Comments on: Guardian Prize No 25,538 by Araucaria

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 18:23:44 +0000

Crowland
A quite interesting place. Large semi-ruined abbey. Originally Croyland. Possibly unique stone bridge with three access points.
I go there regularly but still took a few minutes to spot it.

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:53:12 +0000

Thanks all
Araucaria has set some of the best themed puzzles I have had the pleasure of solving.
This was not one of them. As several above have noted the playwright (even this is too precise) gives too many easy solutions.
I solved the very easy ‘separate tables’ (copies = apes (!!) and (battle)*) which led immediately to T.R.
I think it was A. who recently gave us the ‘potter’ theme which was wonderful since the theme was used in such a variety of widely different ways.
Much too straightforward for a Saturday challenge (fortunately today’s Paul is much more suitable).

By: r_c_a_d

r_c_a_d — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:34:51 +0000

Thanks for the blog, bridgesong. I didn’t think there were any particularly outrageous liberties here. Loved SOBER UP. Resisted the list of RATTIGAN works for as long as I could, knowing only THE DEEP BLUE SEA: I thought linking that to Iris Murdoch’s “The Sea, The Sea” was clever.

BTW I am from Lincs and hadn’t heard of CROWLAND either. Checking a map I noted that it is about as far away as you can get from my home town without leaving Lincolnshire…

By: brucew_aus

brucew_aus — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 10:18:16 +0000

My first entry on this blog – really enjoy the discussion from down in Aust. Have only started doing the Guardian puzzles for the past couple of months and find them an interesting challenge. This one was one of A’s easier ones – although I needed help with the works of Mr Rattigan, whom I had not heard of previously!

By: bridgesong

bridgesong — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 09:51:30 +0000

Apologies for getting Terence wrong: pure ignorance, I’m afraid, coupled with doing the blog in a bit of rush (I had to blog the next day’s Azed as well last weekend). And I agree with Joy that I have missed the point of 6 down, so it wasn’t at all outrageous. But I plead guilty to being an Ximenean, although that doesn’t stop from enjoying Araucaria’s puzzles.

By: chas

chas — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 09:40:49 +0000

Thanks to bridgesong for the blog.

I was like tupu on 5d: what has Rupert to do with this?

On 8d: I got RATTI and GAN fairly swiftly then saw the first word had to be TERENCE but I have never heard of such a playwright. I was quite unable to think of any plays by him so had to use google.

By: Davy

Davy — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 09:33:59 +0000

Thanks bridgesong,

I’m a big fan of A. but didn’t think this puzzle had much spark to it.
Just seemed to be A. going through the motions as if his heart wasn’t
really in it. Just a blip I’m sure.

By: tupu

tupu — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 09:11:03 +0000

Thanks bridgesong for an excellent blog and Araucaria

Pretty straight-forward, though I did not know the Murdoch, and wondered what Rupert had to do with it!

As Miche says, Terence was not Greek. He was a Roman, apparently of North African descent.

I do not want to start the apostrophe hare again, after Eileen’s plea, but NB 10a’s “H’s” which came so soon after last week’s discussion

By: Robi

Robi — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 08:44:53 +0000

I’m afraid it was a case of looking up TERENCE RATTIGAN’s plays.

Thanks bridgesong; I don’t think SOBER UP is just an &lit; it’s BE R in the middle of SOUP. I thought POVERTY was OK as the instruction is to remove ‘py,’ and there is only one way to do that.

By: Miche

Miche — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 08:17:21 +0000

PS Terence wasn’t Greek.

PPS Thanks for the blog. Rude of me not to say that the first time.