Guardian Cryptic 28,664 by Nutmeg

83 comments on “Guardian Cryptic 28,664 by Nutmeg”

1. Smooth as usual, though I – like manehi – couldn’t see what work ‘Frame’ is doing in LOOK BACK IN ANGER. I also shared some favourites: SOME HOPE and MOZART especially. Thanks, Nutmeg and manehi.

2. One out of four is bad. RIP Meat Loaf. My only successful one today and even then I took ages to get the not very hard PARTS WITH at the end. Like manehi and TT @1, I could see the constituent parts of LOOK BACK IN ANGER but couldn’t put them together. I enjoyed the cricketing surface for MOZART.

   I have to confess I was thinking of a different sort of RUT and ‘score’ at 6d. Must have been the corrupting influence of the clue which followed.

   Thanks to manehi and Nutmeg

3. I’m with @1 TasssieTim and manehi in being confused by the parsing in LOOK BACK IN ANGER. Also failed to parse NEWCOMER but it’s obvious now it’s been explained; thanks manehi.

   And thanks Nutmeg for a great start to the day. Dentist next …

4. NEWCOMER is a thing of beauty and earned huge ticks in an approachable but cleverly clued puzzle. I agree with all manehi’s highlights but, tbh, could probably double his list. I’ve never seen that anagram of PRIVATE SCHOOLS – very satisfying, WHATEVER is neat and PARTS WITH witty, I suspect I may have seen the ‘car taker’/CARETAKER trick before and superintendent is not the perfect definition but it made me smile. And MASTER STROKE was simply a, er, master stroke.

   I’m afraid I’m another who can add nothing to ‘frame’: it seems the clue would work perfectly well without the opening word but I can’t see Nutmeg inserting something without good reason. I await enlightenment…

   Thanks Nutmeg and manehi

5. Likewise I thought frame redundant in 24a. I did enjoy this and similar favs. Manehi I think you are missing the A-nd in your parsing of MOZART. Thanks to N and m

6. PS I thought this was better and more satisfying than the last coupke of Nutmeg’s offerings

7. Thanks Nutmeg and manehi. I came here hoping for enlightenment on “frame”… but at least I’m not the only one perplexed.

   That aside, all neatly clued as usual, and just the right level for my tired, stressed brain this morning – pleasant and not too taxing.

8. Another fun offering from Nutmeg.Sadly, I thought that the answer to 18a provided a good critique of the clue to 22a.

9. I think I can see what Nutmeg was trying to do with ‘Frame’, but its function in the clue would perhaps have been better served by ‘Conduct’.

10. George @8 – worth remembering for future reference that scorers in crosswords are nearly always composers, just as flowers are so often rivers.

11. I think I have LBIA

    Frame splenetic review of history play (4,4,2,5)

    Frame asks you to put Look Back (into) Anger. So the Osbourne play LBIA is described in the clue as though you are (literally) putting “Look back” into (or within) Anger.

12. I’ve not been a fan of Nutmeg, having struggled with previous puzzles, but I quite enjoyed this one.

13. 24 surely splenetic is anger with in referring to framing

14. I’d agree with Daniel Miller@11 and Toadfather@13. I saw ‘frame’ as mirror/look back in, but couldn’t explain it as simply.

15. I thought splenetic was angry rather than anger so still don’t quite see how it works.

16. Good fun this morning. Thanks Nutmeg. The long clues opened up all four corners which I found helpful. LOI was 6dn which for some reason proved a struggle even with all the crossers in place. Thanks also to manehi for the blog.

17. Unless we are meant to read the clue as a global definition and frame it to arrive at the answer.

18. I think 24a was once clued ‘Ankoolger’ (maybe it inspired schpyreme?)

    Did anyone else think there was a theatrical flavour today? PARTS, PROP, SCREEN, LOOK BACK IN ANGER, The CARETAKER. First halves of PRIVATE Lives and SCHOOL for Scandal. CAMP (er?!) SOME directors/playwrights may HOPE their productions TRANSFER to the West END.

    Thanks Nutmeg & manehi.

19. I initially had a different take on MOZART (I agree with ngaiolaurenson@5 that A needs to be added to the wordplay above). I initially thought that “1,000 down under” was MOZA, but it turns out that that is MOTZA (Oz slang – a shed load of money). It was a nice theory while it lasted.
    I also thought that PROP UP was a “pro pup” as in an aspiring professional pugilist, but manaehi’s explanation is much better.
    Still not convinced about frame.

20. Thanks Nutmeg and manehi
    I enjoy Nutmeg’s surfaces, but I found most of this pretty easy; I didn’t parse LOOK BACK IN ANGER or the PARTS bit of PARTS WITH, though.
    NEWCOMER is clever (though obvious – 2nd entry after ZONAL, which I solved as it was printing), but I’m not sure the definition quite works as &lit.
    Favourite DAINTY.

21. Me @20
    MOZART is a good example. Great surface but easy solve, especially with the Z in place.

22. Another good puzzle and blog. I took ‘frame’ as formulate or (re-)organise as in frame a question – this allows for splenetic = adjective but anger is noun

23. I almost always agree with manehi’s favourites – and then often add one or two more. I found that today I can echo PostMark’s comment exactly, which saves a lot of time!

    I’ll just say, as I often have before, how I admire setters who take the trouble to make composite clues run on in the grid (see 1,16dn, 7,20dn and 8,18dn.

    Many thanks to Nutmeg for the puzzle and manehi for the blog.

24. This is a lovely piece of work.
    It took me quite a while to get started, not helped by assuming that 7d was PERFECT, but then it steadily came together. Just the right balance of challenging but not head-spinning, I think.
    The anagram for PRIVATE SCHOOLS is unexpected and very fine; NEWCOMER and MASTER STROKE are quite simple but very neat; I’m another wincing admirer of MOZART.
    I can’t see what “frame” is doing in 24a either, because I think the clue would work just fine without it; but what the heck.
    Widdersbel @10 is right, of course; to which old faves can be added theologian = DD (9a), Scandinavian capital = ORE (3d), sex = IT (6d)…
    Thanks to Nutmeg and manehi

25. On second thoughts, what Eileen said. 😀

26. essexboy @ 18: I also was thinking of plays/films and also had PLENTY (David Hare/Meryl Streep), MEMENTO, and MASTER STROKE and there are prolly others. I like Daniel Miller’s parsing of LBIA @11.
    As smooth as a smooth thing as usual.

    Ta Nutmeg & manehi

27. #11 though Daniel makes a heroic attempt, for me one doesn’t need frame for that parsing. ‘Splenetic review of history play’, an ‘angry look back’, would have done just as well. And of course, as the reference above to ANKOOLGER (from a Paul puzzle I am fairly sure) exemplifies, I think a lot of compilers are or have been attracted to variations of this idea.

    Otherwise a fine puzzle for me.

28. I didn’t enjoy the last couple of Nutmeg puzzles as much as usual, but this one was (for me) up to her best. Not the most difficult of crosswords but elegant and well constructed.

    I spotted the Osborne play from the enumeration and two crossers but, like others, I failed to parse it completely. PARTS WITH is fun – I have always thought of ‘part’, in a theatrical context, as the role of an actor, rather than the dialogue it entails, but Chambers lists it (together with 27 other meanings in the app version!)

    NEWCOMER was the standout for me, which I happily endorse as an &lit (muffin @20/21 seems uncharacteristically curmudgeonly today 🙂 ).

    Thanks to S&B

29. Nice puzzle, and thanks manehi for helping me understand what ‘Scandinavian capital’ referred to! I think PE in 18a is ‘Physical Education‘, the class we take in school in Britain that would be known as ‘gym’ stateside.

30. …and SOHO (twice in a week) for the more discerning filmgoer.

31. Gervase @28
    I’m sorry that I gave that impression. I found this very enjoyable; just not very challenging.

32. Since to review is to look back, then ‘Play’s splenetic review’ would have done the trick — the history is redundant.
    I thought this was very nicely constructed. Like PostMark@4, I was impressed with the anagram of ‘hospital covers’ — I looked at that clue for quite a while without seeing those letters come together that way. There was a broad mix of clueing devices employed, which appeals to me: I think it was Fed’s cryptic yesterday that was rather anagram-heavy.
    Thanks to Nutmeg and manehi.

33. LovableJim@29: I absolutely support the comment from LovableGym.

34. Very neat stuff from Nutmeg
    Chambers Crossword dictionary has for frame “containment indicator” if thats any help

35. OK crossword, somewhat easy. Nutmeg isn’t one of my favourite setters, as I find there’s seldom a moment when solving a clue gives a moment of surprise or laughter (I can’t imagine the ANKOOLGER clue mentioned by eb@18 being in a Nutmeg puzzle). And indeed her clue for LBIA does seem pretty poor for reasons others mention. I understand compilers sometimes can find no alternative to the “girl/boy = random forename” ploy, but defining ASTRID as “girl” is a worse than usual example (according to ONS it has never been in the top 100 girl’s names in the UK). Favourites PRIVATE SCHOOLS, DAINTY and the simple but elegant CAMPER. I do agree with pserve_p2@32 that there was a good mix of clues.
    Thanks manehi and Nutmeg.

36. I enjoyed this, good surfaces and some fine anagrams. Favourites PRO PUP, MOZART, the clever parsing of WITH in 6d, NEWCOMER. Having possessed a stamp collection in my youth helped with remembering the Scandinavian capital, but I failed to parse TRANSFER and (like everyone else) LOOK BACK IN ANGER.

    Widdersbel@10: when composers aren’t being scorers, they tend to be barmen…

37. Clues of the “Ankoolger” and “schpyreme” type are often dismissed as mere Dingbats: I enjoy the occasional one but I suspect some of the more purist setters would avoid them.

38. Thanks for the blog, not my favourite setter by any means but this was much better than usual . Neat and clever clues with a lot to mislead us. Like Eileen@23 I approve of the double clues following on, if you solve in order it saves a lot of messing about.
    Minor quibble for ASTRID , not keen on just a name but I accept the setter gets stuck at one point in the grid sometimes.

39. I always enjoy Nutmeg’s puzzles because of the smooth surfaces that she composes.

    I got a little stuck for a while until MASTER STROKE opened up the last few. I can see the distaste for using girl as a definition, but the wordplay for ASTRID was clear and the use of ‘society girl’ was tempting. I also found out that Astrid Gilberto is actually Astrud – the girl from Ipanema would make a good answer, although the wordplay might be more difficult. I liked TRANSFER, MOZART and PARTS WITH.

    Thanks Nutmeg and manehi.

40. Lovely puzzle. All faves already canvassed. I love it that I don’t have to refer to any online sources to solve Nutmeg’s puzzles. That being said, I did have to crosscheck that 5d RUTLAND, my LOI, fitted the description of ‘county”, as that place-name was unfamiliar to this Aussie. Thanks very much to Nutmeg and manehi.

41. The only ASTRID that comes to mind was the queen of the Belgians and her untimely death – so the definition as ‘girl’ was really weak.
    I couldn’t see how to parse LOOK BACK IN ANGER, but a few checkers and enumeration made it clear what was needed., but otherwise cluing was excellent,with DAINTY as WOD.

42. Other possibles for 15 could have been usured or user id.

43. [Robi @39
    The story is that Astrud Gilberto had only gone to the studio to take her husband, Joao, his lunch. When she turned up, he said “You speak English – have a go at singing this!”
    Superb album, with Stan Getz at his laid-back best.]

44. Ankoolger, by the way, was in Prize Crossword No. 22475, March 2002. The setter was Paul – is anyone surprised?

45. peterM @ 41 Those of us of a certain vintage (and interests) would also be aware of Astrid Kirchherr, who was the German photographer of Stuart Sutcliffe. She took some excellent very early pictures of The Beatles, and was also responsible for their brushed-forward hairstyle. She died in 2020.

46. Re THEOREM, the ore (sorry, too lazy to use the correct symbol for the initial ‘oe’ – which is considered a separate letter in the Scandi alphabets so the clue wouldn’t work in these languages!) is of course the equivalent of a cent: one hundredth of a krone/krona.

    The Danish ‘crown’ currently is the strongest. One Danish ore is worth 0.00114 GBP or 0.00152 USD – referring to such a sum as ‘capital’ is rather stretching a definition 🙂

47. This slipped in very satisfyingly and enjoyably today, without too much bother. Thanks to Nutmeg and Manehi…

48. Thanks Nutmeg, manehi
    Lovely throughout, NEWCOMER particularly so.
    I didn’t find the LBIA clue puzzling at all; as written, it’s just a paraphrase of the play’s title with a verb (frame review of) instead of a noun for LOOK BACK which it would be if the frame was omitted. It’s not obligatory to minimise the number of words, and the frame adds to the picture the clue paints.

49. peterM @41, I think a significant number of people in the UK are well aware of Astrid Lindgren who wrote the Pippi Longstocking children’s books.

50. I’m with Spooner’s catflap and James as seeing “frame” as just a way of turning review into a verb. I particularly liked the WITH part of PARTS WITH. Has it been done before?

51. Thanks to Nutmeg one of my favourite setters for a challenging and enjoyable midweek puzzle. Thx also to manehi for help in parsing 9ac and good to see he was as flummoxed as I was initially with my LOI 24ac. My take on it is Splenetic = IN ANGER and History = LOOK BACK. The word Frame allows you to change the order as required.
    Ticks for NEWCOMER, SOME HOPE, MOZART, DEVIATE, MEMENTO, and LOOK BACK IN ANGER.

52. I parsed 24a as ‘frame angry look back’, so put LOOK BACK IN ANGER…

    Lots of fun, thanks Nutmeg for the puzzle and manehi for the helpful blog.

53. As ShropshireLass@51 said – the excellent Nutmeg on good form and nice to see after yesterday’s hugely enjoyable Fed.

    [6d and Ronald@47… said the actress to the bishop. ]

54. Love the anagram in 1d — who’d a thunk that (hospital covers)* could make PRIVATE SCHOOLS?

    ZONAL is not a word I can imagine ever using.

    Delightful puzzle, which I did last night. I usually manage to hold back until I’m in bed with the puzzle, but this time my reserve cracked and I did it at the table while I was still up. Great fun! thanks, Nutmeg and manehi.

55. Valentine @54; maybe that’s because you don’t follow football (or soccer), as in ZONAL defence.

56. WoedPlodder @ 2 could be right on with RUT and score. I believe RUTLAND is named for having been the king’s gift to his new wife on the day after their wedding – die Morgengabe.

    Nice puzzle, but we had to come here for 5(!) parsings. Thanks both.

57. Valentine@54: gardeners know about ZONAL pelargoniums (what are usually called “geraniums”)

58. As a verb, “frame” can mean to organize, to arrange, to put together. Think of framing legislation or regulations. So, I think manehi has hit on the intended parsing for 24.

59. I thought FRAME was the IN. Liked DAINTY. I don’t do “write in” but this was over by 00.20 last night. Just about my quickest.
    Enjoyed it.
    Thanks both

60. Thanks both.

    What else would you do with a review other than “frame” it? It’s an elegant use of language imho. (“I would like you to frame a review of the application of the English Poor Laws in the 19th century”. “But I’m a physicist”. “Well, the law of gravity then….”) So to frame a review of history is to look back and ‘splenetic’ give ‘in anger’.

    No?

61. NEWCOMER was brilliantly clued.
    Like others I struggled with Frame in 24, but concluded splenetic review = look in anger and History =back

    Anyway, thanks Nutmeg and manehi

62. The consistently readable surfaces of Nutmeg make her one of my top setters and this crossword did not disappoint. Favourites included the oft mentioned NEWCOMER, MOZART, SCREEN, TOILET, and PARTS WITH (amusing surface.) I didn’t even try to parse 9a, I’m more familliar with “campier” than CAMPER, and add me to the list who think 24a would work without “frame.” Thanks to both.

63. Thanks Nutmeg for an excellent puzzle, manehi for clearing up a couple of parsings, and Muffin@43 for the Astrud Gilberto anecdote. Would it have been as big a hit if Joao had sung it? No chance.

64. cellomaniac @63
    Joao does sing it (? presumably) in Spanish before Astrud in English. I agree that her delivery is quite haunting, though.

65. …or would it be Portugese?

66. muffin – you’re right, it’s Portuguese. Here’s Astrud singing in both languages.

67. Robi@55 You’re right, I don’t follow any sports including either your or my football.

68. [EB @66
    On my CD, Joao sings the Portuguese bit (as one of the commenters points out). It’s far better than this – the sax solo is almost incidental on the YouTube one.
    One of my top four jazz albums. (The others, if you’re interested are Kind of Blue (of course), A love supreme, and Keith Jarrett’s Koln concert.)]

69. I was beaten by RUTLAND; too much for an American I’m afraid, even with all the crossers 🙂
    And then there was the dreaded “common noun for a proper noun” in 15 ac. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s completely kosher, I know. But surely, there’s a better clue for ASTRID than a generic “girl?”
    That said, I really enjoyed this puzzle. Thanks Nutmeg and manehi.

70. [muffin – yes, lots of different versions on YouTube, this is one with João and Getz. Lovely!]

71. [EB @70 Yes, that’s the recording I have.]

72. It was a Nutmeg, so I was a happy bunny today. That is all. 🙂

73. essexboy @70
    [I wouldn’t normally participate in off-topic comments but I just wanted to thank you for that link. I have the album which includes that recording and it is amongst my favourite CDs. Unfortunately, for some years now, I have had nothing on which to play them. Even with the very poor sound quality on my pc, it was enough to bring back memories of the times that I very much enjoyed listening to that track on a high quality audio system.]

74. Very enjoyable solve with a good mix of devices & smooth surfaces. Thanks Nutmeg & Manehi.

75. [Thanks Gaufrid @73 – I agree, it’s delightful! Thanks also to muffin for prompting me to look for it.]

76. I enjoyed Gervase @46’s analysis on ore as capital. Using copper instead of capital works and gives an entirely different and more sinister surface. Speaking of which, I’m not sure what it says about me that the first ASTRID I thought of was Astrid Proll of the Baader-Meinhof gang. Perhaps I read too much crime fiction. I did try very hard to work GATE into the answer somewhere, but to no avail.
    Good puzzle. I wondered whether the RUTLAND parse was LAND = ground showing (as a opposed to Sea, with ground hidden underneath) + an initial RUT, but I can’t really convince myself. Favourite was CARETAKER with an enjoyable surface.
    ZONAL is fairly unusual (as Valentine says), but I was reminded of chess interzonal tournaments, which were played not so long ago.
    Thanks, Nutmeg and manehi.

77. Re 24:
    To “frame [a] splenetic review of history” should be taken as a single phrase, synonymous to “look back in anger”. Without the verb “frame” the parts of speech don’t match up. It could have been worded more concisely as “splenetically review history” (or maybe even “splenetically review”) but of course that wouldn’t work with the surface.

78. Late comment, but I’m with @2wordplodder on parsing of 6d.
    I think a direct if smutty link (score=rut) is preferable to Manehi’s double link (score=groove=rut). This kind of rut, that might be seen in the mud or a track, might be a groove. I think that to then equate that to a score is a step too far.

79. [ Muffin et al re The Girl From Ipanema:

    I clicked send @63 too soon. I meant to suggest that it would not have been as big a hit if Joao had sung the whole thing himself.

    I confess to being an outlier regarding Stan Getz. He is one of my all-time favourite jazz musicians, but I feel he got sidetracked by the Bossa Nova craze (of which, of course he was a main instigator), and I’m not as fond of that period of his music as I am of the before and after periods. Mind you, I don’t begrudge him the money he made during those years – he was worth every penny. ]

80. Thank you manehi for making sense of PARTS, still think it’s quite weak esp when contrasted with the brilliant second half. And thanks everyone for batting “Frame…” around, I am happy to take aquila@77’s late entry as a good way to sum it up. I struggled with ASTRID and tried to get a backwards DEB into it (having the final D) then remembered Pippi L, also spent a while thinking 1,000 down under might be W! Thanks Nutmeg.

81. Interesting that when I was trying to come up with an explanation for LOOK BACK IN ANGER, I saw ANKOOLGER or whatever Paul said. Not a fan of Paul but I am now. 🙂
    I’d love to hear what Nutmeg intended re ‘frame’, but eh! Doesn’t matter. We’ve all had a lot of fun trying to figure it out.

82. Gazzh@ LOL

83. I did not parse 24ac, 11ac, 5d, 19d.
    Thanks to manehi for explaining.

Comments are closed.