Times 27835 – Or the Insular Ionan?

Author   vinyl1Posted on Categories Daily Cryptic

Time: 29 minutes
Music: Ravel, Piano Music, Gieseking

This was not quite an easy Monday, but none of the answers were that obscure, and the literals were pretty obvious.   Experienced solvers will probably zip through in no time, and nearly everyone will finish without too much difficulty.  I was wondering what took me so long when I finished – on another day, this could easily be a sub-20-minute solve for me. 

This is my first blog since the failed online Championships, and I really feel sorry for poor David Parfitt.   Since he is non-technical, and the Crossword Club is probably the bottom priority for IT services, there was really very little he could do.   There could not have been more than a couple of hundred hits a minute on the competition puzzles, and properly tuned software and hardware should have handled the requests easily.   Oh, well, it’s back to the Times building and those little desks next year.

Across
1 African capital where an old banger may end up, do we hear? (8)
KHARTOUM – Sounds like CART ROOM, maybe?   Or perhaps something else, I had one letter and biffed it.
9 Lively friend dipping into a new set of papers? (8)
ANIMATED – A N I(MATE)D.
10 Old boy mostly existing with love in limbo (8)
OBLIVION – O.B + LIVI(O)N[g], biffed from the first two letters.
11 A right pain, a lemur, primarily living in tree! (8)
ARBOREAL – A R BORE + A + L[emur], another biff here.
12 Plain nurse’s distorted description of Iberia (10)
PENINSULAR – Anagram of PLAIN NURSE.
14 Sound made by chosen Caledonian tribesman (4)
PICT – Sounds like PICKED – a homonym that works!
15 Tack supplier’s son finally fell, bitten by snake (7)
SADDLER – S +ADD([fel]L)ER.
17 Token of victory originally that hurt reigning monarch (7)
VOUCHER – V + OUCH + ER.
21 Boss missing start of Disney film (4)
UMBO – [d]UMBO.   As a hard-core Mephisto solver, I saw boss and biffed.   This is the other kind of boss, the stud at the centre of the shield.
22 Bird top man and woman located in tree (10)
KINGFISHER – KING + FI(SHE)R.   Many solvers will apply “top” to the woman as well as the man, put E.R., and then wonder how the fish got in. 
23 Exist as male insect, or biblical monster? (8)
BEHEMOTH – BE HE MOTH, a chestnut.
25 A French cookery writer reportedly never surpassed (8)
UNBEATEN – UN + sounds like [mrs} BEATON, who was a…..cookery writer!
26 Sanctions optical aids, including insurance cover to begin with (8)
LICENSES – L(I[nsurance] C[over])ENSES.   I was looking for sanctions in the sense of punishes, so one for the setter.
27 The Spanish character long ago carrying priest’s ordinal? (8)
ELEVENTH – EL + E(VEN)TH.  Eth, em, en, some useful little words clued in various ways.
Down
2 Dance a woman’s beginning to accompany outside a bar (8)
HABANERA – H(A BAN)ER + A[ccompany].
3 Verbally control attempt to catch right type of woodpecker (8)
RAINBIRD – Sounds like REIN + BI(R)D.
4 Girl in party upset old poet (4)
OVID – O(VI)D, my FOI.  DO is our upset party.
5 Restrain fellow fighter pilot capturing head of Luftwaffe? (7)
MANACLE – MAN + AC(L)E.
6 Extremely low bite from wild animal (6,4)
TIMBER WOLF – Anagram of L[o]W + BITE FROM.
7 Soak one’s hair at first — it’s fairly excessive (8)
STEEPISH -STEEP + I’S + H[air].
8 Deal tiro organised for worshipper of false god (8)
IDOLATER – Anagram of DEAL TIRO, which accounts for the alternate spelling of tyro.  Count the letters – don’t put idolator!
13 Restaurant’s pronounced gamble over hotel on river (10)
STEAKHOUSE – Sounds like STAKE + H + OUSE.
15 Southern queen with capacity to grasp bishop’s argument (8)
SQUABBLE – S + QU AB(B)LE.   Remember to try a Q if you see a U!
16 Rise for poor peasant ringing about aquatic bird (8)
DABCHICK – BAD backwards  (C) HICK.  Is a peasant really a hick? They come from two different worlds.
18 Recce ship’s officer’s gun enclosure (8)
CASEMATE – CASE + MATE, trust the cryptic and the crossers.
19 Developing army corps set up information outlet at last (8)
EMERGENT –  R.E.M.E upside down + GEN + [outle]T
20 Wax lyrical in this way entering quarters (7)
ENTHUSE – EN(THUS)E, where E, N, and E are random directions.
24 French priest born in Lincoln? (4)
ABBE – AB(B)E, a Quickie clue.

68 comments on “Times 27835 – Or the Insular Ionan?”

  2. I had the same MER as Vinyl about HICK; I also didn’t know the DABCHICK was aquatic. DNK CASEMATE, but as V says; and DNK RAINBIRD. (Three birds; Astronowt will be thrilled.)
    1. No less than three birds today
      There really aren’t nice words to say
      You’re either quite mad
      Or deliberately bad
      What a waste of the Editor’s pay
  3. My first crossword in a while without any major problems, the only hold-ups being two of our feathered friends and the ‘gun enclosure’, all of which went in with helpful wordplay. (BTW There were some beautiful KINGFISHER(s) on the TV golf coverage from S. Africa yesterday. Worth watching for the wildlife alone, even if you’re not a golf fan). I was lazy with some of the parsing but at least didn’t fall into the ‘idolator’ trap.

    Finished in 19 minutes – almost an order of magnitude better than yesterday, so very welcome.

      1. Hello, yes it’s a rainbow lorikeet. I heard on the radio the other day that they’re meant to be the most widespread bird species in Australia, though I’d take that with a grain of salt. Their colouring isn’t exactly subtle and they’re said to be quite aggressive but I have a real soft spot for them and their cheeky antics. We’re very fortunate to have them and so many other parrot species here.
        1. Thanks for that. Glad to see I recognised it. Wonderful country and we really enjoyed our trip.I’m expressing my solidarity at the moment by stocking up on Oz wines! Every little helps…
  4. I thought there were quite a few unknowns to me. CASEMATE I’d forgotten if I knew. RAINBIRD as a woodpecker. HABANERA as a dance (I just know habanero as a very hot pepper). Took far too long to see STEEPISH my LOI. I had the ISH at the end but couldn’t see a good word for soak.
      1. Which is why I thought it was a song style rather than a dance. I’m trying to imagi9ne it on Strictly: perhaps a slow sort of Tango with some rather lumpy bits?

        Edited at 2020-11-30 09:10 am (UTC)

  5. Used Motors Cairo, also had a branch and scrap dealership somewhere in the Sudan.

    34 mins for Monday with avian attitude.

    FOI 4dn OVID

    LOI & COD 1ac KHARTOUM!

    WOD 18dn CASEMATE

  6. 26 minutes for a very straightforward puzzle other than, for me, the unknown RAINBIRD – on its first outing in a 15×15 apparently – and CASEMATE which has come up only twice before, the first of which was in August 2007 at just about the time I started posting here but before I was blogging.

    I had a disaster today trying to finish off the Quickie (more about that in the proper place) and this one took me only 3 minutes longer.

  7. Yes we should, indeed, feel sorry for David Parfitt.

    But we shouldn’t underestimate the IT challenge. For the competition conditions (i.e. everyone starting at one time), the load on the system is much, much higher than normal. From my experience in telecom systems (and simplifying things a bit), I’d be guessing that the system would be getting, in a single minute, the load it would normally handle in about 6 hours, i.e. 360 times the normal. Without engineering it specially to cope with this load, it’s almost certain to fail.

    1. I have a degree of sympathy for David but even to a computer ignoramus like me it’s completely obvious that this would be a problem.
    2. Why feel sorry for Mr. Parfitt? He should have spoken to a few people like yourself. Why wasn’t a test-run organised in advance? And is it yet technically possible, without a system crash? For Mr. Parfitt’s sake I hope next year Donald Trump doesn’t enter.
      1. Yes, indeed. Unfortunately a lot of IT folk don’t really know much about this sort of load (although they really should – as keriothe suggested, it’s pretty obvious). So, Mr Parfitt may have been “profoundly misled”. The 2016 census in Australia had an online collection option that failed dramatically in a similar way and took some weeks to sort out.
  8. 19 minutes with LOI the unknown CASEMATE. I needed all crossers for the vaguely known HABANERA also. RAINBIRD wasn’t known to be a woodpecker and I’d have been pushed to tell you what sort of bird a DABCHICK is too. At least I knew the KINGFISHER. COD to KHARTOUM. Mainly a Mondayish puzzle with birds added. Thank you V and setter.

    Edited at 2020-11-30 07:31 am (UTC)

  9. Apart from UMBO and perhaps OVID, I thought this was QC material, although, like paulmcl, I took a long time to see soak = steep in STEEPISH.
    With UMBO my first thought was (b)AMBI.
    Sounds like living in a country where the start time for the competition was 11:30pm proved to be a good excuse for not attempting it.
  10. …You shall find where-e’er you sail
    Tritons all the while attending
    With a kind and gentle gale.

    25 mins, held up puzzling over the NHOs Rainbird and Casemate.
    I think this is the setter that likes the start/end letter indicators: primarily, finally, originally, start, to begin with, beginning to, head of, at first, at last. Phew!
    Thanks setter and Vinyl.

    Edited at 2020-11-30 08:03 am (UTC)

    1. 🙂

      This morning I ventured to make three pounds of kumquat marmalade – finest South China rounded fruit, dark cane sugar and a stick of thick, local cinnamon bark.
      It has turned out asppearing as French fig jam, but tastes very nicely kumquatty.
      My Chinese wife eschews toast and marmalade so it’s all mine! Meldrew

      1. Good man. I have rather neglected my marmalade fetish of late, but only yesterday I bought a big jar of Frank Cooper’s Original Cut Seville Orange so maybe I’m getting my mojo back. Or maybe my marjar.
        1. Wife makes all mine, as you know, but if it has to be bought Wilkin & Sons is the way to go. Frank Cooper an upstart parvenu, by comparison .. anyway shouldn’t you be having Dundee marmalade?!

          Edited at 2020-11-30 09:24 am (UTC)

          1. I have discovered a fabulous Lime Marmalade from Edinburgh Preserves. My current Lime top three are:
            (1) Lewis and Cooper (Gin & Lime)
            (2) Edinburgh Preserves
            (3) Sue Whitmarsh (Home-made, French Limes)

            I know Horryd had an unfortunate experience with the Lewis and Cooper’s which coloured his view of the product itself.

            1. I also concocted a turmeric gin – all the rage presently –
              but I felt it was doing me good, so I will not be doing it again!

              What to do with ortaniques?

  11. 11:34 I thought I was on for an even faster time, but I was slowed by an interruption and trying to fit FARRIER into 15A. Pleased to miss the IDOLATOR trap. NHO RAINBIRD or CASEMATE but the wordplay was clear. LOI DABCHICK. COD to KHARTOUM. Thanks setter and Vinyl.
  12. 7:27. On the wavelength today it seems, in spite of a few unknowns: DABCHICK, RAINBIRD, CASEMATE.
    I must have been caught out by IDOLATER/OR in the past because I knew to be careful.
  13. I solved my problem with IDOLATER years ago just by thinking I DO LATER. I wish I could find something as memorable for EXCHEQUER/OR; I’ve tried simply learning it but whenever it comes up the doubts re-emerge.
  14. A rare sub-10 today, despite the nho RAINBIRD, UMBO and HABANERA, plus hesitancy over CASEMATE and the IDOLATER trap.

    Nice to see another film from my childhood as an answer.

    Did you read David Parfitt’s column on Saturday? He got to write the usual ‘feedback to complainers’ piece.

    Thanks vinyl and setter.

  15. 50+ mins here so rather chewy I thought. Enjoyable though. Same unknowns as others. LOI CASEMENT, a DNK. Birds were vaguely familiar but thankfully the clues were friendly. COD to CAR TOMB, very amusing. Thanks V for the blog and setter.
  18. Surprised by that time, it seemed longer. NHO CASEMATE or RAINBIRD (as a woodpecker specifically, at least) but the wordplay was clear enough.

    I think 1ac is ‘Car tomb’ rather than ‘cart room’, by the way.

    COD: VOUCHER, nice surface.

    Previous answer: Hercule Poirot’s brother was supposedly Achille. I can see what she did there.

    Today’s question: what is the only reasonably common word (plus its plural) that contains ABC consecutively?

    2. It really is taking the piss
      To reference a word such as this
      I already observed
      I can’t stand the bird
      That’s the answer. Oh horrors, boo hiss!

      With apologies (and admiration) to astro naut.

    4. Bird going over a Baltic cruiser initially finds a fishy meal. With apologies to A-N.
      1. If it happens again, and let’s pray the vaccines arrive in time, I would suggest that Mr. Parfitt is dragged through the streets of Edinburgh on a tumbril.

        Good time Lord Robrolfe!

  19. How odd. Perhaps because I was waiting on tenterhooks for the doorbell to ring and fielded an unsolicited telephone call offering to block unsolicited telephone calls, I rather struggled with this one over over 23 minutes.
    The top left quarter refused to yield much, and I only saw the gigglesome CAR TOMB as my last entry. Did not know HABANERA as a dance (see above) though that’s no excuse.
    With RAINBIRD tentatively in, I expected KINGFISHER also to be something more elusive.
    And it took until post solve typo check to decide my invented SPECKHOUSE (selling German ham, of course) probably really confined itself to STEAK.
    Not for me a Monday Easy. But I did know CASEMATE (thanks, Richard Sharpe).
  20. Worked steadily through this, no probs.
    My usual complete inability to differentiate between licence and license no handicap, thanks to the helpful wordplay
  21. Biff-fest for me. I was hoping for an under-tenner, but just lost that all-important momentum at around minute eight. Invariably it’s when I look at the clock for the first time. OED has a 1555 first reference to rainbird as the green woodpecker. “Said to be vociferous when rain is impending.” It can (or could) also refer to a Jamaican cuckoo or an Australian shrike. I too thought initially of Ambi, but fortunately saw the light.
  22. Habanera is the song “Love is a rebellious bird”. With Kingfishers, Dabchicks, Rainbirds, plus a hidden Squab, there are number of creatures that might be considered Arboreal… perhaps also an Emergent rainforest. A pattern? Twitcher day I guess… or am I thinking too hard…
  23. Love the birds, as a Peacock would. Held up by having habanero, the fruit not the dance, perhaps I should read the clue. Hot stuff.
  24. The article above the crossword in the paper is headlined “TV bosses’ anger at Klopp”.
    Given the first column of the crossword, is the setter prescient?
  25. 13.05 so a reasonable start to the week. Began slowly with arboreal my FOI and plodded along till timber wolf my LOI. Along the way liked habanera, dabchick and oblivion. The latter was an interesting construction, not sure theologians would equate limbo with oblivion. More of a God’s waiting room ?
  26. Grrr, luckily I am locked down and thus unable to invite somebody to come round and kick me. Sonehow allowed the fat-fingered ENYHUSE to get past my quick scan of the grid before submitting, which rather spoiled my solve. As per the general experience, trusted the wordplay for the unknown (or at least unremembered) RAINBIRD and CASEMATE, and was glad that IDOLATER was an anagram, as I have definitely inserted a rogue O into that word before.
  27. I remember an old cracker joke which went something like – Where should you look for lost Khakis? In KHARTOUM. I managed to zip through this with barely a pause. As Z suggests, there is a connection between the PENINSULAR War and CASEMATE. 10.28
  28. A perpetual dragonfly in the company of the elite I had the illusion of a quick solve for a time but stopped in my tracks by the wild animal. Finally home in 20’19. More a mild wince than an MER at a peasant being called a hick. Different worlds as has been said. Above the puzzle in my paper copy is the headline ‘Cavani Racism Investigation’ so maybe a neater example of back-generation by the habanera squabble column…which certainly seems a storm in a teacup.
  29. For the first time ever I have appeared as a tracked solver on the snitch, near the bottom I hasten to add. HOWEVER if you sort it on the personal Nitch I am above verlaine, Jason, mohn and many more, that’s never happened before I can tell you. Mrs T’s response when I informed her that I had become a mover and shaker on t’interweb was “Oh. I’m taking the dog now do I need to take my key”. On her return she proceeded to obliterate me in competitive Polygoning.
    I agree totally with vinyl’s comments about the online championships, a great pity.
    Just as a matter of interest who had unclamp in the ST concise yesterday?
  30. A rare foray below 20 mins.

    Sailed through this with very little thought apart from CASEMATE which I hadn’t of but the cryptic and checkers were generous enough to get over the line.

    The UMBO/DABCHICK junction was the only other real pause.

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