Guardian Prize 27,848 / Picaroon

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It’s a real treat to find a Picaroon puzzle to solve on a Saturday and especially when I’m down to blog it.

The solving was mostly straightforward, with characteristically meticulous and witty cluing but I was held up for some time in the parsing in a couple of places, noted below. I’m sufficiently well-acquainted with Picaroon [I blogged his first Guardian Cryptic puzzle and I don’t claim any credit for guessing then that it was not the work of a novice: it soon turned out that he was, in fact, Lavatch, an established setter of the Genius puzzle and he has been one of my top favourites ever since] to be confident that any apparent ‘weakness’ in the clues is down to me, rather than him and so it was that, after some head-scratching and staring at the grid, all finally became clear.

I’ve said several times lately how impressed I am when setters contrive to make multiple answers run on in the grid, as here, in the peripheral answers – so much more satisfying and less irritating to solve than chasing answers all over the place.

I really enjoyed this puzzle and I hope you did, too. Many thanks, as ever, to Picaroon.

Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

1,5 Dodgy dealer’s wealth comes from awful crime (7,7)
CAPITAL OFFENCE
CAPITAL [wealth] OF FENCE [dodgy dealer’s]

9 Note anger about places issue will develop (5)
UTERI
UT [note – Chambers: ‘a syllable representing the first note of the scale, now generally superseded by doh’ – which I remember from crosswords] + a reversal [about] of IRE [anger]

10 Fiddle with metal casing finally breaking (9)
VIOLATING
VIOLA [fiddle] + TIN [metal] + [casin]G

11 Military group‘s demand to tuck into bananas etc (4,5)
TASK FORCE
ASK FOR [demand] in an anagram [bananas] of ETC

12 Sage stuffing for burger is hideous (5)
RISHI
Hidden in burgeR IS HIdeous – one of our commenters and former bloggers will be chuffed with this one

13 Long time, an unspecified amount (5)
YEARN
YEAR [time] + N [unspecified ‘amount’- at which my pedantic hackles rise: it’s an unspecified number]

15 Main city‘s much spoken of Welsh address (9)
OFFENBACH
OFFEN [sounds like {spoken of} ‘often’ {much}] + BACH [Welsh address – used especially after a person’s name] for the city on the River Main – a new one on me: I only knew the composer

18 Trifle dish in which to put a piece (9)
BAGATELLE
A GAT [a piece – gun] in BELLE [dish]

19 Records order where races are run (5)
EPSOM
EPS [records] + OM [Order of Merit] for the racecourse in Surrey where the Derby is run

21 I touch frames for picture (5)
MOVIE
MOVE [touch] round [frames] I

23 Cutting quality of performing acts in set (9)
CATTINESS
An anagram [performing] of ACTS IN SET

25 Criminal‘s basic characteristics seen in Leave voter (9)
KIDNAPPER
DNA [basic characteristics] in [U]KIPPER [Leave voter]
This was one of my stumbling blocks: I was fixated on ID [‘basic instincts’, not ‘characteristics’ – aargh!] leaving KNAPPER, which I knew only as a cutter of flints, to fit the rest of the clue – and even when light dawned I initially thought that a KIPPER must be someone who had perhaps sleepwalked into a Leave vote, until I stumbled on the ‘official’ definition, which had somehow passed me by

26 Predator caught in northerly forest (5)
TAIGA
Sounds like [again I have to say, ‘for those with non-rhotic accents’] ‘tiger’ [predator]

27, 28 When working, warn a cruel boss one might explode! (7,7)
NUCLEAR WARHEAD
An anagram [when working] of WARN A CRUEL + HEAD [boss]

Down

1, 18 Simple sort of number line by swelling family (7,7)
COUNTRY BUMPKIN
COUNT [number] + RY [railway line] + BUMP [swelling] + KIN [family]

2 Force media people to go north of Hadrian’s Wall, say (5-4)
PRESS-GANG
PRESS [media people] + GANG [people north of of Hadrian’s Wall might say GANG for ‘go’]
This was my first one in and I think it might be my favourite: Hadrian’s Wall was built to mark the northern limit of the Roman Empire and is not, in fact, the boundary between England and Scotland – see here
Chambers has gang = go only as Scottish; I thought it was also north eastern: I’d always, in my head, heard ‘ganging along the Scotswood Road’, from ‘The Blaydon Races’, only to find, from Google, that it’s ‘gannin” – what a disappointment: it would fit the clue so beautifully

3 Crook to hurry, absorbed by paperback? (5)
THIEF
HIE [hurry] in [absorbed by] a reversal [back] of FT [Financial Times – newspaper]
[As it happens, I also had, mistakenly, in my head, Hamlet’s injunction to Ophelia as ‘Hie thee to a nunnery!’ – and it’s ‘get’. I thought that I could rely on my long-term memory, at least]

4 Footballers can spin with wrong turns (9)
LIVERPOOL
A reversal [turns] of LOO [can] + PR [spin] + EVIL [wrong]
This was my second stumbling block: the [topical] answer was obvious but my best initial effort was a reversal [turns] of [LOOP] [spin] and EVIL [wrong] – leaving an extra R – Doh again

5 Putting on weight, figure gets gas (5)
OZONE
ONE [figure] put on OZ [ounce – weight]

6 Bouquet of paper across the Channel? (9)
FRAGRANCE
RAG [paper] in FRANCE [so across the Channel]

7 Arrests partners holding hands without trouble (5)
NAILS
N S [partners in bridge, so ‘holding hands’] round [without] AIL [trouble]

8, 20 Eccentric single with obligation to wear heavy hot stuff (7,7)
ENGLISH MUSTARD
An anagram [eccentric] of ENGLISH (sorry, SINGLE – thanks, Valentine) + MUST [obligation] in [to wear] HARD [heavy]

14 Showing no shame, a compiler’s in sacred place (5-4)
NOTRE DAME
NOT RED [showing no shame] + A ME [a compiler]

16 Chance to shoot fox behind cockney trio (4,5)
FREE THROW
FREE [how a cockney might pronounce ‘three’, hence cockney trio] + THROW [fox, as a verb]

17 Stainless steel ingredient from follower of a Regency writer? (9)
AUSTENITE
Double / cryptic definition
I didn’t know the stainless steel ingredient but was able to guess it from the whimsical cryptic definition of a follower of Jane Austen – more usually known, affectionately or disparagingly, as a Janeite – see here

22 It’s essential to believe, dictating from scripture (5)
VEDIC
Hidden in belieVE DICtating

23 Person who manages business, one selling up (5)
COPER
CO [business] + a reversal [up] of REP [one selling]

24 Start off season in one side of Italy (5)
INTER
[w]INTER [season, start off] for the Milan football team

44 comments on “Guardian Prize 27,848 / Picaroon”

  1. Thanks to Picaroon and Eileen. Lots of fun. I parsed OFFENBACH but did not know the city on the Main, had to look up AUSTENITE, and was defeated by TAIGA.

  2. Thanks Eileen. I stumbled on the same blocks as you did and, not being a native, have never heard of ‘kipper’ in that context. I never did explain LIVERPOOL to myself and it seems so obvious now. You have added to my education with your reference to non-rhotic accents but I’m still not convinced that ‘caught’ really = ‘sounds like’.

  3. I think I’ve thrown my completed puzzle away but looking through Eileen’s blog I remember not parsing KIDNAPPER but did figure LIVERPOOL out. Picaroon is a setter I always enjoy – concise clues and smooth surfaces – and I’m happy enough with that even if I don’t parse everything. Many thanks to him and Eileen for the equally concise and smooth blog.

  4. Eileen – I’ve just noticed that today’s Indy puzzle is by Klingsor – but I’m sure you’ll remain loyal to The G and do Paul before relishing this one.

  5. I don’t usually attempt the Prize puzzles, due to lack of both time and solving skills, but decided to try this one and was surprised to solve it with nearly everything parsed. I agree with Eileen and acd@1, well constructed and lots of fun. Thanks to Picaroon and Eileen.

    One question: Where is the insertion indicator in 6d? I thought it might be ‘across,’ but then that word would be doing double duty.

  6. Enjoyed this, thanks Picaroon and Eileen, along with quite a bit of education. Didn’t know ut the note, bach the affectionate Welsh diminutive, kipper as in Leaver, or austenite in steel (shurely not thought I, but sure enough there it was). And a few groan/chuckles, eg pr in loo evil, hideous sage stuffing and not red for unashamed. Lots of fun, thanks again both.

  9. I really liked this one.

    Bach brought me back to when I attempted to learn Welsh, many years ago (it means small). It was also part of the reason for giving up: not only does Welsh have inflections, but many words in certain circumstances “mutate” their initial letter, so when bach is describing something feminine it is fach. Too much like hard work, especially looking words up (but Swahili is worse!).

    Thanks Eileen and Picaroon.

  10. @DaveinNCarolina: “across the Channel” may equal “in France” in realworldspeak, so equals “in FRANCE” in crosswordese. Hope Grantinfreo & Eileen don’t mind me spelling it out more directly – this is a type of clue I enjoy but took a long time to fully get my head around…

    Great fun from Picaroon, this, with some educational moments along the way including GANG, BACH and AUSTENITE. Favourites included THIEF and LIVERPOOL, once I’d figured out what the “can spin” was up to, but my top pick was ENGLISH MUSTARD. Many thanks to Picaroon and Eileen for the blog.

  11. Hi, Eileen — I think you meant the blog for 8d to be “anagram of SINGLE + MUST in HARD”.

    Never heard of Austenite or Offenbach the city, like most of us, I’ll bet.  (By the way, “bach” attached to a Welsh name is pronounced differently from Bach the composer — you elongate the “a” the way you do in “calm.”  Not vowel color but duration.)

    Delightful puzzle and as ever super blog from Eileen.

  12. Thanks Eileen.  Lots here, previously outside my general knowledge, that just had to be: the city on the River Main, the stainless steel ingredient, Kipper as a political term, RISHI and VEDIC. All good – including the neat 4D – so thanks Picaroon.

  13. Very enjoyable. My favourites were TAIGA, FREE THROW, CAPITAL OFFENCE, BAGATELLE.

    I could not parse the R in LIVERPOOL – like Eileen initially, I also had it as a reversal [turns] of [LOOP] [spin] and EVIL [wrong] – leaving an extra R.

    Thanks Picaroon and Eileen.

  14. To grantinfreo and Charlie M, thanks for the clarification of 6d. I hadn’t thought to see it as a reverse clue, and it’s a type that I often miss, but it makes sense now.

  15. Found this a lot harder than I’d expected, but kept going and got there in the end, although with a number of the parsing details (‘in France’, ‘can spin’ etc) still unclear – thanks for the explanations, Eileen and others. Not helped by a lot of knowledge gaps (including ‘ut’,’rishi’, the leave voter and the German city) that I’m glad to see some others share. Rather satisfying, after all that, to have completed it. Thanks, Picaroon.

  16. Thanks to Picaroon for a puzzle I really liked and to Eileen for an honest, through, informative and helpful blog. [Don’t worry about the long-term memory retrieval, Eileen, you are still as sharp as a tack. I once prided myself on my steel-trap memory but it is getting a bit rusty now I must say.]

    I got the answers but like some others, I didn’t understand the bach in OFFENBACH at 15a or the Brexit reference in 25a KIDNAPPER.

    17d AUSTENTITE and that use of INTER at 24d were both unfamiliar but perfectly gettable from the word plays, reflecting again the admirable precision of Picaroon’s clue-setting.

    I really liked the clues for 13a YEARN, and like Charlie M@10, 3d THIEF and 8/20d ENGLISH MUSTARD. However, 2d PRESS GANG was my favourite, echoing you, Eileen.

    To me, just the right level of challenge and fun for a Prize offering.

  17. Thanks Picaroon and Eileen

    Yes, great fun. I also didn’t parse LIVERPOOL and was fixated by ID in KIDNAPPER. I’m still not clear why UKIPPER drops the U.

  18. Thanks to Picaroon and to Eileen for excellent explanation.

    I can say ‘snap’ to ACD @1, that was pretty much exactly my experience, though I also got and failed to parse LIvERPOOL and BAGATELLE.

    Enjoyed the clues around the edge and YEARN despite the grammatical imprecision was probably my favourite.

    TAIGA even with all the crossers and a lot of time eluded me. As a Celt, it doesn’t like TIGERin my internal voice, though I can imagine it would for SE English speakers. Those ‘sounds like’ clues often catch me out this way.

  19. Greetings from a very sunny Copenhagen, where Im spending the weekend visiting my son and his family (and cant find the apostrophe on his Danish laptop!),

    Thanks for the tip re the Klingsor puzzle, Whiteking but I shant be doing puzzles today – its my grandsons 8th birthday party, among other things.

    And thanks Valentine  – Ill correct that now and then sign off for the day. I hope the weather has improved at home, too!

  20. Thanks Eileen and Pucaroon. It took us all week in several locations to nearly complete but we enjoyed the challenge. I did my usual of bashing wrong (square) answers into these lively rounded clues clues – I had NICKS for a while for 7d with the N S as parsed holding (tr)ick. An even bigger barrier for my beginner’s struggles was my FOI which was DISOLVING for 10ac; VIOLIN + G + DS which is the symbol for atomic element Darmstadium. It parses and provides us with the crosser for English Mustard. However in fitting with the transition metal’s instability my alternative answer had a fleeting existence once the correct solutions for other top right down clues presented themselves. My favourite was THEIF (with a Shakespearean use twice in Romeo and Juliet). My least was TAIGA for the reasons others have given and having never heard it pronounced. it was one that contributed to our DNF status.

  21. For me this was a rather nondescript puzzle, disappointing, specially for a Saturday prize.  No clue was meaty enough to deserve a full tick, though there were several half-ticks:  FRAGRANCE,  COPER,  KIDNAPPER,  OFFENBACH (I vaguely recall visiting many years ago).

    No real complaints either, though.

    I did however realise for the first time that all four seasons have six letters!

    Nonetheless my thanks to Picaroon and to Eileen.

  22. To Dr. WhatsOn @9

    The consonantal mutations you refer to happen in all languages.  Sounds are just like chemicals in a test-tube – they are liable to react with each other.  It’s just that the Celtic languages tend to show these mutations in the written language.  So, ‘kitchen’ in Welsh is cegin, but ‘the kitchen’ is y gegin.  In speech, native speakers are often very resistant to some of these mutations …

    Sorry, linguistic comment, I’m off …

  23. Thanks to Picaroon and Eileen. Mostly all been said about this. A very enjoyable solve for me, I learned some new words, and did some research on steel making. Last one in for me was taiga and could never fully parse kidnapper. My favourites were the long ones around the perimeter and thanks again to Picaroon and Eileen.

  26. Thank you Picaroon and Eileen.

    The 20th of June was the centenary of OFFENBACH’s birth – I can see BAGATELLE in the grid, perhaps there are more of his works?

  28. Very enjoyable after a slow start – FOI 19 ac. Lots of TILTs for us both: UT, RISHI, OFFENBACH and – extra thanks to Eileen – RHOTIC. 50-years ago A-level Geography helped with TAIGA, which would have been hard otherwise. LOI was LIVERPOOL, correctly parsed by Yorkshire Lass, also our favourite along with BAGATELLE – getting ‘gat’ very pleasing. Thanks again Picaroon and Eileen.

  29. Bach is just a way of saying ‘duck’ or ‘love’ or ‘mate’ (take your pick) in Wales. Thanks to setter and blogger.

  30. 15ac reminded me of this – a favourite joke of my music teacher at LRGS, and apart from “Sir Marmaduke was a hearty knight” and some G and S, the only thing I learned form him in three years.

     

    Thanks Picaroon and Eileen

  33. I enjoyed this. Thanks to Picaroon and Eileen. I misparsed 4d in the same way as Eileen, originally, and Michelle. Same misparse as Eileen, originally, at 25a but never did get it right. Also like Eileen I’m away from home for a grandson’s 8th. His is tomorrow. He woke us at 6.30 this morning and who knows what he has in store for us tomorrow so it’s definitely past my bedtime.

  34. It’s always a pleasure to solve a Picaroon puzzle, and this was no exception. Beautifully friendly grid and the perimetrical two-worders were very elegant.

    I didn’t know OFFENBACH as a town, only as a composer (but also a firm of West End solicitors with a name which must resonate with regular clients), but got it quite easily and confirmed it as a city on the Main.

    Didn’t know AUSTENITE either and quaked at the phrase “Regency writer” as I didn’t really even know when the Regency was, but easy enough to get once a few crossers were in. (Interesting to read about ‘Janeitism’, too, thanks, @Eileen).

    I hadn’t heard the term KIPPER either, but working back from the answer, I guessed what it meant.

    I also thought ‘gang’ was Geordie for ‘go’, so thanks for the education, @Eileen.

    I couldn’t parse LIVERPOOL at first (also thinking about LOOP = spin), but it had to be, and on Sunday morning, looking at it again, I worked it out.

    Biggles A @2, “I didn’t quite catch that” implies that ‘catch’ can mean ‘hear’, so ‘caught’ seems a perfectly respectable homophone indicator.

  35. Had a lot of parsing troubles with this one, after getting off to a fast start with THIEF, DNK UT as a note (filed away), DNK kipper (been away from UK too long), did not like move as a word for touch, although what else could it be? Loved RISHI and AUSTENITE, but CODs were INTER and FRAGRANCE. Thanks Picaroon and Eileen, for a really enjoyable solve.

    Muffin @32 Yes I have heard of Schickele’s satire, very funny for musicians ??

  37. Roberto @35,

    How about: “I was very moved/touched by her concern for my welfare”?

    muffin @32, how about this <a href=”https://youtu.be/GazlqD4mLvw”>Dudley Moore Beethoven parody</a>, (YouTube, 4’29”)

  39. Tony @ 37/38

    Brilliant! Yes, Dudley could really play the piano. I wonder why he didn’t make more of it?

  41. Eileen states that she knew Picaroon as Lavatch but fails to delve further.
    She probably does not know that Lavatch made his debut as a setter in
    Araucaria’s “1 Across” magazine when I was Editor. We are so proud to have
    discovered him and to have set him on the cruciverbal ohh ladder.

    It was not long after this debut that I invited Lavatch to join the Spectator team
    and his compiling career grew from these two “seeds”. This is one of my greatest
    joys as an Editor to be able to claim that the magazine started the careers of so
    many aspiring compilers who now compile for national periodicals: Boatman,
    Mike Warburton, Moodim, Magwitch, to name but four.

  42. Forgot to comment on this on Saturday, but as always with Picaroon this was a high class puzzle.

    Thanks to Picaroon and Eileen.

  43. I’ve only come here as there is no Pan blog yet.

    Gave up on the Saturday but managed to finish and parse on the Sunday. Just goes to show that what at first seems not worth the effort turns out to be a satisfying solve.

    I note that we have a bit of Welsh, Scottish and (from copmus @24) Irish?

    Additional thanks to tony for the link

     

  44. YEARN seems to not get much of a mention so I thought I’d promote it as my favourite clue… I was misdirected for so long thinking the definition must be “Long time”, so when I finally got it of course everything fell into place – but so clever to misdirect with such a correct clue!

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