A witty puzzle from Bluth as always, with some hidden treasures.
A few of the solutions rang vague bells in my mind, but when I saw 13d/29d it suddenly became obvious that we have a theme. It’s the BBC TV quiz Only Connect (33d 22a).
- During the first two rounds of questions in each episode, the teams take it in turns to choose one of six questions, which are identified by Egyptian hieroglyphs: LION, WATER, TWO REEDS, TWISTED FLAX, EYE OF HORUS, HORNED VIPER. They’re all here in the grid (highlighted below in various shades of blue and green). Lion and Water also appear in round 3.
- The final round of the quiz is THE MISSING VOWELS ROUND, where contestants have to identify phrases from which all the vowels have been removed: you could call it THMSSNG VWLSRND. Which is in rows 5 and 11 of the grid (highlighted below in pink).
It’s an impressive piece of puzzle construction, and perhaps excuses one or two slightly obscure entries (which are clearly clued anyway). Some lovely clues: 11a is ingenious (if a little long-winded), 18d’s suggestion of a sports team being given dubious substances is naughty but amusing, and 21d is neat. Thanks Bluth for a very enjoyable solve.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | BLUFF |
Cliff‘s affable deception (5)
|
| Triple definition. A steep cliff or bank; hearty, frank and good-natured; a pretence of knowledge, competence or intention that you don’t really have. | ||
| 4 | REEDS |
Thatcher’s material delivered by communists around start of election (5)
|
| REDS (communists) around the starting letter of E[lection].
Thatcher = not the former PM, but someone who builds or repairs thatched roofs using bundles of reeds. |
||
| 8 |
See 24
|
|
| 9 | OILY |
Greasy old cycle is regularly brought back (4)
|
| O (old), then alternate letters (regularly) from [c]Y[c]L[e] I[s] reversed (brought back). | ||
| 10 | POTATO |
Perhaps King Edward‘s dropping round junk (6)
|
| POO (slang for an animal dropping) around TAT (worthless stuff = junk).
King Edward is a traditional variety of potato grown in the UK. |
||
| 11 | NUTMEGGING |
Sally Nugent with gig covering header from Messi, putting the ball between the opponent’s uprights? (10)
|
| Anagram (sally = the leaping or rocking motion of a ship, or a sudden rushing out as in a military attack) of NUGENT + GIG, containing the first letter (heading) of M[essi]. If you’re wondering, she’s a reporter on the BBC News channel.
Nutmeg (in football) = to kick the ball between an opposing player’s legs, so the “uprights” here are legs rather than goalposts. |
||
| 15 | EMOTION |
Maybe passion fruit peeled into salad (7)
|
| [l]EMO[n] (a fruit; peeled = outer letters removed) + anagram (salad) of INTO. | ||
| 17 | WHEEL |
One goes round with a despicable person (5)
|
| W (with) + HEEL (a despicable person). | ||
| 20 | OVA |
Virginia’s on ordinary eggs (3)
|
| VA (abbreviation for the US state of Virginia) added to O (ordinary, as in O-Level exams for those of us who can remember that far back).
Scientific term for egg cells. |
||
| 22 | CONNECT |
Associate prisoner with case of negligence before court (7)
|
| CON (short for convict = prisoner) + outer letters (case) of N[egligenc]E + CT (abbreviation for court). | ||
| 23 | TWISTED |
Fool welcoming Sun journalist is misrepresented (7)
|
| TWIT (fool), containing (welcoming) S (short for sun), then ED (short for editor = journalist).
As in “twist someone’s words” = interpret them to mean something that the speaker didn’t intend. |
||
| 24/8 | ONE-TWO |
Footballers’ move inside to network (3-3)
|
| Hidden answer (inside) in [t]O NETWO[rk].
Footballing move where one player passes to a team-mate, then moves quickly to another position to receive the ball back from the same player. |
||
| 25 | DOYEN |
Professor entertaining the old dean (5)
|
| DON (university professor) containing (entertaining) YE (old form of “the”). Standard disclaimer that “ye” in this sense is actually “the” written with the archaic English letter “thorn” (which looks a bit like a lowercase y in mediaeval writing).
Doyen = dean = senior academic, or (more generally) the most senior, experienced or respected person in a group. |
||
| 28 | RHIZOME |
Stalk underground art whizz discovered by women’s centre (7)
|
| [a]R[t] [w]HIZ[z] (dis-covered = outer letters removed) + centre letters of [w]OME[n].
A horizontal plant stem just below the ground surface. |
||
| 31 | MILLIONTHS |
Factory on this island moving to start manufacturing minute parts (10)
|
| MILL (factory), then ON THIS with the I (island) moving to the start. Manufacturing (making) is a link between wordplay and definition: “MILL + I ON TH[i]S makes . . .”. | ||
| 35 | ARNICA |
Plant transported in a car (6)
|
| Anagram (transported) of IN A CAR.
Yellow-flowered plant related to the sunflower (but smaller). Perhaps not a very well-known plant, but helpfully clued with an obvious anagram. |
||
| 36 | NEWS |
Index was oddly missing information (4)
|
| [i]N[d]E[x] W[a]S (oddly missing = odd-numbered letters removed). | ||
| 37 |
See 39
|
|
| 38 | HORUS |
Singers initially rejected God (5)
|
| [c]HORUS (a group of singers; initially rejected = without the first letter).
Ancient Egyptian deity. |
||
| 39/37 | EYE OF DAY |
I heard aged generation’s getting The Sun (3,2,3)
|
| Homophone (heard) of I, then OF (aged, as in “a child of 2” = aged 2) + DAY (generation, as in “in my day”).
Poetic phrase for the sun; slightly obscure, but our setter needed the first two words for the theme. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | LION |
31’s cat (4)
|
| 31’s = belonging to 31 = hidden answer in 31a: [mil]LION[ths]. | ||
| 3 | FLAX |
In France, salmon is a source of fibre (4)
|
| F (abbreviation for France) + LAX (cured salmon, as in the Scandinavian version known as gravadlax or similar names).
Fibre as in thread (linen), though flax seeds (linseeds) can also be a source of dietary fibre. |
||
| 4 | ROUTS |
Massively beats cycling our trikes after vacation (5)
|
| OUR with the letters “cycling” so the R moves round to the front, then T[rike]S (after vacation = empty).
Rout = defeat completely (in battle or in a sporting contest) = massively beat. |
||
| 5 | ENMESH |
Nurse, occasionally I’m tense on a little horse and trap (6)
|
| EN (abbreviation for Enrolled Nurse) + alternate letters (occasionally) of [i]M [t]E[n]S[e] + first letter (a little) of H[orse]. | ||
| 6 | SOIGNE |
Carefully done engraving is about love in retirement (6)
|
| ENG (abbreviation for engraving, as in a print made from an engraved drawing) + IS, around O (zero = love in tennis scoring), all reversed (in retirement).
Well-groomed or elegant (from the French soigner, “to take care of”). |
||
| 7 | FLING |
Shy affair (5)
|
| Double definition: shy = fling = throw, or a brief relationship (especially an extra-marital one). | ||
| 8 | TON |
100 against 24, essentially (3)
|
| TO (against = towards) + middle letter (essentially) of [o]N[e] (24a).
Ton = slang for 100, especially in cricket scoring. |
||
| 12 | TEACH |
Celebrate a champion’s attributes for school (5)
|
| Hidden answer (. . .’s attributes?) in [celebra]TE A CH[ampion].
School, as a verb = teach. |
||
| 13/29 | HORNED VIPER |
Phone driver about something highly toxic (6,5)
|
| Anagram (about = scattered) of PHONE DRIVER.
Name of various species of snakes, all of them venomous (toxic). |
||
| 14 | MISERY |
Is Queen entertained by my sadness (6)
|
| IS + ER (Elizabeth Regina = the Queen), contained in (entertained by) MY. The surface might refer to the famously “not amused” Queen Victoria perhaps? | ||
| 16 | NOT ON |
Unacceptable, whichever way you look at it (3,2)
|
| Palindrome = reads the same backwards as forwards = whichever way you look at it.
Slang for unacceptable, as in “that’s just not on”. |
||
| 17 | WATER |
Drink consumed in the outskirts of Winchester (5)
|
| ATE (consumed) in the outer letters (outskirts) of W[incheste]R. | ||
| 18 | ELIXIR |
A substance that can invigorate and rile up touring team (6)
|
| RILE reversed (up = upwards in a down clue), around (touring) XI (eleven = a sports team, for example in football or cricket).
As in “the elixir of life”. |
||
| 19 | LOTION |
Left lid off 18, showing balm (6)
|
| L (left) + [p]OTION (18 = reference to 18d ELIXIR; lid off = first letter dropped). | ||
| 21 | IDLED |
Ran out of gear – Bluth had been in front (5)
|
| I’D LED = Bluth (the crossword setter) telling us that he had been in front.
Idle (of a car engine) = to run without the gears engaged, so the car doesn’t move. |
||
| 26 | OWLISH |
Member of Parliament is hard and solemn (6)
|
| OWL (a bird for which the collective noun is “a parliament of owls”) + IS + H (abbreviation for hard).
Owlish = appearing serious or intelligent. |
||
| 27 | ELOPER |
Hitcher who travels? (6)
|
| Cryptic definition: someone who runs away (travels) to get married (hitched). | ||
| 29 |
See 13
|
|
| 30 | STUDS |
Film companies editing out ten hunks (5)
|
| STUD[io]S (film companies), editing out the IO = 10 = ten.
Hunks = studs = virile-looking men. |
||
| 32 | SAY |
Deliver vote, for example (3)
|
| Triple definition. To speak = deliver a speech; vote, as in “to have a say”; or “as an example”. | ||
| 33 | ONLY |
No more than 9 making independent navy (4)
|
| Reference to 9a O[i]LY, with the I (independent) replaced by N (navy as in RN = Royal Navy). | ||
| 34 | ECHO |
Reverberation from karate-chop (4)
|
| Hidden answer (from . . .) in [karat]E CHO[p]. |
Thanks Quirister & Bluth. I spotted the Only Connect theme early , which put me on the alert for some of the other answers, but I missed (!) the missing vowels Nina, which is a lovely extra touch.
More often than not, I miss themes and Ninas but not today. The missing vowels Nina was particularly clever
Thanks to Bluth for the lovely Only Connect tribute and to Quirister for the blog
Last time it was “The Chase” and now “Only Connect”. Shame I’ve never watched either of them. What a brilliant grid fill though. The inclusion of THe MiSSiNG VoWeLS RouND makes the whole achievement scarcely believable. Bravo Bluth.
What a joy!
Like Andrew, I spotted the theme quite early, glad to have it confirmed by HORNED VIPER.
Since I tackle the clues in order, I had the audacity to think Bluth had missed a trick at 9ac (OILY), only to burst out laughing and kick myself when I reached 33dn – a little gem.
The bottom two or three rows took as long as the rest of the puzzle put together, as I tried to fit EYE into one of the two three-letter spaces and got into a bit of a pickle. I didn’t think I’d ever met EYE OF DAY but I suppose I must have, because it suddenly dawned (!) from somewhere and everything fell into place.
I just wish I’d seen the missing vowels – sheer genius! Chapeau to Quirister for that and for a thoroughly brilliant blog.
Huge thanks to Bluth for the fun – I absolutely loved it. No clues to go into my little book of classics today: I shall keep the whole puzzle!
Can’t believe I missed the the theme (not surprised I missed the Nina) spent ages trying to shoehorn a J in for a pangram though!!!
Interesting grid choice today with some nice ways in, but I ran aground later on as usual but plenty of learning along the way
NUTMEGGING my COTD (although I assumed footballer David Nugent unaware of broadcaster Sally Nugent so even cleverer) and the ‘uprights’ misdirection was great
Agree with all the contributors, this was an amazing piece of work and thanks to Quirister for pointing out all I missed
Thanks Bluth for all the fun, stunning work
A breathtaking achievement from Bluth today. As Eileen said, Chapeau to both setter and blogger. One of those occasions where the revelation of the theme put a whole load of things into context. I’d wondered about the considerable number of short words and the odd grid. Only Connect is one of those shows I’m aware of – HORUS rang a faint bell when I solved it – but I’m no regular watcher. (I’m sure most will be aware of the bit of trivia about the presenter who is also an extremely accomplished self-taught (I think) poker player.) Unfortunately that meant some of the other allusions to the theme – especially the Nina – were lost on me so it’s a pleasure to have such a masterful blog to lead me through the deciphering of the theme.
Thanks Bluth and Quirister
I cannot believe that, having suggested there should be an ‘Only Connect’ theme a while ago, I missed this – I hang my head in shame! My only excuse was that I had to finish in a hurry due to an engagement. And to get in the THMSSNGVWLSRND too. Bravo Bluth and thanks Quirister.
Awesome. Thanks and maximum respect to both Bluth and Quirister.
No hope with the theme but still enjoyed the challenge. EYE OF DAY was a NHO last in and ARNICA and NUTMEGGING were barely remembered so this took a bit of working out, without the identification of a theme to help.
Thanks to Bluth, and to Quirister for identifying and explaining the theme and Nina so clearly
Excellent clueing as always from Bluth. One of my favourite setters. TWISTED & FLAX were my spots for the theme and the rest just flowed which was a delight. I missed the Nina which was annoying as I’m not bad at the missing vowels round on OC
Thanks Bluth and Quirister
What a corker! Thanks Bluth. Thoroughly enjoyed this.
Oh dear i knew something was going on but i was stuck on seeing John Lee Hooker at the Twisted Wheel in the 60s
Thanks for the blog, Quirister… and thanks for the lovely comments all round.
Hovis @3 – there was another non-themed puzzle in between The Chase and this one, but this one was inspired by the reaction to that, in particular a comment from Tatrasman suggesting it would be more their type of theme, so I am tickled to read their comment @7
Hats off to Eimi for giving it a relatively quick turnaround too as I think it helps to contextualise it as a part of that dialogue. There appears to be a great deal of overlap between crossworders and Only Connect viewers so I expected a lot of people to see the theme, but wasn’t so sure the Nina would reveal itself to folks as the very nature obscures it’s presence- but I’m delighted to see – between here and elsewhere – quite a few people did.
It’s all been said already, but to add my praise for this. For once I noticed the theme early enough to guide my solving of the rest (even so I needed some help, not least for SOIGNE, a new word for me). Didn’t notice the nina till I read the blog, which was really the chrry n th ck! Absolute tour de force.
Some – as ever – beautiful clues here. Member of Parliament is lovely, but entirely evaded me (despite having O__ISH!).
If I could add a slight grumble, I’d very much prefer split answers to be left to right & top to bottom (unlike 37/39), and a couple of answers were too obscure for my tastes. Bluth’s usually one of the best setters for extremely fair cluing of these (RHIZOME is a case in point), but I felt a little hard done by on a couple here.
Thanks to Quirister and Bluth.
Never heard of HORNED VIPER, RHIZOME, or EYE OF DAY, but I managed to guess them. Never watched ONLY CONNECT either. Hence I struggled a bit, but got there eventually.
Wow! What everybody else said.
NNI @16 – “Never watched ONLY CONNECT either”.
It’s good to know that you persevered and seem to have enjoyed the puzzle, nevertheless. As Bluth says @ 13, the programme does seem to chime with crossword lovers (certainly with this one – I wouldn’t miss it).
Several members of our community have appeared as contestants over the years and at least one has contributed questions.
Highly recommended – 8.00pm Monday BBC 2
Wow! I’ve never heard of the show–will have to see if there’s a way to get it online, as I don’t get BBC here in the US…
Addicted to Only Connect so hanging head in shame at missing the theme and the NINA. Very clever but fair.
@19 Iroquois A fair number of episodes are on YouTube and viewable in the States. If you’re a keen puzzler, you’ll likely enjoy it.