Comments on: Enigmatic Variations 934: Origin by Samuel

By: Dave Hennings

Dave Hennings — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 06:17:52 +0000

Mike,

Thanks for the comment, and I agree with everything you say. The dig at the editors and the redrawing of the grid was just to make entertaining reading, the jigsaw was a good, straightforward solve, and although BORIC is given as meaning skint, BORACIC lint is the rhyming slang given by Chambers (and what I learnt when I was young).

Dave.

By: Mike Laws

Mike Laws — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 02:12:19 +0000

Dave and Ken – I think it’s fair to say that the solver’s experience is the primary consideration for editors, not the blogger’s.

Anyway, there was no obligation to recreate the grid – the clues could simply have been blogged in the alphabetical order they appeared.

Thoroughly enjoyed the puzzle. You could get a handle on the jigsaw element without having to solve most of the clues cold. Not all setters make the solver’s experience a priority in this way!

BORIC wouldn’t done for me, either – it’s BORACIC lint.

By: Samuel

Samuel — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 15:22:22 +0000

Thanks for the write-up. It may be of interest to know that there were initially eight thematic elements, with BORIC, slang for “skint”, in place of DORIC. The editor thought this too obscure, though, so we had to make do with only seven pieces of rhyming slang.

A couple of people have mentioned to me privately that there’s just about an anagram of EASTENDERS in the central column. This is a hangover from an early version of the puzzle that was also going to have other Albert Square references.

By: Jake

Jake — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 12:50:03 +0000

Hi Dave, thanks for blog. I myself didn’t find the need to have numbers. I got lucky (may-be) by placing the only 9 lettered word where it fitted – the centre column, then the 9th row ‘anasarca’ and all fell into place very quickly. A very enjoyable puzzle, especially the end, ‘cockney’ and the rhyming slang ?

Nice one Samuel. Good work.

Thanks Dave for the info.

By: kenmac

kenmac — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 15:04:43 +0000

Hear, hear Dave. I was faced with a similar problem in my forthcoming blog for Inquisitor 1146 (appearing on your computer screens next Wednesday.)