The puzzle is available here.
Hello everyone. We have a Hoskins puzzle today, and he is on relatively good behaviour*, although he’s resumed his teasing of the Serpent in 2d. My last in was 17a, possibly because it’s a while since I’ve seen any BIBLES in hotel rooms. I need some help explaining 3d, but have confidence you’ll oblige. Thanks – and thanks Hoskins!
*EDIT: there is an explanation for this – see the comments and the grid at the bottom of the blog.
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics, specified [deletions] are in square brackets, and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER. For clarity, I omit most link words and some juxtaposition indicators.
Across
6a Kit found in poor European army unit (7)
BRIGADE
RIG (kit) found in BAD (poor) + E (European)
7a At home with pal or close to being out? (2,3)
IN BUD
IN (at home) + BUD (pal)
9a Horror writer beginning to make lyrical work (4)
POEM
POE (horror writer) + the first letter of (beginning to) Make
10a Confidential informant releasing red-hot tape (4,6)
DEEP THROAT
An anagram of (releasing) RED HOT TAPE
11a Her tract upset one of four joint rulers (8)
TETRARCH
HER TRACT anagrammed (upset)
12a Romeo possibly sleeping around is natural (6)
INBRED
R (Romeo) with IN BED (possibly sleeping) around it
14a Some might say Tory inclination shows good sense (5-10)
RIGHT-MINDEDNESS
RIGHT-MINDEDNESS could be interpreted has having an inclination to the right of the political spectrum
17a Good books stuffed in drawers by well-meaning folk? (6)
BIBLES
Cryptic definition referencing Gideons bibles.
My thoughts immediately sprang to this song. (Videos won’t nicely embed neatly into 225 posts anymore, but it’s probably best to use a link anyway, with a warning that it’s not for the easily offended)
18a Told, if on diet, to go running (8)
NOTIFIED
IF ON DIET anagrammed (to go running)
21a Chap who got up to go to work in the field? (10)
CAVALRYMAN
Cryptic definition punning on up meaning on horseback
23a At front, cadet helping injured para gets shot, of course (4)
CHIP
A golfing definition. For the wordplay, it’s the first letters of (at front) Cadet Helping Injured Para
24a South American magazine back issues (5)
EMITS
S (South) + TIME (American magazine) all reversed (back)
25a Typical example of no-good swine in English book (7)
EPITOME
PI[g] (no-good swine; pig missing G (good)) in E (English) TOME (book)
Down
1d Officer‘s hair alarms criminal (3,7)
AIR MARSHAL
An anagram of (… criminal) HAIR ALARMS
2d Fifth of puzzles by Serpent? Run! (6)
LADDER
The fifth [letter] of puzzLes + ADDER (serpent)
3d Digits rung by husband to get wife, perhaps (9,6)
TELEPHONE NUMBER
I think this is a cryptic definition but I also think I must be missing something …
4d Having rejected help, family gets bitter criticism (8)
DIATRIBE
After the reversal of (having rejected) AID (help), TRIBE (family)
5d Minicab company over in Bavaria (4)
UBER
Two meanings: Uber (company) and über (German preposition)
6d Penniless man getting rid of Liberal for Republican (5)
BROKE
B[l]OKE (man) replacing L with R (getting rid of Liberal for Republican)
8d We supply cards doddery elders will receive 1st of April (7)
DEALERS
An anagram of (doddery) ELDERS is to take in (will receive) the first letter of (1st of) April
13d Fart once and be worried for ‘friend’ (10)
BENEFACTOR
FART ONCE and BE anagrammed (worried)
15d Act the same as one on X-Factor covered by China (7)
IMITATE
I (one) + IT (X-factor) inside (covered by) MATE (china)
16d Have doubts about teacher tied up in hearing (8)
MISTRUST
Sounds like (… in hearing) MISS TRUSSED (teacher tied up)
19d One bowled over by PM’s address on good bit of news (6)
TENPIN
TEN (PM’s address) + PI (pious, good) + the first letter (piece) of News
20d Old flame I’ll, after picking up, send to Coventry? (5)
EXILE
EX (old flame) + ILE which here sounds like (… after picking up) I’LL
22d A meeting with minister for old dictator (4)
AMIN
A from the clue next to (meeting with) MIN (minister)
Also note that Hoskins is trying to get us to believe he’s sober in row 7. Loved his dig at Serpent.
My best guess at 3d is that it’s a comment on the cost of getting married – “rung” as in “rung up at the till”. Does that sound plausible? I’m not entirely convinced myself.
Fun puzzle anyway. I also very much enjoyed the light-hearted dig at Serpent. Thanks, Hoskins and Kitty. (And good spot, Hovis.)
Well spotted, Hovis. Maybe Hoskins is staying alert in case the Serpent strikes back … but I think he would need more than that to save him!
BIBLES:
Is there also a play on the meaning of the word Christian (kind, humane, well-meaning)? Well-meaning folk are Christians?
CAVALRYMAN:
And ‘field’ is ‘battlefield’. Stating the obvious?
TELEPHONE NUMBER
You dial a number to get your groceries. Similarly, (a) husband dials a number to ‘get’ (his/a) wife (perhaps).
I couldn’t see it as anything beyond a play on ‘get’. Maybe missing something.
You put a ring onto a digit (finger) when you get married but I don’t know what that has to do with telephone numbers.
Bibles are still being placed in hotels, guest houses etc that I’ve stayed in recently, which have bedside drawers, but motel-type places these days (e.g Premier Inn, Travelodge) don’t have them, more’s the pity. Back to the puzzle: wonderful, so thanks Hoskins and Kitty. Was SOBER intentional?
Very enjoyable though possibly a bit anagram heavy.
I liked INBUD, INBRED, CHIP, CAVALRYMAN and IMITATE in particular but could have mentioned several more.
Re TELEPHONE NUMBER, I think it’s a reference to a number with many digits and therefore the exorbitant cost of a wedding and all that goes with it but it’s quite tenuous.
Many thanks Hoskins and Kitty.
Can someone explain the “private feud” (if there is one) between Hoskins and Serpent?
BIBLES – Christians “kind, humane?” – not according to Tim Minchin – great song. Thanks Kitty
CAVALRYMAN – “in the field” – https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/in_the_field
‘Prepositional phrase – 1 (military) – Actively engaged in fighting or dealing with the enemy; in battle or on maneuvers.’ (manœuvres)
TELEPHONE NUMBER https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/telephone_number
‘2 (in the plural, humorous) – A large number. “How much is that Rolls Royce? We are talking telephone numbers.”‘
Agree with Widdersbel@2 Weddings can be expensive.
Quite sober for Harry, but nevertheless very enjoyable except perhaps for 3d which I think is probably just a weak CD – although I would be happy to be proved wrong if the setter can offer an alternative explanation.
INBRED and IMITATE were my top picks.
Many thanks to Hoskins and to Kitty.
DEALERS could do easily have been “we supply drugs” instead of cards, so there seems to be a conscious sobering up. I think FrankieG is right about the large number.
Shouldn’t it be ‘rung up’ if it was referring to high cost?
Thanks Hoskins and Kitty
I remember some while back a post by Hoskins saying he was working on a range of puzzles themed around or with a nina of DRUNK or SOBER.
Re 3D I find the assumption that it’s about wedding curious, as traditionally, in the UK at least, it’s the bride’s family that foots the bill.
Haven’t got a plausible explanation for it, though!
If Simon@12 has got it right, maybe we’ll get a drunken orgy of a puzzle from Hoskins next time? Don’t get me wrong, this offering was fine but so unlike what we’ve become used to getting from our ‘Arry.
Tops for me today were BIBLES – Gideon variety I seem to remember – EPITOME & DEALERS.
Thanks to Hoskins and to Miss Kitty for the review and a glimpse of her feline companions.
Thanks both. BIBLES wasn’t hugely convincing for me, and I wondered if the song link in the blog might be Rocky the Raccoon, but not so. Equally stumped by TELEPHONE NUMBER even to the extent that a man gets a wife, and a husband already has one….
Re: TELEPHONE NUMBER- is Digits Rung a (grammatically naughty) reference to buying engagement/wedding rings? Would answer Simon@12s point as these are always bought by the husband-to-be.
Usual good stuff from Hoskins, but I found this and CAVALRYMAN a bit weak.
Thanks all for your comments. 🙂
KVa@4 – yes, I suppose I thought stating that field = battlefield would be obvious, but then I do a lot of stating the obvious for the sake of clarity and completeness. Ultimately what I put in and leave out is a bit subject to the flapping of a butterfly’s wings in a far off land.
Some good thoughts about 3d, but I’m still bemused. The thing about cryptic definitions is that the obvious reading should be the wrong one, not the right one … and the alternative meaning should be intelligible!
StephenL @7 – there’s no private feud, just a public mock argument Hoskins started. I’m sure he has explained it somewhere, back when he used to comment, but it’s not easily searchable so I haven’t found it.
Simon S @12 – well remembered!
Hoskins, May 2022:
“This puzzle was one of a series of ten drunk/sober puzzles I subbed last April with the idea the drunk ones would be full-on Hoskins and the sober ones totally unspiced. Of course, I was drunk when I wrote them all whatever their spice level.”
So, Jane @13, you may well get that drunken orgy next time!
As to BIBLES in hotel rooms, some years ago I stayed in the George hotel in Huddersfield. This was where the Rugby League was started in 1895 and there was not only a bible in the room, there was a history of Rugby League.
I couldn’t work out what was going on in 3dn either.
It’s not what I expected from Hoskins but I liked it anyway with POEM, EPITOME, and LADDER, of course being favourites. I used a word finder for CAVALRYMAN and TENPIN. Thanks Kitty for the blog.
[A joke for Kitty: Two cats were having a swimming race. One is named “one, two, three”, the other “une, deux, trois.” Which cat won? One, two, three because une, deux, trois cat sank.]
🙂