Comments on: Private Eye/Cyclops 424 – Besmear drummer

By: beermagnet

beermagnet — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 08:46:32 +0000

bamberger: In 25A The “Given” is there to provide the structure to the clue in a way that makes a sensible and humourous surface reading. Rewording you might get “Good money fist gives a Prince” but that doesn’t make much sense. I would agree that “Good money, fist a Prince” could work I think it is better the way it is.

Gazza: Rummer is a word, as John says. The world would be rummer if occasional adjectives didn’t take their comparative form.

John: Yes, I know “Get knotted” was a ref to “tieing the knot” but I can’t see how else to define the clue type except as a Cryptic Def. The clue is certainly too misleading to call it a Single Def. “Get knotted, No” might suffice for a Def. But what to do with the rest of the clue then? Can “carry on as you are” also define ‘Live in sin’, making it a DD? Am I missing something?

By: John

John — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:51:20 +0000

14D: Get knotted = Get married, so not a CD
16D: Rum = strange, twisted, wacky (old usage, such as “She’s a rum un”, meaning a bit unusual in a negative sense)

I’m probably showing my age here!

By: Dozer

Dozer — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:07:49 +0000

I got ‘Crossword Setter’ and laughed, but couldn’t manage any of the other clues!

By: Beaker

Beaker — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:37:58 +0000

I really enjoyed this one, but had to ‘phone a friend’ for the top right corner, trying to force SCUD in for the long range threat somehow (EYE = C U refusing to leave my head and blinding me to all else) at the same time as getting IN POWER but not why it was right.

By: Gazza

Gazza — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:28:33 +0000

On 16d I thought the question mark was an indication that “rummer” is not a real word (in that sense). I agree with bamberger on 17a being excellent.

By: bamberger

bamberger — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 07:13:35 +0000

25a I was torn between wordplay being “grand” for good money and as you have it, g + rand. What was the “given” doing there?
Much easier than last one -loved 17a