Times Quick Cryptic No 2183 by Oink

Author   TheRotterPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

This was my fastest solve of this week at just under 10 minutes.   Sorry if this feels rushed, but it is.  Family and friends have conspired to steel my time tonight, and I’m writing this after a very good bottle of Rioja.  Thankfully, lots of double definitions helped with the solve.  I hope I have everything nearly right.

Across

1  Appear when old man’s out of bed? (3,2)

POP UP – POP (old man) and UP (out of bed).

7  Children’s author had a droll disposition (5,4)

ROALD DAHL – Anagram (disposition) of [HAD A DROLL].  Hopefully, everyone has heard of ROALD DAHL.

9  Creepy sounding place for a bird (5)

EYRIE – Sounds like EERIE (creepy / weird), so a sort of double definition / cryptic hint.

10  One critical of Her Majesty going on strike (7)

KNOCKER – KNOCK (strike) and ER (Her Majesty – Elizabeth Regina).

11  Struck son with glove (7)

SMITTEN – S{on} and MITTEN (glove).

12  Dirty old boy identified, you say (7)

OBSCENE – O{ld} B{oy} and SCENE (sounds like (did you say) SEEN (identified)).

15  On top of everything as a rule (7)

OVERALL – I think this is either a double definition.

18  Half of them getting very angry in Dubai? (7)

EMIRATE – Half of {th}EM and IRATE.

20  Taken illegally, as egg may be  (7)

POACHED – Double definition.

22  Permission to go (5)

LEAVE – Another double definition.

23  French heads welcoming a private conversation (4-1-4)

TÊTE-À-TÊTE –  TÊTE (French for ‘head’) doubled (heads, to give two of them) and separated by A (welcoming a).  A TÊTE-À-TÊTE is a private conversation. (8)

24  Husband out of danger?  That’s a nice surprise? (4)

TREAT – Take H{usband} out of T{h}REAT (husband out of danger (threat)).

Down

1  Strips and endlessly sleeps around (5)

PEELS – SLEEP{s} (endlessly) reversed (around).

2  Might it be breakfast time in prison? (8)

PORRIDGE – Double definition, but one needs to lift and separate breakfast and time.

3  Quite mean to trap Republican (6)

PRETTY – PETTY (mean) containing (to trap) R{epublican}.  “It is pretty / quite warm as I write this, although not as hot as yesterday”.

4  Disagreeable old duke promises to pay (6)

ODIOUS – O{ld} D{uke} and IOUS (promises to pay).

5  It runs round tree, as dog does (4)

BARK – Double definition.

6  Gangster with a gun making you scared (7)

ALARMED – AL (Capone – gangster) and ARMED (with a gun).

8  Grant wangled coke somehow (11)

ACKNOWLEDGE – Anagram (somehow) of [WANGLED COKE].

13  Bill hiding in skip – such a lark! (8)

ESCAPADE – ESCAPE (skip) containing AD (bill, as in poster)

14  Track that POW might make? (7)

TOWPATH – Anagram (might make) of [THAT POW].

16  Sheep found under tree in Hindu retreat (6)

ASHRAM – ASH (tree) followed by (found under) RAM (sheep).  In India an ASHRAM is a hermitage for a holy man.

17  Young one on farm has broken leg in deep hole (6)

PIGLET – Anagram (broken) of [LEG] inside PIT (deep hole) to give PIGLET and Oink’s signature trademark self-reference.

19  Portuguese ventriloquist concealing affair (5)

EVENT – Hidden answer inside {portugues}E, VENT{riloquist}.

21  Singer caught in maelstrom occasionally (4)

ALTO – Alternate letters (occasionally) in mAeLsTrOm.

72 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic No 2183 by Oink”

  1. 12 minutes all parsed – one of my faster times. Most went in on first read through leaving me with just a handful of slightly trickier clues for the second pass. Had to look up EYRIE to check that I had the spelling correct. Thanks to Oink for an approachable puzzle which I thoroughly enjoyed.

    FOI – 1ac POP UP
    LOI – 13dn ESCAPADE (the only clue which required significant pause for thought)
    COD – 6dn ALARMED – loved the surface

  2. Wow! Only 13 minutes today – way under the SCC threshold and a silver medal performance for me. I solved a large proportion of the clues on my first pass, which is almost unheard of. And, all parsed as I went. No favourite clues – just the whole puzzle.

    Now, Mrs Random and I are off to Great Dixter (house and garden in East Sussex) for a GD Friends’ event this afternoon. The head gardener, Fergus Garrett, will update us all on how things have been going this sesaon, and on future plans. Always an inspiring experience.

    Many thanks to Oink and Rotter

    2. What a day! Congrats on the time and hope you had a lovely time at Great Dixter 😊

      1. Thankyou! Great Dixter was wonderful, as usual. Fergus Garrett talked to us about the amazing range of species to be found within GDs relatively small (50 acres) boundaries. After exploring the gardens and wild flower meadows, we all sat around on hay bales, drank punch and were served a mini cream tea. It was informing, inspiring and delightful. Christopher Lloyd’s (and Fergus’) succession planting philosophy meant that much had changed since our last visit (only two weeks ago), so we are planning to go again sometime in August. Fergus assured us that much will have changed again by then.

    3. Unless you slipped in a stunning PB while I was off-grid, I would have thought gold ?

      1. My current gold medal performance – 12 minutes – occurred on 10th January, this year (No. 2045, Izetti). And, I have now achieved 18 sub-20s in the 26 months since I started these QCs. Despie much gnasing of teeth, I am gradually getting there.

    4. Well done, Mr Random, a superb time. I hope the garden visit was enjoyed, by you both.

  3. 12 mins, ignoring one pink in eyrie, so didn’t even finish my pint. Half my usual solving time.
    Rotter- 15 ac. Is there a superfluous ‘either’ in your blog? If the clue had started ‘Protective garment….’ Then it would have been a triple.
    Bet you’re glad you didn’t get 3 Izettis in a row. 😱. J

    1. Yes, thank you – I started along one line of thought, then plumped for a straightforward dd and didn’t go back to check.

  4. 11:43 but took ages on escapade and also stuck in Eerie.

    Liked towpath and alarmed.

  5. 13 minutes and LOI Towpath but I’m in the Eerie camp – it’s so long that I have read the word Eyrie that I had forgotten that it existed. So DNF….
    Thanks all
    John

  6. Finished within our modest target, but with eerie for 9a. 13d escapade only solved by the checkers. Enjoyable puzzle.

  8. A straight write in this evening.
    Did like piglet but nearly pooh poohed the idea

  9. My first complete solve!
    23:31
    Looking at the comments it seems to have been a relatively easy one so I won’t get my hopes up for tomorrow.

  10. I too found this reasonably straightforward. I’ve at last got quite/pretty lodged in my brain. I don’t need the pressure of a ticking clock, but I was under 20 mins. A relief after feeling like I was wading through treacle earlier in the week.

    Thanks for the blog Rotter. I always find your blog very entertaining. I hope you enjoyed the Rioja!

    1. Thank you Gary, I did, although probably a little too much when on blogging duty!

  11. I usually get to these QC’s late in the day so miss the banter as it occurs. I loved 14D, as a narrow boat owner it was a shoo in and confirmed my view: easy if you know the answer and impossible if you don’t. Panicking that I might have missed something until 17D confirmed our setter. All finished, blog and comments read, perfect entertainment. Thank you all.

    Just need to establish an account and make this a breakfast treat rather than a tea time one. Ric

  12. 7:40 here, a possible PB (I should write these things down). Coming to this late in the day in California, so Friday’s is already available, but I’ll try to restrain myself. FOI the “UP” part of POP UP, LOI ESCAPADE. Favorite PEELS, for the lovely surface. Thanks to setter & blogger.

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