Times 26980 – but do they speak 13 in 3 (or 17 or 23)

Author   glhPosted on Categories Daily Cryptic
Solving time: 17:17. I struggled mightily with this one, but it was all because I was unfamiliar with much of the general knowledge – the other other three times that are in so far are similar to mine. There’s seven proper nouns in the grid, which seems higher than we usually have.

Apologies if this has already been mentioned, but there’s a new word puzzle in the Times online. It’s five cryptic clues, and instead of giving you a crossword, there’s the letter bank that the answers contain. It’s a different twist – I suspected RR writes the clues, and makes for a fun 1-2 minute break during the day.

Definitions are underlined

Away we go…

Across
1 Glib learner in pub is transformed with ale (9)
PLAUSIBLE – L inside an anagram of PUB,IS,ALE
6 Own silver on table at last (5)
AGREE – AG(silver), RE(on), (tabl)E
9 Revolutionary drink sweetheart uncovered? (5)
KIROV – KIR(drink), then the inside of LOVE(sweetheart)
10 Loading at sea keeps ship in rapid passage (9)
GLISSANDO – anagram of LOADING containing SS(steamship)
11 One readily turns extremist joining faction (4,3)
WING NUT – NUT(extremist) beside WING(faction)
12 Devil that is heartless model for irreverence (7)
IMPIETY – IMP(devil), IE(that is), then TOY(model) missing the middle
13 Speech coming out of our mouth? (7,7)
ESTUARY ENGLISH – cryptic definition
17 Old city has loyal citizens, in for exercise (14)
CONSTANTINOPLE – CONSTANT(loyal) then PEOPLE(citizens) with IN replacing PE(exercise)
21 Almost unrestricted speed in run (7)
OPERATE – OPE(n)(unrestricted) RATE
23 State in which a priest entertains a bishop (7)
ALABAMA – A LAMA(priest) containin A, B
25 Fellow brought to court with daughter shivers (9)
MATCHWOOD – MATCH(fellow), WOO(courty), D(daughter)
26 Message online and call from branch? (5)
TWEET – double definition
27 Bit embarrassed evidently by second husband (5)
SHRED – RED(embarrassed) by S, H
28 Dreadful crustacean in river drained lake (9)
EXECRABLE – CRAB(crustacean) in EXE(river) and L(ak)E

Down
1 US writer and editor welcoming Kew grower (8)
POKEWEED – POE(US writer), and ED containing KEW
2 Item with Oedipal strings attached? (5)
APRON – cryptic definition
3 Drinkers drinking still in Kentish Town? (9)
SEVENOAKS – SOAKS(drinkers) containing EVEN(still)
4 Huge effort required to admit old prejudice (7)
BIGOTRY – BIG TRY (huge effort) containing O
5 Rabble-rousing lacks initial impression (7)
EDITION – SEDITION(rabble-rousing) missing the first letter
6 Storyteller sending up main work (5)
AESOP – SEA(main) reversed, OP
7 We weren’t first knights wicked pursuer’s trapped (7-2)
RUNNERS-UP – N,N(knights in chess) inside an anagram of PURSUER
8 Silhouette’s one small horse breaking into dash (6)
EPONYM – PONY(small horse) inside an EM dash.  The word is derived from Etienne de Silhouette
14 We’re toast having rolled vehicle (3-6)
TWO-SEATER – anagram of WE’RE TOAST
15 Edmund Crouchback say thrown in road by king (9)
LANCASTER – CAST(thrown) inside LANE(road), R(king). Edmund Crouchback was Earl of Lancaster
16 Theatre skill doubled energy in comic dialogue (8)
REPARTEE – REP(theatre), ART(skill) then two E’s
18 Fantastic doctor to close with thread over in A&E (7)
AWESOME – MO, SEW(close with thread) all reversed in A and E
19 Loveless pair become confused in silly talk (7)
TWADDLE – remove O from TWO, ADDLE(become confused)
20 Foremost among minds that cracks cases? (6)
HOLMES – an all-in-one. M(inds) inside HOLES(cases, scrapes, situations – at least that’s my best guess).  I got an email suggesting that it is M inside HOLES(cracks, solves), which sounds a bit better.
22 Climbing pea’s tips concealed plant pest (5)
APHID – P(e)A reversed, then HID(concealed)
24 Serve Republican British bitter (5)
ACERB – ACE(tennis serve), R(republican), B(British)

87 comments on “Times 26980 – but do they speak 13 in 3 (or 17 or 23)”

  1. Sorry to have ben absent for some time. Around 35 minutes, ending with HOLMES. I had a long time pondering both SEVENOAKS and MATCHWOOD which delayed things considerably. The names of all the towns in the UK aren’t on the tip of my tongue. Nevertheless, some fun was had, and I liked CONSTANTINOPLE. Regards.
  2. 30 minutes for everything except HOLMES. That one took another quarter of an hour to get. Frustrating to be held up by a single clue. I’m still not convinced by the parsing but it has to be…
  3. Holmes – did not like that one. Fellow = match is odd but the clue is otherwise pleasing. Why is em a dash – is it Morse code? Did not know Pokeweed – I got the weed but not the poke! Estuary English was a nice clue.
      1. Many thanks – I did look it up in the dictionary to find it meant a “printer’s space” – but that’s not exactly a dash. Will try to remember em/en in future.
  4. Comments pretty much like others. I’m in the didn’t like the ‘Holmes’ clue camp.
  5. I had all but the NW and 20dn done in about 40mins this a.m. but had to put the puzzle away to start work. I returned to it at lunchtime and polished it off in another 10mins. I did not enter plausible at 1ac for the longest time despite it becoming increasingly apparent that it had to be the answer, I could sort of see it but not confidently enough to enter it until checkers were all in. Once wing nut went in I could see 1dn was going to be a weed (that was probably going to begin with ‘p’ given my thoughts about 1ac) so 1dn fell shortly thereafter, the ‘k’ helping me remember Kirov. The ‘v’ then gave me the “still” part and a way into my LOI 3dn. 8dn from wp. Disappointed to see 23ac again so soon, it meant no actual solving of the clue was required, apart from a brief moment wondering whether it was a double bluff by the editor.
  6. I struggled with this one and came close to giving up but did finally manage to finish in 1:19 with everything correct and mostly fully parsed. Pokeweed my LOI once Kirov had come to mind (after mentally trying Rumov Sipov Supov and even Totov and Ginov). Also held up in the SW where like John Dunn I wanted 21ac to start with “fre…” and Holmes and Matchwood were slow to surface. A fair challenge though so thanks to setter blogger alike.
  7. Don’t I remember almost exactly this clue and this solution from within the past few days? We often get solutions soon repeated with a nice new clue. Fair enough, I’d say, why waste all that thought. But both????

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