Guardian Prize 26705 by Paul

by

This is the second tricky prize puzzle from Paul I have blogged recently.  I think his weekend puzzles are getting harder.  Not so many laughs as some of his puzzles but lots to enjoy regardless.  Thanks Paul.

Across
7  
See 12
8 BRISTOL
Car shows vigour around street, reaching 50 (7)

BRIO (vigour) containing (around) ST (street) with (reaching) L (50, Roman numeral)
9 DASH
Car’s board to break — a bit (4)

triple definition quadruple definition: a dash board, to break, – (a dash) and a bit.  Thanks to Neil for this.
10 NEGOTIANT
One seeking to form a contract with special agent? Not I! (9)

(AGENT NOT I)* anagram=special
12, 7 CREME CARAMEL
Male spins off after putting race car in reverse — that’s sweet (5,7)

MALE* anagram=spins off following (after) RACE MERC (car) both reversed
13 INFRINGE
Trespass, while refining crude (8)

REFINING* anagram=crud
15, 6 FIREBOAT
 Craft fancy robe in car (8)

ROBE* anagram=fancy in FIAT (car)
16 EDSEL
Car from Leeds (5)

LEEDS* (anagram hinted at rather than indicated explicitly)
17, 17 down POLE POSITION
Car operating perfectly starts to make a comeback, then place number one returned — here? (4,8)

OPEL (car) and OP (starting letters of operating perfectly) reversed (to make a comeback) then SIT (place) NO (number) I (one) both reversed (returned)
18 DELOREAN
Car knowledge assimilated by college official (8)

LORE (knowledge) in DEAN (colleage official)
20 HUSKY
Rover possibly, growling (5)

double definition – rover is a dog’s name
21 DEFEATISM
Negative attitude in belief inspiring achievement (9)

DEISM (belief) containing (ispiring, breathing in) FEAT (achievement)
22 TWIN
Seemingly the same thing, core of victory and Triumph! (4)

vicTory (core, middle letter of) and WIN (triumph)
24 SCARLET
Red small Mini? (7)

S (small) CARLET (a small car, perhaps a Mini)
25 HEROINE
Good character offered drug after drug (7)

E (ecstacy, drug) following HEROIN (drug)
Down
1 LADA
Car upset Muhammad Ali’s boxing? (4)

found inside (boxed by) muhamAD ALi reversed (upset)
2 CASHMERE
Fabric in bread and water (8)

CASH (bread) and MERE (lake, water)
3 MEANIE
Malevolent type average, that is (6)

MEAN (average) IE (that is)
4 GRATEFUL
Appreciative, having fat and gruel in a stew (8)

anagram (in a stew) of FAT and GRUEL
5 ASCARI
In Senna’s car, indomitable former Formula One champion (6)

found inside sennA’S CAR Indominable – Alberto Ascari (1918-1955)
6  
See 15
11 GLISSANDI
Slides, as sliding slides (9)

(AS SLIDING)* anagram=slides
12 CLIVE
British general, leader in Calcutta as it happens (5)

Calcutta (leader, first letter of) then LIVE (as it happens) – Major-General Robert Clive, aka Clive of India
14 GULLY
17 down like a bird? (5)

double definition – like a gull and cricket position
16 ELEVATED
Promoted jerks leave Heath (8)

LEAVE* anagram=jerks then TED (Edward Heath)
17  
See 17 across
19 OXFORD
A Morris, neat car (6)

OX (neat, cattle) FORD (car) – The Morris Oxford car
20 HUMMER
Bee car (6)

double definition
21 DUCK
Dodge for nothing (4)

double definition – a duck is a zero score in cricket
23 IONA
Some Bugatti on Automobile Island (4)

found inside (some of) bugattI ON Automobile
*anagram
definitions are underlined

20 comments on “Guardian Prize 26705 by Paul”

  1. Thanks to PeeDee for the blog. I needed you for the explanations of a couple where I had the answer but not the reasons.

    I’m not sure I can agree that Paul is getting harder. I find him rather variable. Sometimes I can go through one of his puzzles with no great trouble, bot other times (like now) I have to work hard and then struggle e.g. HUMMER. I have occasionally met them in my reading but I’ve never seen one and never heard of them in this country. It would have helped if Paul had mentioned it was a foreign car but that would have spoiled the simplicity of the clue.

  2. Is 9ac not, in fact, a quadruple definition in that “-” is also a dash ?

    For 19d, presumably Oxform is a typo.

    I have read these pages for a couple of years now and am always grateful for the help it has given me and has definitely made me a better solver so thanks for that.

    I think that this is only the third time I have posted anything; that is mainly because it usually takes me a couple of days to complete a crossword so the thread has usually run its course.

    It was purely by chance that I came across this post so early on so I am sure everyone else would have spotted my points as well.

    Thanks again.

  3. Thanks to Paul and PeeDee. I’m not strong on classic cars or drivers (ASCARI) but managed to get the solutions via the clues, though I did not see the cricket dimension of GULLY and missed the Opel part of POLE POSITION. An enjoyable prize.

  4. Thanks PeeDee. Sped through until forced to slow over rough stuff in the bottom corner. Tinkered with ‘Humber’ for the 20D car before opting for the truck, kept thinking Ford Fairlane/mont for the 17/17 fit until the ‘–ion’ likely suffix gave the game away and had HEROINE as last one in.

  6. Thanks Paul and PeeDee

    Did this one this morning … and found it much easier than the three previous Prize puzzles. It did feel like a very atypical Paul crossword as well for some reason.

    It is amazing how these crosswords can highlight more about what one doesn’t know – was previously unaware of the BRISTOL, ASCARI and the EDSEL cars. Was interested to read about both the father and son ASCARI racing drivers and the eerie similarity in the way that they both passed away.

    The HUMMER is quite well known in Australia – they are often used as stretch limousines, at least in Melbourne.

    Finished in the SW corner with DEFEATISM, OXFORD and DE LOREAN the last three in.

  7. Curious how many misleading options there were. First thought about 18a was MASERATI (master and AI).In 5d I saw NASCAR wich was hidden one letter to the left of ASCARI. COWLEY fitted 19d.And being a bit out of date, I had HUMVEE for HUMMER.

  8. I found this very easy except for 17,17D which I couldn’t fully parse!

    Thanks to PeeDee and Paul.

  9. P.S. Has anybody any idea why we don’t get the “Anagram helper” button for the last few Prize puzzles? ( There’s still none today although of course pencil and paper still work. I thought this was the “Brave New World”. Actually the new format is very good and I have also written to the Guardian team to tell them 🙂 )

    I have asked our illustrious Ed but of course have got no response 😉

  10. All reasonably straightforward with nothing that needed looking up, but quite a lot of general knowledge required – fortunately I had heard of ASCARI. Last in was DELOREAN.

    Thanks to Paul and PeeDee

  11. Thanks Paul and PeeDee.

    I managed to finish this last Saturday, but it took me a long time (the Everyman usually takes me two hours, I am a slow solver). Last in was DASH, I am of the ‘running board’ era, felt such a fool, so obvious.

  12. Well done Neil @2 for spotting the quadruple definition for DASH, something that passed me by completely. Did anyone else spot this?

    OFORM was a typo, fixed now.

    It seems that not everyone found this tricky, so just me having a slow day. It amazes me how variable solving can be: some days everything seems obvious, other days I am sat staring at an empty grid.

  13. I was too dashed to look at 9a again after the penny dropped, well done Neil.

    I see in the COED that a DASHboard was originally a board of wood or leather in the front of a carriage to keep out mud. I can remember tradesmen using horse-drawn vehicles, but do not remember ever riding in a horse-drawn carriage; I am not that old.

  14. Thanks Paul and PeeDee

    Copmus @ 5: yes, there was a Hillman Husky

    PeeDee @ 12: yes, I did spot it, and thought it was an especially fine clue among many. As others have noted, to have so much car-related misdirection on top of a car-themed puzzle was very ingenious.

  15. Thanks all
    In spite of having little interest in cars I found this rater easy for a Saturday.
    Last in was pole position.
    For some strange reason I solved first and rapidly “Bristol”.

  16. I’m not very strong on types of car so I was expecting this to be rather more difficult than it proved to be. That said, I certainly didn’t find this easy. GULLY and POLE POSITION, as they were cross referred, and FIRE BOAT took quite a time to get.
    However, there was more to enjoy here than there was to whinge about.
    Thanks Paul.

  17. I’m not keen on themes which require a lot of specialist knowledge, some of it quite obscure (old American cars, Ascari), particularly when the theme is one which doesn’t interest me. Nevertheless, I did manage to solve it in a reasonable time so I can’t really complain. POLE POSITION and HUSKY took me a long time because of the two missing crossers between them. I didn’t have any particular favourites, though GULLY did make me smile.

    Stretch HUMMERs (usually white) seem to have become quite common hire cars for special events in my part of southern England.

    Thanks to Paul and PeeDee.

  18. There is a motorcycle as well as car reference in the cluing.
    Twin in 22 Across refers also to Triumph and Victory motorcycles both of which had “twin” versions.
    The Ford Edsel named after Henry Ford’s son was proverbially ugly and sold so badly, it almost brought the company down. Apparently its “toilet seat” grill was found in market research to be the main reason for its failure.
    Thanks to Paul and PeeDee

  19. Several of the cars were new to me, including the Lada, Oxford, and Husky.

    The troop transport HMMWV was pronounced Humvee, and they became colloquially known by that name. They didn’t start being called Hummers until they introduced smaller, less armoured versions for commercial sale.

    Another car mentioned in a clue (but not in an answer) is the Dodge, which is Chrysler’s “performance vehicle” marque. They have a fun line of ads now.

  20. Thanks PeeDee and Paul.

    Atypical for Paul but got there in the end – needed your help to parse 17ac/dn.

    I hadn’t spotted the fourth dash is 9 either so thanks to Neil for that. Have a good week all.

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