similar way. I wonder if Tony Sever would be able to tell us?
There were a couple of things about this puzzle that made me suspect that the setter might also have been responsible of last Saturday’s fiendish Jumbo. I quite enjoyed that one, but this seemed a touch more convoluted and I didn’t enjoy it as much. Perhaps it’s just that I’m just feeling knackered after 17dn though!
Edited at 2012-12-08 01:57 am (UTC)