Time taken: 8:49.
I will hand it to the setter, I let out a laugh at solving one clue that was enough to prompt my housemate to ask if I was OK. Nothing super difficult here (and the early times are pretty slick), but some fun wordplay along the way.
How did you get along?
| Across | |
| 1 | Suffering anguish from public school education (8) |
| HARROWED – HARROW(public school), ED(education) | |
| 6 | Lake bends around urban area (6) |
| SPRAWL -L(lake) and WARPS(bends) all reversed | |
| 9 | Manipulate women’s point of view (6) |
| WANGLE – W(women’s), ANGLE(point of view) | |
| 10 | Fewer old bananas produced blossoms (8) |
| FLOWERED – anagram of FEWER,OLD | |
| 11 | Covert agent abandoning the last course of action (4) |
| PLAN – PLANT(covert agent) minus the last letter | |
| 12 | Soldiers controlling movements around the centre of Belgium (10) |
| CONTINGENT – CONTINENT(controlling bowel movements) around the middle letter of belGium. This is the clue that caused my outbust. | |
| 14 | Opportunity for faction to seize power (8) |
| PROSPECT – PRO(for), SECT(faction) containing P(power) | |
| 16 | Measure of warmth associated with a garment (4) |
| TOGA – TOG(a measure of thermal insulation), A | |
| 18 | Musical performer keen to make a comeback (4) |
| DIVA – AVID(keen) reversed | |
| 19 | A bad experience having knocked back too much booze (8) |
| AMARETTO – A, MARE(bad experience), then OTT(too much) reversed | |
| 21 | Challenging leader marks a test loosely (10) |
| TASKMASTER – anagram of MARKS,A,TEST | |
| 22 | So, the final part of Sherlock is excellent! (4) |
| SICK – SIC(so) and the last letter of sherlocK. Wicked sick. | |
| 24 | Famous hotel is ring-shaped (8) |
| HISTORIC – H(hotel), IS, TORIC(ring-shaped) | |
| 26 | Instrument position to cover bowler’s target (6) |
| SPINET – SET(put in position) surrounding PIN(bowler’s target in an alley) | |
| 27 | Popular party is overrun (6) |
| INFEST – IN(popular), FEST(party) | |
| 28 | What hosts large competition for one part of football team? (8) |
| ELEVENTH – EH(what) containing L(large) and EVENT(competition) | |
| Down | |
| 2 | Architects primarily like skyscrapers in any shape or form (2,3) |
| AT ALL – the first letter of Architects then TALL(like skyscrapers) | |
| 3 | Capital green space kept rangers busy (7,4) |
| REGENTS PARK – anagram of KEPT,RANGERS | |
| 4 | Horrible twerp regularly made a lasting impression? (8) |
| WRETCHED – alternating letters in tWeRp, ETCHED(made a lasting impression) | |
| 5 | Opposite of a sure thing (8,7) |
| DEFINITE ARTICLE – DEFINITE(sure), ARTICLE(thing). Odd to have a definition as an opposite, but it works | |
| 6 | Wooden top from table with durable exterior (6) |
| STOLID – first letter of Table inside SOLID(durable) | |
| 7 | Some very expensive whiskey (3) |
| RYE – hidden inside veRY Expensive | |
| 8 | Small piece required for board game evening? (9) |
| WEEKNIGHT – WEE(small), KNIGHT(piece required for board game) | |
| 13 | Poor child sputtering terribly and close to collapse (11) |
| GUTTERSNIPE – anagram of SPUTTERING, then the last letter in collapsE | |
| 15 | Destruction of one old city upset people (9) |
| RUINATION – I(one) and UR(old city) reversed, then NATION(people) | |
| 17 | Type of clue featuring in extremely likeable game (8) |
| LACROSSE – an ACROSS clue inside the external letters of LikeablE | |
| 20 | Region inhabited by rook, duck and lorikeet? (6) |
| PARROT – PART(region) containing R(rook) and O(duck) | |
| 23 | Conservative/Labour split (5) |
| CLEFT – C(conservative), LEFT(Labour) | |
| 25 | Match that Napoli lose in the end (3) |
| TIE – the last letters of thaT napolI losE | |
I also giggled when I saw CONTINGENT, I’m sure we’ve had something similar before for ‘continent’ but I just couldn’t see it. DEFINITE ARTICLE was a write in for ‘opposite of a’. So many great clues today, really liked SICK’ for excellent and am often surprised at how many slang words we find in these crosswords, innit! Thought AMARETTO was very good. ELEVENTH another stand-out. Failed to spot SPRAWL. COD to CONTINGENT with a PARROT flying close behind. My kind of crossword level.
Thanks George and setter.
No tricky Thursday today, although an enjoyable puzzle. There were some decent anagrams, but the long down answer was pretty easy and broke the puzzle wide open. I couldn’t parse toga, not knowing TOG, but that is the evident answer. I was thinking the bowler was going to come from cricket, but no, he really is a bowler. Contingent was my LOI.
Time: 15:34
TOG must’ve come up here before (but I did check it)… CONTIN(G)ENT (one of my last) was slightly shocking!
12:10 for this, so 30 seconds under target.
I think I stopped to take a 32-second phone call.
Not too hard, did it on a plane to Spain. Spent too long on my LOI INFEEST since it obviously started IN but there were lots of words for the rest none of which seemed to be parties. I guess FEST is short for FESTIVAL, which I guess is a party. Never seen TORIC beforer, usually TOROIDAL.
Fest isn’t allowed in the polygon. It’s because it doesn’t appear in the COED apparently. Which beggars belief considering the words that DO appear in it. Because of this, I tend to dismiss its possibility as an answer in everything.
I was surprised a couple of months ago when Mick Hodgkin (Times Puzzles Editor) mentioned in a newsletter that the Oxford dictionary they rely on for crosswords (and Polygon too, from what you say) is the Concise Oxford, as it hasn’t been updated since 2011. I think we heard from Peter B that the Sunday Times uses the slightly larger Oxford Dictionary of English which was last published in 2010.
Things have moved on online however where for a modest annual subscription one can access the Premium Oxford (English) Dictionary which is updated every year. The latest revision is dated 2024, and I’m surprised that setters have not been instructed to use this instead of the COED now surely woefully out of date.
As far as ‘fest’ is concerned it appears in the COED and ODE only as a suffix: -fest, but it’s in the Premium Oxford as a word in its own right. Not that the word is new, as it first appeared adopted into English in 1846!
Hmm. Unlike everybody else, it seems, I had to labour quite intensively at this, with the last half-dozen hold-outs taking me to 37.11 at which point I felt quite happy to have actually finished. The last few included SICK, CLEFT, SPRAWL, STOLID and INFEST. There were many good clues though I totally missed what was going on with CONTINGENT.
From Tombstone Blues:
John the Baptist after torturing a thief, looks up at his hero the Commander-in-Chief
Saying Tell me great hero, but please make it brief, is there a hole for me to get SICK in?
The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying Death to all those who would whimper and cry
And dropping a barbell he points to the sky
Saying The sun’s not yellow it’s chicken
40 minutes. I dislike definitions such as ‘excellent / SICK’ and am sorry The Times feels the need to include them, but we all have our pet peeves and have to live with them.
Soz, my bad! 😉
LOL!
Good shout!
How old do new coinages have to be before they’re acceptable? If the 1980s is too recent how about the 1960s (‘far out’)? Or the 1920s (‘the cat’s pyjamas’)?
Mint!
One thing’s for sure. By the time the ‘grown-ups’ have cottoned on to a modern euphemism the ‘kids’ have almost undoubtably moved on to a newer one.
9:21. SICK reminded me of a relatively recent conversation about football with a graduate at work. He said that Lionel Messi was sick and I genuinely asked what was wrong with him. I guess I’m not down with the kids.
‘Sick’ in this sense has been around since at least the early 80s!
So ‘sick pay’ could mean a very good salary?
I guess so. ‘Mandem’s new grind is bare dench fam, mad perks and sick pay innit.’
Have you been watching “Top boy”?
No, I’m just naturally down with the kids.
Are you on something ? Please let me know what. Sounds great!
A fast sprint through most of it but a slow crawl over the line with STOLID/SPRAWL and SICK/CLEFT pairs holding me up and accounting for about half the time. LEFT no longer comes readily to mind for Labour but wrong forum for that.
Liked: WEEKNIGHT and CONTINGENT
Tamer than the usual Thursday puzzle, can we expect a toughie tomorrow?
Thanks blogger and setter.
26:21
I didn’t know SICK, but it wasn’t surprising (nor is it surprising that I didn’t know it). TOGA was irritating because I knew we had had some word (TOG, as it happens) that matched the definition but couldn’t recall it, and had to wait for the checkers. I actually thought of CONTINGENT early on, when I had the C, N, & G, but couldn’t see how ‘continent’ fit in. The penny dropped later, and though I didn’t laugh aloud, I laughed. Definitely my COD.
Enjoyed this especially CONTINGENT, ELEVENTH, DEFINITE ARTICLE, AMARETTO and SICK. Thanks all.
32 minutes with LOI an uncertain INFEST. I’d have been as 22 as a 20 if that had been wrong. COD to the DEFINITE ARTICLE. Thank you George and setter.
About 20 minutes.
– Didn’t quite burst out laughing, but smiled to myself when I realised what ‘controlling movements’ was getting at for CONTINGENT
– Nice of The Times to advertise the brilliant TASKMASTER on Channel 4 this evening 😉
– Can’t recall seeing the word ‘toric’ before for HISTORIC, but it was obvious enough
– Nearly put INSECT rather than INFEST, but corrected myself in time
Thanks glh and setter (Jalna, based on the comment above?)
FOI Flowered
LOI + COD Contingent
That was fun. Was hoping for another sub-20 but SPRAWL/STOLID and LOI SPINET offered up some resistance in the tail for a slightly disappointing 26 mins.
A bit like a QC but welcome light relief after yesterday. COD to the LOL CONTINGENT when I finally parsed it.
Thanks glh and a thoroughly modern setter.
Very straightforward today. Liked contingent, like everyone else ..
does anyone actually drink amaretto?
Oh yeah
27:31. Off to a good start but LOI SPRAWL was one of several that took a long time at the end. I liked AMARETTO (but no, Jerry, I don’t drink it) and WEEKNIGHT. Nice crossword
24:15
No dramas.
Thanks, g.
My friend and I did not enjoy this one. Having taken our usual couple of hours to complete Monday and Tuesdays of this week (correct and mostly fully parsed).
For Monday’s 29245, for 13ac would someone kindly explain how ‘binding’ becomes HIP in WATERSHIP DOWN.
We pulled the pin on 29248 with all of the left side complete but only three clues on the right.
Felt a ‘MARE’ for a bad experience was asking a bit much.
Similar for calling an evening a WEEKNIGHT (8d).
In 28ac was toying with ‘eleven’ but the penny did not drop. ‘Eh’ for what ?
12ac was clever and I could see the ‘g’ was needed but could not find the correct soldiers.
Could see how SICK would work for 22ac, but rejected it as being too slang for the Times.
I am obliged to share some of the views of the poster called Misunderstood in regard to the current conduct and apparent trends for the Times cryptic.
Eh? Sounds like you had a mare with this one.
“Binding” is just the containment indicator. “In” becomes HIP via its meaning of trendy or fashionable.
17’15” for me. The SPRAWL/WEEKNIGHT combo held me up at the end. Tried to work LANCING into 1ac but thankfully couldn’t. Many thanks to all
I laughed out loud at both contingent and sick so was eager to see which of those had tickled you
17.07. I decided early enough that anyone educated at Harrow had been well HARROWED and didn’t worry about the Ed. The same fairly cavalier attitude took me through the rest, though I was careful enough to realise that INSECT didn’t mean overrun. I wasn’t certain on INFEST, either, but nothing else came close.
Just as well the penny didn’t take too long to drop for INCONTINENT. I’m closer to Frinton than Harwich.
19:48 Made very heavy weather of this and breeze-blocked for several minutes at the end by the 4/12 combination for reasons that are not clear in retrospect. Sometimes the brain refuses to reset.
10:58. Off the wavelength a bit again today, but another that I really liked. I got stuck at the end with 4dn (really obvious in hindsight) and my LOI CONTINGENT, which made me giggle so was a nice way to finish.
I like it when the Times embraces modern vocabulary but SICK – a usage that is about half a century old – really doesn’t count.
Had to use aids for SPRAWL, which brought my LOI STOLID. Everything in here fairly clued, though, and enjoyable – liked CONTINGENT and SICK. NHO of ‘pin’ as a bowler’s target, but SPINET was an easy instrument to surmise from crossers.
Never been 10 target bowling?
Nope. Sad and sheltered life!
15:53
No unknowns and no major hold-ups but I started very slowly and maybe got to my 10th clue before my brain started to tick over.
Although not the hardest that was a fun one.
Thanks to both.
23:55
Very enjoyable. Some higly inventive cluing. I particularly liked AMARETTO and WEEKNIGHT. GUTTERSNIPE is a lovely word.
Thanks to George and the setter,
25:01. Nice puzzle. My last 4 proved tricky. AT ALL, PLAN, SPRAWL and WEEKNIGHT. Initially I went with OVERNIGHT (bag). A small piece (of luggage) required for (when you) board (stay over).
COD: I liked DEFINITE ARTICLE and AMARETTO but the award goes to ….. WEEKNIGHT.
22a Sick, DNK sick=excellent, but followed the instructions and shrugged. Not a word I will use in this context EVER.
I did enjoy 8d Wee Knight.
I never drink 19a Amaretto, but for some weird reason the Marriot hotel thinks it is a perfect complimentary gift.
Thanks to glh and setter.
I’ve heard of SPINET, the keyboard instrument, but it’s vastly more obscure than the well-known slang term SICK. The tricky part here was the NE corner where I had to cheat and consult Onelook for CONTINGENT/STOLID/SPRAWL/WEEKNIGHT/AMARETTO.
14:02 but…
…managed to pink square myself by typo’ing AA/TAL which also made 9a WTNGLE – grrr. Otherwise, really enjoyed.
Didn’t manage to parse REGENTS PARK as was looking at ‘green’ as part of the anagrist. LOI AMARETTO.
Thanks G and setter (Jalna presumably)
14.52 with a typo
INFEST LOI and needing a trawl. The long one down the middle didn’t immediately jump out but very much liked it when it did. Re SICK I kinda take the view that logically there is no difference between old words we don’t know (the NOBLE bit from yesterday) and new words we don’t know (SICK for some) as long as the w/p is scrupulously clear as it was for SICK.
Thanks George and Jalna
No time for this as I got called away in the middle. Anyway, I see I stupidly got one wrong SOCK. Oh well.
I found it a mix of a number of write-ins and much tougher clues, but fair enough.
I liked DEFINITE ARTTICLE.
Thanks g and setter.
I went for SOCK as well
Got off to a good start in the NW, with PLAN FOI. Was held up a bit in the SE by SPINET and ELEVENTH until CLEFT arrived. No real problem with SICK, which I was aware of. My real hold up came in the NE until WEEKNIGHT cleared the blockage. Had thought of CONTINGENT but didn’t make the connection with continent until the lightbulb moment elicited a chortle. STOLID and LOI, SPRAWL, followed fairly quickly. 20:54. Thanks setter and George.
38:00. Really fun puzzle. nothing too challenging, LOI was AMARETTO. 🙏 both
Another pushover, 15 mins. We will be made to suffer this weekend.
ELEVENTH was good.
Enjoyed this, but got stuck on AMARETTO, SPINET and WANGLE, staring at the checkers for some time.
Went shopping, reopened the App, and found a blank puzzle again. Filled in my answers and the three solutions came to me then.
Thanks George and Setter.
Somehow missed F in an alphabet trawl for INFEST, so when I got to V….
Clever cluing. Nice vocabulary mix. What’s not to like? thx setter & GH
Far more interesting and enjoyable than yesterday’s horror.
Nice puzzle, 19:17. I was aware of SICK, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard it used in conversation, regardless of how old this usage is. I obviously mix with the wrong crowd.
Some good clues: CONTINGENT (of course) gets COD, but enjoyed PARROT, AMARETTO and WEEKNIGHT, which made me chuckle.
Thanks all.
Under target at 37.36 but it took me quite a while to get STOLID and finally SPRAWL.
I’m with Jackkt with my utter dislike of SICK for ‘excellent’. I really think it’s got no place in a Times Crossword. If any setter decides to include ‘My Bad’ as an answer, that really would be the bitter end!
Horribly pedantic, but the park is actually called “The Regent’s Park” and not “Regent’s Park” even though the latter is in far more common usage.
You make an interesting point as this has never come to my attention before, but it’s standard practice in crosswords to omit initial definite and indefinite articles from place names, titles of books, plays etc if the need arises.
24:58 my LOI AMARETTO took several minutes but other than that, very straightforward
Thanks setter and blogger
Got there in 22“ but failed to understand how contingent worked until I logged on here – thanks for explaining what in hindsight was a good clue – nice to see soldiers not just representing OR, GI, men etc
I don‘t mind „sick“ but glad I haven’t seen “grrrl“ for a while – that one got my goat
COD WEEKNIGHT
What with all the wee and continent I nearly misspelled ruination as urination. Prostate issues anyone?
I feel your pain
At first sight impenetrable, but gradually yielded. A bit of a MER at ‘fest’ – the most likely possibility, but hardly the ‘of course’ coup I was hoping for. SPRAWL was tricky, but quite fair. I fear I missed the brilliance of CONTINGENT till coming here and got misled as to the type of bowler in LOI SPINET. Many thanks to Jalna and George.
DNF Complete in 34 mins but gambled insanely on insect at 27 ac. I see the answer but never heard of fest as a party. Close to fiesta I suppose?
Here we are, on a Sunday (thanks to recent suggestion from RoundaboutHere) plodding slowly up the by now well worn path to solution land. We take much longer than most and turn to aids and checkers…does that worry us? Not a bit, we did the same for the QC when first we started.. and now we don’t. Perhaps we will find (one day) that external referencing similarly drops off with this level.
And not sure if anyone ever looks at comments on puzzles past.. but if someone does, we again say thank you to setters and to all – puzzles are now a daily treat – we never know what awaits and the blog is like gift wrapping… always adds.
: )