Times Quick Cryptic No 2738 by Trelawney

Author   JohninterredPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

A fun Quick Cryptic from Trelawney today. I found it mostly straightforward although I was held up at the end by 15A, 21A and 16D (failing to spot the hidden for too long) to take me just over my target, finishing in 5:02. As an added bonus we have a fairly easy to see 7D. Did you spot it? Thank-you Trelawney!

We are provided with a foody theme. I spotted POT, SCOOP. MATE, SAGE, ARTICHOKE, PENNE, SARDINE, CARBONARA, COOK and CHICKEN in the grid and toast, ice-cream, herb, vegetable, taco, cooked, pasta, dishes, Italian food, chef and meal in the clues. Did I miss any? [Edit: Yes I did. List above added to from comments by Kevin Gregg and curryowen. Thanks both.]

Fortnightly Weekend Quick Cryptic.  This time it is Sawbill’s turn to provide the extra weekend entertainment. You can find the crossword  here. If you are interested in trying our previous offerings you can find an index to all 108 here.

Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc, {deletions} and [] other indicators.

Across
1 Toast from part of Asia cut twice (4-4)
CHIN-CHIN – CHIN{a} (part of Asia) without it’s final letter [twice] -> CHIN-CHIN.
5 Catch sight of peaks to the west (4)
SPOT – TOPS (peaks) reversed [to the west] -> SPOT.
8 What a journalist desires — some ice-cream? (5)
SCOOP – Double definition.
9 Knead mother’s herb (7)
MASSAGE – MA’S (mother’s) SAGE (herb).
11 What may creep in via yard at first (3)
IVY – Initial letters of In Via Yard.
12 Vegetable taco hiker cooked (9)
ARTICHOKE – (taco hiker)* [cooked].
13 Begrudge living expense around south-east (6)
RESENT – SE (south-east) in RENT (living expense).
15 Pasta dishes initially written down (6)
PENNED – PENNE (pasta) and first letter of Dishes. You have to split “Pasta dishes”. Did it fool you?
18 A cobra ran off for Italian food (9)
CARBONARA – (a cobra ran)* [off].
19 Snake that’s covered in feathers? (3)
BOA – Double definition, the second a cryptic hint referring to the feathery neckwear.
20 Stylish companion of Barbie is a coward (7)
CHICKEN – CHIC (stylish) KEN (companion of Barbie).
21 Thrill European and others after retreat (5)
ELATE – E and ET AL (and others) reversed [in retreat] -> LATE.
22 Former PM’s idyllic garden (4)
EDEN – Double definition.
23 Kitty admits problem — small talk (4-4)
CHIT-CHAT – HITCH (small problem) in CAT (Kitty).
Down
1 I search frantically for shop worker (7)
CASHIER – (I search)* [frantically].
2 Sarcasm in press secretary’s conclusion (5)
IRONY – IRON (press clothes) and last letter of secretarY. Hmm. I wasn’t convinced by the definition at first, but the dictionary says “Language expressing scorn or contempt, often but not necessarily ironical“.
3 Murderer secures suitable chef for explorer (7,4)
CAPTAIN COOK – APT (suitable) in CAIN (murderer of Abel), COOK (chef).
4 Fashion an item for prisoner (6)
INMATE – [Fashion] (an item)*.
6 Philosopher working for group of soldiers (7)
PLATOON – PLATO (philosopher, “…they say, could stick it away…“) ON (working).
7 Those people originally explained topic (5)
THEME – THEM (those people) and the first letter of Explained. And a hint to us that there is something going on in the puzzle.
10 Shadowy character is centre stage for a change (6,5)
SECRET AGENT – (centre stage)* [for a change].
14 Clumsily rinsed a fish (7)
SARDINE – [Clumsily] (rinsed a)*.
16 Multimedia lecture shows way of speaking (7)
DIALECT – Hidden in MultimeDIA LECTure [shows].
17 Meal outside a Nasa event (6)
LAUNCH – A in LUNCH (meal).
18 Go by bike in section of icy clearing (5)
CYCLE -Hidden in, [section of], iCY CLEaring.
19 Seaside area with tree, reportedly (5)
BEACH – BEACH sounds like BEECH (tree) [reportedly].

64 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic No 2738 by Trelawney”

  1. Good old Trelawney can be relied on to provide a proper quickie. I enjoyed this one with a large Courvoisier in the lounge on my way back to blighty. I was even top of the leaderboard for a few minutes.

    BEACH LOI because it was down there. Loads of great clues.

    Hurrah for Trelawney, and thanks John for the blog.

    3:44

  2. I never look for a Nina or theme, but was half aware that there were a number of food terms–COOK is one more, and ‘dishes’. DIALECT was my LOI, and I also took some time–but for once, not much–before spotting the hidden. 5:11.

  3. 6:37. I enjoyed ET AL and CHIC KEN. John, I think vegetable and herb are in the clues too.

  5. 3:30 for an almost uninterrupted solve. Didn’t notice the theme at the time, but now John’s blog has made me hungry.

    Thanks John and Trelawney.

  6. 8 minutes – my first sub-10 solve this week. I think we’ve had the ‘sarcasm / IRONY’ debate before, and on more than one occasion, but the usual sources all have it covered. Definitions don’t have to work in every instance.

  7. My elderly dog has taken to waking me at a silly hour of the morning (5am here) for his breakfast, so it’s nice to have a gentle 6-min solve while still half-asleep. Good fun!

  8. Loved this. Held up at the end trying to work out what ‘late’ had to do with ‘all’ before scraping under 10. Had a rogue R in PENNrD – but I’ll let me off for a phone solve on a campsite.

  9. Mostly delightfully easy (especially for a Friday!) but couldn’t see the wordplay for CHICKEN, CAPTAIN COOK or (LOI) ELATE, so thanks for useful and interesting blog as always. Sorry: heard of Barbie, but NHO KEN; why does a doll need a companion?

    1. Ken is Barbie’s boyfriend, apparently created because consumers said Barbie needed a beau. The film Barbie (really quite funny) puts anodyne Ken in his place.

      1. I see – thanks – so he was invented for the film? Yes I’d probably enjoy it, but whether I can persuade Mrs M is another matter …..

        2. Our daughter played with Barbies (1970s) and our sons had Action Man Kens. (We didn’t know any better 🤨)

          1. Action Man was a great deal more macho than Ken, don’t you think. My sons had a PLATOON of them plus guns, grenades, tanks, APCs and even a plane. For all I know, there may be some of them in the loft still.

  10. So close and yet…

    We raced through this, for us, stopping to think the explorer might be Captain Hook but unable to parse. At 12.40 it was LOI and with all of the excitement of a PB by some margin, bunged it in without having another look at the clue, d’oh!! Of course it was obvious once we saw the DPS.

    What a great puzzle, so many great surfaces. Sardine gets my vote for COD, very elegant.

    Thanks Trelawney and John for the Monty Python snippet. Can’t imagine we will see a philosopher clued that’s not in the Bruce’s song 😀

    1. Exactly what happened to me. Was on a sub 13 min PB then went for Captain Hook and in the end DNF. Frustrating but a great puzzle nevertheless.

  11. That’s a first. Finished in one sitting before work 😁. Thanks Trelawney for a confidence booster and the John for the explanation of 21a which was my LOI.

  12. A rare day when even I spotted the theme – unusual for it to run through both clues and answers. I was rather less quick to spot the two hiddens – DIALECT (my LOI) needed the initial D checker before I saw it but I really should not have been so slow to see CYCLE. But all done eventually in 11 minutes for an enjoyable solve.

    Many thanks John for the blog and I look forward to the Sunday Special
    Cedric

  13. As usual with Trelawny I found this fairly gentle but top quality.
    Thought I might be on for an exceedingly rare sub 4 minute solve until left with ELATE and DIALECT.
    Finished in 4.27 with COD to RESENT for the surface reading.
    Thanks to John

  14. Thanks Trelawney, a nice 21.15.
    Held up at the end by PENNE and DIALECT. The hiddens get me every time.
    Regarding John’s MER at 2D I remember our English teacher taking some time to teach us the difference between sarcasm and irony. However the clueing was fair and a Google search tells me that sarcasm is a form of verbal irony.

  15. The only problem I had was failing to spot the theme, but that’s par for the course.

    FOI CHIN-CHIN
    LOI DIALECT
    COD CAPTAIN COOK
    TIME 3:23

  16. Great QC from Trelawney, 9.42. I noticed much food but didn’t know that constituted a theme. At least this fare was more palatable than the disgusting sea bass ice cream or whatever it was in the 15×15 the other day. LOI DIALECT from the checkers, never knew it was a hidden. Thanks John (btw we’re having a weekend in Sorrento and taking the cape walk tomorrow, I’ll keep an eye out for your echidna).

  17. 5:07
    POI 10d, which I refused to believe could be yet another anagram since we’d had so many already, and my LOI 15a dropped in as soon as I had the extra checker, as I’d failed to summon PENNE as a pasta type initially. A quickie in the truest sense, at least for me today, very much enjoyed.

  18. Very quick and straightforward, but none the worse for it. No unknowns, but didn’t spot the theme – I never do. I’d add lunch to the list, as it’s indirectly clued as meal around A for 17d.

  19. 4:56

    Surprised when I saw my finishing time, I didn’t realise that I had been that quick – perhaps being a Trelawney, shouldn’t be overly surprised. Momentary slowdowns for de-anagramising SECRET AGENT and correcting biffed PICNIC (Meal outside) at 17d for LAUNCH. Hadn’t particularly noticed the amount of food on the grid.

    Thanks John and Trelawney

  20. 8:46
    Only slowdown was SECRET AGENT, where I wasted time wondering if there were shadowy things beginning SECOND. LOI was ELATE, which caused me to scratch my head for a few seconds before spotting the prolific co-author.

    Thanks John and Trelawney

  21. A nice gentle offering to finish the week. I crossed the line in 7.34 with nothing holding me up especially, although I did have to revisit quite a few clues. I never think to look for a theme, but on this rare occasion I did spot it. I don’t think it assisted me with any of the answers however, which were solved in the usual way.
    Total time for the week was 51.36, giving me a daily average of 10.19, just over target.

  22. Thought I was going to get my first ever sub 4, but I just could not parse LOI ELATE and I didn’t want to risk a pink square so I stared and stared as the clock ticked on … why is “tale” “others”? How can that possibly work? Tick … tick … tick … oh for Pete’s sake, it’s the other E! ET AL! Click, for 05:19 and an Oh If Only Day.

    Many thanks to the Squire for a really fun, well clued puzzle, and to John for the blog. COD to MASSAGE.

  24. 07:54
    Chef’s kiss to Trelawney!

    I was also on for a quick time but elate and penned did for me.
    COD sardine & secret agent.

  25. Phew – a pain-free and enjoyable end to the week after a DNF yesterday. Maybe doing it at 3 a.m. helped… or not. Anyhow, all good. Glad to see the setters reverting to keeping philosopher clueing within the known canon as set out by Monty Python after a recent aberration.

  26. This was a pleasant surprise for a Friday QC. There were a few head scratchers for me here, but other than that the answers came quickly.

    Good job too as Pumpa is out with his friend, Werewolf Puss.

    15:48

    My verdict: 👍
    Pumpa’s verdict: Beware the moon.

  27. Apart from a slight diversion trying make an obscure herb out of (mothers)* following the anagram hint (knead), and the initial M, this was a straightforward sub-15 solve from Chin-Chin to (CoD) Chit-Chat. Nice to have a genuine QC, especially on a Friday, and one that I trust even our resident grumblers will find little to complain about. Invariant

  28. 9:23 but with a mistyped pink square, due to doing it on a phone on a train.

    I’m sure we had CHIN CHIN at 1 across very recently, and pleasing symmetry with CHIT CHAT at the bottom right.

    SECRET AGENT: top anagramming.

    LOI PENNED

  29. Loved this one! 10 minutes for me, the clues provoking many a smile and great satisfaction as they all slotted in. With FOI CHIN CHIN and LOI CHIT CHAT I thought the theme might be repetition, and CHIC KEN plus MA’S SAGE seemed to confirm something on these lines, but John has put me right: it’s a foodie puzzle! Great way to end the week. Thanks to Trelawney and John.

  30. Very gentle Friday offering. Done and dusted without problems. Liked CHIC KEN. Thanks all.

  31. An enjoyable puzzle which I despatched in 6.34. Sadly as I typed IVY, the keyboard put in INY. Can’t even blame a train! Sort of noticed there was a lot of food about. Can’t quite believe my LOI was one of my favourite dishes! CARBONARA. Thanks Trelawney and John.

  32. Not too many hold-ups on the way through this one. I don’t look for a theme but I did note the answer to 7dn and was aware of a lot of culinary items while solving. All done in 13 minutes with everything parsed bar CAPTAIN COOK where the answer was obvious from the checkers. Enjoyable puzzle.

    FOI – 1ac CHIN CHIN
    LOI – 21ac ELATE
    CODs – liked SCOOP, CHICKEN and PLATOON

    Thanks to Trelawney and John

  33. Should have been quicker but I put in the well known philosopher “Drago” to get drAgOON at 6d! Hence SPOT was my LOI when I SPOTted the error. 5:33 and I never thought to look for a NINA.

  34. Sorry to spoil the happy atmosphere…..

    I just get lower and lower with this constant banging my head against a brick wall. If there is a stupid mistake to make, you can count on me to make it.

    9 minute DNF as I put CAPTAIN HOOK. Didn’t understand the clue at all. What an idiot! And no, finishing in 9 minutes is no consolation whatsoever when a DNF is involved.

    Nightmare week. 2 DNFs, no SCC escapes and a best of 28 minutes. Massively over 2 hours as well (138 minutes!).

    All hope gone. A miserable weekend awaits.

    Thanks for the blog.

    1. If it makes you feel better, I initially put Captain Hook in as well – however, I soon realised it wouldn’t parse so relooked at it.

      1. Thanks. I wish I had followed your lead and taken the trouble to check the parsing.

        What makes it even worse is that I live relatively close to Captain Cook country and have walked up to his memorial on many occasions. For some reason my mind went straight to pirates here. I had Captain Jack (Sparrow) before Captain Hook.

  35. 9 mins…

    A nice Friday breeze for once. Didn’t spot the theme, but I’ll have a look above to see what it is. A couple of nice clues, including 21ac “Elate” and 3dn “Captain Cook”.

    FOI – 1dn “Cashier”
    LOI – 15ac “Penned”
    COD – 20ac “Chicken” – great clue!

    Thanks as usual!

  36. 8 minutes. For some reason, MASSAGE remained a mystery right until the very end. Only semi-noticed the THEME, like a few others it seems. Yes,I liked the CHIC KEN too.

    Thanks to Trelawney and John

  37. Fast times at Ridgemont High today, and it wasn’t just quick, it was slick, with CAPTAIN COOK and CHIC KEN supplying much of the entertainment. 11:16 is a fast time for me and I expect there will be a few PBs today. Nearly had my first top-to-bottom sweep but I got hung up on “sacred” at 10d (I know….) and had to move along. LOI ELATE, I too kept looking at the “wrong” E while trying to parse.

    Now I’m hungry.

    Thanks Trelawney and John!

  38. 8.57 I was racing through this and then spent 3½ minutes on DIALECT and ELATE. For the first time ever I noticed the theme both here and in the Concise, though they were obvious. Thanks John and Trelawney.

  39. 4:34

    Pretty much as fast as I can read and write except CHIN-CHIN and CASHIER, which I had to return to.

    Thanks all.

  40. Reading the above I feel a little sad that I took about 25 minutes for this. But I am happy with another QC finished and a comfy chair in the SCC.

  42. 15ish mins. Got over half on first read, the rest needed some checkers. Parsing of Elate took sometime. Enjoyed it. Thanks all

  43. After yesterday this was a pleasure. Nice steady and for us, quick solve, thanks Trelawney.

  44. After the last couple of days this was something of a breeze. 8:42 is approaching a PR for us. Thanks all.

  45. 10:48. A full minute to go from _E_N_D to PENNED took me over the 10 minute mark, even though I knew exactly how the clue worked. D’oh! Other that that blind spot, no real issues, and I liked the bookends provided by CHIN-CHIN and CHIT-CHAT.

    Thanks to Trelawney and John.

  46. Almost a bronze medal performance, but held up at the end by one wretched clue for an inordinate amount of time and I ended up back in the SCC. I solved 25 of the 26 clues in just 13 minutes, which is sprinting pace for me, but was knocked for six by 21a (E_A_E). Despite several alphabet trawls I could only find ErAsE and EvAdE, both of which were clearly wrong. I had never come across ET AL for others and, even when it eventually came into my head, ELATE didn’t seem like a real word. All of this took a further (agonising) 9 minutes and I crossed the line in a total of 22minutes. Utterly galling, but LOI-itis is a common ailment of mine.

    Many thanks to Trelawney and John.

  48. I have just spent 90 mins on the big crossword. I came within four of finishing. Just for once, I would like to feel some measure of joy or accomplishment with these puzzles. Instead I feel frazzled and frustrated.

  49. Perfect for a QC! My downfall was writing beech when I intended to write BEACH which made ELATE impossible to get. 🙄

  50. After months of trying I’ve finally completed one! I’ve been nibbling away at it on and off most of the day (365 minutes since I started apparently…) and am now feeling quite elated. I’m in awe of all you ‘speedy solvers’ and who knows, maybe one day I’ll join your ranks, but meanwhile I’ll just savour the moment if that’s OK

    3. It gets easier and quicker with practice, though I don’t expect to ever be one of the speedy bunch. Excellent work, and enjoy your well-earned savouring!

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