Guardian 28,385 – Paul

65 comments on “Guardian 28,385 – Paul”

1. I found Paul to be on very challenging form this morning and Andrew’s preamble describes my solving experience precisely. Perhaps the fact it didn’t get any easier is why I was left with a real feeling of satisfaction at cracking this. After two passes, I only had our old friend, WEAR, and then the other ‘easy’ one – RETAIL – popped out. Everything else took several goes – but it all solved with a nice mixture of pennies dropping and smiles of realisation. Particularly nice to have some of those where you get an inkling of an idea, worry away at it and eventually it turns out to be right.

   Big ticks for several in that last category: WHISKY MAC where I wondered about a possible anagram of MAYC; ARISTOCRAT where a reversal including SIR was suggested; ALICANTE where it could have been any of a host of phrases but possibly contained in ALE… The homophone made me laugh, LOOK IN could only be that with Paul, WHIPPET is succinct, DEATH BY CHOCOLATE is a cute cryptic definition and I admired the anagrams for both FIVE SECOND RULE (which I employed only last night!) and WIGAN ATHLETIC.

   Thanks to Paul and Andrew

2. Another tough but fun challenge from Paul. My favourites were DEATH BY CHOCOLATE and FIVE SECOND RULE (which I believe is myth rather than fact, but I’m sure the scientists on here will know). I also liked RETAIL, MARCO POLO, LIMPID and ARISTOCRAT, which was new but gettable.

   I remember drinking Whisky Mac, ‘The Golfer’s favourite’, from a bottle as a teenager as an alternative to cider (how sophisticated).

   Ta Paul & Andrew

3. Yep, no write-in, sparse, limpid, biotech and slapstick first run thru. Then a couple of contenders for GOD (groan of [the] day), o de cologne, elf [up] in dirt. Then a bit of a chew, and finally done. But not without check button..satanically seductive, as someone recently said. Thanks both.

4. Yes, tough but enjoyable. Only one bit of Pauline toiletry with 20D, but some clues which really were a fine setter on the top of his game – ARISTOCRAT, WHISKY MAC, BIOTECH, COCKATIEL and above all the superb WIGAN ATHLETIC (though “…initially administered” would have been more accurate and would have worked just as well).
   I wasn’t aware of the FIVE SECOND RULE (my approach has tended to be that you will eat a peck of dirt before you die anyway) but the clever anagram got me there.
   Thanks to Paul and Andrew.

5. Paul up his usual standard. Enjoyable, entertaining and as ever scrupulously fair.
   Managed to misdirect myself in solving ODOUR before COLOGNE. Guessing that I was looking for a homophone to link to a European city, I set off on a fruitless tour down the River ODER.
   Thanks to Paul and Andrew.

6. I agree with the tenor of all the previous comments – tough, challenging, not a write-in! Hadn’t heard of the FIVE-SECOND RULE, which together with TRIFLED were LOI for me. Liked SPRINKLING, ARISTOCRAT and ALICANTE in particular. Many thanks to Paul and Andrew.

7. Reading 2d reminded me of the “Yul never wore cologne” crossword.
   As I get older, the five second rule gets longer and longer. Think I’m up to the five minute rule. Never ceases to amaze me that when I drop something on the kitchen floor, it just seems to miraculously disappear. For some reason, the small gap at the side of the washing machine is a favourite place. Blister packs may help keep things hygienic but I’m forever having their contents flying about the place.

8. Many aspects of my solve have already been touched on in Andrew’s blog and in the comments already posted. I also found this one a difficult challenge, with some references with which I was unfamiliar in the clues, for instance “a silk stocking” for an ARISTOCRAT in 10a, as well as some unfamiliar aspects of solutions such as (WHISKY) MAC at 13a and WIGAN (ATHLETIC) at 8d. Nevertheless I did enjoy 15, 27, 25 FIVE-SECOND RULE, , 22 LIMPID, 2d ODOUR, 3,17 DEATH BY CHOCOLATE, 5d RETAIL (I always appreciate an Aussie reference), 16d WHIPPET and 18d COLOGNE. I needed lists of European cities for the latter, as well as for ALICANTE at 12a, my LOI. Thanks to Paul and Andrew.

9. Wow – tough, tough, tough but some lovely surfaces as always with Paul.

   NeilH @4: I wasn’t aware of the FIVE SECOND RULE prior to moving to the US – apparently it is a very common school-yard myth and certainly my son was quite flexible in that it became the 10 second rule, then the 15 second rule, etc.

   Thanks to Paul and Andrew!

10. I’m sure there will be complaints about ODOUR COLOGNE but I loved it. I’d like to think I’d be just as tickled if I had to imagine a homophone that didn’t quite work in my accent.

    Not used to seeing a SMARTIE without his/her pants, but I’m all for new experiences. Thanks Paul and Andrew.

11. More or less what everyone else said: a slow start and no walkover but all the better for that. DNK silk stocking for an ARISTOCRAT which was my last in. Yes, a CROCUS is perennial, but not the kind of plant you would usually hear so described. Got ODOUR COLOGNE in that order (ouch!). No obscurities, just really good cluing.

    Hovis@7: Things dropped on the kitchen floor used to vanish instantly: it’s called a cat. Sadly she is now no more and I have to pick them up myself, if they are not already under the fridge.

12. I thought I did OK this morning, although there was a lot of fill-first-parse-later going on. Had to come here for Andrew’s explanation of TRIFLED and I’m still not convinced (thanks Andrew – not your fault!).

    ODOUR COLOGNE is typical Paul. He must think of dozens of puns while setting for the Indy or FT and think ‘that’s definitely a Guardian clue’. I latched onto ODOUR quite early which made it easier.

    MARCO POLO and CROCUS were my favourites today.

13. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a Paul puzzle so much. Yes, it was slower going than usual but really satisfying, as others have said.

    I was glad to see that others had not heard of the FIVE-SECOND RULE (though I have unwittingly applied it on occasion) or SILK STOCKING in that context.

    My favourites were CROCUS, WHISKY MAC, WIGAN ATHLETIC, WHIPPET, COLOGNE and MARCO POLO.

    Many thanks to Paul and to Andrew.

14. Hard start, then NW and SE filled in. NE held out longest, mainly because I didn’t know about the silk stocking. I also had trouble spotting the anagrinds today. On the tougher side of Paul’s output.
    Thanks to him and to Andrew for clearing up some of the parsing.

15. Challenging and thoroughly enjoyable – Paul rarely disappoints!

16. Great stuff! Thanks Paul and fellow disciple.

17. An enjoyable accompaniment to the cricket. I only had to look outside for plenty of hints for 4ac. Particularly liked FIVE SECOND RULE, WHISKY MAC, WHIPPET, COLOGNE and MARCO POLO and the Latics.

    Thanks Paul and Andrew.

18. “Cry of frustration” was about right for me this morning. The setter on much better form than the solver, I thought when, with a bit (ok a lot) of help I finally got there. It’s always a pleasure when you solve two clues at once, though as with ODOUR COLOGNE.

19. Quite a tough challenge. It was hard for me to get started on this puzzle, especially for the ones requiring GK, but they were more gettable than yesterday’s fencing term.

    Favourites: MISSPOKE, CROCUS, ARISTOCRAT, WHIPPET, TRIFLED, ALICANTE (loi).

    New words for me today: POLO = car; cockatiel; PRINK = groom (for 24ac); Wigan Athletic (gettable with help from google to confirm that Wigan exists LOL); five-second rule; whisky mac; clever clogs = smartie.

    Thanks, Paul and Andrew.

20. A super satisfying crossword, as others have said, with great surfaces and word play. I enjoyed the mental image of trying to apply make-up to a (reluctant) bear… ‘Prink’ is totally new to me, a pleasing little word.

    Thanks Paul and Andrew.

21. Everyone on the G thread was in raptures over this.
    Time to throw a spanner in the works.
    I liked CROCUS, BROODY,HEARTH, RETAIL,COLOGNE,ODOUR,WHIPPET
    DEATH BY CHOCOLATE easy for chocoholics
    WHISKY MAC a bit laboured in the wordplay
    Never heard of FIVE SECOND RULE and dont want to hear of it again
    PRINK=GROOM a bit much although the answer was obvious

    Whereas last week’s Prize was a pure pleasure to solve.

    Thanks Andrew and Paul

22. 26a – In what sense is TAKING “attractive”? Is it just me?

23. Another tough one but somehow I got there with a little help. Started quickly with LIMPID, COLOGNE and DEATH BY CHOCOLATE. Loved ODOUR and many others. Failed to parse ALICANTE, SPRINKLING so thanks Andrew and of course Paul

24. Very slow, frustrating start to this. Eventually wormed my way in with LOOK IN and the SE corner. Several were more hit and hope than I would have liked, ALICANTE, ARISTOCRAT and WIGAN ATHLETIC to name but three. But in retrospect a good, tough challenge this morning. Liked WEAR and HEARTH…

25. I have heard of the five-second rule; it’s when the scrum half in rugby is given that time to ‘use it’. Otherwise, I’ve never heard of it. I think there might have been a scientific study once (Ig Nobel?) to see why buttered toast always seems to fall onto the floor with the butter side downwards. Yes, obviously a myth; you don’t need long for food (particularly absorbent) to get contaminated.

    I had the same experience as most here seem to have done. A slow start, followed by an entertaining, protracted reveal – very entertaining.

    I did particularly enjoy WHISKY MAC, MISS POKE and TRIFLED. A bit naughty that without qualification the silk stocking usage seems to be American, and the meaning of TAKING is given as dated.

    Thanks Paul and Andrew.

26. A slog for me but got there in the end. I find that I am frequently not on Paul’s wavelength, but it is comforting to know that others found it a challenge. CROCUS elicited a chuckle and was my fav. Like others I didn’t know that meaning of silk stocking, that and a better knowledge of football ckubs would have seen a slightly faster solve. Ta to Pauk and to Andrew

27. Like most, I found this a little tough to get into, but it yielded gracefully with patience.

    Dwyster @22 – ” … a girl full of easy laughter, flushed from the sun, inclined to wipe her laughing face in a very natural and taking manner.” [The Rainbow, DH Lawrence]

28. Dwyster @22: I can’t match Miche’s quote but the first definitions of ‘taking’ in Collins online are :

    1. charming, fascinating, or intriguing
    2. (informal)
    infectious; catching

    Interesting that, had ‘attractive’ been equated with ‘fetching’, I doubt if anyone would have questioned it. Taking, fetching … neither of them suggest attractiveness in themselves. The joys of English.

29. ”’ yes, the Ig Nobel was awarded to Robert Matthews for studies including the buttered toast in 1996.

30. Thanks Paul and Andrew
    I’m surprised that posters liked ARISTOCRAT. It exemplifies the type of clue I like least – several loose synonyms put together in a complicated way to fulfil an obscure defintition. It was my LOI, by way of a wordsearch.
    BIOTECH and WHIPPET favourites.

31. [I remember the story of a statistician noticing that whenever his child dropped a piece of toast, it landed butter side up. Further investigation revealed that the child was buttering it on both sides…]

32. Dwyster @8-credit where due-check TASKING in any thesaurus
    muffin @31 arf!

33. TAKING sorry!

34. Dwyster @22: In the same way that ‘fetching’ means ‘attractive’?

    Dantheman @5: I too travelled down the Oder but my European geography is so dreadful that I reached COLOGNE.

    Good fun today. Thanks Paul and Andrew

35. Dwyster @22 in spite of what copmus@33 suggests I agree with you. Fetching yes but TAKING never heard of it.
    I found this tough but apart from the aforementioned fair.
    Thanks Paul and Andrew

36. After a good solving week, true to form, I could not get one answer, Paul remains a complete mystery.

37. Dwyster @22 and SPanza @35 – it works for me in the passive: “I was taken by …”

38. I meant to say, “… quite taken by”, which is more common, I think.

39. A complete reversal for me from the last few days when I’ve felt like an England batsman bamboozled by spin – today the ball was in my hand and the wickets tumbled with little resistance. Probably just relief that no googling of niche knowledge was required

40. Thanks Eileen, @37 and 38. I get it now. Yes, it works well as, ‘I was taken by’ and ‘I was quite taken by’. Funny how these things can seem so simple once pointed out!!

41. [bodycheetah @30. Oh if only the England cricket team could feel that way! We did well today until the seventh wicket stand. Credit to Pant and Washington, however, poor selection policy I think!

42. muffin @30: Nice to see someone say what I was thinking re ARISTOCRAT.

43. I’m with Eileen@13 in finding this the best Paul (ever?). Most clues were succinct (within one line on my print out) and I had ticks galore – all of which have been mentioned. I’d give my double tick to CROCUS. Yes, it was tough but very fair and didn’t have the convoluted clues Paul sometimes comes up with.
    I think setters are becoming more inventive with their definitions – maybe as synonyms are easier to find with online search engines? Whilst the surface of ARISTOCRAT might have been a bit tortured I still thought it was a well constructed clue with a clever definition. 10 out of 10 (maybe 9.5) for me so many thanks to Paul and Andrew for matching the blog to it.

44. I couldn’t get into this one at all. Last night I had RETAIL and LOOK IN. This morning I added MARCO POLO and then could get no farther without judicious applications of the check button. Slowly wormed my way through it.

    I enjoyed the bear with makeup and the critters in WHIPPET.

    Thanks, Paul and Andrew.

45. MaidenBartok @9: “…quite flexible in that it became the 10 second rule, then the 15 second rule, etc.” With me it’s due to the onset on inflexibility (as with Hovis @7).

    Like essexboy @10 I was initially reluctant to enter SMARTIE in the absence of pants, so that was eventually one of my last in, as was WEAR. I blamed the cricket for my slow start, but it took quite a while after stumps before I got a good foothold in this game.

    The problem with Paul in this mood (his mood, and my mood) is being on his wavelength with the dodgy synonyms, which would perhaps be helped by having better recall of the last time he used them. (I’m sure we’ve had wire=EARTH in the last few weeks, but it still took me ages.)

    Thanks to Paul for the prolongued entertainment, and sympathy to Andrew for having this one to solve before writing the blog, and appreciation for the good job well done.

46. 3,17 went in right off the bat. Then it was just a slog to finish. Paul seems to be fitting in in the Friday slot when not setting the Prize. Thanks the Paul and Andrew.

47. Eileen @38; yes, ‘quite taken by’ is a common expression. However, I don’t think that means that ‘taking’ in its adjectival sense is used as such these days. The example given in the ODE (where it is listed as dated) is: ‘He was not a very taking person, she felt’. I can’t imagine anyone saying something like that these days (?) Fetching is still used, of course.

48. In view of the current crisis at Wigan Athletic- still in an ownerless limbo -the clue at 8 down is topical and, to long-term followers, painful.

49. [Robi @47: I like to think of myself as more of a giving than a taking person. I guess for Paul that makes me repulsive, not attractive.]

50. Thanks Andrew, I guessed at TAKING but had no idea why it might be correct (thanks also for those adding to the discussion above)beyond a King being male, forgetting as usual the chess connotation – also delighted to learn PRINK, a very amusing-sounding word (not a million miles from “pimp” as in “pimp my ride”, I wonder if there is a connection?).
    Slow start here too, needed the winger to get me tuned to roughly the right wavelength. It is always the three second rule in our house ( but I count quite slowly) so that took a while, and my last was the almost impenetrable ARISTOCRAT. (Don’t get me started on the “down under” part of RETAIL.) However CROCUS very neat and topical as their colours begin to emerge, ALICANTE is linked with many happy times but just ahead of them a warming WHISKY MAC on a cold grey day here, thanks Paul.

51. With ref to 5 second rule, am I the only one to remember the old rhyme:
    I never had a piece of toast
    Particularly broad and wide,
    But landed on the sanded floor,
    And always on the buttered side!

52. Markfieldpete @52. We had a book in my family growing up, called Verse and Worse, which included that one, which is a parody of a verse from a poem called Lalla Rookh by Thomas Moore: “I never nurs’d a dear gazelle/To glad me with its soft black eye…” .

    My mother was very fond of quoting it at appropriate moments – the toast, that is, not the gazelle. We never had a dear gazelle.

53. SH @53
    I know “Lalla Rookh” as a song by Fairport Convention. It’s about a figurehead on sailing boat.

54. I think I got as far as LIMPID before I had a lock on a word. Then things started to unfold. It certainly was a mind stretcher and needed a brain reset (snooze) in the middle of solving. I eventually had to resort to a football club list to confirm WIGAN. It took a while but I did enjoy it as everything was well signposted. Thanks Paul, and Andrew for the explanations.
    As someone once said “What u

55. Dyslexic fingers. The quote should have been “What use is the five second rule in a house with a three second dog?”

56. [Lalla Rookh
    Is a naughty book
    By Tommy Moore
    Who has written four
    Each warmer
    Than the former
    So the most recent
    Is the least decent.

    Can’t remember if that one is in Verse and Worse.]

57. I’m at odds with most people today in that I found this to be one of Paul’s quickest solves in ages, and also very witty. Loved it all, but particularly CROCUS, which reminded me of the bizarre David Icke fantasies, FIVE-SECOND RULE, ODOUR COLOGNE and WHIPPET. The WIGAN ATHLETIC clue was very apposite but a bit sad, as Roman @48 pointed out. A tick also for the simple but effective WEAR.
    Thanks, Paul and Andrew. Pity I finished a bit too late for the Zoom.

58. Thanks indeed to Paul and Andrew.
    A rare sense of unanimity for this lovely quirky puzzle. I thought the surface for ARISTOCRAT was worth the labour.
    Who can we expect for the prize tomorrow (some seem to know (but how?))?

59. That was tough — I started last evening and worked on it again today. I did finally reveal a few; I realised that TAKING (attractive) and ARISTOCRAT (silk stocking) were never going to happen due to my “definitional” deficiency. There was much to admire as there always is with Paul. I particularly enjoyed CROCUS, FIVE-SECOND RULE, and MARCO POLO. Thanks to both.

60. Markfieldpete@52, sheffieldhatter@54
    This in turn reminds me of “I never saw a purple cow. I never hope to see one But I can tell you anyhow, I’d rather see than be one!” As I may have mentioned before, you would recognise a purple cow if you heard one because it moo’d indigo.

61. Paul never disappoints.

    Many thanks both.

62. …but, although enjoyable, unlike others I didn’t find this to be at his coruscating best. Still very good….

63. FIVE SECOND RULE was so obviously an anagram, but I miscounted the letters. Also his hint in the zoom invite made me think BEST-BEFORE DATE. But COCKATIEL and MARCO POLO obviously ruled that out. So FSR and TRIFLED were the LOIs. FOI was HEARTH then DEATH BY CHOCOLATE but that didn’t go in until I got a few crossers.

64. Liked this very much, but misread 18 down as 16 down, and so EAU DE WHIPPET. Our whippet is nicknamed Polly Puddle, and decided Paul must have one like that too.

65. Tricky one but got there. Reading The Rainbow just now. Can’t wait to get to the quote…or have I passed it?

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