Haven’t seen a puzzle from Nudd in quite a while – none in 2014.
Preamble: Wordplay in thirty-six clues serves up an extra letter to be taken away before entry. These letters give a thematically treated quotation and speaker, suggesting how the answers to the remaining (normal) clues must be amended before entry. A survivor remains in the final grid and must be highlighted (14 letters). Given clue lengths refer to grid entries.
Odd turn of phrase: “… serves up …”; must be related to the theme.
On the first pass, I solved only 2 across clues and one of those was 30a AVARICE with a 3-letter entry, so clearly thematic. However, I did solve enough down clues to realise that the “speaker” was CHURCHILL – but that’s not much help, given the number of quotations he generated. Matters proceeded slowly, but I did see that AVARICE had to lose RICE and 6d SUMMERSAULT had to drop SUMMER, though I failed to connect them.
There followed 34d HODGEPODGE and 38a HOGSHEAD, but it wasn’t until I had 17a PEASEWEEP that the PUDDING theme clicked. And then I spotted BREAD AND BUTTER as the “survivor” straightaway. 
I was determined to make out the quotation without recourse to the ODQ or Google, but eventually succumbed; it is “TAKE AWAY THAT [PUDDING] – IT HAS NO THEME“, and comes from The Way the Wind Blows, Alec Douglas-Home’s autobiography … but I have no idea what it means. Anyway, by the end of the weekend (which had been spent mainly on dealing with issues arising from aging parents), I had a grid that was complete apart from about 7 of the pudding-related entries.
At some point (Monday? Tuesday?) I wrote out a list of the two dozen puddings that are in Chambers, and ticked off the ones I had: those already mentioned plus (in solving order) CABINET, MILK, POCK, COLLEGE, and WHITE (it having taken me ages to figure out the wordplay for 42a WHITEBEARDS). Just 4 to go. Trying to pair up an as yet unused pudding with 36a _OOD, 32a M_NE, 14a _UTT_R, and 43d _OG yielded BLACKWOOD quite quickly, then MANSUETE (a bit of a beast, that one) and eventually GUTTERBLOOD. I got hung up on Goofy in the clue for 43d being the Disney dog, and it was only when walking to the lunchtime seminar that I realised the answer was a simple anagram: YORKSHIRE FOG – doh!
Well, as I’ve said before (in my previous blog, as it happens), I never really like this much to do after cracking the theme … but there you go (“used to express resignation over something that cannot be changed” – see Chambers).
Thanks, Nudd – all real words left in the grid after pudding-removal, and lots of them (14). This is what I think of as a “setter’s puzzle” – the satisfaction that one must feel as a setter having engineered so much thematic material so neatly into a grid somehow outweighs the enjoyment felt by a solver (this one anyway) towards the end of unravelling it all.
And I didn’t like “Soul-free” as the clue to KA UNTIE in 13a – it’s the hyphen.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Answer/Entry | Extra letter | Wordplay |
| 1 | MASCARAS | T | LASCAR (sailor) − L(eft) in MATS (punches) |
| 7 | CABINETMAKER | CABIN (hut) + ET MAKER (Spielberg?) | |
| 11 | APPAREL | A | APP(roved) AREAL (regional) |
| 13 | AUNTIE | K | KA (soul) UNTIE (free) |
| 14 | GUTTERBLOOD | UTTER (deliver) BL (barrel) in GOOD (well-behaved) | |
| 15 | DECKERS | E | DEC(eased) + KERSE(y) (coarse cloth) |
| 17 | PEASEWEEP | P (softly) EASE (soften) WEE (small) P(arson) | |
| 18 | SAKI | A | SAKAI (language) |
| 19 | SEETHED | W | HE (His Excellency) D(ied) after SWEET (dessert) |
| 23 | READ | A | AA (volcanic rock) in RED (rubbish, Scot) |
| 25 | DARKLE | Y | ARKLE (legendary steeplechaser) in YD< (yard) |
| 26 | LIT | T | TILT< (slant) |
| 28 | UTTER | H | SHUTTER (window covering) − S(un) |
| 30 | AVARICE | [CAVIARE]* | |
| 31 | UNEASE | A | E(vident) AS (when) in AUNE (old French measure) |
| 32 | MANSUETE | MAN (husband) SUE (petition) (divorc)E around T(ime) | |
| 33 | INKPOTS | T | TINK (ring bell) + POT (pocket) S(quare) |
| 36 | BLACKWOOD | B(ritish) LACK (need) WOOD (solid fuel) | |
| 38 | HOGSHEAD | HOG (store potatoes) + SHED (outhouse) around A(ccepted) | |
| 41 | READILY | I | [AIRE IDLY]* |
| 42 | WHITEBEARDS | WEB (plot) around HIT (murder) + EARDS (buries, Scot) | |
| 44 | ROPING | T | TROG (walk wearily) around PIN (peak) |
| 45 | GAVOTTE | H | G(ood) HAVE (trick) around OTT (over-the-top, too much) |
| 46 | SNIDE | A | ASIDE (words, quietly voiced) around N(avy) |
| 48 | ECLOGUES | S | SEC(retary) + LOG (record) + [USE]* |
| Down | |||
| No. | Answer/Entry | Extra letter | Wordplay |
| 1 | MILKMAIDS | MM (messieurs) around ILK (kind) AIDS (helpers) | |
| 2 | APPEARING | N | APP(rentice) EARNING (gaining by labour) |
| 3 | COLLEGE CAP | COL (pass) LEG(islation) + PACE< (step) | |
| 4 | ARIES | O | OAR (paddle) + SEI< (whale) |
| 5 | RETREAT | T | RET (soak) RET(ired) AT (to) |
| 6 | SUMMERSAULT | [MATURE SLUMS]* | |
| 7 | MUTE | H | HUT (shack) in ME (Maine) |
| 8 | ANTWERP | E | ANSWER (succeed) with T(ime) for S(pecial) EP (European Parliament) |
| 9 | EIRE | M | E(urope) + MIRE (bog down) |
| 10 | REAPPEAR | E | REAP (cut down) PEA (pulse) RE< (about) |
| 12 | PICKPOCKET | PICK (choose) POCKET (appropriate) | |
| 16 | SENT FOR | W | S(ection) WENT FOR (attacked) |
| 20 | HARM | L | HARL (fly) + M (noon) |
| 21 | ALVEOLATE | S | SALVE (soothe) (cr)O(wn) LATE (recently) |
| 22 | BLUSHERS | C | BCL (Bachelor of Civil Law) USHERS (introduces) |
| 24 | DUSK | H | D(ead) HUSK (shell) |
| 27 | BAND-AID | U | BAN (veto) + AI (fish) in DUD (counterfeit) |
| 29 | ENTERAL | R | ENTER (penetrate) A(ntechambe)R L(eft) |
| 30 | ANOINT | C | [CONTAIN]* |
| 34 | HODGEPODGE | HODGE (countryman) + PODGE (excess body fat) | |
| 35 | SALVO | H | (mar)SHAL VO(iced) |
| 37 | DYKES | I | D(emocratic) YIKES (fights, Aust) |
| 39 | EBON | L | NOBLE< (peer) |
| 40 | ERNE | L | LERNE (swamp) |
| 43 | YORKSHIRE FOG | [GOOFY SHIRKER]* | |
|
|
|||
HG,
Sympathy with aging parent situation. Been there.
Anyway. I didn’t spot ‘serves up’ in the preamble – I very often miss those subtle little hints.
But like you I did quickly get AVARICE and SUMMERSAULT,and realised what the theme was.
Even so, I found quite a few of the clues hard to crack. I,too, got fixated with the Disney dog at 43D.
Last one I solved. Lovely anag.
Just going off topic for a moment. I was intrigued by the Scottish word GUTTERBLOOD. J K Rowling is Scottish. I wonder if this inspired “mudblood”.
Coming back. I enjoyed this puzzle. Had problem for a while with 20A. Not used to hearing ” Leonard” as part of his name.
Confession time. I googled to get a list of puddings. And, later, Churchill/Pudding to complete the quote.
It’s very interesting to read people’s different thoughts on PDM. The pleasure for me is cracking the theme early into the puzzle. (Though this is not always possible with some themes, of course.)
HG, many thanks for blog.Nudd.many thanks for inspiring me to buy some 36A for Sunday morning breakfast.
I really enjoyed this. As HG says in the blog, the PDM wasn’t the point. I got Yorkshire Fog (father was a botanist!) and avarice on first reading, and had the theme instantly. The fun was in wading through the pudding clues and working out all the wordplay. I feel that I have come across the quote before, though I don’t know where and I still had to look it up – and have no idea what it means!
Like jonsurdy I must also confess: if you search for PUDDING on my Android version of Chambers, you get all the xxx puddings and also all the pudding xxx entries which was very helpful in the case of Hog’s, Hodge, Pock and White.
Also, like jonsurdy, I had trouble with 20D (the L of WLS C..), convinced it must be a pudding until a count right at the end cleared up the fact that it must be an extra letter.
Very nice puzzle from Nudd and thanks for the blog HG.
Not much to add here. Like others I got the theme almost immediately from the anagrams and AVARICE and found the fun of the puzzle was teasing out the rest of the puddings. For some reason PEASEWEEP and CABINETMAKEE held me up for ages but they fell eventually. I have to disagree with HG about SOUL-FREE – it was my favourite clue for the samw reason that he didn’t like it – it’s the hyphen.
Many thanks to Nudd for the tussle and to HG for the blog.
Like others I got the theme quickly, from the ‘YORKSHIRE’ in 43D- how could I fail on that, hailing from the West Riding and having enjoyed tagging along on a few local environmental assessment trips with my botanist friends ?
Several of the puddings were unknown to me though and I struggled to come up with several: “POCK”, “HODGE” etc. I also kept grappling with “GREYBEARDS” for 42A for ages, trying to make it parse in vain !
A very enjoyable tour of the esoteric world of British puddings – they completely baffle our American friends – and I could feel the pounds going on just doing this puzzle !
Many thanks Nudd and HG.
I’m afraid to say I’m getting rather irritated by the frequent comments of both bloggers and setters on this site which seem to suggest that every IQ should contain some entirely novel and earth-shattering PDM.
This surely isn’t possible although there must be many setters out there who would welcome suggestions from the detractors on how it may be achieved. Some puzzles will be harder/easier for some solvers than for others and a familiarity/interest with any theme is, of course, a great help. To label a fine puzzle such as this a “setter’s puzzle” is a bit unworthy, I feel.
My thanks to Nudd for a gentle few hours of entertainment – which is what crosswords should be about. Let’s not get bogged down in an OTT search for “perfection”. It won’t happen!
HG always writes an excellent and enjoyable blog. I don’t always agree with his comments (or anyone else’s) but they add life and texture and make things more interesting. As indeed do your own. It’s freedom of speech.
As Tony Hancock famously said, “What about Magna Carts . . . did she die in vain?
Carta
Much enjoyed. The Pudding Drop Moment came when I got SUET as the fourth such. But what a lot of takeaway puddings after that! And what a relief to learn that others too became fixated on Goofy=DOG before getting to the YORKSHIRE FOG anagram.
wooby @5:
Before my first blog here I received some ‘general guidance’ from Gaufrid that included “Try to keep criticism constructive; if you don’t like a clue, say why. Don’t say anything that you wouldn’t say to the setter if he/she was standing in front of you.”
I have found that excellent advice, and attempted to follow it.
What a shame the entries didn’t include the Fred Astaire classic.
“I’m pudding on my white tie”.
HG,
You have no need to say a word to justify your comments.
Going back a week or so, I think we all enjoyed The Great Rotring Debate.
Very good fun. Life is serious. But not always to be taken too seriously.
I’m with Wooby@5 and hope that other setters aren’t put off the extra work involved in leaving real words by one person’s view, some of us really appreciate it. I also quite like working with the theme sometimes as opposed to it coming out at the end and think that there is room in the thematic world for both types of puzzle.
jonsurdy@11
The-pencil-that-from-now-on-shall-remain-nameless is providing sterling service (although, sadly, it hasn’t improved my solving ability).
One of the reasons that I come to this site is to read the opinions of other people – bloggers, setters and solvers – otherwise I would just look at the solution in the paper and move on. I find it hard to believe that HG was admonishing setters in any way rather than simply stating his personal preference that he likes the PDM to appear at the end of the solving process. I don’t much care one way or the other as long as I find the puzzle satisfying and this one certainly fitted the bill. He didn’t like the style of 13 A, I loved it. Chacun à son goût and all that.
Now, let me tell you about my new eraser …
Yes, I accept that is fair comment BF@13 and I regret saying that I am with Wooby@5. HG of course has the right to say what he thinks and wouldn’t be much of a blogger if he didn’t. I allowed myself to get a bit wound up to be honest as I feel strongly about the extra work some setters are prepared to put in to building a grid to leave extra words, which I certainly appreciate. I also do happen to think that it is good to work with the theme on occasion, but these are just my views and should have been expressed as such. My apologies.
I loved the puzzle, not least because bread and butter pudding is a favourite … I make a mean one myself. Back in the 70s, my boss was appalled when I used to specify B&B pudding for the client lunches we sometimes laid on, but it was always wolfed down with gusto. The caterer we used on those occasions later went on to higher things … Prue Leith !
I made a mental note never to try some of the varieties in the puzzle, if they were ever offered, particularly POCK and HODGE, when I discovered what was in them.
I was held up for a bit because I Googled Churchill quotes, and he seems to have actually said THIS rather than THAT … THAT only appears in memoir recollections of its use, as I then saw in ODQ.
A comparable phrase, from my National Service, which I have never forgotten, uttered in an officers’ mess in West Africa in 1953: when served with Shredded Wheat, rather than his usual breakfast cornflakes, The major concerned summoned the African Mess Sergeant and boomed at him:
“TAKE AWAY THIS LAMENTABLE LOOFAH !”
Thanks to all for your comments and many thanks for the blog HG – I’m sorry this one did not suit your taste, though I can assure you I did not intend this (or any of my puzzles) to be “a setter’s puzzle”. My setting aim is always to provide challenge and entertainment to the solver and I make no apology for pudding (sorry) 14 thematic items in the grid. When I’m solving, I tend to appreciate a wealth of thematic material with real words left in the grid and view that as a bonus for the solver rather than showboating by the setter. Still, one man’s meat … as illustrated by the completely opposite views on 13A.
As I said, the real reward for me in setting is in knowing that solvers have been given an entertaining run for their money, and I am pleased that several others did find it an enjoyable romp – though I’m more than happy to hear all views and thank each and every one for taking the time to provide this most welcome feedback.
Until the next time ….
BF @ 13,
I think Staedtler is the rubber of choice for the discerning rubber outer, but the putty rubber is probably better when dealing with thin paper such as newsprint.
As for all the debate here, one man’s meat is another man’s poisson.
I omitted to mention in the blog that I thought the title referred to pudding being served after the main course of a dinner.
For those who missed it, the solution published at the weekend says that the “Main Event” was in fact the 50th anniversary of Churchill’s death, two weeks before the puzzle was published.
And, just to be clear, I do appreciate a setter’s efforts to leave all real words in the grid, provide a healthy amount of thematic material, a quote that serves as an instruction telling us how to treat some answers before entry (e.g. Exit, pursued by a bear), misdirection (e.g. A Win for Surrey), and other nice touches (e.g. Hope I die before I get old) …
Thanks once again HG, that’s much appreciated.
As for the title of this one, it was originally entitled “Unthematic” and intended for publication on that particular anniversary – but a minor filing mishap meant that that did not happen. Instead it was so renamed to reflect both your own interpretation (plain “Afters” having been discarded as too obvious) and to acknowledge that it was a follow-up to the anniversary in question.
No hard feelings that you said this one did not suit you – no setter can expect to cater for everyone’s taste. And thanks to you and the others for those excellent weekly blogs, keep up the good work.