Times Quick Cryptic No 1809 by Oink

62 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic No 1809 by Oink”

1. I’ve been attempting the QC for over three years now and still rarely complete unaided. I struggle with anagrams but today saw them all very quickly and finished in a 2nd best 11:54 (Best was QC 1715, Wurm, 9:43). Being a member of the SCC in the 30-40 min range, today’s QC gave me a nice boost to plough on.

   FOI 1A: EARL
   LOI 8D: FERRET

   1. Hi.

      For anagrams I use Scrabble tiles. So many times I have tried to solve anagram in my head or using paper and pencil, yet the answer just didn’t come. When I use Scrabble tiles, however, I often find the word appearing as I move the tiles about.

      1. That’s real dedication, PW, having a set of Scrabble tiles to hand! Have you tried writing down the letters in different formats? A random circular pattern works for me with a couple of letters in the centre, but faced with a horizontal string of letters my mind goes blank
         1. Hi

            Indeed I do use that method too. The Scrabble tiles come out when these methods fail to produce the word.

2. The same experience for me as for so many others. Felt I was flying along for most of it, slowed down slightly towards the end, as one might expect I suppose, and then gratefully stopped my watch on 14:40, very pleased with myself for going sub-15. Then I saw I had still got 8d to fill in, so I had to restart the watch. It took me half as long again to think of FERRET, but I couldn’t parse it immediately. After another half minute or so (22:18) I decided to go with it and then did see how the clue worked a few seconds after stopping the watch finally. As annoying as it was, I can’t deny it was a good clue, much like SAMPLE was, which seems to appear with amazing regularity, but always holds me up. That started me thinking if there was some kind of league table of words that have appeared most frequently in the QC. I’m guessing Jack would be the one to know if anyone does. Anyway, enjoyable as usual from Oink, so thanks to him and of course to John.
   1. Compiling such a list sounds like a mighty task, crispb, but who knows? If the lockdown continues for much longer I may get round to giving it a go!
3. 8:47; very straightforward, although I did biff garage! Thanks to Oink and blogger.
4. as I finished in a PB of 6.18, I’m usually a 12 to 15 minute solver, so quite a chunk off for me.
5. Thought I was on for a PB and about to enter the dizzying realms of a sub 10 minute finish — like Harry Maguire exploiting gaps in midfield to burst into the opposition box. However, as I was about to unleash my shot I was tackled by an alphabet trawl of 25ac and missed my moment.

   In the end, I was fairly satisfied with 12 mins for a relatively straight forward, but enjoyable, Oink puzzle. Only real hold up, apart from 25ac, was 8dn. After trying to fit a Bra into it, I had a flash of inspiration around feet and suddenly saw “Ferret” (I have seen RR used before for bishop).

   FOI — 1ac”Earl”
   LOI — 25ac “Deny”
   COD — 8dn “Ferret” (although I also loved the simplicity of 12ac “Sample”)

   Thanks as usual.

6. Finished all the across in order in one pass for the first time ever. As others denied pb (by a whole minute) by ferret. Kicked myself as I did know rr but was obsessed with 3rd letter being b.

   Edited at 2021-02-12 12:49 pm (UTC)

7. Well, the top half (bar 8d) flew in, but 14ac, Light Fingered, wouldn’t come to mind and that seemed to put me off my stride with the rest of the clues. The SE corner, in particular, remained stubbornly empty until Peace and then Repel unlocked the dam and allowed an 18min finish, with loi Ferret responsible for a couple of those. That felt slow, and the times posted by others in my usual group confirm I was off the pace today. Still, I enjoyed the puzzle, with CoD to 5d, Harem. Invariant
8. Thanks for the blog, been at this quickie for a couple of years. Today my best ever time at 13:13 meaning either I’m improving or this was on the easy side.
   8DN held me up too.
   3AC COD made me smile.
   9AC very generous to tell us “north” Africa as clue worked without.

   Previously only tried the print edition which I only take a couple of times a week but during this lockdown have been solving on the app. Have finally made the graduation to the main puzzle the last fortnight, coming in at circa 90 minutes over two days with a couple of “check grids” to help me along. Then coming here for the explanations. Quite a step up I must say!

   Hope all are keeping well and safe, had my first jab this week, lockdown surely can’t go on much longer…. Salacious99.

9. A 22-minute solve (very speedy for me) today has enabled me to achieve a series of firsts:
   – Longest run of success (7) since a DNF.
   – First ever 5-0 week.
   – First time my overall median performance has dipped below 60 minutes. N.B. I don’t use the mean as a average, as my many DNFs can’t sensibly be allocated a meaningful time.
   – Spotted Oink’s porcine reference on the way through for the first time.

   And, if I had been held up for a full 6 minutes by my LOI (CINEMA) I would have also recorded a PB – or world record (in my little world), as I prefer to think about it.

   I trusted to luck a little with FERRET, as I saw FEET for supporters, but didn’t know RR for bishop. Also, I didn’t fully parse DENY until after I had put down my pencil.

   I can report that Mrs R also had a successful day with a 17-minute completion. She also might have got very close to her PB, had she not struggled at the end with FERRET.

   So, all in all, I think a glass of something is called for in the Random household this evening.

   Thanks to johninterred and to Oink.

10. It is marvelous to see how many have enjoyed this puzzle as much as I did. Well done and thank-you, Oink!
11. Not so much light fingered as clued with a light touch, I’d say! I’m another who finished in a quick time, almost half my average, and close to a clean sweep. Oink’s puzzles always put a smile on my face, and today was no exception 😊 Nice to see so many PBs (or near ones) today.

    FOI Earl
    LOI Deny – nearly put defy
    COD Ferret – so happy the supporters weren’t bras! I liked Light fingered a lot too
    Time 7 mins

    Nearly forgot: many thanks to Oink for a fun Friday and John for the usual enjoyable blog

    On a separate subject, I just wanted to say that I have finished the book that Louisajaney recommended – Pretty Girl in Crimson Rose (8) by Sandy Balfour. I really recommend it – it’s a cleverly constructed memoir, well written and very interesting too. My only quibble is that – as far as the crossword element is concerned – the focus is very much on Guardian puzzles rather than a wider range of styles! But that in itself is interesting, as – unlike quite a few of you – I have never tackled a Guardian crossword and they are clearly quite different beasts from what we’re used to here! I now understand a bit more about Ximenean rules too. BTW I did find it helpful to have the Crossword Who’s Who from Best for Puzzles to hand. So many thanks LouisaJ – I look forward to hearing your next recommendation 😊

    Edited at 2021-02-12 03:10 pm (UTC)

    1. I would like to add my thanks to Louisajaney too. I saw the post earlier in the week from someone who had read it on her recommendation and have it on order… arriving this weekend.
       BTW for those who want to try the other crosswords, there are links (and blogs) on Fifteensquared to the FT, Independent and Guardian crosswords. Stuck at home during lockdown I often do all three in addition to the Times Concise, QC and 15×15.

       Edited at 2021-02-12 03:22 pm (UTC)

       1. Thanks John — I’ll look into that, although I’m not sure how popular I’ll be if I do six crosswords a day 😉 As I’m somewhat slower than you, I think it might take a large portion of my day! My husband has a Guardian sub tho, so perhaps I should get him to print off the crossword.

          Years ago, in the days when the Indie was a great newspaper, we used to tackle its crossword at weekends and very occasionally complete it. Then children came along … So maybe it’s time to try again 😊

          Edited at 2021-02-12 06:05 pm (UTC)

12. If we accept that FERRET was the clue that caused most problems (but not for me) it’s worth bearing in mind that a setter is very rarely going to use exactly the same device twice in the same puzzle. So the bishop (B) who has disappeared from his GARAGE is only likely to turn up at 8D in another guise ! So here, he’s the Right Reverend (although I doubt he drives a Rolls Royce !)

    Bishop has no less than 45 suggestions in Bradford’s, but I doubt that many will appear in a QC.

    Nicely accessible puzzle from the Hogmeister, and the fact that my sub-3 minute solve only places me at 16th on the leaderboard suggests that it didn’t cause too many problems.

    FOI EARL
    LOI WASHED UP
    COD FERRET
    TIME 2:52

13. Because I got a personal best of 11 minutes.

    I am in awe of the sub 5 min brigade, as I got nearly every clue immediately, except ferret – when I got the checkers and put in RR, it then came quickly.

    A great end to an interesting week. I found Thursday slow but doable, whereas with Izzetti on Monday, which many others found OK , I made no headway with at all.

    Ho hum! At least I seem to be getting better….

    FOI Earl

    LOI Ferret

    Thanks to Oink and Blogger

    Edited at 2021-02-12 03:57 pm (UTC)

14. 9 minutes and two to go. 9 more minutes to get Ferret and another 5 before giving up on Deny.
    Surprised that only a few struggled with this one.
    Just didn’t see Den for retreat.
    Oh well!
    But I did set a new record for me of 7 straight across answers before Cinema made me move on…and then the ease with which the down answers could fly in was a novel experience…
    Thanks all,
    John George
15. I whizzed through this and thought it might be a PB but like everyone else I ground to a halt at 8d. I saw (without aids) that it could be ferret or learnt but I was expecting a B and couldn’t see why it could be ferret. After about 7 minutes on that one clue I remembered Right Rev but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it abbreviated to RR. A very enjoyable puzzle but a PB will have to wait for another day.
    FOI washed up
    COD sample — very neat clue
    LOI ferret
    Thank you both.
    Blue Stocking
16. I was on for a pb in single figures but took as long to get 8dn as it did the rest . Couldn’t fit in b , or some other chess allusion.
    I had a boyfriend, many years ago whose mother called him an ingrate. I always thought it an American term of derision.
    Thank you blogger and setter.
17. Apart from finishing before the end of the first course in record time this QC was fun with humorous clues.
    Not a pig of a puzzle.
18. Like so many others we raced through this one only to be held up by 8D. So, what might have been a PB was not and we finished in 10 mins. Never mind, we really enjoyed it – thank you Oink.

    FOI: earl
    LOI: ferret
    COD: light fingered (but we also liked ingrate and washed up)

    Thanks for the blog John.

19. Yes, pretty straightforward with all but a couple being write-ins.FOI 1a Earl. LOI 25a Deny as I had to think about the passing. COD 14a Lightfingered – just for the surface. *d Ferret became obvious once I had quickly dismissed B ( good tip in the discussion of re-appearing devices) and went straight on the RR. Nice way to finish the week. Might even have been a PB if I had thought about timing. Wish I had done this yesterday, but only found it in the printer this morning!
20. Biffed FERRET based on the assumption that ‘search’ was a definition for an all-time personal best of 15 minutes.

    Very happy with that, and a nice finish to a week in which I had spent quite a bit of time complaining about the difficulty of earlier puzzles!

    WB

    1. Well done on the PB.
       1. Thanks!

          WB

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