As with my last review of a Nimrod puzzle there were a few clues in this that I didn’t understand so I’m obviously still having problems tuning in. To be fair, I don’t think it’s the setter’s fault and I did enjoy the puzzle but Nimrod has a style all of his own and he’s always trying new things so there’s bound to be occasions where not everything hits the target straight away. And I’d much rather solve a puzzle with a few fresh looking clues that I don’t understand than a puzzle full of stale clues that I do understand.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 10 | hidden in “centraL EU rope” – I didn’t know this was the standard unit of currency in Romania but I do now. |
| 11 | A,B(RETSINA)* |
| 12 | ESSEN – not sure if this is right. Any offers? |
| 13 | hidden reversed in “MilaneSE TAGLIATelle” – superb hidden clue with a very convincing surface reading. |
| 16 | INIGO – a new batsman might say “In I go!” as he strides out to on the field. Inigo Jones was an English architect. |
| 19 | ERE in SEASON |
| 21 | TOAST – another one I’m not sure about. “Brown” can obviously mean TOAST but I can’t work out the rest. |
| 26/27 | (USA CUT TAX-CRIME SENTENCING)* – excellent &lit clue. You could quibble with “criminal” as an anagram indicator though. |
| Down | |
| 3 | hidden in “prOCREAtors” – had a guess at this as I had O???A and I couldn’t think of anything that might fit. |
| 4 | TEN GAMU(t) going up – “It draws” seems like quite a tough definition. |
| 5 | EMIGRES – another one I’m not confident about. The 2 online dictionaries and 1 hardcopy dictionary I have access to all define EMIGRE as someone who has emigrated, usually for political reasons, so I don’t see how “royalists” comes into it. It could be one of the reasons that someone might emigrate but there are others. Unless I’m missing something? |
| 6 | I,I in NEWS in ERE – which works if LEG = I. Quite a convuluted clue and surface reading but I guess the temptation to get Angela Rippon mentioned in a clue for ERNIE WISE was irresistable, given the famous appearance of the former on the Morecambe and Wise Show. |
| 7 | SELES – if you put US around SELES you get USELESS (“ineffectual”). Nice idea. |
| 8 | TURN DOWN, H in (GATES)* – I filled this in thinking that TURN DOWN had something to do with doubling in backgammon but I’m not so sure now. |
| 14 | (ARE)*,TB in GEAR |
| 15 | (E, E, TO UK)* |
| 17 | IN,(MASONIC)* |
| 19 | SHIH-TZU – have only just worked this out. SHIA-TZU (or SHIATSU) is a form of Japanese massage – replace “a” with “h(ard)” to get one of these winsome little fellas/poncey yappy dogs (delete as appropriate). |
I think, in ESSEN, it means all the letters are bridge players. Don’t understand TOAST either. A curiosity was the USELESS crossing with uSELESs with “ineffectual” used in the clue.
Nimrod has lived up to another of his pseudonyms, obviously, and puzzled a few people. ESSEN is transliterations of the bridge partners S and N. The ultimate promotion of a father would be to a saint or TO A ST. As Chambers points out, an emigre was originally a royalist fleeing the French revolution.
Yes, that’s good for ESSEN. Re ERNIE WISE, I think the “legs” reference is to legs eleven (II) in bingo, say.