Times 26875 – …there are a lot of blank pages!

Author   vinyl1Posted on Categories Daily Cryptic
Time: 61 minutes
Music: Holst, The Planets, Boult/LSO

As you might imagine from my time, I certainly did not find this easy.   Several of the clues that I did understand were outstandingly devious, and there are still a couple I am not entirely sure of.   Not a recipe for a confident solve or a confident blog!   However, any omissions will no doubt be speedily pointed out by the able crew here.

I would like to congratulate all the bloggers and commenters who particpated in the Championships over the weekend.   I know it’s like playing golf against Tiger Woods in his prime, but sooner or later someone else is going to win.   The blog does boast a very high finisher in the finals, and I am hoping that one day we can say that our team has finally bagged the trophy.   We certainly practice enough around here.

Across
1 Charge about, arresting one or two (4)
PAIR – R(I)AP reversed.
3 Rascal sticks pin into gangster but without force (10)
SCAPEGRACE -SCA(PEG)R[f]ACE.   A diabolical clue – if you think ‘gangster’ is always ‘Al’, well, we have a new one for you!
9 During worship I dream (7)
REVERIE – REVER(I)E.
11 Little chap drinks port to grow massively (3,4)
RUN RIOT – RUN(RIO)T
12 User isn’t bothered by salesman’s initial lack of practice (9)
RUSTINESS – Anagram of USER ISN’T + S[alesman]
13 Arch charity worker’s plea (5)
OGIVE – O! GIVE!   Both ‘ogive’ and ‘ogee’ are native to US puzzles.
14 To explain (a phrase she didn’t use): I must come first (2,5,5)
IN OTHER WORDS – I + NOT HER WORDS, just biffed by me.
18 What bestows second sight? (12)
REAPPEARANCE – apparently a cryptic definition, as far as I can tell.
21 Rose suddenly turned pale and finally wept (5)
LEAPT – anagram of PALE + [wep]T
22 Fail to leave ring? Yes (2,5,2)
GO BELLY UP – GO + BELL + YUP.
24 After a short time, about to turn against a goddess (7)
MINERVA – MIN + RE backwards + V[ersus] + A.   Most solvers will biff this one.
25 Statue perhaps of couple with king stored in chest (7)
ARTWORK – AR(TWO + R)K, where ‘king’ is not K, but is very helpful in thinking of the answer.
26 Setting out from old place (10)
EXPOSITION – EX POSITION, of course!
27 Almost broke surface (4)
SKIN – SKIN[t].

Down
1 Picture of seaside town, artist taking it (8)
PORTRAIT – PORT + RA + IT.
2 I have endless stock, and add in new? (8)
INVESTOR – I(N)’VE + STOR[e], a rather lame &lit.
4 Moving quietly up, steal fabric (5)
CREPE – CREEP with the P moving up.
5 Son wearing fairy cloak that gives a superior look (9)
PERISCOPE – PERI (S) COPE.
6 Revolutionary act well before the Boston Tea Party? (9,4)
GUNPOWDER PLOT – A bit puzzling, but I believe there is an allusion to gunpowder tea here.   Comments invited.
7 A Guernsey detective cut off sharpish (6)
ACIDIC – A C[hannel] I[sland] DIC[k].
8 Book advises the right clothes (6)
ESTHER – hidden in [advis]ES THE R[ight].
10 Series of talks from heretic result in chaos (5,8)
REITH LECTURES – anagram of HERETIC RESULT.
15 Being king, suppressing rising in turn is very unattractive (9)
REPUGNANT – RE(UP turned up)GNANT.
16 I think, and I write what I think here? (2,2,4)
IN MY BOOK – Double definition, one factitious.
17 Inside mountain, radius taken (8)
BESPOKEN – BE(SPOKE)N, very clever, my COD.
19 Briefly on fire, Roman priest almost smothers bishop (6)
FLAMBE – FLAM(B)E[n].   I took me a long time to remember this particular Roman priest.
20 What my pet loves: a drink of milk and a piece of cake brought up (6)
CATNIP – PINT + A C[ake], rather a Mephisto type clue, but the answer can be biffed.
23 Congratulations for assassin (5)
BRAVO – Double definition, although a ‘bravo’ is not usually that bad.

80 comments on “Times 26875 – …there are a lot of blank pages!”

  1. BESPOKEN was my LOI. I forgot to parse SCAPEGRACE and PERISCOPE. The “assassin” meaning of BRAVO was new to me, as well as the Roman priest (which I looked up just now), and I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of the REITH LECTURES. I worked just the west half, precisely, before feeling stymied and taking a break to go through the Quickie. When I returned to this, light dawned on the eastern territory.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 06:03 am (UTC)

  3. Guy Fawkes and all that, though I’m sure you’re right about gunpowder tea.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 03:41 am (UTC)

    1. I did remember the Fifth of November (as Lennon advised us). This puzzle is officially a day late. But Vinyl’s mention of the tea drove me to Wikipedia, where I learned that the etymology of the term is disputed. Is it from the appearance of the tea leaves, or the sound of certain words in Mandarin? Or…?
      (Despite the Wiki entry’s second sentence, which asserts that the matter is settled.)

      Edited at 2017-11-06 06:02 am (UTC)

  4. I fell into the ‘AL’ trap at 3ac–and never spotted SCARFACE–finally came up with PEG, and after a long senior moment, and finally getting ESTHER, I remembered SCAPEGRACE, and like Guy never parsed it. My obtuseness in spotting hiddens was in top form with ESTHER, and I couldn’t tear myself away from ‘suede’ at 4d, even though I knew it was hopeless. On the other hand, I somehow biffed REITH LECTURES from 3 checkers (R..H T, I think) without looking at the clue. Not your typical Monday puzzle, and all the better for it.
  5. The blogger was well ahead of me on the topical Guy Fawkes clue, where I was completely clueless. I would probably have been as hapless as Kevin on the hidden, were it not for the fact that I reverse engineered it: biff followed by parsing.

    31 minutes for a top-class Monday puzzle. More on my watch, please.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 04:23 am (UTC)

  6. A difficult puzle in which I was delayed by several missing answers in the NE and SE segments. I let the hour pass today before resorting to aids to solve 3ac. I was disappointed that I hadn’t managed to solve it with all but the final checker in place and having spotted PEG for ‘pin’ in the middle, but took comfort from the fact that I did not know the word, so needing aids was perhaps excusable. However this was short lived when I then discovered that the answer to 8dn was hidden and had been staring me in the face all the time. That final ‘E’checker could have made all the difference at 3ac as I knew SCARFACE and might have remembered him.

    Along with Guy above, I didn’t know BRAVO as ‘assassin’, nor the Roman general but neither lack of GK gave me a problem coming up with the correct answer.

    [Edit: I now find that SCAPEGRACE appeared previously in May 2010 when I also commented I’d never heard of it. However I think it may have been clued more generously as I completed the puzzle in 30 minutes bar one (other) word. On that occasion it was: Wayward type beginning to seduce head girl (10) unknown

    Edited at 2017-11-06 06:55 am (UTC)

  7. DNF. Never heard of SCAPEGRACE and never thought of Scarface (although since he was one of the famous inhabitants of Alcatraz I’ve heard that name before). Also offputting was that CAPONE would fit although I couldn’t make anything work, obviously. Didn’t know the BRAVO as an assassin but what else could it be? The GUNPOWDER PLOT clue was just weird.

    BTW you have the puzzle number wrong in the title.

  8. Ah, well. Poor form, as evidenced by a lacklustre showing at the Champs, continues with a DNF here.

    But it’s one of those occasions where I’m not really kicking myself. Never knowingly heard of SCAPEGRACE and don’t really feel the lack of it. The GUNPOWDER tea reference also passed me by completely. Couldn’t see CREPE, either, though that was just me being dim.

    Around 19 minutes before running into the buffers with those two.

    Kudos for the cleverness in GO BELLY UP and BESPOKEN.

    Oh, yeah … for 7d was I the only one trying to remember whether Bergerac lived on Jersey or Guernsey? (highbrow or youth points to anyone who says “Who’s Bergerac?”)

    2. I was able to picture Bergerac quite clearly, but the name “Shoestring” came to mind first and then I digressed, wondering what ever happened to Trevor Eve. Back from the REVERIE, I spotted the definition, biffed ACIDIC from the checkers then parsed as intended. That done, I remembered it was Jersey, with good old Jim working for the fictional Bureau des Étrangers in St Helier. All this probably deserves Nul Points! Kind regards, Bob K.
      1. You get dix points from me, Bob. Seriously, I don’t know how any compiler could come up with a clue that even so much as implied that John Nettles might be irritating. Irritating? He’s a national treasure. And I do remember the Bureau des Étrangers with great pleasure.
  9. I’m clearing trying to make up for my Champs silliness by having made a pretty good showing for this one, at around 6 and a half minutes. I didn’t parse SCAPEGRACE at all as it seemed totally biffable from the crossers, love it now that I’ve had the explanation. GUNPOWDER implying tea appeared in a barred puzzle recently, I have a feeling, so it didn’t cause me any bewilderment once I’d spotted the word. I’d rather Monday puzzles were at this level than the 4 minute typing-speed gallops! Well done setter, really good.
  10. But spelled appearance with an E

    This was a weird crossword. The nw was really easy but then I got stuck and had to start over in the se. The ne was the hardest, mainly because of scapegrace.

    Liked crepe, and Esther might the best hidden clue I’ve seen. Ogive was so bad it was almost good

  11. DNF in an hour – over yoghurt, granola, banana, berries, etc. Delicious, but the crossword NE was too chewy.
    Got the Scar(f)ace – but no idea what the Pin could be. So no G or O(give) for the very cryptic Gunpowder Plot. Hey ho. Tomorrow is another day.
    Mostly I liked going belly up today.
    Thanks scapegrace setter and Vinyl.
  12. Pretty much as Sotira’s experience including the Bergerac diversion. Too difficult for me but loved the brevity of the clues and GO BELLY UP particularly.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 08:42 am (UTC)

  13. Just over 20 minutes, feeling slightly smug about knowing the relative obscurities like the Roman priest, the lectures and SCAPEGRACE, though I thought it was Bunyan or Miltonish (it’s later).
    Things I nearly had: 2d INVENTOR which so nearly works, and 20d CATNAP.
    ESTHER was so well hidden it was my last in. I think I was influenced by the general consensus here that all Bible books are by definition obscure so I would have to drag a really obscure one out of my enviable store of knowledge.
    1. Somebody here pointed out on its last outing (in 2010) that it is used to describe one of the characters in Vanity Fair.
      1. Merriam Webster records the earliest known use as 1763, but doesn’t say where. That would predate Thackeray by – um – quite a few years.
        1. I don’t think it was suggested that was the origin of the word, just an example that literary types might well have come across, so they may know of it.
  14. DNF in 30 mins. 5 short.

    (I used to post as astonvilla1).

    Edited at 2017-11-06 09:09 am (UTC)

    1. I can’t believe you bowed to pressure and changed your name! There was something quite sweet about “astonvilla1”. Good to see you here and fragrant by any other name, though.
      1. I couldn’t work out how to reactivate my livejournal account with the user name astonvilla1!

        If there is a groundswell of support for me using my old avatar I’m sure I could resurrect it. Free the astonvilla1.

        Thank’s for the warm welcome back.

  15. I have an excuse, doing this online, which I hate, and allowing 30 minutes for a Monday, crashed on SCAPEGRACE, CREPE and also REAPPEARANCE – bestows? Parsing of GUNPOWDER PLOT, just about convinced, but ‘revolutionary act’? Thanks vinyl and setter.

    We commemorated the thwarting of this religious terrorism once again yesterday, by burning effigies and being allowed to let off explosions, which is fine unless you’re old, a hedgehog, scared, a war veteran, family pet, or just need to sleep. Plus of course the Catherine wheel, named for a particularly nasty way to be killed, and Roman candles, burning being the method of execution of choice for some. Rant over.

    I’ll try to join the blog team at the champs next year, well done to all those who braved it.

    1. I’m not usually precious or gesture-motivated but I refused to go to our local bonfire night. I hate to think of the terror it causes to all the small animals and birds who’ve made their homes in the field. It’s the first Autumn in 16 years that we’ve not been in fear of the bangs for weeks on end. Our old collie who died last Spring was terrified of them and I used to have to drive him to a pitch-black country field each evening for his constitutional. Apparently lots of dogs had to be put down during the Blitz for the same reason.
    2. I read it as; the reappearance of something, bestows upon you a second chance to see it.
      Chris Bermondsey.
  16. Finished all present and correct with perseverance in 48 minutes when I thought I was about to GO BELLY UP. I don’t know GUNPOWDER TEA so came here wondering about why the GUNPOWDER PLOT hadn’t been forgot. Eventually got SCAPEGRACE which I vaguely knew. The gangster came to me from a sick joke starting with, “Play the piano, Scarface.” “I’m not, Scarface.” You can guess the rest. Biffed FLAMBE. but I do have vague memories of FLAMEN from school Latin. (It’s ‘discipuli picturam spectate’ and 1957 again.) I always prefer my CREPEs not flambéed and with maple syrup anyway. COD BESPOKEN which was LOI. Nice puzzle. Thank you V and setter.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 09:19 am (UTC)

  17. Tricky for a Monday, and as V says all the better for that. Mrs K popped up with CREPE she knows her fabrics. DNK SCAPEGRACE but saw the wordplay. BESPOKEN my LOI once the K was in place and I’d got rid of IN MY HEAD for 16d. Hope the rest of the week is on this level.
  18. …when even with all the checkers in place the answer is still a complete mystery. Neither SCAPEGRACE or OGIVE were going to appear by divine inspiration so I shall just file them away for future use and move on. Shame really having got and understood GUNPOWDER PLOT, although I thought that along with REAPPEARANCE and the definition of CATNIP rather laboured.
  19. Much less biffing than the traditional Monday, which was good, as it meant I gave a proper amount of consideration to some nicely original clues. At 3ac I was glad to remember the word, or at least that it existed (all I could really remember of it was that it’s not the same as a SCAPEGOAT). And 17dn is a perfect example of a clue which wasn’t as easy as it looked; I needed to look for some time before accepting there wasn’t an R in the middle somewhere.

    I also found my mind drifting towards John Nettles; and found myself wondering if Hitler’s collected speeches might have been known as the REICH something-or-other. Always nice when the setter provides some completely incorrect by-ways for a solver to travel down.

  20. 55 mins for my first post-retirement solve. Was pleased with my progress including an inspired solve of OGIVE, but the unknown SCAPEGRACE had to be got from checkers as I didn’t have enough helping letters to parse it instead. LOI ESTHER – doh! Hate those ‘clothes’ clues – could mean many things…
  21. After a slow start this went quite smoothly with the exception of REAPPEARANCE where I must admit thinking – is that all there is? Otherwise a first rate puzzle. When the Victorians went in for mourning in a big way black CREPE (or crape) was de rigeur for women. Our daughter’s dog hides in the shower on July 4th even though the nearest fireworks are 5 miles away. 21.23
    1. I remember when I was a very little girl, our house caught on fire
      I’ll never forget the look on my father’s face as he gathered me up
      in his arms and raced through the burning building out to the pavement
      I stood there shivering in my pajamas and watched the whole world go up in flames
      And when it was all over I said to myself, is that all there is to a fire?

      What a song…

      1. It seems you’re not alone…

        “45th President of the United States Donald Trump has cited the Peggy Lee version as being his favorite song.”

        2. I wish you hadn’t told us that Penfold – but it’s far too late for me to revise my view of DJT
      2. Wow! was aware of song of course but hadn’t listened too deeply but now looking at the lyrics. Might write a verse about going to the xwd chmpshp
  23. 30 min with two errors: a typo as I have letter skip on, and 20dn, where I’d biffed CATLAP, and not parsed clue after getting 24ac. (First thought was MO for the short time, but MOL—- doesn’t go anywhere.)
    No problem with ‘gunpowder tea’ which usually turns up somewhere at this time of year.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 11:19 am (UTC)

  24. For obvious reasons, we do not have a cat, but if we did, it would I am sure like a CATNAP. Angus the dog is not a happy bunny at this time of year but he is getting more tolerant. Still do not see GUNPOWDER PLOT, even knowing the tea connection. Oh well! Congratulations to Magoo and indeed all who participated.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 11:51 am (UTC)

  25. I am in awe of those who took part. Where did the regulars on this site end up (if they are happy to say)?
    1. The biggest mention (and I’m sure he’s too modest to mention it himself) has to go to Mohn2 of Jumbo and QC-blogging fame. He came second in the grand final so effectively won the only event where there was real competition.

      Topical Tim and Keriothe did exceptionally well in the f1rst prelim, coming in 14th & 16th I think but were eclipsed by Cryptic Sue who came second in that heat so qualifying for the final for the second year running.

      I’ll let others make their own declarations but one error for me meant I came 34th in prelim 2. It appears that, unlike in real life, you can’t just invent your own gods in crossword competitions.

      1. I enjoyed the day out. My first time, and I finished 2 of the 3 puzzles, but had a bit of a brain-freeze on the second. Still, I was quite happy with my 46th place in the first prelim, and got to spend the afternoon in the pub with some of the other contributors here. What’s more, I discovered that grestyman was visiting my office at work this week – I have just found him and said hello and we will lunch together later this week. It’s a small world!
      2. Fourth fastest in the first prelim but only 25th correctest, classic Verlaine. So that was Mohn2 giving Magoo a run for his money! Who else could it have been really (given that it didn’t seem to be anyone called “Jason”…)
    2. 76th in prelim 2.
      First ever go at it, so just glad not to be last.
      I got a bit starstruck by seeing Magoo, Verlaine, Tony et al in the flesh, and lost concentration at times; just kept myself to myself and gave it the best shot I could, though.
      Can’t wait to have another go next year (if I qualify); I learned a lot this time, and I’ll be practising a lot smarter and aiming to get into the 60s or 50s. 🙂

      Edited at 2017-11-06 06:38 pm (UTC)

    3. I came, I think, 44th in heat 2, with three clues unsolved. Bit disappointing after last year’s 26th, except that I genuinely, honestly had jet-lag. I was in a bit of a stupor all day and I hadn’t even had a drink. Maybe I should have.
  26. I read this as (pinta c{ake})rev. Surely a pint is hardly a drink of milk. People of a certain age can remember ‘Drinka pinta milka day’.

    Nobody has commented on the fact that there is a biffability of CATNAP. This was what I initially had (a pan is possibly a drink of milk … not really I know), with a mark to make me look at the parsing again.

    1. I remember the two cats of my boyhood, Chloe and Adam, both good friends with my number one pal, our generous-natured, black and tan mongrel dog Rex. Chloe loved to play with a catnip mouse. Adam would plonk himself down in the catnip we’d planted in the garden. They both loved the stuff. I’d parsed it as PINTA after the slogan, with ‘c’ a single piece of cake.
      1. I read it and noted it. With just the A, my first thought was lapdog, as my pet loves my lap and a lap could be a drink of milk. Obviously the rest made no sense whatsoever.
  29. DNF within the hour as the NE corner was just too tricky. Never heard of OGIVE and having consulted the dictionary I feel the clue should have had some indication of the heteronym, eg “by the look of it”, as the G is soft.

    GO BELLY UP made me chuckle, although I thought it was a boxing reference until I checked my parsing afterwards.

    6d still seems odd, but it prompted me to read up on the Boston Tea Party, the Gunpowder Plot and the delights of hanging, drawing and quartering so another interesting half hour.

    Thanks for the blog.

  30. Defeated by the (not fat) rascal.

    Now that the championship post has been unpinned I’ll use this post to say sorry to those I missed in the George by not turning up until after the final but also what a pleasure it was to catch up with old acquaintances and make new ones including topical tim, boltonwanderer (thanks again for the book) mohn2 and QC David.

  31. Felt utterly stymied at more than one point but got there in 57.14. Quite a twister. Agree with pinta above. Congrats to the daredevils who put themselves on the line at the Champs.
  32. I freeze up when asked for a fabric in pretty much the same way I do when it’s a plant (or an antelope), so I never got to Crepe and consequently not to Scapegrace. Ah well, tomorrow. Thanks, Vinyl.
  33. 22:24 done online for once. I began to think I’d lost the plot, missing the gunpowder tea reference. Yes. Definitely a bit hard for a Monday. GO BELLY UP my favourite.
  34. Another defeated by the cad at 5. The championship certainly an experience and great fun meeting some new avatars in the flesh along with others already known. As for myself, at least I didn’t come last! Thanks to all for a very enjoyable day.
  35. As I stormed through last Monday’s puzzle, I thought I’d give this a go.
    I immediately thought of Gunpowder Plot for 6d but realised it did not parse.
    Then for 7d, I thought of Bergerac -cut off led to Berger; then John Nettles…
    Then I gave up and came here. Glad I did as this was much too hard for me.
    Let me say again how much I enjoyed meeting so many at The George.
    I need to find an avatar for Livejournal. Perhaps QCDavid or DavidQC , but who am I to judge? David
  36. I thought I took quite a long time for this but having read the blog was pleased to see that quite a few people took even longer. A very enjoyable steady solve. FOI was CREPE – I’m good on fabrics. LOI was BESPOKEN – I expected “radius” to be just an R. 27 minutes. Ann
  37. Not easy at all, and took me around 45 minutes, with a lot of head scratching. SCAPEGRACE vaguely familiar, but came only with all the checkers. No idea of gunpowder tea, so the plot went in with a shrug, Last couple in were BRAVO and ARTWORK. I liked GO BELLY UP.
    A salute to all those who competed. And regards to all.
  38. I set off at a gallop in the NW with 1a FOI, but then ground to a crawl, eventually biffing my LOI, BRAVO(the assassin meaning of which I didn’t know), and submitting at 51:01. I remembered FLAMEN from a recent puzzle and SCAPEGRACE was vaguely remembered, with the parsing becoming obvious once I saw PEG for PIN. GUNPOWDER PLOT was purely from checkers and enumeration: I hadn’t come across gunpowder tea. OGIVE rang a faint bell after I’d spotted the parsing. I also tried to build a goddess around MO as a short time, until I saw MIN and the half forgotten MINERVA sprang into view. Some tricky stuff here as already pointed out. A most enjoyable foray, but definitely not typical Monday fare. Thanks setter and Vinyl.
  39. 26 mins. Did this (paper and pencil) in a spirit of self-chastisement following a mediocre also-ran performance at the champs on Saturday, so probably gave it more energy than usual 🙂
    Nice puzzle; thanks to setter and V.

    Edited at 2017-11-06 06:36 pm (UTC)

  40. Nice meeting you too, P – hope you can excuse the unintended slur of thinking that you worked in IT.
  41. I have just watched Mark Goodliffe’s solve of this puzzle on Cracking the Cryptic on Youtube. Recommended. David
  42. 36 mins at lunchtime then 12 mins after work to polish off the SW where go belly up, bespoken, in my book and reappearance gave me a lot of trouble. So, tricky for a Monday. 3ac took a while before I finally abandoned Al Capone and remembered the Al Pacino film. Dnk the assassin but dk the congratulations. Thought 6dn worked as a piece of whimsy – you would need a gunpowder (tea) plot well beforehand to prepare for your Boston tea party. A nice if unexpectedly bracing start to the week.
  43. No time, but somewhere around 40 minutes for what I thought was a tough one. Count me as one of those who had NHO SCAPEGRACE, nor the other meaning of BRAVO.
  44. I was otherwise engaged on Monday (Showing friends the delights of Shanghai) – so this was done first thing this mormng – in a squeak under an hour.

    Not of the usual Monday species, very good too!

    FOI 1dn PORTRAIT LOI 5ac SCAPEGRACE (DNK)

    Knew GUNPOWDER tea as we have most of it hereabouts.

    Anthony Hancock reads out loud the Milk Marketing Board’s DRINK-PINTA-MILKA-DAY in the Blood Donor (early on in the piece).

    COD 10dn REITH LECTURES

    WOD 22ac GO BELLY UP

    BRAVO!!

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