Comments on: Guardian 24253/Paul – squeaky

By: muck

muck — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 15:58:34 +0000

Great puzzle – more Paul please.

By: Mick H

Mick H — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 09:38:28 +0000

“Squeaky bum time” may refer to the state of one’s innards, but I tend to think of it in terms of the noise made by someone anxiously shifting position on a hard plastic seat of the type found at football matches.
Good stuff – I particularly liked ‘air conditioner.

By: Stan

Stan — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:11:07 +0000

I disagree with Ron and side with Paul – a computer operating system is very much a computer operator as its the means by which a computer is operated.

By: Geoff

Geoff — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:10:18 +0000

4A ‘Mayo destination’ = KNOCK (place with shrine in Co Mayo) and ‘cancelled’ is OFF. The definition is ‘imitation’. KNOCK OFF is more usually employed as a (phrasal) verb, meaning steal or imitate, but I suppose a pirated copy could be described as a KNOCK OFF (ie using expression as a noun).

24A ‘Computer operator’ is WINDOWS, not WINDOW – which seems a perfectly reasonable half-cryptic def as Windows is an operating system. Add EAT (‘to take in’) to produce WINDOW SEAT

I really enjoyed this puzzle. 11A was marvellously characteristic of this setter. We haven’t had a ‘Paul’ for a while and I was beginning to pine..

By: Ron

Ron — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:44:06 +0000

4A I believe KNOCK is in Mayo, is the site of a Catholic shrine and also has an airport, hence destination – but I’d quibble slightly with Knock Off as cancelled.

18A I do like SNOO for half asleep – but I’m not sure what Ximenes would make of it!

24A I’m not happy with Window for computer operator.

By: beermagnet

beermagnet — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 16:07:00 +0000

1A FRACAS This was lovely and by contrast one of my first solved.
“draining for” gives FR – “for” drained of its innards.
“conciliation service” is ACAS which is an Arbitration Service, a quango for resolving employment disputes.
I presume ACAS is a UK based organisation.