Comments on: Financial Times 14,113 by Cinephile

By: Bryan

Bryan — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 07:03:20 +0000

PeeDee @ 9

Even though tomorrow is supposed never to come, it has arrived and Yes: GRAHAM is the correct answer!

By: MikeC

MikeC — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 21:54:24 +0000

Hi PeeDee

More egg on face for me. I didn’t check carefully enough. Try Arnhem limpopo south africa: it does “hit” on google but it’s a farm, not a town. Sorry to spread confusion.

By: PeeDee

PeeDee — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 19:58:02 +0000

Hi MikeC – I have been looking and I can’t find a town called Arnhem in South Africa. Where did you see this?

By: PeeDee

PeeDee — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 19:06:26 +0000

MikeC – I thought of ARNHEM too but didn’t know any of the refernces and didn’t bother to check it out. Lax of me. I’m not convinced that GRAHAM is the intended answer as The Rev is a very modest person. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to find out!

By: rowland

rowland — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 14:46:18 +0000

Very tight food analogies at 5 Azto! Chambers says that to ‘take the biscuit’ is to ‘surpass everything else that has happened’, or ‘to be worse than anything’.

Rowly.

By: MikeC

MikeC — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 14:17:08 +0000

Thanks PeeDee and Cinephile. Enjoyed this but had to use aids in the SW corner. Don’t know why I hadn’t got MANNERED already. However, the interesting (to me) thing is that Chambers word wizard came up with both GRAHAM and ARNHEM for 22d. I remembered that there was an Arnhem land (in Northern Australia) and checked out that there was also a biscuit by that name. I confess that I didn’t check that there was a town in SA – I assumed that there would be, because of the Boer/Dutch connection. Feeling rather dull that I had lazily got it wrong, I googled Arnhem south africa: lo and behold, there is indeed such a place. So this triple-defined clue really does have two possible solutions. Maybe that does “take the biscuit”;-)

Btw, owing to the Rev’s surname, I’m sure yours is the intended answer!

By: Bryan

Bryan — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 13:06:06 +0000

Many thanks PeeDee & Cinephile

GRAHAM certainly took the biscuit as a reference to Cinephile’s real name.

Maybe that was the allusion?

By: aztobesed

aztobesed — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 12:12:34 +0000

PeeDee and Rowly @ 3 and 4.

“Well that takes the biscuit” is a phrase that has often sprung to my lips when tackling this setter. It sort of means either contingency. It’s always accompanied by a chuckle. Interesting to wonder whether this puzzle was a starter that became a main course or is the bubble and sqeak concocted after the previous day’s roast. No matter, it was a satisfying snack, either way.

By: rowland

rowland — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 12:01:50 +0000

Well, not a bad puzzle, but very familiar for the reasons you give in your very good blog, PeeDee!

Unlucky with your biscuit there, aztobesed.

Thanks all
Rowly.

By: PeeDee

PeeDee — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:45:44 +0000

I assumed you were referring to his notorious habit of “taking liberties”

(more as Araucaria than Cinephile I admit)