Comments on: Guardian 23981/Gordius

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colinblackburn — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 11:03:00 +0000

I initially considered PADDED ENVELOPE but didn’t really see it as a liner, more of a shipping container.

Plimsoll is well known to me, at least I recall it being something covered at school, but I wouldn’t have known his first name. I doubt he’s on the school syllabus any longer.

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ilancaron — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 22:17:54 +0000

here’s i got to 1A: at some point PLIMSOLL became clear to me (though I still had no idea what the first part would be). I remembered wearing plimsolls as a boy (which must date me) and I vaguely remember my dad explaining to me why they were called such: something to do with the rubber siding coming part way up the side of the shoe as waterproofing and how this had to do with something to do with boats.

From there I saw the relationship to “liner” and it was one short hop to wikipedia (and SAMUEL). Wouldn’t have got there on the tube.

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rightback — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 21:42:41 +0000

1ac surely required some wordplay to go with this (admittedly very clever, now I have researched the answer) cryptic definition. I tried ‘shrink wrapping’ (i.e. something that might line a shipment), then guessed ‘simple plimsoll’ once I had all the crossing letters except 3dn. Or is SAMUEL PLIMSOLL just another name that everyone else seems to know?!

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Bracoman — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 17:01:57 +0000

A pin is a type of barrel. In time the contents of the barrel will end up in pints.

Good crossword. Too subtle for me in places eg Merle Streep.

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colinblackburn — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:14:23 +0000

Ah, Meryl Streep! The greatness passed me by as I knew nothing about the book or the film. And, of course, it explains the word once.

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michod — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:04:07 +0000

I too got stuck on a few here, guessing at Bardash, Preston and Obiit, but failing to spot ‘Easy terms’. I can’t work out whether the clue for Publicans is just a cryptic definition. ‘Given time’ adds nothing to the cryptic surface – I don’t see how it can refer to calling time – and hints at wordplay without delivering. Pins, given time, can become pints cryptically with or without the publican’s help… the publican needs time to effect the transformation, but only in as far as every action we perform takes time. Am I missing something?

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ilancaron — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:03:05 +0000

13A: Actually a great clue: “The French Lieutenant’s Woman” was set in Lyme Regis and Meryl Streep played the woman in question in the film version.