Solving time: 16 minutes
This is by far the easiest puzzle I have ever blogged. I don’t know what got into them, but some of the clues are barely cryptic at all. If I hadn’t gotten stuck for a few minutes in the NW, I might have broken 10 minutes, which would be a record for me. Perhaps some of our beginners will find that they have finally completed a Times puzzle unaided.
Music: Pictures at an Exhibition – Richter
Across | |
---|---|
1 | SCRUB, double definition. |
4 | IRISH STEW, anagram of TRIES HIS + W[ife]. |
9 | ALBATROSS. Triple definition – an allusion to The Ancient Mariner, a 2 on a par 5, and another, more indirect, allusion to The Ancient Mariner. |
10 | OCTET, O + CT + E[legan]T. |
11 | DINNER, D[uke] + INNER. |
12 | Omitted! |
14 | Omitted! |
16 | SMART, S + MART. |
17 | Omitted! |
19 | SPOON-FEED, SPOON (the golf club) + FEED. |
21 | RARA AVIS, RA + RA + A + VIS. |
22 | STUPOR, ST(UP)OR[e], as in a store of knowledge. |
25 | U-BOAT, anagram of ABOUT. Too bad the enumeration gives it away. |
26 | AEGEAN SEA. A[rea] + E.G. + anagram of ‘Aeneas’. |
27 | DESTROYER, double definition. |
28 | FROTH, FR + anagram of HOT. |
Down | |
1 | STAND ONE’S GROUND, STAND ONE’S (G[allons])ROUND |
2 | ROBIN, NIB OR upside down. I wanted to put ‘raven’ for a while. |
3 | BATTERY, double definition. |
4 | IRON, NORI upside down, my first in. |
5 | INSULATION, IN + anagram of UNIT ALSO. I had never heard of this meaning of ‘lagging’, the only vaguely obscure point in the puzzle. |
6 | HOOKERS, double definition. |
7 | TITILLATE, T(I + TILL)ATE. |
8 | WITH BATED BREATH, WITH (having) + sounds like ‘baited’ + B(R[oyal]E[ngineers})ATH. |
13 | CONSPIRACY, CONS PIRACY. |
15 | NOTORIOUS, anagram of NOIR, TOO + US. |
18 | PLATTER, P(L)ATTER[n], where ‘detailed’ has the ‘cut off its tail’ meaning. |
20 | Omitted! |
23 | Omitted – look for it! |
24 | AGAR, A GAR. |
Most of it fell into place easily enough but I was not helped by never having heard of RARA AVIS (although its translation is familiar enough) or the Japanese seaweed. I think I must have been still tired after a long Sunday dinner!
I’ve broken my silence to record my first and probably only sub 10-minute solve of a Times crossword. For once, I had absolutely no hold-ups. So this must be about as fast as I could ever make, given the time it takes me just to complete the mechanics (i.e. read clues, solve and then enter answers).
But please don’t have too many as easy as this one as I feel a bit deprived of a challenge!
Barry J
– What do I doo for the rest of the day ?
It’s not helping if you you don’t explain 5 clues just because you know how it works.
We don’t give solutions to all the clues in each puzzle, for three reasons. One: lack of time – writing this stuff takes longer than you might think! Two: so that we’re not seen as completely ruining the paper’s chance to make money with their “Phone for today’s answers” service. Three: to encourage you to try solving just a few clues yourself, with help from the checking letters provided by the rest. But if we miss out the one clue that stumps you, ask about it in a comment. If you do so on the day of publication, the answer will usually come quickly.
P.S. This puzzle was actually so dull I don’t even mind having messed it up.
Edited at 2012-12-17 05:30 pm (UTC)
To the first anon, as a holiday offering, the missing ones are: 12 GLEE CLUB (joy, nightspot); 14 NANNY GOAT (sorta cryptic) 17 SET (television) UP (promoted); 20 NOT HALF (double def, I guess); and 23 PESTO (hidden). Good luck to you and others starting to do these crosswords. Bear in mind the first note from ‘About this blog’, and that we all appreciate the time spent by the bloggers to explain the clues, even when leaving a few out. Regards to all.