Times Quick Cryptic 1826 by Teazel

Author   ChrisPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

FOI 5ac and then headed south and worked clockwise round the grid. I made startlingly good time for what felt like a tricky puzzle – having completed all but 17ac in less than 7 minutes. On 8:07 I realsied what the answer had to be and completed but then sat staring at the clue trying to work out what was going on. I was starting to think that there had been a slip up somewhere but it all became clear when I realised what the deception was. At least, I was deceived, but those with better memory of airlines may have found this a doddle. For these reasons I award it COD.

I have a small question on 13dn.

Definitions are underlined.

Across
1 Be back in frills and checks (7)
REBUFFS – be backwards (EB) inside frills (RUFFS).
5 Part of sacred area (4)
ACRE – part is s(ACRE)d.
7 In this industrial action, energy not very intelligent (2-4)
GO-SLOW – definitions are only usually at the front or back of a clue. Energy (GO), not very intelligent (SLOW) – e.g. my performance at 17ac.
8 Cheers a couple of extras (3-3)
BYE-BYE – two extras in cricket (BYE BYE).
9 Writes to pal to arrange toy for child (5,6)
WATER PISTOL – anagram (to arrange) of WRITES TO PAL.
10 Wine tasting’s beginning at Cambridge college (6)
CLARET – Cambridge college (CLARE), (T)asting. NHO Clare college but maybe I should as it was founded in 1326 as University Hall and is the second-oldest surviving college after Peterhouse.
12 Puff, no longer fit? (6)
EXHALE – no longer (EX), fit (HALE).
14 What’s taken in fun: computer device — ridiculously easy (6-5)
MICKEY-MOUSE – what’s taken in fun the (MICKEY), computer device (MOUSE).
17 Airline that collapsed beside a canal (6)
PANAMA – NOT BA plus an anagram of THAT. It took me a long time to get over these thoughts and just see a canal that fitted. It is remarkably simple – ‘airline that collapsed’ is (PAN AM) beside a (A). Pan Am was the principal and largest international air carrier of the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991 – which I should have thought of much earlier.
18 Marriages showing problems afoot? Not the first (6)
UNIONS – problems afoot b(UNIONS) without the first letter.
20 Scrap a vehicle test requiring reversing (4)
ATOM – a (A), vehicle test backwards (TOM).
21 Reluctant to join Scotsman in part of his country (7)
LOTHIAN – reluctant (LOTH) to join Scotsman (IAN).
Down
1 With right hand, start to open letter from abroad (3)
RHO – right hand (RH), (O)pen.
2 Belts or elastic support (7)
BOLSTER – anagram (elastic) of BELTS OR. I liked the anagram indicator.
3 Not so many sheep kept by father (5)
FEWER – sheep (EWE) kept inside father (FR).
4 Glorious, under tree (7)
SUBLIME – under (SUB), tree (LIME).
5 Spy is a decent chap (5)
AGENT – a (A), decent chap (GENT – as in a real gent).
6 Prince unhappy in the shade (5,4)
ROYAL BLUE – prince (ROYAL), unhappy (BLUE).
9 Let lawmen loose with good intentions (4-5)
WELL-MEANT – anagram (loose) of LET LAWMEN. Another pleasing anagram indicator.
11 Those people without exception find the way to the Palace (3,4)
THE MALL – those people (THEM), without exception (ALL).
13 He provided the ultimate in escapist entertainment (7)
HOUDINI – I see just the cryptic definition and can’t make any parsings work out. I’m left to think that Teazel is referring to Houdini providing/giving/risking the ultimate (his life) for escapist entertainment. Any other thoughts welcome.
15 Damage after cold spell (5)
CHARM – damage (HARM) after cold (C).
16 Quantity missing initial rise (5)
MOUNT – quantity a(MOUNT) missing the initial letter.
19 Sister nobody’s spoken of (3)
NUN – homophone (spoken of) of none.

79 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic 1826 by Teazel”

  1. Steed was not on Teazel’s wavelength today so Mrs Peel had lots to do! Seemed to take forever to get going and then, once we had solved a few, we were off. Took us 18 minutes in all – we spent far too long parsing correct answers instead of just getting on with it. 13D was a write in but it seemed too obvious (and not very cryptic) so it took a second visit to enter Houdini.

    FOI: acre
    LOI: atom
    COD: the Mall

    Thanks Teazel and Chris.

    Edited at 2021-03-09 01:35 pm (UTC)

  2. Surprisingly,most of this went in quite quickly. Starting with acre then agent, then rho (I am always happy to have Greek alphabet clues, having memorised it in my youth. However, I couldn’t see Panama for some reason, and resorted to an aid, although it should have been obvious really. I should have followed my own advice and left it and come back later.
    Never saw the alternative anagrist in 9a, thank goodness.
    Started 9d with ‘meant well’ until I checked the enumeration.
    I guess it must have taken me about 20 mins overall, pretty good for me.
  3. I felt a “Sussexy” theme was bubbling under the surface.

    I liked the puzzle, thought it didn’t really hold me up for too long.

    4:53

    Tried to post a profile picture, my dog isn’t normally oriented thus, but I can neither work out how to delete, nor to rotate!

  4. I thought the same hopkinb with the blue royal and the Mall. Seemed slow to start but quite straightforward once I got going. I did pause on Houdini but couldn’t see anything else it could be. Under 20 for me.

  5. A fairly straightforward solve today in just under eight minutes. FOI Bye bye, LOI Panama which my dear husband blurted out as I put in charm and sat back to cogitate on the airline. It wasn’t emerging through the brainfog so I do not know if I would have seen it, or it would have held me up and I would have had to go back to it, or I would DNF because of it, and now I’ll never know. I helped arrange an Introduction to Management course at Clare College years ago, it was a blast. We all had a ripping good time. COD them all. Thanks to Chris for the blog and Teazel for the entertainment. GW.
  6. 6:19 with a dreaded pink square due to a typo. Spent too long trying to make an anagram of BA and that instead of Panama. I thought Houdini was a fair enough cryptic definition and though not an Oxbridge man had no problem with Claret.

    COD to Mickey Mouse.

    Thanks Chris and Teazel

  7. I think I know what Teazel is doing here. Escapist entertainment is a broad church an example being spending a few minutes on the QC. What Houdini practised was escapology but if you like to escape the real word by watching escapology then I think that’s how the clue works. And he was certainly the ultimate of his day and arguably of all time. Johnny
  8. 25.31 so very much part of the SCC

    FOI was 5d
    LOI was 16D

    Unlike Poison Wyvern I actually did get enjoyment as this was a steady solve and a lot of satisfaction in beginning to understand some of the less obvious clue construction. I do commend him on his blog post though as I often feel his pain. A rare finish having really struggled yesterday.
    COD Mickey Mouse

  9. Finished in abt 22m, so good for us. Enjoyable after having to struggle for the last few days.
  10. ….this smartphone, and wouldn’t have been much quicker on paper today. Tidy puzzle, no problems.

    FOI ACRE
    LOI PANAMA
    COD ROYAL BLUE *
    TIME 3:31

    * Now be honest — did any of you NOT at ANY stage think about whether Archie would be other than white ? To me, anybody in THAT category is abnormal ! I don’t consider it to be in any way racist — a couple of letters in today’s Times back this view up.

    1. Er … I can’t think I’ve ever thought about him at all, I’m afraid.
  11. At 21 minutes this was one of my fastest ever successful solves … and Teazel is normally my nemesis. My previous best time with this setter is >40 minutes. This felt so fast to me that I almost couldn’t write fast enough (I solve on paper). Quite how many of those above knock great chunks of time off this, I simply don’t know.

    My only slight doubts were:
    13d (HOUDINI), which had to be but I was unsure of the parsing.
    20a (ATOM), for which the parsing was easy but the meaning was new to me.

    All in all, very pleased after a very disappointing run since the middle of last week.

    Many thanks to Teazel and to chrisw91.

    1. Keep going and you’ll see how times improve. Immediately recognising certain abbreviations (ch, CE, rc for example) or flowers for rivers etc allow some answers to go in a soon as you read them. There are other hold ups though – I seem to be going through ‘a last answer syndrome’ (ALAS!) where a good time beckons but the final clue proves more difficult than it should.
  12. Dnf again missed 17ac
    Two failures in a row after a good week last week
    Most families have rows, most families keep it to themselves.
    No interest in it whatsoever
  13. Only completed Monday this afternoon – I only had scraps of time yesterday. I saw 20a ATOM = SCRAP as in ‘if you had an atom of common sense, then you’d understand that…’. A pretty fast solve that I wish I’d times – probably;y about 30 mins with not great hold ups other than 1a Rebuffs. The NW was the last quadrant to be resolved. FOI 8a Bye Bye, LOI 1a Rebuffs. COD the elegant 4d Sublime. Thx to Teazel for an easier than usual solve, especially after yesterday! and to Chris for his succinct blog.
  15. 16 minutes — was heading for 13 but Charm accounted for the last 3.

    FOI Rho
    LOI Charm
    COD Claret (Trinity myself)

    From what looked like a tricky offering all slipped in nicely.

    Thanks all

    John George

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