We always look forward to a Morph puzzle, and still cannot forget his brilliant Limerick based puzzle back in May
However, we found this one a bit disappointing, especially for a Thursday – there are some great clues but 1ac and 7d really didn’t work for us and seemed to let the rest of the puzzle down. Maybe we just weren’t in the right mood, or maybe we were just expecting too much!
It was still an enjoyable challenge, and we look forward to the next one!
| Across | ||
| 1 | Take risk and get dismissed leg before? | |
| GO OUT ON A LIMB | We’re not 100% happy about this clue – GO OUT (get dismissed – as in cricket) is okay, but ON A LIMB doesn’t really work – the leg / limb reference is clear enough, but the cricket context is stretched a bit too far. | |
| 8 | Extreme characters one found in pub and market | |
| BAZAAR | AZ (extreme characters) + A (one) inside or ‘found in’ BAR (pub) | |
| 9 | Spooner’s big bird in vicious encounter | |
| CATFIGHT | A Spoonerism of FAT(big) KITE (bird) | |
| 10 | Point out spies infiltrating supplier of observation equipment | |
| OPTICIAN | An anagram of POINT (anagrind is ‘out’) with CIA (spies) inside or ‘infiltrating’ | |
| 11 | Pet animal noise disturbing school | |
| SMOOCH | MOO (animal noise) inside or ‘disturbing’ SCH (school) | |
| 12 | Without whom lunch effectively impossible? | |
| CHEF | A cryptic definition – hidden within the clue – lunCH EFfectively | |
| 14 | Pirate might have one each of these with which to make fast | |
| HOOK AND EYE | Pirates are often depicted with a HOOK for their missing hand AND only one EYE | |
| 16 | Get dinner prepared with one? At least! | |
| INGREDIENT | Another cryptic definition – an anagram of GET DINNER and I (one) – anagrind is ‘prepared’ | |
| 18 | Regret saying something saucy | |
| ROUX | Sounds like (‘saying’) RUE (regret) | |
| 19 | Street unchanged – because of this? | |
| STASIS | Another cryptic definition – ST (street) + AS IS (unchanged) | |
| 21 | Measure high-quality car taking bend at speed with throaty noise | |
| HARRUMPH | HA (measure as in hectare) + RR (high quality car) + U (bend) + MPH (speed) | |
| 23 | Dog did as told, perhaps, separating men | |
| ALSATIAN | A play on the fact that the dog did what it was told perhaps – SAT between AL and IAN (two men) | |
| 24 | To hit old man back is shocking | |
| APPALS | SLAP (hit) + PA (old man) reversed or ‘back’ | |
| 25 | Model reluctant to enter church on Sunday in front of Rector wearing stockings | |
| CLOTHESHORSE | LOTH (reluctant) inside or ‘entering’ CE (church) + S (Sunday) + R (rector) inside or ‘wearing’ HOSE (stockings) | |
| Down | ||
| 1 | Left amid rocky earth with bent tent pegs, don’t give up! | |
| GRASP THE NETTLE | L (left) inside an anagram of EARTH (anagrind is ‘rocky’) and TENT PEGS (anagrind is ‘bent’) – unusual to have two anagrinds! | |
| 2 | Took a picture, capturing exotic creature | |
| OKAPI | Hidden or ‘captured’ in the clue – toOK A PIcture | |
| 3 | Polluted lake I abandoned | |
| TARNISHED | TARN (lake) + I + SHED (abandoned) | |
| 4 | It’s impossible to pinch two kilos from Speyside distillery | |
| NO CAN DO | The Speyside distillery is |
|
| 5 | Chance on American plant | |
| LOTUS | LOT (chance) + US (America) | |
| 6 | Delivery heard from His Master’s Voice? | |
| MAIL ORDER | Sounds like (‘heard’) MALE ORDER – (‘His master’s voice’) | |
| 7 | What bean-counter might do to offer life assurance? | |
| CHECK YOUR PULSE | A rather unusual sort of clue – perhaps a cryptic definition? But there really isn’t a definition as such. No doubt YOUR PULSE would be CHECKed if you are being offered life assurance, and an insurance assessor might be described as a ’bean-counter’ (although the phrase usually refers to accountants) – the cryptic reference being that beans are a type of pulse. The answer is clear enough, but the clue doesn’t quite work for us. | |
| 13 | Head off the company south of Sherwood? | |
| FORESTALL | ALL (the company) after or ‘south of’ FOREST (of which ‘Sherwood’ is an example) | |
| 15 | Consequences of when Washington recess may be timetabled? | |
| AFTERMATH | In the States (‘Washington’), Mathematics is (for some unfathomable reason) referred to as Math, so in a Washington school or college timetable, a recess might occur AFTER MATH | |
| 17 | Improve hen gathering with topless disco | |
| ENHANCE | An anagram of HEN (anagrind is ‘gathering’) + |
|
| 20 | Spare eggs served up on end of toast | |
| STINT | NITS (eggs) reversed or ‘served up’ + T (last letter or ‘end’ of toasT) | |
| 22 | Superior meal has no starter | |
| UPPER | ||
1ac works for me. If you’re out lbw it’s (normally) because the ball has hit your leg. Hence ‘out on a limb’.
I enjoyed this, especially as it’s a Thursday and my head usually hurts after trying a Thursday puzzle. I laughed at 7D, being a former bean-counter myself. Checking your pulse is about the extent of my medical knowledge. 1A worked for me as per hound dog.
Anyway full marks to Morph for the imaginative use of Knockando; the first time I’ve seen it used in a puzzle.
Thanks to B&J for the blog.
I agree with Bert and Joyce’s quibbles and also doubt the congruence of ‘stint’ with ‘spare’, stint actually meaning ‘to be sparing’ so that spare would rather be a synonym of stinted.
I enjoyed this, particularly 14a.
Thanks to Morph and B&J too
Re: 3
From Chambers:
stint 1
vt to keep short; to be niggardly with or towards; to allot stingily; to spare; to serve successfully, get with foal, lamb, etc; to limit; to check (); to restrain (or ); to stop (); to allot, apportion (); to set as a task or as a day’s work (); to restrict ().
vi to be sparing or mean (with on); to go short (); to cease, stop ().
n cessation of action, motion, etc (); a limit (); restraint, restriction; a proportion allotted, fixed amount; an allowance; a set task; a (conventional) day’s work.
[OE styntan to dull, from stunt stupid; cf stent1, stunt1]
I have seen the out on a limb joke somewhere before I think, and done more simply. The other one I also agree isn’t up to much, but the general effect of this puzzle is quite good. The inidication is a bit rubbish contextually here and there, like ‘end of toast’, but not too bad.
Yes surprisingly easy for a Thursday puzzle, less than half a pint.
1a fine by me but I have a pet peeve of say 7d where I grew up always saying your but in crossword land it’s usually one’s. Yes I put the wrong one in again.
Ta Morph and B&J
I absolutely loved this – not too taxing and lots of bad jokes! Maybe I was in the right mood, but it just seemed a very good-natured crossword.
I had to cheat for STINT though – neither the definition nor “eggs=nits” was any help to me.
So, many thanks to Morph and B&J for the blog.
I thought 7D was very good. I didn’t see a problem with stint and spare either.
Saturday evening I’m afraid!
I’d saved this since, being a Thursday Morph I had half a mind it might be a tad meaty……..and would enjoy with Strictly! Never mind – all done and haven’t yet had first couple!
But I did enjoy it. Thought HOOK AND EYE was very nice (my first in). [Just stopped to watch first dance, a quickstep, surprisingly good!] I tend to agree with B & J’s take on the clues. But still very enjoyable….thanks to Morph.
BTW – Bert and Joyce – loving the way you’re colouring your blogs. “That’s the way to do it!”
[They received two tens from the judges! They’re called “Frankie and Kevin” it seems…!]