Guardian 28,305 – Qaos

89 comments on “Guardian 28,305 – Qaos”

1. We always enjoy a Qaos. Spotted the theme about halfway throught but lack the GK in this area for it to have helped in any significant way.

   Favourites were IMPORT and BEWILDER.

   Thanks to Qaos and Andrew!

2. It’s all there: IMPORT/ANCEstor.

3. All very enjoyable. I had forgotten the name of Jack Worthing but saw the rest and it helped with a couple.

   Thanks to Qaos and Andrew

4. Definitely on the easy side and the theme helped, especially with JACKS and then WORTHING, BRACKNELL etc fell into place nicely. It was also fortuitous that I re-watched the old B&W film with the wonderful Edith Evans a couple of months ago. Ta Qaos & Andrew

5. I’m definitely finding Qaos’s puzzles more enjoyable these days. This was a quick and satisfying solve, and I thought that the theme was handled extremely well. While knowledge of the play and its author heightened the pleasure, it was, by no means, necessary to complete the puzzle.

6. Thanks Qaos and Andrew

   4D reminds me of the first Spoonerism I heard “There was such a truddle in my monk, I coouldn’t find my bandy old hag”

   minty

    

7. [AlanC @4 – maybe something wrong with your telly, it’s in Technicolor!]

8. Gladys @2, you beat me to it.

   And the HANDBAG was left in VICTORIA Station.

   Some nice refs in the clues too:  Jack and Algernon are ‘two men from another era’; the play is subtitled ‘A Trivial Comedy for Serious People’; and the surface of 27a brings to mind another Berkshire town where WILDE was put in prison.

   Andrew, your analysis of 18d has gone a bit Ummagumma  😉

   Very enjoyable, thanks Q & A

9. lots of fun, and definitely on the easy side for Qaos, even though I missed the theme as usual. Which, once pointed out, couldn’t have been more obvious. [I have such a strong memory of seeing the play in the West End as a child about 50 years ago, and loved that both our kids enjoyed it when we took them to the production at the Theatre Royal in York when they were young.]
   LOI was STREAK, I tried so hard to work out how STEAK meant criminal before the penny dropped.
   Thanks for the blog Andrew, and to Qaos for the fun.

10. Of course Shirl@7, stm not so good, although it reminded me of Ted Lowe’s snooker gaffe, ‘For those of you who are watching in black and white, the pink is next to the green’.

11. How funny – despite all the evidence I completely missed the theme (and couldn’t parse BRACKNELL).  Good fun nevertheelss. Many thanks to Qaos and Andrew.

12. That was fun!  Quite a easy solve for me today despite not knowing the theme (I’m just not that well read and generally quick thick) but the wordplay was so clear that it all just fell out.

    [Living in West Sussex may I just say that with its five theatres and varied set of events, a decent pier and fabulous fish & chips, Worthing is definitely worth a visit and makes for a more refined alternative to Brighton (which I also love but is neither East or West Sussex anymore).]

    Very nice puzzle Qaos; thanks for the parsing Andrew.

13. Quick and lots of fun, though I’m another one kicking myself for missing such a clear theme.

    Anyone else try MISTERMAN for 1a?

    Thanks to Andrew for setting me straight and Qaos for the fun.

14. Like HarpoSpeaks, STREAK was LOI and resisted almost as long as the rest of the puzzle.  It didn’t help that I dismissed ‘takes’ as the fodder early on.  For once, I spotted the theme in time for it to help: it seemed odd for Qaos to be satisfied with IMPORT on its own and that proved to be the unlocking of ANCESTOR and also led me to the man’s name beginning with O that had been eluding me.  It happens so rarely for me but is enormously satisfying when it does.

    Plenty to like, over and above the theme which managed to combine being unobtrusive with being all pervasive – and commenters above have identified further layers or reference which had passed me by but which are all delightful.  IMPORT, ANCESTOR and, particularly, EARNEST had lovely coherent  surfaces.  Likewise STUBBORN and ERRANT whilst HANDBAG was a Spoonerism to bring a smile as well as deliver perhaps the most iconic reference to the play.  I think I’m with brojo @1 in nominating BEWILDER for my favourite though I also enjoyed the slightly surreal clue and solution combination for SNOWMEN.

    Be Careful With That Axe, Essexboy 😀

    Thanks Qaos, who goes from strength to strength, and Andrew, who is still called Andrew

15. I tried Misterman and historian for 7 a. But on finishing everything else in record time ( thank you Qaos for a great themed puzzle) I went back and fixed it. I was puzzling about the possibility of Dorian somehow making a contribution but finally remembered the ever popular Ian and then the final letters fell into place. Thanks Andrew for an early blog before my evening gets too late. It’s not as much fun to post in my tomorrow morning as the uk is heading off to bed!

16. What a lovely puzzle !

    I was extraordinarily lucky with this. Following my habit of working through the clues in order, my first ones in were the consecutive IMPORT, ANCEstor and EARNEST, which started bells ringing, and the very next one was BRACKNELL, which. of course, clinched it. I was delighted to see beWILDEr and, as one not addicted to Spoonerisms, HANDBAG, which, of course, just had to be there.

    Lots of fun from beginning to end – I loved it.

    Many thanks to Qaos and Andrew.

     

17. [Hillman @13: this is totally off-topic but inspired by your MISTERMAN suggestion which made an immediate connect with me to the African American spiritual song, Sinner Man, memorably covered by Nina Simone.  It was recently used as the ending music for a surreal TV series, Lovecraft Country.  Inspired by hearing it for the first time in a long while in the first episode, I listened to the You Tube recording of same and was astonished/amused to see just how many people had commented below the clip along the lines of “brought here by Lovecraft Country”.  Dozens and dozens.  Just an interesting reflection on the Internet habits that have become second nature.  I have occasionally wondered if cruciverbalists checking Google during or after a themed puzzle or when there is a particularly obscure or contentious solution have a similar impact.]

18. Thought I was off to a flyer with EDWARDIAN in 7a! Even GEORGEIAN fits if you accept the misspelling

19. Well, like everyone else who has posted so far, I enjoyed this, though I missed the theme. Anything that contains a dig at Chris Grayling is likely to lift the spirits a bit.

    But it contained two of the worst clues I have seen for some time. How, apart from getting the crossers and seeing what fits, are you supposed to know that the men from another era in 7ac aren’t EDWARDIAN or that the game in 24ac isn’t FIVES (Eton or Rugby)? I’m afraid that this just seems to be lazy cluing. Something like “Winning man from another era” or “Uplifting game of cards” (referencing a car jack) would have been easy enough.

    And I’m afraid jamming together something called an IN KINDLE and taking 25% off it doesn’t appeal to me, either.

    Given that three clues thoroughly annoyed me but that overall I enjoyed this crossword, the rest of it must have been really good!

    Thanks to Qaos and Andrew.

20. Lovely puzzle Qaos. Thanks

21. Fun. Spotted theme, which got me BRACKNELL. Tried Edwardian first, before quickly realising had to be VICTORIAN. Favs BEWILDER and STUBBORN. Thanks to Qaos and Andrew

22. I thought this was very classy -to have IMPORT and ANCEstor in same row.

    Or with 25%off IN KINDLE   or 65% of BEWILDER (sorry that was mine)

    And of the choices available for 1a only one matches the theme and crossers

    Living on a tropical island near the Barrier Reef I wasnt famiiar with Mr Grayling but thought if he had a first name of Chris, then CRISIS would parse

    Google led  me to him-wasnt surprised he was a Tory. As for the card game it was obviously JACKS as in Worthing

    For once I pad attention and was rewarded. Thanks all.

23. NeilH @19: I can see your frustration and am sure this has been discussed here before – though can’t recall taking part.  I vaguely recall someone pithily observing “that’s what crossers are for”.  I don’t know whether the ‘rules’ of crosswords stipulate that a clue should be solvable in vacuum or whether its environment – generally crossers but also, potentially, adjacent clueing – can always be taken into account.  If it’s a matter of personal preference, I’m firmly in the latter camp – which is why I neither made much progress nor enjoyed the recent Paul alphabetical jigsaw.  Deprived of crossers, I found the majority of clues impenetrable. I know that’s not quite your point – you’re talking about differentiation between viable alternative solutions – but it’s surely comparable.  Given the reasonably solvable SITCOM, STUBBORN, ERRANT and HANDBAG, it can only be VICTORIAN.  In fact, only one of the first three is necessary.  Same argument applies to JACKS.  So I don’t share your criticism of the clues – but do like your second alternative multi-layered clue.  Glad you enjoyed the remainder of the puzzle.

24. Definitely on the easy side for a Qaos puzzle; I rattled through it so fast that I failed to spot the theme – although this is par for the course for me. There was a Guardian crossword some years ago (Brummie, I think) which contained the words SNOW, WHITE and the names of all seven dwarfs – and I still failed to spot a theme ?
    One tiny quibble: ‘beg’ is not quite the same as ‘desire’ – the former is active and the latter is more passive – ‘ask’ would have suited me better.
    But a hugely enjoyable solve

25. I also had EDWARDIAN in at 7a. But I did get the theme, and it helped me open up the bottom half of the grid with EARNEST.

    Lots of enterprising word fragments today from Qaos. AVERAGES and ANCESTOR were my favourites.

26. Spent too long trying to fit Algernon and Bunbury in somewhere. Loved the Reading Gaol allusion [well-spotted essexboy] Only the second time in my experience where the them has helped. I only wish my skill in solving matched the setter’s skill in compiling. 90% on the OldOtter method

27. Rejoice with me, for I have spotted my first theme ever!

    First 3 entries were HANDBAG, EARNEST, & OSCAR and with only those scant hints to go on, this rapier intellect spotted it!

    Can’t say more – too emotional.

28. I didn’t spot the theme til after I’d finished, but I’m a Worthing native, so I got a little kick out of it any was y.

29. William @27: I’m in danger of over-posting this morning but your achievement deserves acknowledgment and celebration.  As an habitual non-spotter of themes, I know how satisfying it is when they do materialise out of the mist and especially so when it’s mid solve rather than in retrospect.  If you’re still feeling emotional, it might be advisable to SCABBARD that rapier!

30. Well, when I spotted EARNEST I thought of The Importance of Being Earnest. Then I saw OSCAR and (Billy) WILDER and thought the theme must be his films, doh! I missed the IMPORT ANCE(STOR) – must have solved in the wrong order to notice (unlike Eileen, I have a go at some crossers once I have a few solved).

    Fairly straightforward solve and enjoyable.

    Thanks Qaos and Andrew.

31. Hillman @13. I had MISTERIAN at 1a, which has the advantage of fitting with all the crossers, but unfortunately not the theme. (There was a theme?) I remember thinking of the play when I solved BRACKNELL, but when it comes to looking for a theme I find it difficult to have to stop concentrating on the next clue, and then to step back and look again at those that I’ve already solved. (Sigh.)

    Mark @23. I vaguely recall someone pithily observing “that’s what crossers are for”. Who was that masked man? I didn’t even attempt 24a until I had a crosser, there were just too many possibilities. I do tend to agree with NeilH @19 though – it is not fair to have the correctness of a solution dependent on a theme unless the theme is announced, it seems to me.

32. Postmark @23 and NeilH @19 – I’ve always felt that ideally clues should be uniquely solvable without crossers, but the rule is broken often enough that I’ve come to accept it’s just a personal preference.

33. Only spotted the theme when prompted to look for it on the Guardian blog.  It stuck out like a sore thumb even though I have never read or seen any of Wilde’s work (of course have heard of “The Importance…”).  I admire the way the themers have been threaded through the puzzle. I found the clues on the whole, very precise and logical making for a quick solve.  Even the obscure towns BRACKNELL and WORTHING fell out from the very clear clueing.

    On the other hand, 1A is a poor clue as it relies on the crossers to get it exactly as there must be other legitimate entries e.g. ARTHURIAN for one. JACKS was my LOI and I wasn’t entirely sure it was the only possible answer so did use the check for it.

34. I am in complete agreement with NeilH @19 re the poor clues, it seems. (Apologies, I should really read the previous posts first.)

35. (Like ColinH and Maidenbartok) thanks for putting my home town on the map. Lots of Wilde connections in the down. And yes a wonderful pier). Lovely puzzle as always from Qaos and ta to Andrew

36. Was beginning to wonder when I had solved WORTHING and BRACKNELL early on whether others not particularly familiar with the map of England might struggle today. Then I got OSCAR and realised there was something rather more Important going on here. Chewed away on my pencil for a while before I saw BEING at 26ac, loi therefore…

37. Enjoyable – and I liked the reference to the location of my first job (it is not a pleasant town, and it wasn’t a pleasant job). Particularly liked the wordplay in 23D.

    Less keen on the two I eventually gave up on; I don’t follow ‘tackle’ as an envelope indicator(?), and agree with others about ‘beg’ as rather a loose synonym for ‘desire’.

    Thanks Qaos and Andrew.

38. I’m with those who believe that a good cryptic clue should have a unique solution. Crossers may help, but they shouldn’t be necessary to tell which of two or more equally valid answers is correct. If I want that sort of malarkey, I can do the Quick which is full of it.

39. Good to hear how very, very clever Andrew is & how quickly he solved it.

    We enjoyed it, despite completely missing the theme.

40. gladys @ 38

    Surely a set of clues with unequivocal solutions is little more than a quiz?

41. I hoped to find Gwendolen, Cecily, Chasuble, Lane, or at least a cucumber sandwiched somewhere in the grid. But I am pleased to say I never saw a spade.

42. Jim@37, i know what you mean, that one took me a while and eventually I decided that tackle here meant to wrap “WILD” up as in a bear-hug style tackle sometimes seen in rugby but it’s a stretch. I agree with a couple of other grumbles above, think that 33% works better for the KINDLE reduction (as there are two distinct parts to the word play and the reduction only applies to the second of them). I was going to grumble about a prism being a solid not a shape but I suppose a Toblerone tube could be described as being shaped like a prism so I won’t.

    FOI was SITCOM and I thought I had gone through a timewarp back to the Friends-themed puzzle not so long ago!

    [I’m in the camp that doesn’t mind clues requiring crossers to eliminate potential but wrong solutions, that’s why we have these grid things and not just a list of clues. But see Tony’s post in the latest Eye blog where I think he found a perfectly reasonable alternative solution to one clue, fitting all crossers – I suppose occasionally this will happen and we have to shrug and remind ourselves that it’s just a game, even in the Eye when there’s big money at stake.]

    I would probably still be trying to guess HANDBAG if I hadn’t got hold of the theme from OSCAR and EARNEST. Despite mutterings above I enjoyed it and my favourite was AVERAGES, thanks Andrew and Qaos.

43. I looked at the grid, with only two links between north and south and many words with a minority of crossers, and thought I would be in for a tough time. Not a bit of it, one of my fastest solves for some time. So fast I didn’t think about a theme. Speed is not everything.

    Our editor could profitably have swapped this and Pan yesterday. It would have encouraged less confident solvers to think that they could solve ‘harder’ setters, and have the pleasure of uncovering a theme too.

44. [Tyke@41: Very good!]

45. There are some discussions today on some subtle criteria, but so far nobody has commented on the blog’s assertion that in ESCALOPE, escape=free is slightly inaccurate.  I think Andrew is being too gracious.

46. Thanks Qaos and Andrew

    I’m only posting to highlight my excelling myself in theme-blindness. I got BRACKNELL fairly early on and thought “I wonder if that’s where Lady Bracknell in The Importance of being Earnest got her name?”, and still managed to miss the theme.

47. Dr. WhatsOn@45. Yes, free=>ESCA__PE is a bit more than slightly inaccurate. Did Qaos try to excuse himself with the question mark?

    Gazzh @42 has answered Jim’s point about tackle, I think, but ‘beg’ as rather a loose synonym for ‘desire’ needs answering. I was unsure about this, but I think Andrew in the blog is about right to equate it with ‘ask’. Think of “I beg your pardon”, an old fashioned thing to say which has somehow survived to modern times. Equivalents might have been crave, ask, wish and, yes, even desire, but these have mostly fallen out of use.

    I was rather uncomfortable with Grayling=>C(h)RIS, not just because it’s rather exclusive to UK solvers (which is excusable in a UK newspaper), but because I think the surname=first name style of clue is only really valid for people with unusual first names or who are national treasures. So Morecambe=ERIC is ok, if a little hackneyed; Milligan=SPIKE, why not; Hancock=MATT pretty dubious: perhaps justifiable by his recent prominence, but gives me a slightly queasy feeling. Being on first name terms with Failing Grayling is something else altogether. (Apologies to those who dislike politics with their crossword.)

48. Edwardian and Arthurian, my 1st two goes both fit 7a. I wasn’t appy?

49. I agree with what sh@47 just said about Grayling, but would add a point.  What made this extra challenging to this non-UK resident is not just that the person is obscure, but there are arguably better-known graylings, namely fish and butterflies.  Hence the situation of not knowing that you don’t know what is going on!

50. Nice puzzle. A rare one where I was able to figure out the parsings without looking over here! FOI was 8ac, LOI was 14ac, which meant that I didn’t get the theme until I finished.

    Needed a bit of help on 18d, as an American who doesn’t know that place. In tribute, I offer a clue based on the second largest city in the fifteenth largest conurbation in the States:

    At retreat, stupor for Pacific place (6)

51. Muffin @46 – I missed the theme despite loudly exclaiming A HANDBAG? as is my habit whenever I come across the word (much to my wife’s despair). Possibly a new low, even for me.

    Agreed with Trailman @43 too – as a relative novice who usually struggles beyond Monday, I thought this was more satisfying than either yesterday’s or the Quiptic – enough easier clues dashed around to give a good starting scatter of entries from which to work. Without having noticed the theme though WORTHING and BRACKNELL both took a long time to winkle out, speaking as a northerner.

52. Thanks Qaos, that was fun and not too taxing even though I missed the theme. Favourites wrre SNOWMEN, SITCOM, and STUBBORN. CRISIS came by way of the definition and crossings; I didn’t know Grayling and thought it might be slang for someone long in the tooth. Thanks Andrew for the blog.

53. I didn’t notice last night that the setter was Qaos.  When I saw it this morning, I looked for the theme, and I don’t know that I’ve ever found one faster.

    In the prison where I volunteer (or used to, in the long-ago days before lockdown), my inmate co-facilitators wanted to put on a role play about a volunteer teaching a Bible class in prison.  I took that role and gave myself the name of Miss Prism, a quiet joke with myself.

    Miss Prism in prison

    for 27a, did anyone else try putting KN in BRACE (support) and then wonder what to do with the LL’s?

54. This frequently puzzled Monkey found some of it easy enough, and no doubt thinking of the theme would have helped – but without the theme, OSCAR didn’t come to mind for a long time. As for JACKS, I suppose it’s one of those that might have been obvious on another day, but short words with short dd clues and common crossers are always a bit of a lottery for me. I much prefer clues such as 16 and 11, though inexperienced solvers can take an awfully long time to think of “sanatorium” for “hospital” – all you old hands may have forgotten how much harder it was before you picked up the tricks of the trade (dd for doctor and the like).

55. Valentine @53; exactly so; I had BRACE and wondered what the ‘LLs going on? I had to go back a second time to find the BRA and CELLS.

56. Valentine, re 27a, yes I did.

57. NeilH and others: to the range of 7a possibilities you can add in ARTHURIAN, which was the one that came to my mind; but I soon had a crosser which eliminated it.

58. Robi@55 – Me too (BRACE + LL).

     

59. [matt w @50:  TACOMA?  I take your point – it took a lot of head-scratching, and even after constructing it from the wordplay I was thinking, is that a place?  Or have I just made a hybrid out of Topeka and Oklahoma??]

60. essexboy @59  Tacoma is in Washington, in the conurbation of Seattle.

     

61. As one who always starts from the SW corner where the clues are invariably easier, BRACKNELL and WORTHING were my first two entries. So I immediately failed to spot the theme – and continued to fail to spot it while solving the rest.

    Quite brilliant to insert all these references without having to use esoterica to fill the awkward gaps.

62. Very nice puzzle. My only quibble is my usual one about using a generic common noun (man) to describe a proper noun (Oscar).  Surely, there’s a more clever way to clue Oscar than “man?”

     

63. [Thanks Valentine @60, I just googled it.  Birthplace of Bing Crosby no less!  As it’s in the Seattle area maybe I heard it in Frasier?]

64. [essexboy @63: Rock’n Me – Steve Miller Band
    I went from Phoenix, Arizona
    All the way to Tacoma
    Philadelphia, Atlanta, L.A.]

65. [essexboy

    You may have heard of the Tacoma Narrows bridge]

66. Cedric @35. There’s a pier in Bracknell?!

67. Re needing crossers, count me among those thinking it fine… have commented re that previously (possibly even a source of PostMark’s cited quote), also noting it’s akin to clues ref’ing (so depending on) other clues by number (tho perhaps some dislike that too).

    Re IN KIND, was fine w/25%. Clues often cobble fodder fr/multiple sources before applying a transform; this seems no different. I guess some see “‘s” as binding the transform to just that particle… but there’s good precedent for broader inclusion? Expand “‘s” to “has” and reread, and I see no reason to exclude “in” fr/fodder.

    Like sheffield hatter, thought of “beg your pardon” to get comfier (tho not quite cozy) with beg/desire.

    Petert, thanks (I think?) for the shout out re scoring, tho % was cellomaniac’s scale… mine being -1/square, -0.5 if uncrossed; we could call that the XOO (xword OddOtter) scale 🙂 . Speaking of which, found today mostly smooth sailing… yet came out -0.5 XOO, guessing warthing as LOI. It fits the wplay, and I’m clueless re Sussex (E, W, or otherwise), plus I missed the theme (40 yrs since I saw it and at best could name one character – guess which).

    Nonetheless, EARNESTly enjoyed this. Thought SNOWMEN cool (as in bad (as in good)). COTD is what cryptics sometimes do to me: BEWILDER

    Cheers to our setter, blogger, and commenters!

68. I parsed everything except for ‘Scan’ but I’m ashamed to say I completely missed the theme. (In my defence, ‘mlud, I forgot to look for one.)

    To be pedantic, it would need to be 33 1/3% off ‘Kindle’. Perhaps that’s why Qaos preferred 25% off ‘In Kindle’.

69. Katherine: Or simply 1/3 off… but either way, nicely observed (from one pedantismophile to another).

70. [Many thanks Penfold @64 and muffin @65, I guess either of those could have been in the back of my mind.  But it turns out I was right about Frasier – this is a clip from the Dr Nora episode, with Gillian Anderson as ‘Jenny from Tacoma’ and the superb Christine Baranski as Dr Nora.]

71. [muffin@65. I think it’s mandatory for engineering students, of whom I was one, to watch the films of the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows bridge. To limit the damage we do later]

72. [Kingsley@71 – Google Maps tells me that there are, currently, two parallel bridges across the Tacoma Narrows.]

73. […rather like, as Terry Wogan would have said, the Thelwell Fireduck!]

74. Great theme, great puzzle. A million thanks to Qaos for all the PDMs and smiles, and to Andrew for the whole blog but particularly for helping me to see why CRISIS worked at 5d (my only unparsed entry). Thanks also to many contributors for interesting remarks on the blog.

75. [Kingsley @71: Drove across both of them last year whilst on holiday!   I also remember being shown the film of Galloping Gertie in Year 1 “Mechanics” at uni – that and the collapse of Ronan Point.   These were preceeded by the lecturer showing a brief film of what he called “My Wife’s Wedding” – it was a Friday afternoon; he was bored; we were bored…]

76. [ OddOtter@69, I love it. Would your and Katherine’s exchange be an example of pedantismophiliation?

    And I agree that crossers are an integral component of “cross”word puzzles; otherwise, as PostMark@23 and Simon S@40 said above, why have a grid at all, it’s just a quiz. The only ones that are unfair are those that can have more than one correct answer with all the crossers in place. ]

    I loved this puzzle – great use of theme, no awkward clues to accommodate the theme, lots of nicely constructed clues. Thanks Q&A for the fun, and commenters for more fun.

77. JinA et al – see here re Chris Grayling.

78. Eileen – he’s failed again since then!

79. Have to quietly admire the number of solvers brave enough to admit to missing the theme despite entering BRACKNELL and EARNEST, not to mention OSCAR, and Qaos being the setter There have been Qaos puzzles where it has been difficult to work out the theme even after completion, but I don’t think there’s ever been one without a theme at all. Thanks to Qaos and to Andrew !

80. Only “brave” if one finds judgement for such a thing at all relevant… otherwise simply honest, and in the spirit of sharing/contrasting our often highly varied experiences and approaches. Find that such diversity makes us stronger.

    I often miss the forest for the trees; as an engineer & reductionist by nature, can’t help but disassemble/parse clues from their first word in, often not fully noting surfaces, let alone patterns over several clues. Usually have to force myself to stop and mentally step back a moment for that.

    And in this case, 40yrs doesn’t help; have surely forgotten more from that time than I’ll ever remember. So saw BRACKNELL as just another bit of unknown (to this USian) British geography, while EARNEST & OSCAR might as easily apply to someone sincere about film awards. But enjoyed the puzzle anyway, as well as the blog, including (perhaps esp.) re the theme. So no sheepishness here… life’s too short for such hangups.

81. For me, the top half went in very easily, but I struggled more in the bottom. STREAK was LOI and like others I couldn’t parse it – thanks, Andrew (and d’oh!). Was on the lookout for the theme (it is Qaos), but tried Gary Cooper first, then Oscar Wilde in general before settling on TIOBE (which I saw in London a few years ago with David Suchet as Lady Bracknell). By that time, though, I had all the theme related answers in, so no great help. Ta to Qaos

82. The only Grayling I knew about was AC Grayling. So had to guess without seeing the parsing. I did see the theme though and even checked Google to see if there was a Grayling in The Importance of Being Earnest.

83. Saw the theme after the towns went in, so looked for 7 letter lights for EARNEST and HANDBAG. That was the limit of my knowledge of the play. LOI curiously was OSCAR!

84. For 7a I went through the alphabet (Arthur, Edward, Gregor, Justin, …). Victoria was the last one to try.

85. Me @84. Sorry: Victor, not Victoria.

86. AlanB @85:  One of my all time favorite films… Victor/Victoria 🙂

87. [OddOtter @86
    I’m glad I reminded you of the film – I didn’t mean to. I never saw it, by the way – my only encounters with Blake Edwards were the Pink Panther films.]

88. [ Alan B @87:  Highly recommended viewing if you get the chance… much more sophisticated than the Pink Panther films; Julie Andrews is sublime (example), and Robert Preston is a riot (example)… and then there’s the cockroach scene 🙂 ]

89. I am always very happy when I do not see a theme (and I never look for them) because if I do see a theme then often some of my answers are simply GK and not solving a cryptic clue

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