Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of December 14, 2013
This is a mischievous crossword with an undisclosed wordplay element common to the four double-slotted clues 5-6, 10-12, 23-28 and 25-26. These all involve Spoonerism-like transformations. My top clue is 3D (DISPIRITED).
ACROSS
8 Water plants – only 75% surviving in disaster (6)
CALAMI – CALAMI[ty] (only 75% surviving in disaster). The calamus (plural calami) is a tall wetland plant. And not one that I can remember coming across before.
9 At home with computers etc I had to start (8)
INITIATE – IN (at home) + IT (computers etc, i.e. Information Technology) + I (I) + ATE (had)
10, 12 Smart narrow opening connector (4,4)
SLIP KNOT – NIP (smart) + SLOT (narrow opening) with initial sounds transposed. I think this is not a proper Spoonerism in that it seems very unlikely that anyone would ever use the word “nip slot” together.
11 Cleric to bow in special prayer (10)
PREBENDARY – BEND (bow) in anagram of PRAYER
12 See 10
13 Judge again to receive commendation (10)
REAPPRAISE – REAP PRAISE (receive commendation)
17, 18, 19 Attended certain races and lost everything? (4,2,3,4)
WENT TO THE DOGS – double definition
21 Looked at non-pro team getting embarrassed (10)
CONSIDERED – CON (non-pro) + SIDE (team) + RED (embarrassed)
23, 28 One regarded as a favourite talked filth (4,4)
DEAD CERT – SAID DIRT (talked filth) with initial sounds transposed
24 Excessively in danger of being shot down (4-3-3)
OVER THE TOP – double definition
28 See 23
29 A river bird joining a jolly lot having intimate contact (3,2,3)
ARM IN ARM – A (a) + R (river) + MINA (bird) + A (a) + RM (jolly lot, i.e. the Royal Marines). I believe this bird is usually spelled MYNAH but MINA is a valid variant.
30 Lady protecting silver from harm (6)
DAMAGE – AG (silver) in DAME (lady)
DOWN
1 The standard way to keep maximal speed in a manner of speaking (8)
PARLANCE – PAR (the standard) + C (maximal speed, i.e. the speed of light) in LANE (way)
2 Chum facing hell, a trial without end, quivers (10)
PALPITATES – PAL (chum) + PIT (hell) + A (a) + TES[t] (trial without end)
3 Pride – is it hurt with bod finally becoming this? (10)
DISPIRITED – anagram of PRIDE IT IS + [bo]D
4, 14, 27 Repeatedly an hour late, say? (4,5,4)
TIME AFTER TIME – TIME (an hour…say) + AFTER TIME (late). I am not entirely comfortable about this.
5, 6 False delivery went astray – a blow not confronted (4,4)
SIDE WIND – WIDE (false delivery, as in cricket) + SINNED (went astray) with initial sounds transposed
7 Retail outlets with more than one floor not unknown (6)
STORES – STORE[y]S (more than one floor not unknown)
14 See 4
15 The cranky suppose odd psychic projections will form (10)
PSEUDOPODS – anagram of SUPPOSE ODD
16 Officer has new idea – to go Awol (4-2-4)
AIDE-DE-CAMP – anagram of IDEA + DECAMP (go Awol)
20 Laggards struggling to be in top gear (4,4)
GLAD RAGS – anagram of LAGGARDS with a nice cryptic definition
22 Turn towards bishop in public (6)
OBVERT – B (bishop) in OVERT (public)
25, 26 Acclaim wine, end of the line (8)
RAILHEAD – HAIL (acclaim) + RED (wine) Spoonerized
27 See 4
Thanks, Pete. But what, indeed, is a “proper Spoonerism”? One definition of Spoonerism (that of the 1924 edition of the OED) is: An accidental transposition of the initial sounds, or other parts, of two or more words. It says nothing about whether anyone is likely to use the erroneous phrase. My understanding is that a classic example is “The Lord is a shoving leopard.” I don’t think anyone is ever likely to (intentionally) say “shoving leopard,” but that doesn’t mean it’s not a Spoonerism.
I recommend Paul B’s comment (#16) here: http://www.fifteensquared.net/2008/09/30/guardian-24507-paul/#comment-47753, particularly his venue suggestion!
In one of my puzzles (click on my name), I clued CASE LAW as a Spoonerism of “ace claw,” which one person felt wasn’t “proper.” Personally, I think it works, but then I’m biased.
I’m off to pour some brandy into my slip knot…
I couldn’t solve
8a Very very hard in my book in that I doubt if calami are well known-I’d never heard of them.
10a/12a Just couldn’t see it.
17a I agonised between gone and went and plumped for gone as I had neither 1d and 2d which would not be out of place in a Times Crossword.
Thanks for blog
Keeper, I realize that I was casting a particular shade of meaning onto spoonerism that the dictionary definitions, at least those cited by Paul B, do not include. I was taught that a spoonerism is a figure of speech but, if I understand well what a figure of speech is, then strictly speaking a spoonerism would stand as one only when it is constructed deliberately. Now, I could use spoonerism-as-a-figure-of-speech to argue for my point of view about it but, checking Wikipedia, I find that ‘spoonerism’ is defined as an error in speech just as much as a deliberate play on words. So there my argument founders and I am left seeing the relevant clues in this puzzle as, indeed, simple spoonerisms. (And I have switched from ‘Spoonerism’ to ‘spoonerism’ too.)
Bamberger, I vacillated between GONE and WENT for 17a too. I don’t remember now why I finally decided on WENT.
Didn’t get on with this at all. Didn’t spot spoonerisms. Surprisingly though had no trouble with “went to the dogs”. Seems that “went” and the clue word “attended” are both past imperfect whereas “gone” is past perfect, as in “John has gone to the dogs”. Or am I being pedantic?
Malcolm, I will not say you are being too pendantic but I am not familiar with “past perfect” and “past imperfect”. My view of the clue is that “went to the dogs” would stand in for “attended certain races” in a context such as “Alice attended certain races” while “gone to the dogs” would fit in a context like “Alice has attended certain races”.