Times Cryptic 27920

73 comments on “Times Cryptic 27920”

1. 18:54. A toughie, but very satisfying to solve. No out-and-out unknowns, although I wouldn’t have been able to define ‘oblation’ and I’m not sure I’ve ever come across the term PAWN TICKET before.
   The definition of RICER is doubly odd: I’ve been using one for donkey’s years (I swear by it for mash – it gives a lovely fluffy texture) so ‘American’ surprised me. Also anyone who’s ever used one will know that it doesn’t produce ‘grains’. However all the usual dictionaries define it that way so I guess I’ll have to take it up with them.

   Edited at 2021-03-09 11:47 am (UTC)

2. Apologies Z, I missed your heading the first time round so my comment infra is a bit deja vu.
   1. No problems at all: it’s good someone els remembers! It usually only got sung at Epiphany, which is a shame, as the metre is rather special.
3. About 60m but the online paper still wants ‘rich’ for ‘rock’ so I didn’t get my exact time. As Jack said, difficult but an enjoyable struggle. I was marooned in the south west for long enough and just about to give up, thinking my allotted hour was over, when STATISTICS came and 30 seconds later the final 3 fell as well. How strange is the (my?) mind, as looking at them now I can’t understand why I looked, for example, at what turned out to be IBIS for so long and not parse the clue to see it. Hey ho the wind and the rain! Thanks to Jack and setter today.
4. It appears I started the puzzle just after the problem with 2d was fixed, so my first effort was all green. HALF and ROCK were my first 2 in, followed by HARD CHEESE. No particular problems, except I failed to parse THIGH and relied on the definition and crossers. Liked the Spoonerism. LOI was HEART RENDING. 28:42. Thanks setter and Jack.
5. Presumably a ‘neutrino’ reveals the answers on the Times’ site and then types them in as fast as possible. Today before the correction, therefore, there should only be neutrinos on the leaderboard? All serious solvers should have a single ‘wrong’ answer.
   Clarkini is a mystery unless he/she is a great solver but a very bad typist?
6. Another knotty one. Couldn’t parse ELECT but in it went anyway. Liked BUSTER KEATON and impressed by IMPREGNATE. Plenty of other good stuff to admire along the way. 31m
7. Needed two goes to get this one out. Couldn’t see THIGH until the checkers were in place, and even then I wasn’t sure how it worked (I don’t think I’ve come across that meaning of high before), and it took a while before oblation occurred to me to give OBLIGATION for 14d. SWAN, PAWN TICKET and TABLELAND were all constructed from the wordplay rather than general knowledge.

   FOI Sand
   LOI Thigh
   COD Buster Keaton

8. Solved too late in the day for ROCK to have been an issue. My last two in, OBLIGATION and THIGH took what felt like an age at the end. I could see what was required for the former, including a probable upside-down GI, but couldn’t think of the requisite compulsion or sacrifice. I had no idea what was going on with THIGH until I had the middle letter.

   I agree that IMPREGNATE was brilliant and was also impressed with the (presumably intentional) misdirection in the clue for HEART-RENDING where I wanted to anagram (bitter judge {deal}T) to get a conclusion of some kind.

   Edit to add that I liked the spoonerism too.

   Edited at 2021-03-09 02:49 pm (UTC)

9. Thanks for the parsing on thigh would never have seen that.

   Fortunately leader board fixed by the time I submitted.

   24:08 held up for a long time in SW corner until statistics revealed itself which I’ll give COD to.

   Very enjoyable puzzle — thanks Jack and setter.

10. Arrived late and missed the error, which was good, as I would have been somewhat put out to have found an unexpected error in today’s solve. All I can say is that this setter should obviously be put on full-time Times duty, given how much he or she represents my wavelength. Still found time to thoroughly enjoy the elegance of IMPREGNATE.
11. Very enjoyable. A fine spoonerism and plenty else to enjoy.

    Holidays of Obligation are a distant memory from (RC) school days. Referred to by us guttersnipes as Obbly-Gobbly days

    Thanks to setter and blogger.

12. Unfortunately had “hale” at 1D — I didn’t come back to it after (not surprisingly) failing to parse it.

    COD BUSTER KEATON

13. A lot quicker than yesterday, but unfortunately I hit a brick wall with two to go: Tableland and Thigh. Not overly sure I would have got either with more effort, so I’ll just have to try and remember them for next time. Otherwise, I quite enjoyed this, with satisfying pdms for Local Derby and Obligation. Invariant
14. 29.02, which was good enough to squeeze onto the top 100 on the leader board when I solved at lunchtime, I am now much further down but alas the SNITCH seems to have given up the ghost and stopped taking names at 11.35am today, so I haven’t made it on there. A diverting solve which had me fully engaged. Didn’t know that meaning of ham. I liked culture shock. Loved the definition ‘selecting application’ when I saw it. Impregnate another excellent clue.
15. .. the dreaded typo/pink square. Really must check.

    Much to like but not much new to say.

    Chestnut maybe but I’ve not seen it before so big thumbs up to BUSTER KEATON

    Thanks Jackkt and setter

16. Wait, sorry for the late post, but does HIGH really mean beginning to smell? I thought it was a pun on being high, “de-composed”.
17. Ah no, now I see it is merely definition 39 in Chambers.
18. 24 hours late!

    FOI 1dn HALF

    LOI 18ac THIGH

    COD 12ac BUSTER KEATON

    WOD 2dn ROCK – Skeggy over Blackpool

Comments are closed.