Quiptic 897 by Provis

13 comments on “Quiptic 897 by Provis”

1. Thanks both. Good stuff. I put in COST FREE for 27a which held me up.
   Pedants corner – LAPTOP doesn’t have to be a PC

2. Thanks, nms. I also enjoyed this. I didn’t know the ‘broad minded’ meaning of catholic so thanks for, er, broadening my mind. Nor did I know SCAMPERS were a type of beetle. It’s a great example of a good Quiptic when you can confidently enter an answer from the wordplay even if you are unsure of the definition.

   My favourites today were LAPTOP, and LINGER where I spent a couple of moments trying to remember the German word for ‘hostel’ before seeing the cleverly hidden answer.

   A minor quibble/question – at 18a I don’t see what “after” does for the clue. Wouldn’t the surface still hang together without it?

   Thanks to Provis for a lovely puzzle.

3. Shirl @1, a LAPTOP is still a personal computer (i.e. PC), so it works for me.

   I agree with matrixmania @2 about the superfluous ‘after’ in 18a. I also didn’t know SCAMPERS but as you say, it was easily worked out.

   My favourite was SCOT FREE.

   Thanks Provis and nms.

4. I enjoyed this as well. Thanks to Provis for a fine crossword and NMS for the (as ever) excellent blog.

   matrixmania@2: I may be misinterpreting your comment (apologies if so!) but I didn’t take scampers to be a type of beetle but rather “beetle” and “scamper” to both be words meaning “to move around quickly”. I do agree with your point about the word “after” in 18a however.

5. Sorry – minor piece of pedantry NMS. In 26a the piece of earth is “SOD” not “DOD”.

6. Good Quiptic. Thanks Provis and nms.

   matrixmania @2. Scamper as in the verb, i.e. scampers about/ beetles about.

7. This was an enjoyable puzzle.

   Thanks Provis and nms.

8. Thanks Provis and nms

   Another COST FREE here too – slightly better than the actual answer I think. I liked it, though, and also LAPTOP and LINGER.

   “the drains” for SINKS doesn’t work for me. When you take the plug out of a sink, the water then goes into the drain; they aren’t the same thing.

9. Thank you Provis and newmarketsausage.

   Great Quiptic, had me stuck for a while in the German hostel, kept thinking of jugend-herberge.

   muffin @8, both Thesuarus.com and Collins online give sink as a synonym for drain.

10. [muffin, it might help to think of rinsing dishes, when doing so you are using the sink directly as a drain, and some people for religious or health reasons (e.g. those allergic to soap and detergents) wash the dishes like this.]

11. Rick @5

    Thanks for pointing out the typo. Now corrected.

12. Yes, she’s back with another splendid puzzle.
    I’ve said it many times before and I probably will keep on repeating it: Provis is one of the very best in the Quiptic section.
    This is the kind of stuff that the many solvers for whom the Enigmatists and the Picaroons of this world are one step too far, would immensely enjoy in the ‘normal’ daily.
    As would I.

    My CoD was 23ac, OLIVE, a gem.

13. @CrumlinT – of dear – how could I miss scamper as a verb! I was so blindsided by the wordplay I just assumed it was a small crawly kind of beetle … thanks!

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