Private Eye (Cyclops/641) Xmas Special 2018 – The Headmistress Writes

14 comments on “Private Eye (Cyclops/641) Xmas Special 2018 – The Headmistress Writes”

1. Thank to beermagnet for such a thorough piece of unravelling – and it’s a pleasure to see posted a grid filled in by hand, and so neatly done. With luck, someone else will come up with the original Border Fudge item from 2018. On 44/20, I simply took ‘wanting’ to mean that the first oart of the answer, RIGHT, ‘needs’ the second part, A HEAD, in order to complete the whole. Finally, would it not be welcome if the Eye started offering more than one prize per issue, as almost all other publications do? Maybe multiple £50s rather than one of £100 (or £250). Their profits are healthy enough…

2. The source was Eye 1465.

3. Original Irish Border Fudge extract is from Eye 1465, 9 Mar 18, P 26.

4. I got all but 67 (DNK) and 14,27 (DNG*). In fact, I filled 8 when having a last look before coming here. I realised I was never going to get the quote, so lost interest in struggling with those last couple. I did have a theory that T_E/___K/___P would be THE BACK STOP, but later crossers made me realise it was THE TUCK SHOP.

   Didn’t know that meaning of ‘pink’ in 48dn, but it had to be.

   In 66, G stands for ‘gangsta’ surely? (The biggest gang).

   It might be fairer to say Cruise was into scientology, which is widely characterised as ‘bonkers’.

   Re the hand-filled grid, it doesn’t look like the online grid, which (annoyingly) had half-shaded squares for the quote.

   I did get the cracker joke too!

   *Did not get!

5. Got it in one go? respect….I took time out over four days in all…..but I suppose I got more enjoyment for that!!!! I dispose of back versions so had the quote from scratch to sort out…but again it gave more of a sense of achievement to complete. In fact, I think this is the very first Christmas one I have completed. Usually, there are one or two that stump me. Solved all but didn’t make China as pal nor lu’um as chimney. Thank you, Beermagnet, for the edification.

6. I found this:

   G-Man (short for “Government Man”) is an American slang term for special agents of the United States Government.

   But maybe you all already knew and I am just slow on the uptake?

7. Winsor, it’s pretty well-known and I’ve seen it in crosswords a few times. (I was joking and I suspect beermagnet was too.) Still, you might have helped someone.

8. Well, what is life if one can’t help someone out along the way?

   I wonder what’s happened to Patrick Berry. He used to be a regular on here.

9. Yes, I was making a quip about G-Man from the Bonzo Dog song “Big Shot”
   where Hotsie says “You’re the man of a thousand Gs right.  A G-Man: Girls, Guns, Guts.  You’re my type”
   and Big Shot replies “Wrong baby. I’m an L-Man – strictly Liquor, Love and Laughs”

    

10. @Winsor,

    Good point. He hasn’t been seen on the Guardian crossword blog lately either, though he was a prolific contributor to cluing comps there all last year. Hope he’s ok. However, there hasn’t been an official comp there since before Christmas. (We, the mice, are currently making clues for ‘three-dimensional’ while the cat, Alan Connor is ‘away’, if you’re interested.)

    @beermagnet,

    Thanks for the ref. Will listen to that tout de suite as it doesn’t ring a bell.

11. @beermagnet, haha! You’re so far ahead, it’s beautiful!

    Really didn’t remember that, but I had a friend who was always coming out with Bonzo lines, including “You got a light, mac?”*.

12. *(No, but I’ve got a dark brown overcoat)

13. 37A gives a V to the shaded area. In my Eye, I had no V. 4 x U and 2x Y but no V.

     

    Threw me a bit.

14. Andy, the spare letters listed are the ones that fit between the solutions, so the V of VENUS FLYTRAP isn’t one of them.

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