The eXtent team served up this year’s seasonal fare in the Pantomime Season. The rubric read:
The clues for four thematic entries lack definitions. Nine other clues must each have a string of consecutive letters removed before solving, five of which are single words. These strings identify a verse.
The action described in the fourth line of the verse must be implemented in the grid, revealing four thematic items that must be highlighted (22 letters). All entries are real words, phrases or proper names.
I started with the straightforward anagram in 1A, EPSOMITE; to solve 1 across immediately is normally a harbinger of doom, but not this time. The foreign police station TANA, beloved of crossword setters stood out at 11A and I was away. One reasonably long session later, (on Saturday evening when the TV offerings held no attraction whatsoever) I had a grid, complete but for the SW corner.
While solving, several extra words had shown themselves. SMELL at 2D, BLOOD at 13D, ENGLISHMAN at 24D and DEAD at 39D. It didn’t take a genius to spot the reference to Jack and the Beanstalk’s giant and his four line rhyme:
Fee-fi-fo-fum
I smell the blood of an Englishman.
Be he alive or be he dead
I’ll grind his bones to make my bread.
I had TARSUS at 7D, but hadn’t managed to parse the clue. The tarsus is a BONE, and the clue was easily parsed once I realised that there was no definition. I started looking for three more bones and located 29D STAPES, followed by 10A SPHENOID. The last to fall was TEMPORAL at 43A where I struggled with “Satisfied about” = TEM for a while. The bones were symmetrically placed in the symmetrical grid – a nice touch.
Meanwhile I had to find Fee, fi, fo and fum, which were in 12A, 36A, 41A and 42A. These with smell, blood, Englishman and dead gave me 8 clues where letters were removed. The last was bound to be alive, which I duly found in 31D.
Only the final leg to go. I used my tablet Chambers to search for anagrams. (I know it’s cheating but it was half past twelve at night, the anagrams are very often uncommon words and I didn’t want this hanging over me over the Christmas holiday as we had the Editor’s Christmas Quiz to occupy us.) I was anticipating that the anagrams would be bread-related. Wrong! I used the “real words” instruction to resolve any possible choices.
[TARSUS]* = SUTRAS
[STAPES]* = PASTES
[SPHENOID]* = SIPHONED
[TEMPORAL]* = PROMETAL
My grid now contained the alternative letters as well as the originals, and I spotted CHAPATI starting at 19A, revealed by the change of tarsus to SUTRAS. So I was looking for breads revealed by the letter changes, one in each anagrammed bone. SIPHONED revealed PITTA, PROMETAL revealed BAGEL, and the trickiest was MATZA (an alternative spelling for matzo that I had not come across) revealed by PASTES.
The last one enabled me to finish of the SW corner, and all was complete.
I’m not quite certain about the title, though we certainly had to “doctor” the “order” of the bones.
Thank you eXtent (eXternal and Serpent if I remember correctly) for a clear and unambiguous puzzle and a set of clues which was not too taxing at this busy period. A nicely constructed grid and theme. I enjoyed it.
The highlighting of the bones and their anagrams in the diagram below is for information only.
Across |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Clue (definition) [string] | Answer /Anagram | Wordplay |
| 1 | Source of purgative beginning to induce pee most erratically (8) | EPSOMITE | [I(nduce) PEE MOST]* |
| 6 | Name millions backing outsider forced to pay special tax (5) | METIC | CITE (name) + M(illions) all reversed |
| 10 | Invalid not against childless woman taking precedence (8) | SPHENOID /SIPHONED | SP (sine prole – childless) + HEN (woman) + (v)OID (invalid minus V(ersus) |
| 11 | Tartan Army besieges foreign police station (4) | TANA | Hidden in TarTAN Army |
| 12 | [Fee] to squeeze in football inside case in secure baggage area (7) | STOWAGE | TO + WAG (squeeze in football – W(ives) A(nd) G(irlfriends)) in SE (case of SecurE) |
| 14 | Titles of rock songs originally on defunct record label (5) | EMIRS | EMI (defunct record label) + R(ock) S(ongs) |
| 17 | Partisan wants independence established (5) | BASED | BIASED (partisan) minus I(ndependence) |
| 18 | Cheat banned from charity race (6) | NATION | DONATION (charity) minus DO (cheat) |
| 19 | Crack seal round hydrant (4) | CHAP | CAP (seal) round H(ydrant) |
| 21 | VOIP application dropping kilobytes in regional leak (4) | SYPE | SKYPE (VOIP application) minus K(ilobytes) |
| 22 | What realigned his torso? (8) | ORTHOSIS | &lit clue: [HIS TORSO]* |
| 25 | Mostly lie around out of bed in a daze (6) | STUPOR | STOR(y) (mostly lie) round UP (out of bed) |
| 26 | Refer porter perhaps to circuit judge (6) | ALLUDE | ALE (porter) round (to circuit) LUD (judge) |
| 28 | One’s annoyed having to go back into house second (8) | RESENTER | RE-ENTER (to go back into house) round (having) S(econd) |
| 30 | Attendant safely evacuated church (4) | SYCE | SY (S(afel)Y evacuated) + CE (church) |
| 33 | This leader cries ‘I sent criminal to make citizen’s arrest!’ (4) | TZAR | Remove [CRIES I SENT]* from ciTiZen’s ARrest |
| 35 | Healthy business stops corruption (6) | ROBUST | BUS(iness) in ROT (corrupt) |
| 36 | [Fi]end caught scratching kid’s face (5) | CEASE | C(aught) + (t)EASE (kid minus “face” – first letter) |
| 40 | Back-up taken from transparency (5) | SPARE | Hidden in tranSPAREncy |
| 41 | Creative use of paper from nameless source gathering in[fo] before noon (7) | ORIGAMI | ORIGI(n) (nameless source) round AM (before noon) |
| 42 | Per[fum]e one’s applied evenly over old cut (4) | SNEE | Alternate letters frrm pErE oNe’S reversed (over) |
| 43 | Satisfied about piano exam (8) | TEMPORAL /PROMETAL | MET (satisfied) reversed (about) + P(iano) + ORAL (exam) |
| 44 | Savings account once returned something of value (5) | TESSA | ASSET (something valuable) reversed |
| 45 | Fish trapped in lock with no substantial plant life (8) | TREELESS | EEL (fish) in TRESS (lock) |
Down |
|||
| No. | Clue (definition) [string] | Answer /Anagram | Wordplay |
| 1 | Being head, renouncing fundamental character for sect (7) | ESSENES | ESSE (being) + NES(s) (head) minus bottom character. |
| 2 | Wee [smell] being hard to conceal in rank yard (6) | SHORTY | H(ard) in SORT (rank) + Y(ard) |
| 3 | Area sinking in fellow’s Greek bread (4) | MNAS | MAN’S (fellow’s) with A “sinking” |
| 4 | Even you’d get exhausted from run wearing this (4) | TIED | TIED round R(un) = TIRED (exhausted) |
| 5 | First couple’s home hosted entertaining shows (4) | EDEN | Hidden in hostED ENtertaining |
| 6 | African native not badly trounced in furious unarmed combat (5) | MAMBA | remove [TROUNCED]* from unArMed coMBAt and anagram [AMMBA]* |
| 7 | Discover desert to the north (6) | TARSUS /SUTRAS | SUS (discover) + RAT (desert) all reversed |
| 8 | Small picture within another’s home above TV, perhaps? (5) | INSET | IN (home) + SET (TV) |
| 9 | Corps over half of African capital protected young flier (6) | CADDIS | C(orps) + ADDIS (half of Addis Ababa, African capital) |
| 13 | Stroke and pamper [blood]hound (7) | WHIPPET | WHIP (stroke) + PET (pamper) |
| 15 | Smack down head in public (5) | TASTE | STATE (public) with head (S) moved down |
| 16 | Inhale and take in nasal mucus (5) | SNORT | R (recipe = take) in SNOT (nasal mucus) |
| 19 | One’s evidently upset hire car’s damaged leaving a hotel (5) | CRIER | hIRE CaR minus A H(otel) anagrammed [IRECR]* |
| 20 | Heard parrot chatter climbing plastic container (7) | POLYBAG | Definition is not in my edition of Chambers, but is in Collins as two words: POLY (sounds like POLLY parrot) + GAB (chatter) reversed |
| 23 | Like heavenly bodies topless? Stay awhile (5) | TARRY | STARRY (like heavenly bodies) minus S (topless) |
| 24 | That [Englishman] is overwhelming some French with personal magnetism (5 2 words) | ID EST | DES (some French) in IT (personal magnetism) |
| 27 | Demands that men, women and children have (7) | ENTAILS | I’m not entirely happy about the definition: mEN, womEN and childrEN al have EN tails |
| 28 | Recess brackets roughly modified (6) | RECAST | REST (recess) round (brackets) CA (roughly) |
| 29 | Make recording of boarding ship (6) | STAPES /PASTES | TAPE (make recording) in SS (ship) |
| 31 | Extract of tree bark is remedy keeping soldiers [alive] (6) | CURARE | CURE (remedy) round RA (soldiers) |
| 32 | Intermediate test at centre replacing one of mine (5) | MESNE | ES ((t)ES(t) centre) replacing I (one) in M(i)NE |
| 34 | Fox is casualty in America, caught in raised bladed tool there (5) | ZERDA | ER (casualty in America) in ADZ (American for ADZE) reversed |
| 37 | Earth planted with first of tulips (4) | SETT | Badger’s home: SET (planted) + T(ulips) |
| 38 | Witless dowager motivated person (4) | DOER | remove WAG (= wit) from DO(wag)ER |
| 39 | Finished epitaph above [dead] earl (4) | RIPE | RIP (epitaph) + E(arl) |
Great puzzle and great blog – thanks for both.
Just one comment regarding “I used my tablet Chambers to search for anagrams. (I know it’s cheating …)”
I disagree. After all, many setters use computers to create anagrams, why not use them to solve too?
And cheating who/how?
Many newer/younger solvers should be encouraged to use them until such times as their confidence and ability matures.
Too much Christmas cheer I fear, as somehow I failed to read or forgot the instruction to find and highlight the four thematic items! I got as far as the anagrams of the bones, felt it was a shame that SIPHONED, SUTRAS etc. weren’t types of bread and moved on. Just as well I never submit my entries.
Excellent puzzle; pity about my carelessness.
New Year’s resolution: Read the darned preamble properly!
Best wishes to all for 2019.
Almost ground to a halt here! Thank goodness for a solving partner!
Thanks all.
Thanks all round and Happy New Year again! Much the same solving route here except that I got TEMPORAL first (not the most obvious of bones, but STAPES confirmed) and struggled longest to find TARSUS. Always a happy experience when vague speculations — this time based on ENGLISHMAN, ALIVE and DEAD only — flip from “Surely it couldn’t be …?” to “Blimey it is!”
For what it’s worth, when solving the Inquisitor I regularly use an anagram solver otherwise I’d have no hope. 🙂
TEMPORAL and the possibility of TARDIS led me down a Doctor Who blind alley, though thankfully not for long. I couldn’t solve 15d, so ended up relying on the final step to work out what letters should be there. Apart from that? A not too tricky, enjoyable solve.
Happy New Year one and all.
I thank Google for identifying the verse, from a slightly misleading set of words excluding blood but including info. From that, the fo and the fum become clear. But I also forgot to look for the bread.
Very nice start to the year; thanks to Extent and to Hihoba; I hope those flashing grids don’t take too long to construct.
Thanks for your comments and support for my use of an anagram finder (kenmac and Jon_S).
Neil Hunter (#6) The flashing grids are constructed using the Microsoft Gif Animator. They take a bit of time, but I enjoy doing them!
Very enjoyable, and a nicely judged puzzle, finished on Christmas Eve having started the day before on a round-trip to London for a family lunch. No great pauses in solving, and a steady realisation of what was going on – all very neat. The anagram hunter found SURATS as an alternative ground bone at 7d, also making real words at the intersecting entries … but of course CHAPTTI is not a sort of bread – ambiguity resolved.
Thanks for the blog, Hi – I also had a query in 27d (“demands” = ENTAILS) but let it pass. And thanks to both eXt… & …ent – Happy New Year.
I had pretty much the same experience as the finishers above. A bit mystified when no breads, either edible or spendable, could be ground directly from the bones, then I spotted CHAPUTI and all became clear. Solid, unambiguous clues (although I agree about 27D) and and an enjoyable finish.
Thanks to both setters and Hiboba and Happy Solving to all in 2019.
By the way, I also use an anagram finder when I am really stuck, and a word finder to help with obscure words – much better than ploughing through large chunks of Chambers. As long as I can then fully parse the clue, I reckon this is OK.
I failed to find the breads but this didn’t distract from my enjoyment of the puzzle too much. I always attempt the IQ using nothing but a dictionary. Once in a while I manage it but very rarely. After giving up on that my order of cheating preference is
1- use the anagram finder in the Chambers App on my phone
2 – use the word search software in the Chambers App
3 – use http://wordfun.ca (website to aid solving The Listener)
4 – Google everything and anything I can think of in desperation
Thanks to Hihoba and eXtent
An enjoyable solve. I rather liked the ‘n’ tails (as I had read it) in 27D, which made me smile. I was, understandably, less happy with my parsing of 28D, where I hadn’t been able to shake my belief that the RECAST must in some way be formed from the letters of brackets. I’d eventually settled on recess meaning to suspend temporarily and hence (?!) ‘suspend’ the B and K from brackets before ‘roughly’ sorting them.
As to the cheating/not cheating debate, my feeling is that whilst it isn’t cheating, I have a hierarchy of things I’m reluctant to resort to unless time is pressing. I always start by trying to solve without any aids at all, including my (physical) dictionary. It’s rare I manage this unless it’s a particularly easy puzzle or I have inordinate amounts of time on hand, but a huge sense of achievement when I do – so in answer to kenmac @1, cheating myself of the satisfaction of an unaided solve. Then I do quite enjoy searching through the dictionary and the little accidental discoveries and connections I make when flipping through the pages is something I can’t imagine happening on any electronic version. I then tend to skip PeeDee’s (@10) 1, 2 and 3 and go straight to the 4 – Google everything and anything. Just occasionally in the past I have ended up at ‘the other place’ and felt dirty and disappointed to have relied on someone else giving away the answers – that really is cheating and something I’ve vowed never to do again.
OPatrick at 11: the wordplay for 27d was fine – it’s the definition that we weren’t OK with.
Great puzzle and great blog. Such an enjoyable start to 2019. We had a good laugh when we saw the link between Englishman, blood and TARSUS
If PeeDee hadn’t said it already we would have listed all the ‘cheating’ preferences that he listed in exactly the same order!
HG, reading your comments properly I see that now – it hadn’t occurred to me that there there was a problem with entail being synonymous with demand, though thinking about it I can see that there are slight differences in the ‘order’ of the neccesitation. Thesaurus.com, one of the places I often end up come step 4, lists demand as a synonym for entail, though not a direct synonym, perhaps.