When we knew we were blogging on a Wednesday, we hoped that we would have an Eccles puzzle. We were not disappointed.
We have to admit that this was really a DNF as we were stumped by 7d. It didn’t come up in a word search in our Chambers App and another website we used for a word search did not generate an answer either. We thought it would start with ARM but that was as far as we got. Apparently ARMONICA is the art of creating sounds by rubbing glasses – so now we know. Find out more HERE.
Thanks Eccles.
An anagram (‘shot’) of WORTH A before WOBBLY (wavering)
SUN (celestial object) around or ‘bearing’ PER (a) MO (second) O (ring)
CAR (coach) O (old) L (lecturer)
Double definition
PI (constant as used in mathematics) PE (exercises) DON (put on) around or ‘keeping’ W (wife)
REF (official) before UTE (alternate or ‘occasional’ letters in cUpTiE)
FLIT (briefly pass) around YAK (gossip) + E (‘first’ letter of enthusiastically)
MIN (minute) A (area) inside or ‘covered by’ RUNT (minute juvenile)
An anagram (‘cooking’) of DELIA’S
P (quietly) + CIGS (cigarettes) ALE (beer) reversed or ‘returned’
STATE (Georgia possibly) around our ‘claiming’ U (union)
A + PAD (flat) reversed or ‘over’ + T (time)
IN (up-to-date) + REAR (behind) inside or ‘stopping’ ARSe (behind) missing last letter or ‘mostly’
REP (salesman) reversed or ‘retiring’ SPIn (trip in car) missing last letter or ‘short’ RATION (helping)
sTARt missing first and last letter or ‘naked’ around or ‘covering’ ASK (request) and B (first letter or ‘top’ of bottom)
RIP-off (scam) with ‘off’ changed to ON or ‘quite the opposite’
MEAT (flesh) inside or ‘concealed by’ an anagram (‘dodgy’) of OWNER
L (left) next to WOO (court)
BID (attempt) LE (French for the) around or conserving’ ONE (unity)
C (caught) inside or ‘breaking’ an anagram (‘convoluted’) of RULE
I (one) inside or ‘entertained’ by ARM (member) ON (running) CA (around) Thanks Hovis
G (German) LANCE (weapon)
FA (absolutely nothing) M1 (main road) RAIL (train) reversed or ‘back’
ARIA (song) around or ’embracing’ nUDITy (nakedness) missing first and last letters or ‘having no clothes’ O (nothing)
An anagram (‘suspect’) of SEEN around or ‘smuggling’ TITI (monkey)
WASP (it stings) and I R (first or ‘primary’ letters of it rubs) all reversed or ‘the wrong way round’
STEPS (dance-pop band) ON (playing)
SATIrE (parody) missing or ‘out of’ R (runs)
A clue as definition – L (last or ‘ultimate’ letter of meal) inside or ‘eaten by’ THAI (Asian)
Hidden or ‘cuddled’ by iMAGIne
Had the same problem with 7d. I did initial think of ARMONICA, going with the ARM start and sounding like HARMONICA but didn’t think it was a word so left it until the end. PELASGIC was another unknown but a much easier guess.
Minor typo in blog for 7d – it is CA for “around”.
Hugely enjoyable and informative – but there’s that damn ‘Lecturer’ again.
I wondered how many other solvers were going to comment today that they didn’t finish because of 7d – nice to know I wasn’t alone
Thanks to Eccles for another fine Wednesday crossword – my particular favourite was 1a – and to B&J for the equally fine Wednesday blog
Phew! Is it just me or is Eccles making his puzzles harder? Even so, the good news is that they are as enjoyable as ever and the icing on the cake continues to be his mastery of smooth surfaces.
Fortunately I did know 7d but the old Greeks and the monkey were new to me.
Many thanks to Eccles and to B&J.
Delighted to announce that I was beaten by more than just 7d! ARMORICA was the closest I got – but that’s part of Brittany! I couldn’t parse SUPERMOON and I never got close to TASKBAR, having failed to spot the cunning definition. (Funny that one area of the setter’s art that I’ve never conquered is the references to the machine on which I sit solving! ESC, ALT, SPACE, TASKBAR: they’re all in front of me but never come to mind).
I smiled at several of the surfaces today – either risque in one way or another – or simply amusing: PIPE DOWN, BONE IDLE, AUDITORIA, PERSPIRATION. Favourite, though, is RIPSAW which was a pleasure to construct and I love the upside down WASP.
Thanks Eccles and B&J
I found this the hardest of the three excellent puzzles on here today. I did find ARMONICA in both OneLook and Chambers Word Wizard but didn’t recognise it as a thing.
I had ticks for THROW A WOBBLY (I love that expression), FLY A KITE, PELASGIC, PERSPIRATION, RIPON and BONE IDLE.
Many thanks to Eccles and to B&J.
Luckily I did know there was an instrument called a glass harmonica (Mozart wrote a concerto for it) so guessed it might also be called an armonica. Taskbar held me up: I was trying to make (s)tri(p) be the ‘naked’ word. Big smile when the penny dropped, and also for Ripon. Just audacious. Thanks to Eccles and to Bertandjoyce – I couldn’t parse supermoon either.
Pretty much like everyone else.. more success with 7dn than 1dn, despite having ASK, B, n R in my head for quite a while… learned lots about monkeys n Greeks… actually pre-Greeks?.. good fun …
Thanks to Eccles n Bertandjoyce
Ps Jackty@2.. I think ur going to have to let it go.. I’ve yearned for these L for lecturer n T for teacher etc to be common usage.. but anything seems to go in crossword land.. E for EACH??? but Chambers says E is abbreviation for any word beginning with E … logical would say that extends to every letter of the alphabet.. open season…
We are not sure what then concerns are about L = Lecturer. It is in Chambers as an abbreviation which is fine by us.
The Greeks and the monkey were new to me and I did resort to ‘phone a friend’ for 7d – fortunately he knew! If anyone’s interested, Mr Google has a very pleasant rendition of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy played on an ARMONICA.
Our setter definitely in Toughie mode today, hopefully he’s got it out of his system for a while!
Thanks to Eccles and to B&J for the review.
The Greeks and the monkey were new to us, too. Well, certainly the Greeks – we might have heard of and then forgotten the monkey. But they were easily confirmed in Chambers, as was the Asian meal. We did know ARMONICA, although the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (2007) tells us it is properly called the ‘glass armonica’, and that ‘armonica’ on its own means either a wind band or a hurdy-gurdy.
An excellent if tough puzzle, with plenty to enjoy. We particularly liked SUPERMOON and FLY A KITE.
Thanks, Eccles and B&J.
Undrell@8: U T I F A W I A A E W O F S. A T B.
Thanks to B&J for the blog, and all who commented. I assume the grumbles about l=lecturer are because it is difficult to see in what context it is so abbreviated.
I know American cryptics do things slightly differently, where an abbreviation’s validity is determined solely by whether it is common usage – so this pretty much down to the judgement of the editor. The downside is that this can seem even more arbitrary if it isn’t common usage to a particular solver. At least we can point to the dictionary as the arbiter (and the solver can look it up if unsure). It does lead to some strange things being acceptable, though. In an ideal world, the dictionaries over here would just have more sensible/well-known abbreviations, and everyone would be happy (ish.)
Well, I did finish, although I had to confirm 21ac in Chambers.
I not only knew the ARMONICA, but I’ve seen one being played. Or rather heard one, as it was in the pit of an opera house. The mad scene in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor is now usually performed accompanied by the flute but it was written for the glass armonica. However, before the first performance, the player had a falling-out with the opera house management and left in a huff, so a flute was substituted. But when English National Opera performed it, they got an armonica player and didn’t fall out with him.
I’m afraid I’m another ARMONICA failure. I enjoyed all the rest and would never have solved this clue, not knowing the word despite having heard the instrument. Thanks to Eccles for the usual superior entertainment, and to B&J as ever.