Comments on: Financial Times 12,967 / Moodim

By: Agentzero

Agentzero — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:56:17 +0000

Rishi,

Thanks for the blog.

I too was bothered by the “is” in 18d.

Also, although I may be too old-fashioned here, to me “doctor noticing” tells the solver to anagram the word “noticing,” but “noticing doctor” does not. Maybe “putting on disguise, before old doctor noticing” would have worked.

By: C G Rishikesh

C G Rishikesh — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:23:16 +0000

Thanks, Geoff.

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:12:24 +0000

Rishi
Sorry, I misinterpreted your comments in 28a and 3d.

I didn’t think the surfaces were too bad. I am sure that some of the ‘starters’ in up-market, overpriced restaurants could be considered ‘poncy’ if we use the COED definition of ‘to ponce something up’, which is ‘to attempt to improve something by making flashy changes’.

Also, a ‘bad tree’, perhaps one with blight or another defect, could be returned to the garden centre or other supplier.

By: C G Rishikesh

C G Rishikesh — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:39:41 +0000

Geoff,
Thanks. I was so happy with the wordplay in 11a that I forgot to mention the anno. And I was making the point that the lengthy def. itself is likely to lead one to the answer.
I have corrected the typo in 25a.
In both 28a and 3d I was referring to the surface reading of the clues.

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:16:59 +0000

Morning Rishi

11a You haven’t mentioned that this is ELF in *(ELFISH)

25a You have a typo, ‘cite’ should be ‘site’.

28a It is the ‘bad old’ that returns not the tree.

3d ‘poncy start’ indicates the first letter of poncy, ie ‘P’.

Eileen has already covered 4d and 15d and so has saved me some typing. Thanks Eileen.

By: Eileen

Eileen — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 09:22:45 +0000

Hi Rishi

4dn: [MAKES BIRD]*

15dn: ERA D[inner]I[cat]E

[I remember Meg Merrilees, too!]