Just to reiterate what mc_rapper highlighted last week, The Sunday Telegraph is now accepting email submissions for Enigmatic Variations. This requires you to scan your solution/entry coupon, and email it to prize.puzzles@telegraph.co.uk, with EV ???? in the subject field. You will get a message of thanks, with the warning of a slap wrist if you fail to complete the subject line correctly! Perhaps there should also be a restriction of only one entry per solver?
A very compact puzzle this week from Kcit, with the grid only 13×10. Ten clues were presented in alphabetical order of their answers, and generally proved relatively easy. These needed to be paired to form five of the unclued entries with13dn providing the theme. I didn’t have too much difficulty with the standard across and down clues. When I had AL•O•••• at 13dn, I thought alcopops would be the theme, but a quick check in Chambers found a more likely entry was ALCOLOCK, a device which prevents a car being started if the driver is over the limit.
1ac pretty much gave the game away for me. With VANISH as the last of the ten unnumbered clues seeming to fit in the second half of 1ac, MINI was staring me in the face. Slotting FORMI[CA] into the first half of the entry, the CA merged with VA of VANISH to give CAVA. Thus, put two of the ten together, remove the alcohol and highlight the car. Five makes or words for car were revealed.
Solving time: on the easy side for a Kcit puzzle, about 1¾ hours, and no EV gremlins that I could see this week.
Legend:
Definition in clue
ABC* = anagram
ABC< = reversal
abCDef = hidden
| TEN CLUES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Clue and Explanation | ||
| a | ALIAS | A name for a geological period? Not the right name A + LIAS (geological period) |
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| b | BLASTING | Criticising book that’s enduring B (book) + LASTING (enduring) |
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| c | FORMICA | Plastic covering ants and all? FORMIC (covering, ie relating to, ants) + A (all) |
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| d | HAUSA | African people have to stay ahead of America HA (have) ahead of USA (America) |
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| e | KETONE | Nitrogen extracted from known Scots single organic compound KENT (known, Scottish) – N (nitrogen) + ONE (single) |
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| f | ODALS | Scottish estates‘ overdraft further reduced OD (overdraft) + ALS[O] (further, reduced) |
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| g | RAFFISH | Flashy service person RAF (service) + FISH (person, “as in a queer fish“!) |
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| h | RUBATO | Massage a part of foot almost with irregular rhythm RUB (massage) + A + TO[E] (part of foot, almost) |
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| i | TIMONEER | Old steersman to relax, returning around early afternoon? REMIT< (relax) around ONE (1pm) |
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| j | VANISH | Very hard accepting cuckoo’s disappearance V (very) H (hard) accepting ANI’S (cuckoo’s) |
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| ACROSS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Clue and Explanation | ||
| 1 | FORMINISH | Clue c FORMICA + clue j VANISH = FORMI[CAVA]NISH – CAVA | |
| 8 | SHUT | Bar round overlooked in call for drinks (4) SHOUT (call for drinks) – O (round) |
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| 12 | FREUDIAN | Like a certain slip, field a run, barring fifty, possibly (8) ((FIELD A RUN) – L (fifty))* |
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| 14 | EL-A-MI | One man returned note as before (5, hyphenated) (I (one) MALE (man))< |
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| 15 | RIC-RAC | Braid I almost split, after little resistance (6, hyphenated) I CRAC[K] (split, almost) after R (little resistance) |
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| 16 | LEISURE | Temptation to take in Spain is feature of holiday (7) LURE (temptation) taking in E (Spain) IS |
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| 17 | ABBADO | Pop group to suffice for classical conductor (6) ABBA (pop group) + DO (to suffice); reference to the Italian conductor, Claudio Abbado |
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| 21 | OPEROSE | Poet’s to start penning symbol of love — that’s rarely tedious (7) OPE (to start, poetic) holding EROS (symbol of love) |
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| 23 | FLANNEL | Fellow with lines about girl? Such words are misleading (7) F (fellow) + LL (lines) about ANNE (girl) |
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| 27 | SCREAM | Reactor shut-down involving energy — alarmed response (6) SCRAM (reactor shut-down) holding E (energy) |
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| 28 | ATACTIC | Disordered perception I observed in Bill (7) TACT (perception) I in AC (bill) |
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| 29 | HEIGHS | Hills blocking tense cries (6) HEIGHTS (hills) – T (tense) |
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| 31 | TO LET | Returned everything husband put out for hire (5, 2 words) (THE LOT (everything) – H (husband))< |
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| 32 | OKIMONOS | Certainly I’m against unusually large Japanese ornaments (8) OK (certainly) I’M ON (against) + OS (unusually large) |
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| 33 | OMSK | Recalled end of fight to seize manuscript in Russian city (4) KO< (end of fight) holding MS (manuscript) |
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| 34 | ALIMONEER | Clue a ALIAS + clue i TIMONEER = ALI[ASTI]MONEER | |
| DOWN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Clue and Explanation | ||
| 2 | ORIBI | Antelope, old one, found below ridge (5) O (old) + I (one) below RIB (ridge) |
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| 3 | MURAENA | Scots individual with a drink turning up in Moray (7) (ANE (individual, Scottish) A RUM (drink))< |
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| 4 | IDA | Verdi heroine not a G & S heroine (3) AIDA (Verdi heroine) – A; reference to the G&S opera, Princess Ida |
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| 5 | NICOLE | Girl upset places in Newcastle area (6) LOCI< (places) in NE (Newcastle area, ie north-east England) |
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| 6 | SNED | Spoke no longer about new cut (4) SED (spoke, obsolete) about N (new) |
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| 7 | HEIFER | Male prisoner (long-term) ignoring length? Neat (6) HE (male) + LIFER (long-term prisoner) – L (length) |
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| 9 | HAUTONE | Clue d HAUSA + clue e KETONE = HAU[SAKE]TONE | |
| 10 | UMRA | Bishop avoiding uninvited guest in pilgrimage (4) UMBRA (uninvited guest) – B (bishop) |
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| 11 | TIE BEAMS | Rafters seem a bit dodgy (8, 2 words) (SEEM A BIT)* |
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| 15 | RAFFIATO | Clue g RAFFISH + clue clue h RUBATO = RAFFI[SHRUB]ATO | |
| 18 | BLADALS | Clue b BLASTING + clue f ODALS = BLA[STINGO]DALS | |
| 19 | ORARION | Stole gold and accepted wrought iron (7) OR (gold) + A (accepted) + IRON* |
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| 20 | ANATTA | Dyestuff turned up at police station (6) (AT TANA (police station))< |
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| 22 | PASHIM | Action supported by that chap getting goat’s wool (6) PAS (action) + HIM (that chap) |
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| 24 | MAHOE | Mother’s garden to display New Zealand tree (5) MA (mother) + HOE (garden, verb) |
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| 25 | ATOM | A book that’s abridged a small amount (4) A TOM[E] (book, abridged) |
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| 26 | VIOL | Antique instrument? See, one’s not quite antique (4) V (see) + I (one) + OL[D] (antique, not quite) |
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| 30 | EMO | Brooding music used in the movies (3) in thE MOvies |
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