Independent 9732 / Filbert

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Filbert gave me quite a challenge today.

 

 

 

Did others find this easier than me?  I found this quite hard with everything becoming clear only when I sussed out all the parsing in the blog.

Filbert does a nice line in misdirection with some of the definitions very well hidden.  Definitions I liked included  ‘Where workers make’ [10 across], ‘Maybe one’ [13 across] and ‘Wrath’ [17 down].  

There were quite a few clues where the definition and parts of the wordplay overlapped.

There seemed to be a strong political theme to the clues, especially in the across clues.  I’d forgotten about Miss Lewinsky until I finally got the entry at 17 across.

There was one homonym that I thought was a bit of a stretch – are TAUGHT and TORT [ 18 across] really pronounced the same way?  I tend to pronounce the R in TORT.

‘There was an interesting bit of word play at 25 where the S after the apostrophe at the end of RASCAL’S was required to construct the entry leaving the definition as RASCAL.

Finally I noted that all but two of the fourteen across clues had the definition at the front.  The definitions in the down clues were evenly split front and end.

Finally, a very Merry Christma to you all, setters, commenters, lurkers, fellow bloggers and Gaufrid

Across
No. Clue Wordplay Entry

1

 

Not large, just ten stone (4)

 

(ONLY [just] excluding [not] L) + X (Roman numeral for ten)

ONY X

ONYX (semiprecious stone)

 

2

 

Environmentalists agree with Pence?  Unlikely (10)

 

Anagram of (unlikely) AGREE and PENCE

GREENPEACE*

Reference Mike PENCE, Vice President of the United States, considered by many to be an opponent of environmental protection legislation

GREENPEACE (a non-governmental environmental organization)

 

10

 

Where workers make Conservatives rich, before finally getting sacked (7)

 

FAT (rich, as in FAT cats) excluding the last letter (finally getting sacked) T + (C [Conservative] + TORY [Conservative] giving Conservatives)

FA C TORY

FACTORY (where people make things)

 

11

 

After covering bathroom wall, one fills (7)

 

A (one) contained in (fills) TILING (covering bathroom wall)

T (A) ILING

TAILING (descriptive of someone ‘after’ someone else)

 

12

 

Brief foreign version of Trump: the Movie (3,2,3,7)

 

PUTIN (reference Vladimir PUTIN, President of Russia; foreign version of Donald Trump) + THE + PICTURE (movie)

PUT IN THE PICTURE

PUT IN THE PICTURE (give all the relevant information; brief)

 

13

 

Maybe one new waterfront feature in ‘ull? (6)

 

N (new) +  ‘UMBER (the river HUMBER flows through HULL, so someone who drops their aitches would describe  the ‘UMBER as a waterfront feature in ‘ULL)

N  UMBER

NUMBER (one is an example of a NUMBER)

 

14

 

Dead series of notes for a scraped bass, perhaps (8)

 

DEAD with SCALE (series of notes) replacing (for) A

DE SCALE D

DESCALED (a bass is a fish with scales,  so scraped bass would be DESCALED)

 

17

 

Handle report of Hillary’s usurper in the White House (8)

 

MONICKER (sounds like [report of] MONICA [reference MONICA Lewinsky with whom President Bill Clinton was alleged to have had an affair; Hillary [Clinton’s usurper in the White House)

MONICKER

MONICKER (nickname or real name; handle)

 

18

 

What professor did wrong in lecture (6)

 

TAUGHT (sounds like [in lecture] TORT [a wrong])

TAUGHT

TAUGHT (imparted knowledge; what professor did)

 

21

 

Dreadful complaint of two windbags (6,9)

 

DOUBLE (two) + PNEUMONIA (disease of the lungs [windbags is an old facetious term for the lungs])

DOUBLE PNEUMONIA

DOUBLE PNEUMONIA (serious illness of both lungs)

 

23

 

Squeeze into shape once actual start of diet’s embraced (7)

 

(EX- [former; once] + (D [first letter of {start of} DIET] contained in TRUE [actual])

EX TRU (D) E

EXTRUDE (force out to make rods or tubes; squeeze into shape)

 

24

 

Turn over illegally imported wine (7)

 

RAN (illegally imported) + SACK (old name for dry white wine)

RAN SACK

RANSACK (search thoroughly; turn over)

 

25

 

Rascal’s hat, say, Derby? (10)

 

‘S CAP (‘s hat) + EG (for example, say) + RACE (the Epsom Derby is a horse RACE)

S CAP EG RACE

SCAPEGRACE (incorrigible rascal)

 

26

 

Old English musician using the bus or car , briefly (4)

 

BY(using) + RD (road, briefly) which taken together could describe using a car or a bus

BY RD

BYRD (reference William BYRD [1538 – 1623], English composer of the Renaissance period)

 
Down

1

 

At home after missing work to accept special kinky deliveries (3,4)

 

(OFF [missing work] + IN [at home]) containing (to accept) SP (special)

OFF (SP) IN

OFF SPIN (balls bowled in cricket [deliveries] that deviate from a straight light [kinky])

 

2

 

Regularly missed him on cat, say, at sea? (9)

Anagram of (at sea) (HMN letters remaining after excluding {missed} [letters 2 and 4 {regularly} of HIM ON and CAT SAY)

YACHTSMAN*

YACHTSMAN (him, possibly on a catamaran, at sea)

 

4

 

Method often leading to issue for dancer’s core strength(6)

 

RHYTHM (reference the RHYTHM method of birth control requiring the avoidance of sexual intercourse during the period in which conception is most likely to occur.  It doesn’t always work and can lead to birth [issue])

RHYTHM

RHYTHM (dancer’s core strength)

 

5

 

Sleep, terribly bored by leading barrister’s argument (8)

 

Anagram of (terribly) SLEEP containing (bored by) TOP (leading)

ES (TOP) PEL*

ESTOPPEL (legal term for a judicial bar to alleging or proving that a fact is otherwise than it appears to be; barrister’s argument)

 

6

 

Remarkably nice rich man in public relations, king when family’s gone? (6,8)

(Anagram of [remarkably] NICE RICH MAN) contained in (in) (PR [public relations] + G [letter remaining in KING when KIN [family] is excluded [gone])

PR (INCE CHARMIN*) G

PRINCE CHARMING (remarkably nice [rich] man)

 

7

 

To the French, taking leave (5)

 

I think this is just a cryptic clue using the fact that the French say ADIEU when taking their leave

ADIEU

ADIEU (French for goodbye,s aid when leaving a group or a conversation)

 

8

 

Boffin I don’t understand tackles Germans over European bill (7)

 

(EH? [what, I don’t understand] containing [tackles] [G {German} + G [German] giving Germans]) + E (European) + AD (advert; poster; bill)]

E (GG) H E AD

EGGHEAD (boffin)

 

9

 

Try to inhibit spread of bacteria in the underground (14)

 

COUNTER (resist; restrain; inhibit) + CULTURE (crop of micro-organisms, eg bacteria, grown in a solid or liquid medium in a laboratory; spread of bacteria)

COUNTER CULTURE

COUNTERCULTURE (way of life deliberately different from that which is normal or expected of characterized by avant-gardism and experimentation, rejection of current trends or norms which often defines underground movement)

 

15

 

Famous Roman fighter preferring death to lions  innards  (9)

 

LEGIONARY (in ancient Rome, a member of body of 3000 to 6000 soldiers) with END (death) replacing (preferring) ION (central letters of [innards of] LIONS)

LEG END ARY

LEGENDARY (famous)

 

16

 

Each sporting replay include period of extra time  (4,4)

 

Anagram of (sporting) REPLAY containing (include) EA (each)

L (EA) P YEAR*

LEAP YEAR ( a period with an extra day; a period of extra time)

 

17

 

Stop going north by Cape Wrath (7)

 

DAM (stop) reversed (going North; down clue) + NESS (headland; cape)

MAD< NESS

 MADNESS (anger; wrath)

19

 

Marmoset’s tail stretched out like caterpillar  (7)

 

T (last letter of [tail] MARMOSET) + RACKED (stretched)

T RACKED

TRACKED (descriptive of a vehicle where the wheels of a caterpillar run on an the endless band)

 

20

 

In verse, Eliot finally admitted to  terrible crime (6)

 

T (last letter of [finally] ELIOT) contained in (admitted to) an anagram of (terrible) CRIME

ME (T) RIC*

METRIC (descriptive of the regulated succession of groups of syllables, usually in poetic form)

 

22

 

Die-hard Géricault raftsmen swept away fore and aft (5)

 

ULTRA (letters remaining in GÉRICAULT RAFTSMEN when the remaining letters at the front [fore] GÉRICA and back [aft] FTSMEN are removed [swept away].  Other than the fact that the entry has 5 letters, there is no indication in the clue as to how many letters are to be swept away.

ULTRA

ULTRA (extreme, especially in royalism, fashion, or religious or political opinion; irreconcilable conservative;diehard)

 

 

17 comments on “Independent 9732 / Filbert”

  1. I remember not being terribly impressed by the debut but this was more like King Power than Filbert(St).And I’m not talking about last Saturday;s match’

    I found it quite challenging but in a nice way.

    I loved Putin the picture and Double pneumonia and monicker and leap year(I presume they are correct)

    In fact a cracking puzzle. Chapeau.

     

  2. Really struggled with this. Got stuck several times but persevered. Thankfully, the long answer at 21a finally came to me. This lead to me getting LEGENDARY, my favourite clue here. Ultimately, I did come to a halt and had to use a word fit to get 9d and 25a. I had forgotten the word SCAPEGRACE but at least I managed to parse it. I then used a word fit again to get RANSACK, assuming wrongly that the answer was a wine. Drat! Finished off with TRACKED and BYRD.

    A great addition to the Indy setters. Thanks to both S&B.

  3. I couldn’t finish this puzzle but enjoyed it tremendously; Putin: The Picture absolutely first class.
    Thanks to Filbert and DuncanS

  4. Very very difficult.

    I got there in the end but not without without external help, with FACTORY (10ac) the only one I eventually couldn’t fully parse.

    While probably most solvers will find ‘Putin’ = ‘foreign version of Trump’ at least quite amusing, I had to think of what a (renowned) setter told me years ago – and that is that you shouldn’t give ‘strong points of view’ in a clue. But well, this is The Independent, a news’paper’ on the appropriate side of the spectrum.

    What is 6d?  A lot of double duty or an attempt to write a sort of &lit (which it is isn’t as the second part of the clue is irrelevant)? But I am happy with the allusion here and – yes – when Redshank (the Indy’s Radian) does it in the FT you won’t hear me complain, so why would I now?

    I saw 7d actually as a full-blood &lit:  AU (to the, in French) around (‘taking’) DIE (to leave).

    Lots to admire and overall an excellent puzzle but I wouldn’t want to have this level every day. But, hey, it’s Thursday!

    Thanks Duncan & Filbert.

     

  7. Got off like a train and did half in no time then derailed and just gave up. A genuine Thursday toughie. Thank you filbert and Duncan, merry c word to you too.

  8. Yes, quite tough – we’re thinking that Filbert is going to be the next Anax or Nimrod.  We eventually got everything except the 5dn/11ac crossers and had to resort to a wordfinder to finish.  ESTOPPEL wasn’t exactly new to us but one of those words once encountered the almost forgotten; and it was a facepalm moment when we saw TAILING.  But we weren’t sure about ‘estoppel’ being an argument; as “a judicial bar to alleging or proving that a fact is otherwise than it appears to be” it suggests that there’s no argument about it – you can’t allege or prove whatever it is, and that’s that!

    We got 12ac once we realised the definition was simply ‘brief’ but failed to see ‘put in’ as ‘Putin’ – how dim can you get?

    “There were quite a few clues where the definition and parts of the wordplay overlapped.” – Yes, we thought so, too.

    But a good mental workout and a little humour with it.  Favourites were ONYX and LEGENDARY.

    Thanks, Filbert and Duncan.

  9. Thanks Duncan, and all solvers and commenters.

    Interesting point about the across clues. I’ve never checked numbers for definition placement, but I often finish a puzzle thinking I like the downs more than the acrosses.

    I am still rather blind to difficulty, but I love that I’m excused any trouble on that account just by it being Thursday.

    Happy Christmas, all.

  12. Sil says that the second half of 6d is irrelevant; I’m not so sure. It seems that Filbert is saying that someone who’s a prince will be king when his family have gone [= died], and ‘king when family’s gone’ is nice wordplay to produce a g.  A bit clunky perhaps but quite a good clue in my opinion.  As particularly is the &lit. 7dn.

    Where are these instances (outside the &lits) of the wordplay overlapping with the definition? I couldn’t see any.

    Good crossword. But very hard. Took me ages.

  13. Wil @13, I did think about the second bit but is it typical to a ‘prince charming’, enoughto make it an & lit. That’s my point. Otherwise, it’s a clue with quite some double duty, something I am not so keen on.

  14. Definitely tough.  At the end I needed about half a dozen word searches to complete this, and there were many I couldn’t parse.

  15. Brilliant puzzle, entertaining and clever all the way through, a bit dubious about FACTORY, otherwise perfect.  Just the sort of puzzle I like, difficult to very difficult, but solvable if one has a break then comes back and persists.  All great clues mentioned by others above.  In the end, I nailed it, Filbert.  Thanks to Filbert and duncanshiell.

  16. Yes Sil@13 you make a good point: the charming bit has nothing to do with the fact that the prince will become king, but I still think it’s an &lit. (and so the overlapping doesn’t matter) because the prince is what is being referred to by the second half of the clue.

  17. Mark Goodliffe has uploaded to yourtubs a vid of himself solving this puzzle as part of his “cracking the cryptic” series, in which he becomes the cruciverbal equivalent pf PewDiePie.

    Not all great news; he is not terribly complimentary about the Indy’s website so this might not be a regular feature, alas

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