Comments on: Guardian 25,606 – Gordius

By: Huw Powell

Huw Powell — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 18:42:55 +0000

Putting “cloisonne” in for 15 slowed me down a bit in the SW… “almost” = “close”, plus “on”, plus “in” for “title holder”, but without a good excuse to glue them together that way. OPERATION forced me to erase it, and STEEPNESS led me to “assemble” the correct answer and look it up.

Guessed LAWSON and thought that was good enough to research who she might be for the answer. I often have to do that with well-known UK people and places that I have never heard of and probably never will.

Nice puzzle, thanks Gordius and UY!

By: Alan Browne

Alan Browne — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:37:39 +0000

I was late tackling this enjoyable puzzle – hence this late post which will probably be missed by everybody!

It always seems to be me that has to point out that IC (found in 13 across) is not the Roman numeral for 99 (XCIX is). I don’t mind seeing a living language evolving through repetition of easier ways to express things, but attempts to change a centuries-old fixed code (although note the later alternative IIII for IV on clocks) are surely to be discouraged.

By: Brendan (not that one)

Brendan (not that one) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 21:52:29 +0000

Bamberger @16 and RCW @24

We seem to be having a German beer theme today?

Or is it just my wishful thinking.

“Eine halbe Schlenkerla bitte”

Much easier than the last Gordius I did but very enjoyable.

Never heard of the poem or champleve but both adequately clued.

Thanks to UY for the blog and Gordius for the crossword

By: iz

iz — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:47:12 +0000

oh thanks, the comma between cooked and then confused me….how pedantic! sounds tasty.

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:14:21 +0000

……..also it tastes better……especially with German beer.

By: Robi

Robi — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:45:57 +0000

iz@22; the cooked is an anagram indicator for ‘then,’ which is restructured as ENTH in EMMENTHAL.

By: iz

iz — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:39:10 +0000

This was the first non Rufus and non Araucaria one I have solved.

Anyone know why Emmenthal is cheese ‘cooked’?

By: tupu

tupu — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:01:18 +0000

Hi RCW
For what it’s worth ( I concede not much!) the question is not one of definition – ‘it’s in the garden’ – but of the inclusion indicator. Dave E. suggests ‘house’ for this whereas I had thought, before I saw his comment, that it was simply ‘in’ doing double duty.

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:29:37 +0000

I am surprised that tupu and Dave E. make such a big thing of 21d but are quite content with ‘garden’= ‘earth’ as the definition.
It is fine to me but then I am notably easy-going with definitions.

By: tupu

tupu — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:10:19 +0000

Hi Dave Ellison

House would not be wholly redundant since it adds to the surface and the definite article could not in any case stand alone. But then that leaves double duty for ‘in’, as I noted, and I’m not sure if that’s a game Gordius would play.
Your own suggestion avoids that problem altogether, with ‘near the’ as the subject of ‘house’ and so seems preferable.