Everyman 3,933

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I find it hard to believe that Everyman is just one person, unless there are days when they’re badly off form. This crossword was so much better than the one I blogged last month: no clues are seriously unsound and the surfaces, although not in every case really up to a lot, are generally pretty good. And Everyman makes things quite demanding for him/herself: there are the long onomatopoeic (yes, alliterative, as several pointed out; wrong word) answers (potato peelers, penalty points, private property), the first letters homophone clue (1dn), the self-reference (20ac), and maybe others that I’ve missed, and they all fit in without strain.

Definitions in crimson, underlined. Indicators (anagram, homophone, hidden, juxtaposition etc.) in italics. Link-words in green. Anagrams indicated *(like this) or (like this)*.

 

ACROSS
1 POTATO PEELERS
They’re in the kitchen, people cooking with toaster (6,7)
(people toaster)* — well, in some kitchens, anyway
8 CLAN
Family enthralled by magic lantern (4)
Hidden in magiC LANtern
9 A BIT PAST IT
Getting on with ace Baptist, excitable Italian (1,3,4,2)
a (Baptist)* It — a = ace, It = Italian (Italian Vermouth)
10 ANGOLA
Country record spun, transfixing an American (6)
an (gol) A — an A = an American, gol = (log)rev. and log = record
11 AT RANDOM
Aimlessly nod off in a vehicle (2,6)
a tra(ndo)m — nod off = (nod)*, a vehicle = a tram
12 PACHELBEL
Musician‘s cheap shoddy bell shaken (9)
(cheap)* (bell)* — the musician is Pachelbel, famous for his canon — poor chap, he wrote a whole lot of things that we don’t hear so often
14 AIRS
First-born voiced affectations (4)
“heirs” — I don’t think this quite works, because the first-born is the heir (although perhaps you could argue that the children who are first-born are heirs, but I have my doubts about this); first-borns (from a number of different families) are heirs. If this indeed is what it is, it’s AIRS not HEIRS because it’s (4) not (5). The clue could perfectly well have been something like ‘First-born’s twice voiced affectations’, a sort of double homophone, with heir sounding like air and and heir’s sounding like heirs.
15 PUMP
Grill something with a sole (4)
2 defs — grill = pump, in the sense of grilling someone for information, and a pump is a type of shoe, so has a sole
16 ERRORLESS
Queen and King cast out losers, perfect! (9)
ER R *(losers) — ER = queen, R = king — why the exclamation mark? I suppose the speaker is exulting in the perfection of it all
20 LOLLIPOP
Everyman’s in lounge with drink, sweetie (8)
loll (I) pop — loll = lounge, I = Everyman, pop = drink
21 TENORS
Drifts – some of the Drifters? (6)
2 defs — ‘the tenor of the argument is …’.’the drift of the argument is …’ — not quite the same thing, but that’s what it is I think — the several American doo-wop singing groups called ‘The Drifters’ will probably contain a tenor
23 HOLY TERROR
Brat in layette regularly in shock (4,6)
ho(l[a]y[e]t[t]e)rror — horror = shock
24 TUNS
Loudly loads casks (4)
“tons” — loads = tons, and the homophone is indicated by ‘loudly’ — Everyman has been careful to separate the homophone indicator and the definition, so we can be in no doubt of the answer
25 PENALTY POINTS
Drivers should avoid these pets, only a pint drunk (7,6)
(pets only a pint)*
DOWN
1 POLENTA
Porridgey offering, long eaten near the Adriatic for starters? (7)
The first letters clue, extended definition. These are a feature of the new Everyman and, although fairly easy to see, are generally good, as here
2 TANGO
Foxtrot’s ending – another dance? (5)
The ending of Foxtrot is t, and T in the NATO phonetic alphabet is Tango — is this a bit of a chestnut? It seems familiar
3 TRAVAIL
Route incorporating avenue is a slog (7)
tr(av)ail — trail = route, av = avenue (not an abbreviation that occurred to me, but it’s in Chambers as av. so the setter is off the hook)
4 PRIVATE PROPERTY
Forbidding words on a sign in WC worried ladylike model within (7,8)
priv(ate proper T)y — privy = WC, ate = worried (what’s eating you?), proper = ladylike (once, at any rate), T = model (as in the model T Ford)
5 EXPORT
Old flame with strong wine and strong beer (6)
ex port — ex = old flame (as in ex-husband), port = strong wine — it’s difficult to find suitable words to put into a search engine for strong/export since one always gets specific brands, but it’s my understanding that export ale is stronger than the regular stuff you get at home
6 ESSENTIAL
Most important net sales I falsified (9)
(net sales I)* — and there I was, looking for something that ended ‘est’ or ‘iest’, and failing to realise that the antepenultimate letter was an I
7 SUITORS
Admirers flatter old Russians heartlessly (7)
suit o R[ussian]s — suit = flatter (just about I suppose, in the sense ‘that hat flatters her’, but a bit of a loose connection), o = old
13 HIMALAYAN
That man, in the manner of French, offered up refusal, high and mighty (9)
The definition refers to the mountain range, which could be described as high and mighty. It’s him a la (nay)rev., — him = That man, a la = in the manner of, nay is the refusal (and ‘offered up’ because it is a down clue) — but why does Everyman have to tell us it’s French? OK ‘a la’ is originally a French expression, but it’s quite widely used in English and I imagine it can be found in all the usual dictionaries.
15 PHOTO OP
Sweltering in rear of ship for PR event (5,2)
p(hot)oop — hot = sweltering, poop = rear of ship
17 ONTARIO
In Vermont, a riotous part of N America (7)
Hidden in VermONT A RIOtous — the Canadian province
18 SPRINGS
Water running in vaults (7)
2 defs — until one has some checkers the tendency is to think that ‘running’ is an anagram indicator and it’s an anagram of (in vaults)
19 APPEAL
Charm shown by a prince with ring (6)
a P peal — a = a, P = prince, peal = ring
22 NOT ON
Unacceptable, whichever way you look at it! (3,2)
If you read this forwards or backwards you get the same thing — another chestnut?

37 comments on “Everyman 3,933”

  1. As soon as I saw the grid I remembered the pattern – that the two words in each of the long clues at the top and bottom and the one down the middle would all have both words beginning the same letter.
    Thought the top and bottom ones were anagrams so the first letters had to be T or P. Seemed to remember that T had been the first letter before (though could be wrong) so started thinking that P might be the first letter and got both top and bottom answers. Needed crosses before I got the long one down the middle.

    After getting the first two, it went in quite well and since I finished it on Sunday (tho’ not as quickly as last week) I decided to post it off for the prize for the first time. Be funny if I win.

    Liked PACHELBEL, PRIVATE PROPERTY, SUITORS, HIMALAYAN, LOLLIPOP

    Thanks Everyman and John

  4. Thank you John for the blog. Yes, I was also looking for a word that ended in ‘iest’ in ESSENTIAL, and AV for avenue was new to me. (Don’t have Chambers). Don’t have a problem with 14 AIRS. First born could refer to one or many.
    A couple of queries about your preamble . Did you mean alliterative or onomatopoeic for the ‘p …. p ….. ‘ clues? There certainly were a lot of p’s in this crossword, and not only the doubles. Also I wondered about your comment about a homophone in the primarily clue 1D.

    Interesting theory geeker@2 about Everyman’s identity. I had a moment recently from another crossword and similar clue types and a bit of extra information, and thought ‘gotcha’, but for the life of me I can’t remember who that was.
    It might have been Vulcan who does a few cryptic and contemporary definitions as does Everyman. It’s not surprising that many clues get recycled, or there are slight variations, probably most of the time it’s just great minds thinking alike.

    My favs HIMALAYAN, PHOTO OP, PENALTY POINTS. Everyman whoever s/he is usually has great surfaces and a twinkle in the eye.

  5. paddymelon@4: I solve a couple of cryptics from different papers per day (usually Indy and Guardian), and often see repeated clues. Generally chalk it up to chance (like the “birthday problem”, more likely than one might suspect at first glance). But this repeat seemed more likely to be the work of a single setter, due to its use of double NATO alphabet words. Still mere speculation, of course.

  6. Thanks for the blog , for AIRS I think that first-born can refer to all the first-born of a particular group and therefore a plural of heirs, I am pretty sure there is a biblical reference here, someone will know more ? I do agree the “voiced” is in the wrong place, whenever in the middle it leads to ambiguity.
    Good puzzle with all the trademarks and a P for Jay’s list.
    Fiona Anne and PDM have mopped up the favourites, good luck Fiona Anne.

  7. Roz @6: You were probably thinking, as I was, of the last of the ten plagues of Egypt, which came upon “all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.” (Exodus12:29)

    [More generally, English often turns adjectives into nouns describing groups of people, with no need for singular/plural modification – Bless ‘em all, the long and the short and the tall.]

    The one I had problems with was TENORS. Tenors as the plural of a tenor in a singing group is fine, but when ‘tenor’ means the tone/character/import of a speech, I don’t think it’s a countable noun. I’ve certainly never come across a comparison between the ‘tenors’ of two different speeches; I think one would compare the tenor (sing.) of the speeches, each speech having only one tenor.

    Sorry to nit-pick, because I liked the drift/Drifters idea. Many other enjoyable clues too, thanks Everyman and John for a comprehensive blog.

  8. esssexboy@7. I get your drift re TENORS. I suppose it could work as a lift-and-separate clue. DRIFT-S.
    Or describing the TENORS of several musical instruments?

  9. Good thinking, pdm @8! I like the Playtex analysis – in which case ‘some of the Drifters’ would be the def, and drift-s the wordplay. Happy now.

  10. Can’t remember a lot about this now – so I don’t remember any problems (I ought to make notes straight after solving). I did learn how PACHELBEL is spelt, and enjoyed ERRORLESS. Thanks, Everyman and John.

  11. I hated 12a, not the clue but the solution. All cellists (especially those who play at weddings) quail at the thought of playing those eight notes over and over again for what seems like hours on end. I only grudgingly accept the definition “musician” – it should have been “musician’s nightmare”.

    I enjoyed this crossword. The trademark clues all brought a smile, and as I have grandchildren aged three and five, so did 23a HOLY TERROR. I also appreciated the geographical shout out at 17d.

    Thanks Everyman and John for the fun.

    essexboy@7, at the risk of picking at your nit, if a speech had two different thrusts (say, one light-hearted and one serious), could it be said to have two tenors? If it presented two sides of an argument in different styles, could it be said to have a tenor and a counter-tenor? Sorry, I can’t seem to find my coat….

  12. [cello @11: 🙂 I have a rule of thumb when it comes to puns like that – always count-to-tenner before you hit ‘Post comment’.]

  13. [ …and the famous broke composer, P. D. Q. Bach wrote a piece called “Iphigenia in Brooklyn, a Cantata for Bargain-Counter-Tenor.” ]

  14. Fiona Anne@1 and Roz@6 we have had a P before in this formation fact, remember PYJAMA PARTIES? T has not appeared, though one of our “guesses” for future use was TEMPER TANTRUMS.
    I read “first-born”, as plural, as in all the first born. I don’t subscribe to the multiple setters theory and I think coincidences happen, but you never know!
    Enjoyed this one, many thanks Everyman and John

  16. Thanks Everyman for a fun crossword, and thanks Andrew – there were a couple where I struggled to see the parsing (eg A BIT PAST IT – always forget that meaning of IT), but pretty much in agreement with you on everything, though I thought AIRS was fine.

    Beer for export was brewed strong because the alcohol acts as a preservative so helped it survive often long voyages. Perhaps the most famous (and most easily Googleable) example is Guinness Export.

  17. Jay @ 14
    Thanks – and I do now remember PYJAMA PARTIES – must keep a look out for TEMPER TANTRUMS

  18. I was not on the setter’s wavelength. I am stubborn – I still miss the old Everyman!
    7d SUIT + O + RS – but why does SUIT = flatter? Oh, I see now…
    14ac AIRS? from HEIRS? I agree with John that it does not really work.

    I did not parse 2d T + ANGO. Oh, I see what it is supposed to be now…

    New: EXPORT = strong beer.

    Thanks, both.

  19. Like Fiona Anne @1 for the first time I predetermined the alliterative pair starters which got me off to a flyer. The rest flowed pretty easily, though I got stuck on HIMALAYAN which is a lovely definition. Overall very enjoyable and not too taxing. Thanks John & Everyman.

  22. Well I couldn’t make head nor tail of it. I still can’t see some answers even after the explanations. Come back old Everyman please…

  23. I didn’t have time to do this last week but seeing the preamble I thought I’d give it a go and enjoyed it.

    I liked the dds PUMP and SPRINGS; maybe the latter is a chestnut but it took me a while to see it. My only slight quibble is that ‘transfixing an American’ seems a bit Yoda-speak to mean, I assume ‘an American transfixing’.

    Thanks Everyman and John.

  24. I don’t remember much about this puzzle, but it was nice to be reminded of the inimitable P D Q Bach (the youngest of the offspring), who specialised in plagiarism.

    [It’s sometimes difficult to believe that instrumental music can be LOL funny, but the genius of Peter Schickele definitely is!]

  26. Confession: I found myself wondering if there were such things as PATIENT PYLONS, and if so whether drivers should avoid them.

  27. Re preamble, what’s more worrying surely is the inconsistency.

    Re geeker I’m absolutely certain that this puzzle was not set by Picaroon.

  28. Thanks John and Everyman. Based on the name I’ve always assumed Everyman is each of the male setters in turn. No?

  30. Does anyone have info about the “new” vs “old” Everyman mentioned at 1 Down and by Michelle@18 Down. Did the compiler change? I always thought Everyman was a team of alternating compilers not one individual.
    They’ve been including a “primarily” type clue for at least 2 years.

  31. MJ @30; the “old” compiler was Colin Gumbrell; the new one is, as far as I know, anonymous but (s)he has said in these blogs that there is only one compiler.

  32. A pretty good Everyman. Can I suggest that John in his blog is a teeny bit over-pernickety? As far as I can see, each if his quibbles can be reasonably countered. In particular, chestnuts don’t seem out of place in a puzzle aimed at relative beginners.

  33. Liked the puzzle; got it all out sans computer assistance (although it was a struggle).
    I wish that people would quit whinging about (the current) Everyman. If you don’t like his/her puzzles, do different ones; there are lots out there.
    Thanks to Everyman and to John for explaining a couple of clues that I couldn’t parse.
    Thanks to Muffin@25 for drawing people’s attention to the great Tom Lehrer.

  36. Failed on 21A which I put Tundra being generally snowy things. Missed the full parsing of 2D and like others wasn’t convinced by Suit.

    Is a brat a holy terror? Not an expression I know.

    Add me to the list of doubters that Everyman is one person. Aside from the alarming inconsistency from one month to the next (they seem to be in batches of four) if it was one setter, why the anonymity? Never used to be thus.

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