Samuel is a prolific setter of barred crosswords (with a few blocked ones thrown in for good measure). He is also the editor of the Enigmatic Variations barred series in the Sunday Telegraph. I always find his puzzles entertaining as his themes tend to me more quirky than those used by many other setters.
The preamble was fairly short and told us that 22 clues, wordplay leads to the answer and an additional letter not to be entered into the grid. The letters spell three words which correspond in some order to x, y and z. Solvers must deduce the answers to the ten "algebraic" clues and write under the grid a similar expression for a further thematic item, to be highlighted in it.
My first thoughts that was that the algebraic entries might relate to simple arithmetic in an obscure foreign language and it wasn’t until I realised that 43 across had to be CHARTREUSE that I saw what was going on. Once colour was revealed as the theme, the crossing letters I had enabled me to deduce x, y and z very rapidly. From there the entries based on the sums fell equally quickly introducing a lot np additional letters in the grid which made the remainder of the solve much simpler. Also the knowledge of the three main colours helped determine the three words generated by the extra letters. This therefore was a puzzle of two halves. Slow and steady until the penny drop moment and fairly rapid thereafter.
The theme is based on the RED, BLUE YELLOW colour wheel
The wheel looks something like this. There seems to be some dispute over names for the secondary colours, especially for the RED BLUE one which can be named either PURPLE or VIOLET depending on which internet source you go to. Once you get into tertiary colours, it gets even more vague where there are various names for subtly different shades.
| Primary | x | BLUE | 16 across |
| Primary | y | RED | 30 across |
| Primary | z | YELLOW | 24 across |
| Secondary | (x+y) | PURPLE | 27 down |
| Secondary | (y+z) | ORANGE | 9 down |
| Secondary | (z+x) | GREEN | 32 down |
| Tertiary | x + (x+y) | VIOLET (blue-purple) | 1 down |
| Tertiary | (x+y) + y | MAGENTA (red-purple) | 7 down |
| Tertiary | y + (y+z) | VERMILLION (red-orange) | highlighted on diagonal |
| Tertiary | (y+z) + z | (yellow-orange) – not used | not used |
| Tertiary | z + (z+x) | CHARTREUSE (yellow-green) | 43 across |
| Tertiary | (z+x) + x | VIRIDIAN (blue-green) | 1 across |
Once the grid was filled it was a question of looking for an additional colour spelled out somewhere, The diagonals are always the first choice for word searches and there we find VERMILION on the diagonal from upper left to bottom right. VERMILION is colour in the RED-ORANGE tertiary spectrum so the formula is y + (y+z) or (y+z) + y depending on which way you write it. From a mathematical point of view, either should be acceptable but all the expressions in the puzzle have been expressed by going clockwise when adding so y + (y+z) may be required.
The three words generated by the additional letters in the word play were EMBARRASSED, COWARDLY and SAD each clearly associated with RED, YELLOW and BLUE respectively.
As ever, when writing the blog I wondered how I puzzled over some of the clues at solving time. However hindsight is 20:20 vision.
The final grid is shown below. I make no claims for the veracity of the colours beyond the primary shades. The palette I was suing was a RED GREEN BLUE one rather than a RED BLUE YELLOW one.
y + (y+z)
The title, ADDITIONS, clearly describes the practice of adding colours together to form new ones.
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Across |
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| No | Clue |
Wordplay |
Letter | Entry |
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1
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(x+z) + x (8)
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VIRIDIAN
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6
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Australian red of little value, mostly (5)
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COMMON (of little value) excluding the final letter (mostly) N
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COMMO (Australian word for a communist [a red])
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10
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Institute, arranged food riot, taking power – simple! (10)
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I (institute) + (an anagram of [arranged] FOOD RIOT containing P [power]) I DIOT (P) ROOF* |
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IDIOTPROOF (of a tool, device, machine, method of working, etc, so simple that even an idiot cannot make a mistake) |
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11
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River in Yorkshire spread (3)
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AIRE (river in Yorkshire)
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E
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AIR (spread)
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14
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All people in the beginning rage about disease (8)
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Anagram of (about) ALL and P (first letter of [in the beginning] PEOPLE) and RAGE PELLAGRA* |
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PELLAGRA (a chronic disease marked by shrivelled skin, wasted body, mental illness and paralysis, caused by a dietary deficiency of nicotinic acid)
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15
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Shaft newspaperman subjected to forfeit (5)
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LOOM (shaft of an oar) + ED (editor; newspaperman)
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M
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LOOED (subjected to a forfeit in the card game LOO)
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16
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x (4)
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BLUE
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17
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Rebel set up film studio (7)
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Anagram of (up) REBEL and SET ELSTREE B* |
B
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ELSTREE (film studios in Hertfordshire, England)
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| 18 |
Catch anthrax holding llama’s tail (4)
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SANG (veterinary term for anthrax) containing (holding) A (last letter of [tail] LLAMA) SN (A) G |
A
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SNAG (catch)
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19
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A great number reduced in addition? (3)
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TROOP (a great number) excluding the final letter (reduced) P
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R
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TOO (also; in addition)
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21
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More than one ancient African ruler surrounding Zambia succeeded (5) |
(MEER [Muslim ruler or commander, variant spelling of AMEER or EMEER] containing [surrounding] Z [International Vehicle Registration for Zambia]) + S (succeeded) M (Z) EE S |
R
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MZEES (old [ancient] East African persons)
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24
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z (6)
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YELLOW
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26
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Strong wind, then morning sun shines (6)
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GALE (strong wind) + AM (ante meridiem; morning) + S (sun)
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A |
GLEAMS (shines)
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28
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Gene Kelly finally leaves excursion with English lecturer (5)
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SALLY (excursion) excluding (leaves) the last letter (finally) Y + E (English) + L (lecturer)
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S
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ALLEL (short form of ALLELOMORPH any one of the two or more possible forms of a gene)
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30
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y (3)
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RED
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32
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Attempt to sell while seemingly researching Long Island fruit (4)
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SUG (attempt to sell a product while purporting to be engaged in market research) + L (long) + I (island)
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S
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UGLI (citrus fruit which is a cross between a grapefruit, a Seville orange and a tangerine)
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35
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Perjurer backed a move on cost of carriage (7)
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LIAR (perjurer) reversed (backed) + A + GEE (of horses, to move on or to the right) RAIL< A GE |
E
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RAILAGE (cost of transportation by railway)
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37
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Spaniard regularly sees jokes (4)
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DON (Spanish title corresponding to English Sir; Spaniard) + ES (letters 2 and 4 [regularly] of SEES)
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D
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ONES (jokes)
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38
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District’s backed endless veg imports in business (5)
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LAZE (veg as a shortened form of vegetable can be defined as LAZE about) excluding the last letter (endless) E reversed (backed) containing (imports) ON (working; in business) Z (ON) AL< |
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ZONAL (of a district or districts)
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39
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Cut announced support covering farmer’s last source of fruit (8)
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PEAR (sounds like [announced] PARE [cut]) + (TEE [support, for a golf ball for instance] containing [covering] R [last letter of [last] FARMER) PEAR T (R) EE |
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PEAR-TREE (source of fruit)
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42
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Scots loan the French Nessie, initially (3)
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LE (one of the forms of ‘the’ in French) + N (first letter of [initially] NESSIE)
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LEN (Scots form of the word ‘loan’)
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43
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z + (x+z) (10)
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CHARTREUSE
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44
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Follow to put on bit of sapphire in place of diamonds (5)
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ENDUE (put on) with S (first letter of [bit of] SAPPHIRE) replacing (in place of) D (diamonds)
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ENSUE (follow)
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45
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Disabled recall going back having avoided city in layers (8)
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LAME (disabled) + (RECALL excluding [having avoided] EC [post code of City of London]) reversed (going back) LAME LLAR< |
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LAMELLAR (in layers)
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| Down |
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| No | Clue |
Wordplay |
Letter | Entry |
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1
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x + (x + y) (6)
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VIOLET
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2
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Playwright’s drinking-cries troubled heartless victors (5)
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Anagram of (troubled) VICTORS excluding the middle letter (heartless) T RIVOS* |
C
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RIVOS (Shakespearean [playwright] term for drinking-cries)
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3
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Spots brain disorder (3)
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DOTS (spots)
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O
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DTS (delirium tremens; disorder of the brain)
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4
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Violently contest European land measure (3)
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WAR (violently contest) + E (European)
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W
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ARE (measure of land area)
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5
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Vote against all sections seizing Lord Lieutenant’s crowns ? (5)
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(NO [vote against] + AS [all sections]) containing (seizing) LL (Lord Lieutenant) NO (LL) S |
A
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NOLLS (tops of the head; crowns)
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6
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Small supporters stoned mule after pass gutted striker (8)
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COL (pass) + an anagram of (stoned) MULE + SR (letters remaining after the middle letters have been removed from [gutted] STRIKER) COL UMEL* S |
R
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COLUMELS (small columns; small supporters)
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| 7 |
(x+y) + y (7)
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MAGENTA
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8
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Commune raised tool for American official (5)
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MIR (peasant farming commune in pre-Revolutionary Russia.) + (ADZ [American spelling of ADZE [cutting tool]) reversed (raised; down clue) MIR ZA< |
D
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MIRZA (official or learned man)
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| 9 |
y + z (6)
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ORANGE
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12
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Enthused about adopting Glaswegian grandchild played alone (6)
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SOLD (enthused about) containing (adopting) OE (Scottish [Glaswegian] word for grandchild) SOL (OE) D |
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SOLOED (played alone)
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13
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Trees between university and loch fall every now and then (6)
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BET (between) + U (university) + L (loch) + AL (letters 2 and 4 [every now and then] of FALL)
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L
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BETULA (the birch genus; trees)
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14
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The old overcome by British verse (4)
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YE (archaic [old] form of ‘the’) contained in (overcome by) POM (Australian term for a British immigrant) PO (E) M |
Y |
POEM (verse)
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16
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Reportedly simple American perhaps stands outside French town (7) |
BIERS (a stand or frame of wood for carrying a dead person to the grave) containing (outside) EZ (sounds like [reportedly] like EASY [simply], EZ is also used in America as a spelling for EASY) B (EZ) IERS |
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BÉZIERS (town in France)
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20
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This alone ruined Savoy production (8)
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Anagram of (ruined) THIS ALONE IOLANTHE* |
S
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IOLANTHE (Gilbert & Sullivan opera performed in the Savoy style and at the Savoy theatre)
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22
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Dispose of boutique (railroad cutting through it) (6, 2 words)
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EL (elevated railroad; railway) contained in (cutting through) SALON (boutique) S (EL) L ON |
A |
SELL ON (dispose of)
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23
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Honour impressionist’s conclusions (6)
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OM (Order of Merit; honour) + DEGAS (reference Edgar DEGAS [1834 – 1917], French impressionist painter)
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D
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OMEGAS (conclusions)
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25
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Scots form networks around the universe (7)
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LANS (Local Area Networks) containing (around) ALL (universe) L (ALL) ANS |
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LALLANS (Scottish words for forms of lowlands)
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27
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x + y (6)
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PURPLE
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29
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Lie about, as couples do, at extremities of Suez Canal (4)
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(EZ [last two letters of {extremities} SUEZ] + AL [last two letters of {extremities} CANAL]) all reversed (about) (LA ZE)< |
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LAZE (be idle; lie)
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31
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Researcher‘s to give up, having lost independence (6)
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DELIVER (give up) excluding (having lost) I (independence)
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DELVER (researcher)
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33
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z + x (5)
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GREEN
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34
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Wild and deadly, in times gone by (5)
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FERAL (archaic [in times gone by] term for deadly, funereal) I had to look in the most modern Chambers to find the reference to archaic, it wasn’t referenced in the version I have closest to hand.
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FERAL (wild) double definition.
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36
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Scrap yearbook containing only one article, principally (5)
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ANNUAL (yearbook) excluding the second occurrence of A [indefinite article] leaving the first one (principally) (containing only one) I suppose principally could also be a reference to A as the first letter of ARTICLE.
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ANNUL (abolish; scrap)
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40
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Age 34, uncovered! (3)
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FERAL (34 down) excluding the first and last letters (uncovered) F and L
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ERA (age)
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41
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Passion backfired in part (3)
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IRE (hidden word in [in part]) BACKFIRED
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IRE (passion)
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Thanks for blog. I agree that once there were enough crossers in the thematic clues to identify colours (purple & blue were the ones that jumped out at me) the rest of the puzzle fell very quickly – but that didn’t spoil the enjoyment of a typically well-constructed crossword from Samuel.
I had only one quibble – the sources I used gave Vermillion as a brilliant red or scarlet with other variations being red-orange or orange-red – so, arguably, just putting ‘y’ under the grid would be a valid answer.
Had the same problem as shikasta @1 regarding description of Vermilion. Chambers gives bright red/scarlet which me and my beloved both think is inaccurate. My (old) Collins gives bright red to reddish orange which we feel is nearer the mark. So I also plumped for y +(y+z) – we shall see next Saturday!
Nice puzzle. Thanks to Samuel and Duncan.
#1 My 2011 Chambers has vermilion as “bright red or scarlet”, so I too put y under the grid. And I fear I did not end up with the luridly polychrome “final grid” as shown above … I merely highlighted VERMILION in red, which is all that the preamble seemed to ask of us ?
If we were really supposed to highlight, appropriately, all the other colours in the grid, then that’s a big ask, costwise … how many of us solvers have more than three or four highlighter pens ?
Sorry if I have caused confusion by putting all the colours in the grid in the blog.
I agree that there is no need to highlight anything other than VERMILION and write an expression under the grid.
I went for the tertiary expression on the grounds that we had used all the primary and secondary expressions and only two tertiary expressions remained unused.
I suspect Samuel tried to find a shade of (y+z) + z to fit into the grid somewhere as well but just couldn’t manage it in the time available to compile and check the puzzle.
I did most of this puzzle while queuing to get in to Westonbirt Arboretum (it was a long wait, but the acers where as brilliant as ever this autumn – appropriate colours as it turned out). CHARTREUSE was also my early point of entry.
My partner & I both think that VERMILION is a scarlet red, or the darker red of some chinese lacquerware – I toyed with y+y & y^2 , but ended up putting a simple y below the grid … and not feeling too happy about it. Ah well.
Thanks to Duncan & Samuel.
I loved this puzzle, completed it and sent it in (v unusual for me!). Chartreuse brought about my PDM as with others above. Not sure about my submitted entry, though. My edition of Collins said vermilion was bright red, so I went with y + y. Ah well, you can’t win them all (or any at all in my case).
Huge thanks to Samuel for the brilliant puzzle and Duncan for the colourful blog.
Most enjoyable, although I’m another who, probably a bit lazily, just had y, whilst 2y + z, or some such variation, is surely the correct expression, as Duncan has so comprehensively explained.
I’m also with many others in having Chartreuse as the PDM, although a lapse in concentration at that point had me misreading the title as Addiction, which sent me off on a brief foray looking for cocktails!
And for a third time I’ll join with others in thanking Samuel for a fine puzzle and Duncan for an exemplary blog.
Enjoyed, with much the same experience as others — GREEN and PURPLE struck me more or less simultaneously, after which the “algebra” unravelled quickly enough. I also join the chorus of those who dithered over VERMILION as being just y, but sensed there should be no repeated formula and found some justification online for orangey-red or y+(y+z).
We saw the use of colours fairly quickly but as others have said, it did not spoil the fun.
We’re glad that we weren’t the only ones to be confused by the most appropriate formula. We chose y +(y+z) in the end although we don’t bother to send our completed puzzles in – the pleasure is in the solve!
Thanks to S & B – we solved this on Saturday evening after the 225 York get-together. Thanks again to J and J for all the organisation.
PS to DW@2:
I see that the artist has signed his canvas at the bottom, albeit anagramatically! Intended or a happy accident? I guess the former for a setter of Samuel’s calibre.
DW@10: I have checked several blogs of Samuel puzzles via the Inquisitor Index (Thanks, HG!) and where there is a diagram in the blog (5 or 6) I have managed to find a group of SAMUEL’s letters somewhere in the grid. So I am sure you’re right and it is intended.
I think, at one time, supersetter Dimitry used to get his name into completed grids. If so, others may be able to provide chapter and verse ?