Phi has given us some interesting entries today
There were quite a few unusual entries in today’s grid, e.g. SAMIZDAT although I did know that one, REALOS, NIKAUS, QUAI D’ORSAY [another one I knew] and RHOPALIC,
As I have said in blogs a few times before, a higher than average appearance of obscure words implies to me that there is a message, a theme or a gimmick in the grid. I would put today in the gimmick category
The top and bottom row of unchecked letters are the same [CMEOYL]. Similarly the leftmost and right most columns are the same [SDZFHN]. There also seemed to be a mini theme of threes with THRICE and TRIO as well as a few European words referenced in the clues and entries SAMIZDAT, REALOS, French for ‘who’, and German for ‘East’ and QUAI D’ORSAY.
I liked the appearance of GOLF COURSE. Kathryn’s Dad is probably making the sign of the cross at this point.
For a short time I wondered if the ‘threes’ mini theme and the perimeter letters overalapped as there are 9 Ss, 6 Ds, 3 Zs, 6 Fs and 6 Hs in the grid, however the number of Ns broke the spell as did some of the across perimeter letters.
There’s one clue where I can’t work out the word play – 20 down for FACIAL. I’m sure someone will show how thick I am.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
7
|
Raving mad as with time going round one zone in Underground (8)
|
(Anagram of [raving] MAD AS + T) containing (going round) (I [one] + Z [zone]) SAM (I Z) DA* T |
SAMIZDAT (in the former Soviet Union, the clandestine or illegal printing and distribution of underground literature, usually expressing views contrary to those endorsed by the state)
|
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9
|
Environmentalists implying section of area lost (6)
|
REALOS (hidden word in [section of] AREA LOST)
|
REALOS (members of the less radical section of the German Green Party [environmentalists], advocating co-operation with other parties, industry, etc)
|
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10
|
Location of tracks in moorland is clear (4)
|
DISC (hidden word in [in] MOORLAND IS CLEAR)
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DISC ([music] tracks can be found on a CD [Compact DISC])
|
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11
|
Playhouse moving run forward – catastrophic end in prospect? (10)
|
THEATRE [playhouse] moving the letter R [run] towards the front [forward] + an anagram of (catastrophic) END THREATE NED* |
THREATENED (in prospect)
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12
|
Australian retreated over sound of garden of animals (10)
|
OZ (Australian – OZ can be an adjective) reversed (retreated) + O (over in cricket scoring notation) + LOGICAL (reasoned correctly; sound) ZO< O LOGICAL |
ZOOLOGICAL (descriptive of a ZOO [garden of animals])
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14
|
Question: in France, who’s heading for Zermatt? (4)
|
QUI (French for ‘who’) + Z (first letter of [heading for] ZERMATT)
|
QUIZ (question)
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15
|
Exchange of shots around rear of store – honestly (6)
|
RALLY (exchange of shots in a ball game such as tennis or badminton) containing (around) E (last letter of [rear of] STORE) R (E) ALLY |
REALLY (honestly)
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16
|
Business attitude is to get behind a couple of fellows (6)
|
A + (F [fellow] + F [fellow] – giving a couple of fellows) + AIR (attitude)
|
AFFAIR (business)
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18
|
Sneaky switching of axes (4)
|
OF reversed (switch) + (X [one of the axes in co-ordinate geometry] + Y [another of the axes in co-ordinate geometry] giving axes) FO< X Y |
FOXY (cunning; sneaky)
|
| 19 | Disappointed party very noisy in pursuit of dairy product (7,3) |
CHEESE (dairy product) + DO (party) + FF (fortissimo; very loud [noisy]) I take ‘in pursuit of’ here to mean ‘coming after’ in the form QUARRY then PURSUER rather than ‘coming behind’ which to my mind would be the more logical PURSUER trying to catch QUARRY |
CHEESED OFF (disappointed) |
|
21
|
Odd bits of hope and elevated love: one’s readily manipulated for show (4,6)
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H AND P (letters 1 and 3 [odd bits] of HOPE) + UP (elevated) + PET (term of affection; e.g. love)
|
HAND PUPPET (a toy performer that is readily manipulate for show)
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24
|
Ridiculous bird avoiding the East of Germany (4)
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OSTRICH (bird) excluding (avoiding) OST (German for East)
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RICH (outrageous; ridiculous, as in the phrase ‘that’s RICH coming from you’)
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25
|
NZ trees, as in UK, growing wild (6)
|
Anagram of (growing wild) AS IN UK NIKAUS* |
NIKAUS (Maori name for palm trees Rhopalostylis sapida, native to New Zealand)
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26
|
Boat‘s damage in test (stern lost) (8)
|
(MAR [damage] contained in [in] TRIAL [test] excluding the final letter [stern lost] L) + N (note) TRI (MAR) A N |
TRIMARAN (boat with three hulls)
|
| Down | |||
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
1
|
A lot of players love gathering round in this gambling venue (6)
|
(CAST [players in the theatre] excluding the final letter [a lot of] T + O [love score in tennis]) containing (gathering round) IN CAS (IN) O |
CASINO (gambling venue)
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2
|
Is small group of people amongst large group of people a diverse collection? (10)
|
(IS + CELL [small group of people]) contained in (amongst) MANY (large group of people) M (IS CELL) ANY |
MISCELLANY (diverse collection)
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3
|
Correct selection of food providing energy above all (4)
|
DIET (prescribed selection of food) with the E (energy) moved to the front of the word, this being a down entry it is moved to the top (above all) EDIT |
EDIT (correct)
|
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4
|
Sat for long, squirming in church rooms (5,5)
|
Anagram of (squirming) SAT FOR LONG ORGAN LOFTS* |
ORGAN LOFTS (galleries in churches for ORGANs; church rooms)
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5
|
Almost everyone is enthralled by the old university (4)
|
ALL (everyone) excluding the final letter (almost) L contained in (enthralled by) YE (old form of ‘the’) Y (AL) E |
YALE (American university)
|
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6
|
More attractive lady initially recovered from involving romance (8)
|
L (first letter of [initially] LADY) + (OVER [recovered from] containing [involving] LIE [fiction; romance]) L OVE (LIE) R |
LOVELIER (more attractive)
|
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8
|
Hearts captured in an instant … and again … and again (6)
|
H (hearts in card games) contained in (in) TRICE (instant) T (H) RICE |
THRICE (done once, and again and again)
|
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13
|
Government certainly securing London’s premier sporting venue (4,6)
|
G (government) + (OF COURSE [certainly] containing [securing] L [first letter of [premier] LONDON) G O (L) F COURSE |
GOLF COURSE (sporting venue)
|
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14
|
Pound and gold, for instance, limiting a French foreign policy-maker’s position (4,6) |
(QUID [pound sterling] + OR [gold] + SAY [for instance]) containing (limiting) A QU (A) ID OR SAY |
QUAI D’ORSAY (location of the French Foreign Ministry in Paris)
|
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15
|
Description of verse, curiously rich, about milky-white stone (8)
|
Anagram of (curiously) RICH containing (about) OPAL (milky white silica used as a gemstone) RH (OPAL) IC* |
RHOPALIC (descriptive of a verse having each word a syllable longer than the one before)
|
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17
|
Tyrant finishes disposing of one important figure (6)
|
DIES (finishes) excluding (disposing of) I (one) + POT (important person)
|
DESPOT (tyrant)
|
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20
|
Cosmetic process seeing elevated spot removed from this! (6)
|
Sorry, but I can’t resolve the word play here. I’m sure someone will explain it to me.
|
FACIAL (beauty treatment for the face; cosmetic process)
|
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22
|
Drink crisis curtailed (4)
|
DRAMA (crisis;) excluding the final letter (curtailed) A
|
DRAM (small drink of alcohol, especially whisky)
|
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23
|
Confused situation with tail ender moving ahead of top three (4)
|
RIOT (disturbance of the peace by three or more people; confused situation)with the final letter (tail ender) T moved to the top (moving ahead of) of this down entry TRIO (three) |
TRIO (set of three)
|
I think the gimmick is slightly more precise than that. Every row and column, whether it reaches the edge or not, begins and ends with same letter.
Found this quite tricky with a number of obscure words, so I was pleased to get it done.
Thanks to both, as ever …
20Dn I think is TOR removed from FACTORIAL, represented by the shriek. Crafty!
Geebs @ 1
Well spotted – I didn’t look beyond the perimeter
Richard Heald @ 2
Thanks – I’d seen that FACTORIAL was one of the few words where you exclude consecutive letters and get FACIAL but I was looking at ROT rather than TOR because of the word ‘elevated’ in the clue so I missed the obvious. Also, I should have related ! to FACTORIAL because I know well enough what the symbol ! means in a mathematical sense.
Another word I found where you remove consecutive letters to get FACIAL was FLUVOGLACIAL but I didn’t think Phi would do much with LUVOGL
Well played, Richard! I was scratching my head over 20D and I doubt I’d ever have seen that!
Just a thought – do the sequences CMEOYL etc occur in any of the non-qwerty keyboards? Definitely not Dvorak but there are others.
Got nowhere near FACIAL, rats. My maths is shamefully sketchy, so the explanation of ! (FACTORIAL) was welcome and educational. I googled it and am now none the wiser but better informed. They probably teach this stuff to 10-year-olds these days. Excellent clue. Excellent puzzle. Hadn’t spotted the gimmick either. Sometimes you just have to put your hands up and admit the existence of a Greater Power.
Thanks to Phi & Duncan.
Another excellent puzzle after yesterday’s Klingsor. Nearly gave up because of NW corner and was delighted to see SAMIZDAT at the death. All great stuff. Any relationship between Rhopalostylis at 25A and RHOPALIC at 15D?
Thanks to Phi and duncanshiell.
It wasn’t so much a case of spectacles, testicles, watch and wallet, Duncan, as a confessional: ‘Bless me Father, for I have sinned. Since my last confession, I have used bad language.’ I do keep telling you all that g*** is not a sport, but no-one listens, so today I officially give up on my evangelical mission. (And yes, I can already hear the ‘thank god for that’ from around the country.)
All very clever, but several words that weren’t even in my passive, never mind my active, vocabulary, which made life tough.
I should have understood FACIAL, since I’ve seen the FACTORIAL trick before, but I was a bit punch drunk by then.
Thanks to Phi; look forward to having the real theme explained to me.
The only thing I’d add is that all 14 start/end letters are different. I did wonder about breaking that rule when NIKAUS crossed RHOPALIC , but I thought I’d honour the nikau We planted in our garden, and which is looking a bit peaky.
I might do the other twelve one day.