Guardian 28,083 / Puck

59 comments on “Guardian 28,083 / Puck”

1. Thanks Puck and Eileen

   This was fun. Favourites were FOI NEER DO WELL, and the misleading 24/6 ones.

   I didn’t know OZEKI or OP-ED. LOOT and SHINE were a bit GKy, though I did know those.

   Cloudberries grow wild, usually in high places.

2. Thanks, Eileen, for explaining where the MIDDAY comes from in 12A. For ages I was convinced that the “…” with the previous clue justified NOON for 10A, which doesn’t parse any which way…

3. Most enjoyable – I find Puck a very endearing and clever setter! And perhaps like many Irish at home and their descendants scattered abroad, he hints here that he doesn’t mind a wee tipple of something to celebrate St Paddy’s Day. Or perhaps he only meant a cup of tea (“Brew”) as in 18a CUPPA?
   I didn’t know BLADDERED at 19a but I worked it out – such a great word, and a favourite for me too, Scutter@6! Other than the “boozy” words and references which gave me many smiles (like 4d NEWTS), I also liked 15a EULOGISTS, 27a USHERETTES and 11d SECOND FIDDLE (I always associate fiddles with Irish music, so the latter was fun too). I think we have had another HAN(G)OVER (1,2d) in a puzzle last year – I recall loving it then and I loved it today as well (the clue not the experience!). I thought LOOT/TOOL at 24a was some sort of “play” on LUTE the musical instrument, so thanks for that detail regarding Joe Orton’s play, Eileen. The other “unfamiliars” mentioned kept this puzzle interesting, though I thought all of them were well-clued.
   Many thanks to both Puck and Eileen, and condolences to all on the fact that COVID-19 has put such a dampener on the traditional St Patrick’s Day celebrations.

4. I agree with dantheman@9 – one for the best puzzles for a long time! I particularly loved CUPPA, SUBTOTALS and BLADDERED. Many thanks to Puck and Eileen.

5. There’s very little peccing or hugging lately around the normally tactile Freo. Amazed, Eileen and muffin, that op-ed was unknown to you; it’s a commonplace I’d have thought. Otoh, my own effort was none too flash, bunging in rootless unparsed at 22,23. Hey ho. Ked for fly was a dim memory, and I missed the 12 in 12ac, so summer day went in unparsed, d’oh. Never heard of that particular berry, either. As for Shine, saw the boy pianist, him still in short pants, at His Maj in Perth, circa mid-late ’50s (I was in the pit, second fiddles, scraping away). Thanks for the memories Puck, and thanks Eileen.

6. [Sorry, some crossing so I didn’t mention all similarities in favourites.]

7. 4D: I’ve never heard the phrase “drunk as a newt”, though perhaps it is current in the polite circles that Eileen moves in; where I come from we say something rather more vulgar.

   It reminds me of the occasion when Labour minister George Brown – a notorious drunkard – was described in the press as having been “tired and emotional”. Private Eye commented that he had been “as emotional as a newt”.

8. .. midsummer day, that is…

9. Something’s gone wrong with the blog I think as my comment has now moved up several notches and others previously read seem to have disappeared????

10. I’ve no idea what’s happened, Julie @9. TheZed @11 [!] had pointed out an omission in the blog, which I amended but I don’t think I did anything to delete the comments [none of which was offensive].

11. [I’m used to being censured but first time I’ve been censored on here!]

12. Mine has vanished as well!

13. Hard work, but very entertaining. I couldn’t get the parsing of MIDSUMMER DAY for the life of me – very original – and missed the clever ‘on the lips’ homophone indicator at 13d. Some difficult parsing, eg SUBTOTALS, a good crossword word in KED, two new words in OZEKI and BLADDERED and the excellent ‘Labour candidate’s complaint’ to cap it all off.

    Thanks to Puck and Eileen

14. Dim and Grim reminds me of Gielgud (in a Tuscan miniseries) saying Umbrriaco as a newt, in his wonderfully frrooty voice.

15. I really enjoyed this tussle and even the “IKEA” clues (you can see the end result but the construction involves convoluted self-assembly instructions) didn’t detract from the fun. The notlob was lovely – surely it’s been used before? PECCADILLO was my favourite for the lovely homophone indicator and just for being a great word. Ta to Puck & Eileen

16. Yes, an absolute delight to solve this morning, though I too didn’t know OP-ED…

17. Thank you, Eileen, your ’12’ explanation was eagerly awaited.

    A dnf here as I did not know the SHINE film, and my lot was not helped by being unable to spell the crossing PAL(E)NDROME.

    Lovely puzzle, though, as we have come to expect from this excellent setter.

    Nice week all.

18. Seems to be the day of the censored comments. Were mine too kind?  If so, sorry, but I’ll  say again … best puzzle in a long while ….

19. That was amazing fun and a brilliant blog. A few unparsed and the only unknown word was ked. There are certainly lots of words for drunk. My mother only ever had a drink before Christmas lunch when she would enjoy a glass of sherry. It always made her tipsy and she would declare herself to be a little over hydrated!

20. I knew I had seen it before, and noticed it several times in the newspaper recently: Vlad used op-ed in Nov 16 2018.

     

    Thanks Eileen and Puck for excellent blog and Xword

21. Much like Eileen I thought this was going to be a struggle at first glance but once NE’ER DO WELL went in the puzzle yielded surprisingly readily. I didn’t get the very clever 12=MIDDAY ruse, nor did I parse WEDDING MARCH. I especially liked USHERETTES for the long yet clear definition. Thanks to Puck for a fun puzzle and to Eileen for the engaging and affirmative blog as always.

22. Thanks Puck and Eileen.  This is an attempt to resurrect my earlier post which vanished into the ether.  Mike muffin my FOI was NE’ER-DO-WELL.  I have heard hundreds of words and phrases for being drunk but never before BLADDERED but it was very fairly clued so no foul.  My favourites were OCHE for the lovely misdirection of the definition, PALINDROME and NEWTS.  I better not enter into the discussion about the clue for NEWTS for fear my post will be ejected for smutty reasons!!

23. Me @ 22 Like muffin…………

24. Ran out of time today.

    Why is a sub a sandwich? Because Subway sell them??  And what has 24th June got to do with Midsummer’s day?

     

     

25. I’m feeling a bit dense after reading the blog. Didn’t spot 12 = midday in 12a, then despite noticing that one adding = summer there, failed to see the same trick in 16d. Also misled by the upper-case Y in 22,24 and missed the cleverness of that well-crafted clue. Thanks to Puck for the lesson in humility and to Eileen for the informative blog.

26. Howard @24, it’s the other way around. Subway took its name from the sub (short for submarine) sandwiches sold there.

    Regarding NEWTS, the related phrase I’ve heard is “drunk as a skunk,” although I can imagine that smuttier versions exist.

27. What have Joe Orton or the Crafty Cockney got to do with 10 or 13 across.

    Nuttin’

    Wonderful misdirection and puzzle.

    Thanks too to Eileen.

28. [I recall a story of the barrister F.E.Smith saying in court:

    “My client was as drunk as a Judge…”

    Judge (interrupting) “I believe the normal saying is “drunk as a Lord””

    F E Smith (thoughtfully) “As your Lordship pleases…”]

29. All seems to have settled down and it does not look like our deleted comments are being unearthed so apart from thanking Eileen for a meticulous and clear blog I’ll say again what I said before about Puck and this puzzle.

    Some insist on absolute strict rules, others are happy to see them bent. “eclampsia” was a sort of indirect anagram, 12a used a new trick and a few others were inventive/witty/rule- (and mind-) bending. I did not care one jot about rules when working on this puzzle because it was so much fun from start to finish. In the end, it is entertainment. If a puzzle is boring, strained and also a bit dodgy, I for one will probably complain about it. It’s like the suspension of disbelief in theatre – you can get away with far more if the audience is having fun or is deeply engrossed…they will be more forgiving. So it’s not about defining rules and guidelines, it’s about writing good quality puzzles. And this was a cracker. Thank you Puck.

30. I’m usually apprehensive about long clues since they are intrinsically harder (more possible permutations) but these were great, just like the puzzle as a whole. Loved it!

31. Hi SPanza and TheZed [and anyone else who may have done so while I’ve been typing] – I’m so glad you took the time and trouble to reproduce your earlier comments. I did try to copy and paste them from my emails but didn’t have the necessary skills. 🙁

    howard @24 – 24th June is Midsummer’s Day: see here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer

32. I found this a toughie, but enormously satisfying to do. I’m another who didn’t spot 12=midday, nor had I heard of a ked – so thanks to Eileen for completing the parsing for me. I was also taken in by the 24/6 misdirections and kept going back to 6A and 24A, thinking they’d help – it was only when I finally solved both towards the end that I realised my mistake! I also spent a fair bit of time running the Springsteen track’s lyrics through my mind, thinking there’d be something helpful there…. Hey ho. Oh, and I suspect I’m the only one who thought of “angry birds” long before the correct answer emerged from the mental fog. Bodycheetah, I love your “IKEA” clue idea! Thanks to Puck for his/her usual fine creation

33. DaveinNC @26:  “it’s the other way around. Subway took its name from the sub (short for submarine) sandwiches sold there.”  

    Really?  I had always assumed it was due to the similarity of the shape of such a sandwich to a submarine.  I found this:

    “It is thought that the original concept of these sandwiches came from the Italians who immigrated to New York in the late 1800s and brought with them their favorite Italian Sandwich recipes. 1910 – The family of Dominic Conti (1874-1954) claims he was the first to use the name, submarine sandwich.”

34. William @33 I don’t think the term “sub” is particularly common here in the UK but when I lived in the US (early 90s) it was commonplace and universally understood to be short for “submarine sandwich”. Local dialects substitute “hero” (NYC) or “grinder” (across New England) or even “hoagie” (more Philadelphia, but why would they not just be eating a Philly cheesesteak?) for similar sandwiches, essentially a split long roll 6″, 1 foot or multiple feet in length. Like all GK, if it’s familiar you don’t even blink and just move on (like “ked” which I have only met in crosswords) and if it isn’t it leads you down a path of exploration and learning.

35. Thanks both,
    I enjoyed this immensely, but as a paid up accountant (‘summer’) and pedant, feel the need to point out that most directorships are specifically non-executive positions.

36. TheZed @34: Thanks for that.  No, outside that chain of fast food restaurants, I don’t think I’ve come across the term here.

    I don’t get too exercised about GK that I don’t know – I agree with you, if it’s interesting , look it up and learn something new.  There’s quite a few terms that have slid gently into crossword lore that I only ever come across in that field:  Whoever, for instance, would slip flower or banker instead of river into the conversation?  (Or tar, come to that!)

37. I grew up with the phrase “pissed as a newt” so that threw me… but never heard of BLADDERED; and as a Japanese speaker and sumo fan, I’m ashamed of how long that one took! OCHE is new to me, but I thought OP-ED was well known.

    I confess to disappointment that there wasn’t more of a Springsteen theme; I was so excited at the beginning!

38. Thanks for the comments about subs. I always assumed Subway’s first shops were in underground stations or something. If somebody asked me to go and buy a sub, I would have been clueless.

39. A wingless fly is surely an oxymoron?

    A flea and a fly in a flue

    Were caught, so what could they do?

    Said the flea “Let us fly,”

    Said the fly “Let us flee,”

    So they flew through a flaw in the flue.

    I thought Midsummer Day was the 21st.  Why is it the 24th here?  (I also thought that holding down control while typing Enter would skip just one line, but now it doesn’t work.)

40. Would a wingless fly not be called a walk?

41. Hi Valentine @39 – I had exactly the same thought about the wingless fly: that’s why I put the Chambers definition in quotation marks.  Thanks for that, Scutter. 😉

    Here’s more explanation about Midsummer’s Day.

42. Valentine @39

    June 21st is the summer solstice. Midsummer’s Day is more of a legal construct.

43. @39 Valentine
    If you press Shift+Enter it skips just one line (not Ctrl).

    Excellent puzzle. Can’t add much more on what’s been said but I loved the 24/6 shenanigans, WEDDING MARCH and PECCADILLO. OZEKI a new one on me.

44. I stared at FOUR for a long time and didn’t see it. I ended up guessing the answer which is so annoying given how obvious it now appears. Other than that I liked this and it’s difficult to pick a favourite -although SECOND FIDDLE made me smile.
    I have an idea that OZEKI Will become fixed in my brain.
    Thanks Puck

45. Happy St Patrick’s Day to Puck and Eileen and all contributors.

    Yeah great fun and amplified by Eileen’s astute parsings of MIDSUMMER DAY and PECCADILLO for two, and USHERETTES of which as my loi I forwent the pleasure of decryption.

    Enjoyed the ” Labour candidate’s complaint” and pleased to meet “ked” for the first, but I doubt for the last, time.

46. I got everything except 5dn and 6ac.  Should have got the former, but no hope at all of getting the latter.  Also couldn’t parse several of them (even though I got them), until seeing Eileen’s explanation.
    All that said, what a wonderful puzzle – it was completely fair and thoroughly enjoyable!

     

47. Lovely puzzle as always with Puck. All my favourites have been mentioned, but I must mention the yacht chandlery and general store we passed in Canada by a small canal, which advertised ‘submarines sold here’.
    Thanks Puck and Eileen.

48. Excellent crossword, full of playful and puzzling clues.  Four of the more straightforward clues (as it turned out) were taking me too long, and I decided to leave them.

    I’ve never heard of BLADDERED or OZEKI, but they were readily gettable.

    I particularly liked my first three in (MIDSUMMER DAY, FOUR and CLOUDBERRY) as well as NE’ER-DO-WELL and USHERETTES.

    Thanks to Puck and Eileen.

49. I spent a long time trying to fit BLOOTERED into 19 – a word for ‘drunk’ much used when I lived in Edinburgh in the 1970s. That’s a part of the world that has an amazing range of imaginative and expressive descriptions of that condition.

    Hear hear to all the appreciative comments about this excellent puzzle, and thanks to Eileen.

50. g larsen @49

    I don’t think I’ve heard “blootered” since Rab C. Nesbit departed our screens!

51. A masterclass of misdirection. Hoodwinked indeed! I’m surprised so many contributors have never heard of “bladdered”. Pretty common term around the East End, where I grew up. Many thanks to Puck for a delightful puzzle and Eileen for ironing out the wrinkles.

52. I was sure I posted yesterday to eulogise Puck and thank Eileen but I cant see it.So here it is.Bravo!

53. You did indeed, copmus – and I saw it before it disappeared! [See Gaufrid’s ‘Reason for lost comments’ post yesterday.]

54. Thank you Puck for a fun puzzle and Eileen for a brilliant blog – I would never have got the parsing for MIDSUMMER DAY!

55. What a pleasure to do this puzzle, even if a day late – I can see the reason for the comments on today’s Qaos puzzle.
    Thanks Eileen for the excellent blog – I doubt I would have ever seenwhere thr midday came from in MIDSUMMERDAY, nor what the 24/6 was on about.
    Thanks to Puck for the fun.

56. I’m glad that I didn’t give up on this one, despite it taking several days to get the last few sorted. In the end, Mrs Trog sorted out MIDSUMMER’S DAY for me, though unparsed – thank you Eileen for sorting that out; and thanks to Puck for the challenge.

57. Oops – should be no ‘S in the above!

58. As a Guardian Weekly subscriber I always get to this blog after it has died. All the same, just let me add a note about cloudberries. Picking them in Norway, where they are called “molte”, is a national sport in early autumn. No one will reveal his or her favourite site. Despite that special gk, I’m very grateful to Eileen for parsing 7d. The ruby red had me totally baffled for what is an orange berry.

59. It’s “Midsummer’s Day”, and it’s 21st.

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