Filbert has produced this Tuesday’s offering for our entertainment.
I thoroughly enjoyed this puzzle, especially the ingenious ways in which the entries at 5,8 and 14 were combined in various clues. I think that I have managed to tease out these, and all other, clues to my satisfaction. However, perhaps I am missing something at 1D, since “walk” alone seems weak for “goose-step”.
My favourite clues were 25/26, for sheer ingenuity; and 12, for the use of both “skate” and “flounders” in the wordplay.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | GODWIT | Creator with intelligence makes a bird
GOD (=creator) + WIT (=intelligence); a godwit is a small wading bird |
| 02 | RABBIT | Yak, 5 14 reveals
A rabbit is pulled out of a magician’s hat in a feat of “animal (=entry at 5) magic (=entry at 14)”!; to rabbit (on) is to talk at length, to yak |
| 08 | JOHNNY | Judge leads foxhunt regularly, state protection?
J (=judge) + <f>O<x>H<u>N<t> (“regularly” means alternate letters only) + NY (=state, i.e. in US, New York); a (rubber) johnny, i.e. a condom, is a form of protection during sex |
| 09 | SLIMIER | Svelte Irish nurses start to eat more like slugs?
SLIM (=svelte) + [E<at> (“start to” means first letter only) in IR (=Irish)] |
| 10 | DENTELLE | Study rat first to explain pattern on book’s cover
DEN (=study) + TELL (=(to) rat, inform on) + E<xplain> (“first to” means first letter only); a dentelle is a lace-lake ornamental pattern on the cover of a book |
| 11 | ALLOYS | Friend’s crossing duck hybrids
O (=duck, i.e. zero score) in ALLY’S (=friend’s) |
| 12 | TAKE SILK | Skate, mostly like flounders, get promoted at the bar
*(SKAT<e> + LIKE); “mostly” means last letter is dropped in anagram, indicated (rather cleverly) by “flounders” |
| 14 | MAGIC | Marvellous seeing a hundred and one whales rolling
CI (=a hundred and one, in Roman numerals) + GAM (=whales, a collective noun); “rolling” indicates reversal |
| 17/18 | SPINY ANTEATER | 5 that’s pretty insane, a cuckoo
*(PRETTY INSANE A); “cuckoo (=mad)” is anagram indicator; a spiny anteater is an animal (=entry at 5) |
| 20 | DARWIN | A king snake looped around naturalist
[A + R (=king, i.e. rex)] in DWIN (WIND=(to) snake, wend; “looped around” means last letter moves to front); the reference is to English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-82) |
| 22 | BLOWPIPE | Tailless biped breathes deep, pressure for this weapon?
[LOW (=deep, low) + P (=pressure, in physics)] in BIPE<d> (“tailless” means last letter is dropped); a blowpipe is a long straight tube from which an arrow, pellet, etc is blown by the breath |
| 24 | RAMPAGE | Go berserk quietly after sheep turn grey
RAM (=sheep) + P (=quietly, i.e. piano, i.e. musical) + AGE (=turn grey) |
| 25/26 | MORRIS DANCER | 5 14’s 8 and one of 8 14 5’s: jigger?
MORRIS (=Animal (=entry at 5) Magic (=entry at 14)’s Johnny (=entry at 8), i.e. the children’s TV presenter) + DANCER (=one of 8 magic (=entry at 14) animals (=entry at 5), i.e. one of Santa’s set of reindeer) |
| 27 | ORDAIN | Badger in road lay down
*(IN ROAD); “(to) badger”, hector is anagram indicator; to lay down is to ordain, decree |
| Down | ||
| 01 | GOOSE-STEP | Walk goes so badly with dog upset?
*(GOES SO) + TEP (PET=dog; “upset” indicates vertical reversal): “badly” indicates anagram indicator |
| 02 | DONUT | Cook tuna mostly over ring
DO (=cook, fiddle, e.g. accounts) + NUT (TUN<a>; “mostly” means last letter is dropped; “over” indicates vertical reversal) |
| 03 | IDYLLIST | Poet raised hair-brained daughter in middle of city
DYLLIS (SILLY=hair-brained + D (=daughter); “raised” indicates vertical reversal) in <c>IT<y> (“middle of” means middle letters only); an idyllist is a writer of short pictorial poems, chiefly on pastoral subjects |
| 05 | ANIMAL | Monster clam in angler’s nets, put back
Hidden (“nets”) and reversed (“put back”) in “cLAM IN Angler’s”; an animal could be a brute, monster |
| 06 | BRILLIANT | Fish ain’t terribly bright
BRILL (=fish) + *(AIN’T); “terribly” is anagram indicator |
| 07 | TERRY | Towelling front half of water tortoise dry, finally
TERR<apin> (=water tortoise; “half of” means four of eight letters are used) + <dr>Y (“finally” means last letter only) |
| 09 | SPELLING BEE | 14 5 buzzing in quiz
SPELLING (=magic, i.e. entry at 14, casting spells) + BEE (=animal (=entry at 5) buzzing) |
| 13 | KINSWOMAN | Perhaps Auntie’s broadcast was on mink
*(WAS ON MINK); “broadcast” is anagram indicator |
| 15 | IRRUPTION | I sound like a cat climbing over tin houses, breaking in
I + RRUP (PURR=sound like a cat: “climbing” indicates vertical reversal) + [O (=over, i.e. in cricket) in TIN] |
| 16 | DEWORMER | Condensate on shellfish that kills parasites
DEW (=condensate) + ORMER (=shellfish, ear-like in shape) |
| 19 | UNMADE | French article about bats not tidied up yet
MAD (=bats, crazy) in UNE (French article, i.e. a French word for a); e.g. an unmade bed is “not tidied up yet” |
| 21 | AIRED | Sloth the German found upside down shown on telly
AI (=(three-toed) sloth) + RED (DER=the German, i.e. a German word for the; “upside down” indicates vertical reversal) |
| 23 | PARKA | Penny decapitated otter for fur coat
P (=penny, i.e. coin) + <t>ARKA (=otter, in the novel by Henry Williamson; “decapitated” means first letter is dropped) |
I soon picked up that Johnny Morris was the theme, having been a fan of his programmes, and thought there must be some reason for this today, especially as Animal Magic was also mentioned on BBC Radio 3 this morning, but can’t see one. Very enjoyable, so thanks Filbert and RatkojaRiku.
A pleasing menagerie of a puzzle, with another Animal Magic presenter, TERRY NUTKINS in there. I seem to learn a new word every day from crosswords; today it was DENTELLE.
Nice crossword from Filbert, as usual. My one, admittedly minor, complaint is that, although I don’t mind unindicated American words (or Australian, South African etc), I’m not keen on unindicated non-UK spellings, such as the one for ‘doughnut’ in 2d. Wouldn’t be allowed on Countdown.
Great fun, really enjoyed the very well exploited theme – especially the amusing clue for MORRIS DANCER. Thanks, Filbert and RR.
Quizzy Bob @2 – Good spot! I was looking for NUTKINS once I got TERRY but didn’t spot it running across 2d and 13d. Excellent!
My favorite animals were the purring cat rising, the ormer, the badger in ORDAIN, the duck in ALLOYS and the the AI and TARKA which I have never heard of. Skate and flounders were also served up nicely as you say which leads me to my top clues TAKE SILK and IRRUPTION. Nothing too fancy in the vocabulary and mastery evident in every surface. Perhaps the goose-step comes from the Ministry of Silly Walks. Thanks.
I liked the juxtaposition of 1a – GODWIT – “Creator with intelligence” with DARWIN. There are animals in every clue including 3d “hare-brained”
Excellent.
Allegedly some of Terry Nutkins’s fingers were bitten off by an otter belonging to Tarka’s creator. I thought this was a great puzzle.
Yes, tough but entertaining. Also nice, just when I’m thinking my GK isn’t good enough we get animal = RABBIT and naturalist = DARWIN. A breath of fresh air.
Thanks F&R
Thanks both. Very impressive as there was so much more to the theme than I spotted, though I was fully expecting a JOHNNY MORRIS DANCER to appear and sure enough. I did not spot Mr Nutkins, and would not have remembered what he presented on t.v. and I’m unsure whether researching whether it’s his real name is a wise idea
As Johnny Morris did animal impersonations, “I sound like a cat” also fits the theme. An excellent pu?zle.
bill_poster @8, the otter was Gavin Maxwell’s, who wrote Ring of Bright Water (1960). Tarka was earlier, 1927, by Henry Williamson, film 1979, my first ever trip to the cinema. He lost bits of both middle fingers.
I think everyone must have liked Terry Nutkins. Johnny Morris left him his house over his own kids. Nutkins had eight children himself. He would have had more, but he thought he’d better stop as he wouldn’t have been able to keep count of them.
Ah, sorry, Filbert – I’d misremembered that. Well done on this great puzzle.
Thanks Filbert for a super puzzle. Reading down the comments, I came across bill poster @8 and realised I needed to dip in but you did the work for me. I knew Terry Nutkins for nearly a decade at the end of his life when he lived in Rarsaidh Cottage half way up Loch Hourn. He had lived with Gavin at Lower Sandaig at the seaward end of the loch and, like the other young lad who supported Gavin, Jimmy Watt, never really moved away from the locus. Ring of Bright Water was supposedly named after the view down to the sea as one clambered down from the road to Maxwell’s house: the setting sun bounces off the water around the Sandaig islands giving the impression of a necklace of stars. The otter in question was Edal, Maxwell’s last such creature, which died in the fire that also destroyed Maxwell’s home, Camusfearna in 1968. The author himself died a year later. There are still otters in the bay.
I fully support Hovis’ remarks re DONUT.
A puzzle this good deserves a choice of EAR [DE]WORM[ER]
The Original ’60s Theme Tune – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN79RT9bc6c
They completely funked it up in the ’80s – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX02L-lauXM – but there’s nice pictures.
Thanks F&RR
DONUT is allowed on Countdown – most recently on 14 July 2023 in Series 88. TODGER also featured.
https://wiki.apterous.org/Episode_8061 – Here’s the reason: https://wiki.apterous.org/Oxford_Dictionaries_Premium
‘Oxford Dictionaries Premium … A rough guide to word validity
… Spellings labelled US English are identified as American spellings, and these words and inflections are not allowed (e.g. color ?, moldier ?). However, spellings labelled mainly US English are allowed, as ‘mainly’ implies it can be found in the UK (e.g. DONUT). Spellings labelled North American are also allowed as they are also used in Canada and other countries in North America (e.g. LUPINES).’
PM @14, thanks for that nice connection. It’s always good to improve one’s Kevin Bacon numbers; I once bumped into Chris Packham in a pub but I don’t think that counts.
FrankieG, thanks for the donut, hope I’m off the hook there
I must have seen that episode and not noticed DONUT is now allowed (certainly has been disallowed in the past). So my apologies.
Having spotted neither Mr Nutkins nor many of those animals, I can now see that the puzzle was even more of a cruciverbal feat than I had first thought when I solved and blogged it.