Another Quiptic from Bartland, who’s become a regular in this slot over the past year or so.
Mostly straightforward, as a Quiptic should be. I liked 11a for the misdirection of “no starter” (for once it doesn’t mean dropping the first letter), 3d for an old trick that still works well, and 4d for a well-spotted anagram with an appropriate indicator. Thanks Bartland for the fun.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | SKITTLES |
Kilts set in motion as they get sent flying in alleys (8)
|
| Anagram (in motion) of KILTS SET. | ||
| 5 | APPEAR |
Come across an equal in audition (6)
|
| Homophone (in audition) of A PEER (an equal).
As in “it comes across as genuine” = to present an appearance. |
||
| 9 | DESPAIRS |
Abandons all hope in a spider’s web (8)
|
| Anagram (web?) of A SPIDER’S. | ||
| 10 | SCLERA |
Clears out the white of the eye (6)
|
| Anagram (out) of CLEARS.
The white outer layer of the eyeball. |
||
| 11 | TURNKEYS |
Christmas dinners have no starter for old prison officers (8)
|
| TURKEYS (often eaten for Christmas dinner) containing (. . . have) the first letter (starter) of N[o].
Archaic word for a jailer (one holding the key to a prison cell). |
||
| 12 | DOSAGE |
What should be taken if wise man turns up after party? (6)
|
| SAGE (wise man) after DO (slang for a party).
Dosage = the recommended amount of a medicine to be taken at one time. |
||
| 14 | HIGH-HANDED |
Intoxicated and given to be overbearing (4-6)
|
| HIGH (intoxicated on drink or drugs) + HANDED (as in “handed out” = given). | ||
| 18 | SUCCEEDING |
Gaining ranking after draw is announced (10)
|
| Homophone (announced) of SEEDING (ranking of the best players in a sports competition) after SUCK (draw = take in air or liquid). | ||
| 22 | AMORAL |
In the morning, speaking with no sense of right or wrong (6)
|
| AM (abbreviation for Latin ante meridiem = before noon = in the morning) + ORAL (as in an oral exam = speaking as opposed to writing). | ||
| 23 | ZESTIEST |
Test size ingredients are the most piquant (8)
|
| Anagram (ingredients?) of TEST SIZE. | ||
| 24 | ITALIC |
Shelled facility is twisted and sloping (6)
|
| Anagram (twisted) of [f]ACILIT[y] (shelled = outer letters removed).
Sloping printed letters. |
||
| 25 | DEMOTION |
Anaesthetised foot has feeling but it’s lowering (8)
|
| Last letter (foot) of [anaesthetise]D + EMOTION (feeling).
Lowering as a verb = demotion = the act of moving someone or something downwards. |
||
| 26 | EASIER |
Realise rubbish left out is not so problematic (6)
|
| Anagram (rubbish) of REA[l]ISE with the L (abbreviation for left) taken out. | ||
| 27 | ESOTERIC |
Enigmatic sweetheart gets drunk with Ernie’s other half (8)
|
| We need to split “sweetheart” into two words. Middle letter (heart) of [sw]E[et] + SOT (drunk, as a noun = a drunkard) + ERIC (Eric Morecambe, comedy partner or “other half” of Ernie Wise).
Esoteric = obscure, understood by only a select few. Not quite the same as enigmatic (puzzling), but close enough. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | SEDATE |
Dignified meeting of lovers under superbly elegant covers (6)
|
| DATE (a meeting of lovers) after (under, in a down clue) the first letters (covers) of S[uperbly] E[legant]. | ||
| 2 | INSURE |
Protect and toughen around top of skull (6)
|
| INURE (toughen, as in “inured to” = accustomed to and able to tolerate) around the first letter (top) of S[kull]. | ||
| 3 | THANKS |
Credit the one who portrayed F Gump? (6)
|
| T HANKS (Tom Hanks, the actor who played Forrest Gump in the 1994 film of that name).
Credit = thanks = appreciation for one’s actions. |
||
| 4 | EARLY BIRDS |
Sir Bradley cycled around those who got there first (5,5)
|
| Anagram (cycled around) of SIR BRADLEY: an appropriate indicator for the reference to former professional cyclist Sir Bradley Wiggins.
As in “the early bird catches the worm” = those who arrive early get the best opportunities. |
||
| 6 | PECTORAL |
By hacking, clear top of the chest (8)
|
| Anagram (by hacking = through modification) of CLEAR TOP. | ||
| 7 | EYE CANDY |
The setter, we hear, is able to outwardly decry something aesthetically pleasing (3,5)
|
| Homophone (we hear) of I (the setter of this crossword speaking), then CAN (is able to) + outer letters of D[ecr]Y. | ||
| 8 | REAR-ENDS |
Listener in tears hits back (4-4)
|
| EAR (listener) in RENDS (as a verb = tears apart).
Rear-end, as a verb = to hit the back of a vehicle by driving another vehicle into it. |
||
| 13 | CHANGELESS |
Messenger is absorbed by game that’s fast (10)
|
| ANGEL (messenger) absorbed by CHESS (a game).
Fast, as in “stand fast” = fixed and immovable = changeless. |
||
| 15 | ASTATINE |
Element found in a cholesterol-reducing drug and vitamin (8)
|
| A STATIN (a cholesterol-reducing drug) + E (vitamin E).
Chemical element with atomic number 85; nobody really knows what it looks like because it’s too radioactive to hang around for long. |
||
| 16 | SCHOLARS |
They learn choral arrangement in two seconds (8)
|
| Anagram (arrangement) of CHORAL in S S (two S = abbreviation for second). | ||
| 17 | NEGATIVE |
Pessimistic, for example, in domestic surroundings (8)
|
| EG (abbreviation for Latin exempli gratia = for example) in NATIVE (domestic = associated with this country rather than elsewhere). | ||
| 19 | UTMOST |
Greatest duty is essentially to lead the largest number (6)
|
| Middle letters (essentially) of [d]UT[y], before (to lead) MOST (the largest number). | ||
| 20 | SENIOR |
Old cronies abandoned leader and fell into disarray (6)
|
| Anagram (. . . fell into disarray) of [c]RONIES without the first letter (leader). | ||
| 21 | ETHNIC |
Characters in Macbeth? Nice and traditional (6)
|
| Hidden answer (characters in . . .) in [macb]ETH NIC[e]. |
Thanks Bartland and Quirister
Very nice puzzle, which I found slightly harder than the cryptic, though not excessively so.
Favourites EARLY BIRDS and REAR ENDS.
Puzzled by “turns up” in 12a. I also didn’t see where the D came from in 25a, and think it’s a bit clumsy now it’s explained.
I thought this was quite tough with a couple of difficult words, SCLERA and ASTATINE being a bit much for a Quiptic. However some nice clues such as HIGH-HANDED, SUCCEEDING, PECTORAL and EYE CANDY.
Ta Bartland & Quirister.
Hacking in 6ac is referring to dry coughing, hence trying to clear mucus from the top of the chest. Nice clue.
Oops, just chest.
muffin @1: yes, I agree “turns up” is odd, but I think it’s just a synonym for “appears” (arrives on the scene). I wondered for a while whether it was indicating a reversal, but that would only work in a down clue.
Like Quirister I liked Sir Bradley cycling, but also the choral arrangement. I thought the anaesthetized foot and the no starter were fine but on the tricky side for a Quiptic. Tom Hanks both.
Largely OK for a Quiptic with one or two trickier clues as noted.
I liked the surface for SKITTLES, the wordplay for TURNKEYS, the ‘aural wordplay’ for SUCCEEDING, the non-reversal in REAR-ENDS, and the anaesthetised foot. ‘Greatest duty essentially is …’ might have been clearer in the clue for UTMOST.
Thanks Bartland and Quirister.
Good puzzle, a wee bit more challenging than today’s Vulcan – the Quiptic isn’t always the easier of the two, which it probably should be, but these things are subjective and difficult to assess.
Unlike muffin I liked the anaesthetised foot, and ‘turns up’ = appears was a nice deception. Nothing clumsy here IMHO.
I particularly liked the clues for DESPAIRED and EARLYBIRDS.
Thanks to S&B
Gervase @8
Why does “foot” mean “right hand end”?
Muffin@9: the foot of something doesn’t mean its “right hand end”, but it does mean the bottom of it – so the foot of anaesthetised is D. ( Would purists object to this in an across clue?)
This is the most un-Quiptic Quiptic that I ever saw! I consider that the Editor put this one into the wrong slot. Solved only 2 clues on my first pass – possibly I was not on the setter’s wavelength.
Failed to solve 24ac and 15d.
I could not parse 25ac, 1d.
Had to google Eric and Ernie – never heard of them.
Thanks, both.
gladys @10
Well, yes! It’s not at the bottom if written horizontally. “Dead end” (or something like that) would have worked better.
Another Quiptic I lost interest in – gave up on after 22mins. Had only 3 answers on my first readthrough of clues which took 11mins, maybe should have grabbed a couple more but even so. Ended up with the NW done and only four answers outside of it.
Then went over to the main Cryptic and was down to my last two in the same timeframe, one of which I’d never heard of. Ended up taking 29mins with one correction. I’d say that shows I have some ability.
They seem to be pitching the Everyman and Quiptic inappropriately for the last couple of months. To think I once did a Pasquale in under 13mins!
Liked the clever anagram of the cyclist chap and the F Gump clue.
Thought this was very similar difficulty to the Monday cryptic (on the basis it took me an identical length of time to do each puzzle), but I’ve no view on whether that’s the “correct” level for a Quiptic.
The lovely EARLY BIRDS is the best thing here in my view, and I thought UTMOST had a pleasing surface. Thanks to the ever reliable setter and blogger.
LH side went in. Beaten by most of RH side though.
Loved this from start to finish. Some delightful surfaces and clever anagrinds.
Mandarin@15 beat me to it. I had exactly the same number of answers on my first run through of the Cryptic and Quiptic, and the two puzzles took me exactly the same time to solve. The editor clearly failed once again to ensure that the Quiptic was easier than the Cryptic. Shame on him. 😉
I saw three examples of aural wordplay in this puzzle, at 5a, 18a and 7d. Whether or not they are homophones is entirely irrelevant.
Thanks Bartland for the well-pitched Quiptic puzzle, and Quirister for the fine (h-word notwithstanding 🙂 ) blog.
Thanks Quirister. I also liked the no starter in TURNKEYS.
I loved SUCCEEDING. How clever of Bartland to see/hear the breaking up of CC.
Fun crossword. My only quibble was whether Bartland might have stretched the bounds of the fairness code in CHANGELESS and ASTATINE, whose defs were not very helpful, and the wordplay similarly made up of components with wide-ranging possibilities.
Bartland has the feel of early Anton quiptics-like someone who canty wait to be given a full cryptic
Not a criticism, merely an observation.
Im never gonna be able to type.
Many thanks to everyone for the lovely feedback, and to Quirister for the detailed and thoughtful analysis. Much appreciated!
I’m behind with the daily crosswords so doing all the week’s ones over the weekend, and I really enjoyed this one! Not too hard for a beginner. Kicking myself over sclera!! So obvious but I kept looking for cornea…