The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/29417.
Perhaps, with the Quiptic and Quick Cryptic to hand, it is felt that the Monday Cryptic can spread its wings a little. At least, that is how it strikes me – I found this a delightful crossword, but not an easy one.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | HIGH COMMISSION |
Delegation which might make salesperson happy? (4,10)
|
| Definition and literal interpretation – commission being a salesperson’s payment for a sale. | ||
| 8 | UNION |
Trouble afoot, bishop going AWOL for wedding (5)
|
| A subtraction: [b]UNION (‘trouble afoot’) minus the B (‘bishop going AWOL’). | ||
| 9 | HAVE-NOTS |
The poor, befuddled sot following Oasis (4-4)
|
| A charade of HAVEN (‘oasis’) plus OTS, an anagram (‘befuddled’) of ‘sot’. | ||
| 11 | EL GRECO |
Composer overlooking a novelist and painter (2,5)
|
| A charade of ELG[a]R (‘composer’) minus the A (‘overlooking a’) plus ECO (Umberto, ‘novelist’). | ||
| 12 | DERVISH |
Frenzied dancer very embarrassed-looking about his pants (7)
|
| A charade of DERV, a reversal (‘about’) of V (‘very’) plus RED (’embarrassed-looking’); plus ISH, an anagram (‘pants’) of ‘his’. The “whirling Dervish” is only part of Dervish discipline in Islam, but probably the best known in the West. | ||
| 13 | ASCOT |
Character twice in arena – national sports venue (5)
|
| A charade of A (‘character twice in ArenA‘) plus SCOT (‘national’). | ||
| 15 | GORBACHEV |
Reformer grabbed by Schoenberg or Bach even (9)
|
| A hidden answer (‘grabbed by’) in ‘SchoenberG OR BACH EVen’. | ||
| 17 | MEANDERED |
Republican admitted to hateful action and didn’t go straight (9)
|
| An envelope (‘admitted to’) of R (‘Republican’) in MEAN DEED (‘hateful action’). | ||
| 20 | EATEN |
In a declamation contest, school scoffed (5)
|
| Sounds like (‘in a declamation contest’) ETON (‘school’). | ||
| 21 | NAIVEST |
Having the least art, a composer books tours (7)
|
| An envelope (‘tours’) of ‘a’ plus IVES (Charles, ‘composer’) in NT (New Testament. ‘books’). The grammar is tortuous. | ||
| 23 | DEISTIC |
Like some faith in side playing with a lot of credit (7)
|
| A charade of DEIS, an anagram (‘playing’) of ‘side’ plus TIC[k] (‘credit’) minus its last letter (‘a lot of’). | ||
| 25 | PAGANINI |
Great Italian player, one lacking belief in Picaroon (8)
|
| A charade of PAGAN (‘one lacking belief’ – at least, the particular belief of the person using the word) plus ‘in’ plus I (‘Picaroon’). | ||
| 26 | AMUSE |
Crack up first in Amsterdam, with drug problem returning (5)
|
| A charade of A (‘first in Amsterdam’) plus MUSE, a reversal (‘returning’) of E (‘drug’) plus SUM (‘problem’). | ||
| 27 | TIDDLY-OM-POM-POM |
Tipsy trio of Englishmen missing soft sound of music (6-2-3-3)
|
| A charade of TIDDLY (‘tipsy’) plus [p]OM POM POM (‘trio of Englishmen’) minus the first P (‘missing soft’). For reference, the theme tune of Much-Binding-in-the Marsh, or the song I do like to be beside the seaside ( … where the brass bands play tiddly-om-pom-pom). | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | HOUSEWARMING |
I urge showman to organise moving celebration (12)
|
| An anagram (‘to organise’) of ‘I urge showman’. | ||
| 2 | GOING |
Instrument maintaining current conditions at 13, say (5)
|
| An envelope (‘maintaining’) of I (electrical ‘current’) in GONG (‘instrument’). | ||
| 3 | CONVERTED |
Penning note, undercover journalist saw the light (9)
|
| An envelope (‘penning’) of N (‘note’) in COVERT (‘undercover’) plus ED (editor, ‘journalist’). | ||
| 4 | MAH-JONG |
Game’s poor player from the south on run round north (3-4)
|
| A charade of MAH, e reversal (‘from the south’ in a down light) of HAM (‘poor player’ – actor) plus JONG, an envelope (’round’) of N (‘north’) in JOG (‘run’). | ||
| 5 | INVADER |
I’ve tangled with darn unwelcome individual (7)
|
| An anagram (‘tangled with’) of ‘I’ve’ plus ‘darn’. | ||
| 6 | SONAR |
Child artist, on the up, displaying sound technique (5)
|
| A charade of SON (‘child’) plus AR, a reversal (‘on the up’ in a down light) of RA (‘artist’). | ||
| 7 | OUT WITH IT |
Tell me where French nincompoop gets smacked (3,4,2)
|
| A charade of OU (‘where French’) plus TWIT (‘nincompoop’) plus HIT (‘smacked’). | ||
| 10 | SHAVING CREAM |
Riot guards owning manscaping product (7,5)
|
| An envelope (‘guards’) of HAVING (‘owning’) in SCREAM (‘riot’ – both denoting something very amusing). | ||
| 14 | CHARIVARI |
Daily help for refs welcomed by ones producing match-day serenade (9)
|
| A charade of CHAR (‘daily’ – Can I do you now, sir?) plus IVARI, an envelope (‘welcomed by’) of VAR (Video Assistant Referee, ‘help for refs’) in I I (‘ones’). After DIckie Murdoch in 27A, I have regressed to Tommy Handley – actually before even my time – with Mrs.Mopp, the charlady in ITMA. A charivari is a cacophany, in particular the banging of pots and pans as a mock serenade to newly-weds (hence ‘match-day’). The magazine Punch had the subtitle The London Charivari, in the more general sense. | ||
| 16 | AMERICANO |
A doctor, filled with rage, upset container for drink (9)
|
| An envelope (‘filled with’) of ERI, a reversal (‘upset’) of IRE (‘rage’) plus CAN (‘container’) in ‘a’ plus MO (Medical Officer, ‘doctor’). Not the easiest parsing. | ||
| 18 | RATTILY |
Said why drunk seaman turns up in shabby fashion (7)
|
| A reversal (‘turns up’ in a down light) of Y (‘said why’) plus LIT (‘drunk’) plus TAR (‘seaman’). | ||
| 19 | DADAISM |
Parent defends platform for provocative movement (7)
|
| An envelope (‘defends’) of DAIS (‘platform’) in DAM (‘parent’). | ||
| 22 | ELAND |
Heartless, evil as well as horny bounder (5)
|
| A charade of EL (‘heartless EviL‘) plus AND (‘as well as’). | ||
| 24 | TRUMP |
One in a powerful suit back in hot seat (5)
|
| A charade of T (‘back in hoT‘) plus RUMP (‘seat’), with a definition referring to card games (one can only hope). |
I quite agree with PeterO’s gloss on the puzzle.
The only thing I would add is that I would never use AMUSE and crack up interchangeably – the latter suggests to me a much more extreme effect.
Thanks
Thanks PeterO. I concur with your intro.
I didn’t mind the grammar in NAIVEST, and fortunately the composer Ives had occurred in a previous crossword. Likewise CHARIVARI and TIDDLY-OM-POM-POM rang bells. Funny juxtapositions of the old CHAR and the new VAR.
ITMA in PeterO’s blog of CHARIVARI was a newie, to me. 🙂
Solved EATEN, as a homophone, but still don’t understand ‘declamation contest’.
Lots of chuckleworthy surfaces. Cracked me up.
COTD: SHAVING CREAM (what a def! hair-raising…not quite!).
Other faves: HIGH COMMISSION (nice pitch! well played!) and HOUSEWARMING (cosy def!).
Like others above, I am in sync with PeterO’s intro.
Thanks PeterO and Picaroon!
EATEN
paddymelon@2
A recitation contest…or are you asking something else about the clue?
I hadn’t reached my Ist birthday when ITMA finished it’s final series, but I am still familiar with many of the catch phrases and characters.
I got PAGANINI from the crossers and it took a while to parse pagan as one without belief, oh that belief!
Plenty to enjoy, but a long way from the old Monday puzzles.
Thanks both.
Got only one clue on the first pass and struggled with the anagrams, then progressed slowly. (Yesterday’s Quiptic, saw “-e-e”, the word “pool” and immediately wrote “Gene”…today I was more careful…)
Got 27a, was vaguely familiar, though am unfamiliar with the origin.
Remembered “Charivari” from a review of the Sex Pistols and a description of the Vuvuzelas’ sound at the South African Wold Cup…
Liked “Out with it” and “Union”
Thank you to Picaroon and PeterO
Thanks KVa@3 for ”declamation contest”. Shouldda looked it up. I thought it was a coinage by Picaroon. Didn’t know it was a thing, although I did that sort of thing as a young person.
😊👍🏼
Vaguing ginf brain was going Now who’s that 4-letter composer ending in s, and Who wrote that cello concerto played by the cellist who died played by Emily Watson? All part of the fun, and Picaroon on Monday is a joy. And ta PeterO.
I must say I did think of something else (or should I say someone else) when parsing TRUMP.
This was a sheer delight. No dud clues, all very clever, resulting in plenty of smiles. If ever I’m marooned on a desert isle, my first wish will be for a stack of Picaroon cryptics.
Can only join in everyone else’s appreciation of the puzzle. A Monday treat. Had a doubt about pagan as a non-believer, but it’s there in Chambers of course. The East side went in more quickly than the West, and the ‘high’ in HIGH COMMISSION took too long to come to mind after getting 1d, which had a great misdirecting definition. Thanks to Picaroon and PeterO.
A Monday level Picaroon is a joyous thing to encounter. Nothing too tricky – I had vaguely heard of CHARIVARI so was able to assemble that potentially problematic one. I liked the surfaces for DERVISH and SHAVING CREAM and the hidden GORBACHEV was nicely done – though I fear the pursuit of modern day references would probably do for that one with no fewer than three historical characters!
Thanks Picaroon and PeterO
Only knew the word charivari from sub-title of the old and “not as funny as it used to be” magazine Punch (or the London Charivari). Which didn’t help at all.
A really challenging Monday. Went almost through the entire puzzle before I had a clue written in. But Housewarming down the side gave me an excellent way in.
An excellent puzzle with lots of ticks and no quibbles.
Thanks Picaroon and PeterO
Thanks Picaroon and PeterO
Very enjoyable and not too hard, apart from the baffling ASCOT, which I got from 2d rather than its clue.
Lots to like, with favourite 27a.
An excellent blog of an excellent crossword. Many thanks, PeterO, for explaining ASCOT which was the only one to go in unparsed .
Picaroon sure knows how to hide a def, does he not? Ticks everywhere, almost identical list to that of KVa.
Many thanks, both.
Another here who couldn’t parse ASCOT, but I enjoyed this, particularly OU-TWIT-HIT. I knew that CHARIVARI existed, but not that it was associated with weddings. A pagan isn’t exactly a non-believer: they just believe in different gods – but it’s near enough for crosswords.
The top half went in very smoothly, but the bottom half took quite a while longer. Once I had convinced myself that CHARIVARI was a thing, with the dreaded showstopper and bane of top level soccer VAR lurking therein, the last two to fall were the interlocking NAIVEST and RATTILY which I was very glad to have PeteO explain this morning…
My customary appreciation of Picaroon, and thanks to Peter for elaborating some of the solutions.
I agree with Dr. WhatsOn @1, that AMUSE doesn’t seem strong enough to define crack up, but apart from that quiblet, this was a marvellous mixture of GK and subtle humour. After last night’s penalty controversy, any SCOT solving this will not want to be reminded of VAR. My favourites were both 1s, EL GRECO, GORBACHEV, MEANDERED and OUT WITH IT.
Ta Picaroon & PeterO.
I’m getting to really love Picaroon. Often slow, but they gradually reveal themselves. A sign of a good crossword.
Favourites: EL GRECO, PAGANINI, AMERICANO, ASCOT.
New for me: CHARIVARI (well-clued).
Thanks, both.
PAGAN reminds me that Morse had that nickname because he refused to use his Christian name
AMUSE
crack up (Yes yes Chambers)
5. To (cause to) burst into laughter (informal)
A real treat for a (sunny) Monday morning.
I entered precisely none of the across answers on the first run through, but then, as for Matthew @12, the lovely HOUSEWARMING opened things up and the rest followed at a very satisfying rate.
I ended up with about a dozen ticks, as usual – admired the hidden GORBACHEV and smiled at the absentee bishop, the embarrassed frenzied dancer and the tipsy trio of Englishmen.
‘Highly commended’ for the cleverly constructed EL GRECO – quite a feat to include a composer and an author as well as a painter but I suppose the enumeration is a bit of a give-away.
Many thanks to Picaroon for a brilliant start to the week and to PeterO for the blog.
“Pagan” (like “heathen”) generally means one practises a non-mainstream religion – so I would say that “non-believer” is synonymous (as in they do not believe in your choice of god(s)) but not, strangely, “one lacking belief” (which suggests having no gods at all). The subtleties and quirkiness of the English language!
These words always bring back the memory of meeting the RC priest who was to marry us. Apparently he had the power to do so if I were of the wrong branch of Christianity but had to go to higher offices if I were outside the church entirely. On hearing that I was not even christened he smiled and called me (jokingly) “the blackest of heathens”. It is a title I still wear proudly 30 years on.
Many thanks Picaroon – a lovely fun solve, and thank you PeterO for the tour of ancient British comedy.
Thank you Picaroon for the super mid-summer treat, and PeterO for help with ASCOT – I’d convinced myself that ‘national’ was part of the definition, confusing Ascot with Aintree.
Loved OUTWITHIT, ‘the poor befuddled sot’ and Elgar & Eco amongst many.
What a treat for a Monday morning. Top marks for ASCOT, CHARIVARI (NHO but just followed the instructions) & NAIVEST for the wonderfully subtle definition
And AMERICANO for this 80s earworm
Cheers P&P
DEISTs, PAGANs, CONVERTs, and…
…The Muppet Show version of (The) Girl Friend Of The Whirling DERVISH (1980) – an Arabian Nights theme with Marty Feldman as guest star (S5E18).
‘He dreams of a Hindu honeymoon | He doesn’t dream that ev’ry night when | He goes out to make an honest rupee | She steps out to make a lotta whoopee…’
‘…She’s got a nervish, throwin’ him a curvish | Which, of course, he doesn’t deservish | Poor old whirling dervish!’
Thanks P&PO
Araucaria 2008: ‘23d Painter and composer with a missing novelist from Italy (2,5)’
Eccles 2024: ‘3d English composer and Italian author rejecting a Spanish painter (2,5)’
Great minds…
Enjoyed it, but am still in the dark about the following:
Why does CHAR = daily (14d)?
Why does DAM = parent (19d)?
The usual high standard from the pirate.
I found in my Oxford Thesaurus for AMUSE: Brit informal: crease someone up. I liked the wordplays of EL GRECO, TOPP, AMERICANO and CHARIVARI. HOUSEWARMING was a good anagram, and the well-hidden GORBACHEV had me looking up Schoenberg before I twigged what was going on.
Thanks Picaroon and PeterO.
I’m another who had trouble parsing ASCOT. It was the ‘character twice’ that confused me. Thanks for the explanation.
Apart from that, it was a fun romp, brilliantly clued. I laughed at T-O-P-P and OUT WITH IT. Other likes included EL GRECO, DERVISH, PAGANINI, CHARIVARI, CONVERTED, SHAVING CREAM.
Thanks Picaroon and PeterO.
scraggs @30, CHAR is short for charwoman (a cleaner who “does” for you) and DAM is another word for mother.
I loved every minute of this. Many thanks to Picaroon and PeterO. I had not heard of CHARIVARI and found the explanation in the blog really interesting. Thanks very much to Bodycheetah@26 and to FrankieG@27 for the links 😎. SueM48@32 has identified my favourites with top spot to SHAVING CREAM…
FrankieG@28/29
Perhaps they’re respectful variations on a theme (not by Paganini of course, and not as enigmatical as Elgar’s).
TimC @30
Thanks for responding . I got the charwoman link but am still floundering – is ‘daily’ relating to when they visit? Not trying to be deliberately obtuse but it’s just clear to me that I would never have parsed this.
Never heard of DAM for mother either. Is there a particular context that this would be used in (anyone – I’m not expecting TimC to have to answer each question but am grateful for him having done so above)?
Absolutely beautiful
Favourite today 22dn.
Often read the blog after finishing (and often with fifteen squared help)
Thanks to all.
What a delight – simply a great treat! Had ticks for nearly all the clues – l enjoyed this so much! If l had to pick one favourite – no, l can’t…oh go on then…7 down and 27 across…Doh, l knew l couldn’t pick just one. Great joy. Thanks immensely to Picaroon and to PeterO for great blog
scraggs@36
DADAISM
DAM (Cambridge online dictionary)
the female parent of an animal, especially a horse {other dictionaries say ‘the female parent of any four-legged animal’}
The horse has American bloodlines on his dam’s side.
Ask about the health and temperament of the sire and dam, the parents of the dog.
DAM (Chambers)
A mother, usu of cattle, horses etc.,
Origin: A form of dame.
CHARIVARI
CHAR
daily=CHAR (as a noun)
(not indicating the time when they visit. It’s derived from ‘a daily wage worker’, I think.)
scraggs @36, a daily is according to Chambers “n a daily paper; a non-resident servant, esp a cleaning woman….” hence a char is someone who comes in daily (or during the day maybe) to do the housekeeping as opposed to a resident housekeeper.
Dam, again according to Chambers is “n a mother, usu of cattle, horses, etc. [a form of dame1] hence, I guess, parent.
Very enjoyable puzzle. One of those that looked impenetrable at first glance but when you’ve finished, you wonder why. Thanks, Picaroon and PeterO.
scraggs – “daily” is simply another (old-fashioned) synonym for a person employed to do housework, but one who visits the premises daily rather than, say, a live-in maid. A dam is only a mother in the animal world – you wouldn’t use it of a person.
(edit: I’m slower at typing than previous respondents but at least we all seem to agree.)
Highly satisfying slow and steady solve today, with CHARIVARI – new to me – the last one in. Having the Euros on TV and constant discussion of VAR was undoubtedly a help. Thank you very much Picaroon, and thanks PeterO for explaining NAIVEST; Charles Ives is also new to me. Excellent work out + some fresh knowledge = the perfect puzzle.
You get dam in horse breeding circles with sire and dam being the biological father and mother of a horse.
Off to bed now.
KVa @40
Tim C @41
Widdersbel @42
Thank you, I greatly appreciate your responses. I’d rather ask here than turn to Google for things like this as I feel more confident about the information coming from fellow solvers.
My frustration at not being able to parse those answers didn’t mar my enjoyment of the puzzle, but my knowledge is now improved.
Thanks again.
Horrible for a Monday, obscurites over worked. I think the Grauniad has abandoned all but the hard core solvers. I complete a majority of their inconsistent offerings but I used to look forward to Mondays.
The Quiptic is online only and the beginners’ Saturday is too easy.
First World problem but annoying nonetheless.
Jack of Few Trades @24
Yes, I really should get up-to-date and include more references to The Goon Show.
8A was my FOI and gave me a smile. I always appreciate clues that play with the inconsistent pronunciation of the English language. 14D escaped me: apparently my dictionary is inadequate as it offers a quite different definition.
The first word of 1A took an embarrassingly long about of time to occur to me, and was my LOI.
Thanks PeterO and Picaroon
Rather late to be commenting today… Highly entertaining puzzle with some clever charades and well crafted anagrams. Favourites all previously listed.
I like crosswords which test the scope of my vocabulary and aren’t just full of Plain English. As it happens there were no words here that I hadn’t come across, though I couldn’t have told you what a CHARIVARI was, only knowing it through the Punch connection. (I’m sure I looked up the meaning ages ago, but had long since forgotten it).
The significance of ‘dam’ has been well explained by previous posters, but can I add that it pops up in Shakespeare. Off the top of my head, I can think of two occurrences: in ‘The Tempest’, Caliban says (of Miranda) – “I never saw a woman but only Sycorax my dam and she”. And when Macduff is told that his whole family has been murdered on Macbeth’s orders he exclaims “What, all my pretty chickens and their dam, at one fell swoop!” (the origin of that familiar phrase).
Thanks to the Pirate and PeterO
Enjoyed this. At first I filled in the upper/right diagonal half, leaving a filled and an empty triangle. Then slowly the rest filled in, with great pleasure. Like many others, I couldn’t make head or tail of ASCOT. I needed help with a good many others too.
Never heard of GOING in the ASCOT sense. Seems to be familiar to everybody else. Never heard of VAR either.
PeterO, you’ve left of the F of French in the blog for OUT WITH IT. In AMERICANO, ERI + CAN is inside MO, not added to it.
The google note for Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh had a reference to ITMA (It’s That Man Again), which I followed up, so now I know what PeterO means by “can I do you now, sir?” and the origin of Mrs. Mopp, which I think I’ve only seen with one P.
Bodycheetah@26, that is one weird video!
Thanks, Picaroon for a delight and PeterO for the untangling.
Valentine @50
I have added the missing F for 7D OUT WITH IT. I am not sure of your point about 16D AMERICANO; I described it as an envelope, which is the normal way I refer to an inside/outside clue.
Thanks Picaroon, that was fun. Even though I failed with CHARIVARI and TIDDLY-OM-POM-POM (I had zero chance of solving or even guessing the latter) I found much to like including HAVE-NOTS, EL GRECO, EATEN (liked ‘declamation contest’ for a homophone indicator), AMUSE, OUT WITH IT, RATTILY, ELAND, and TRUMP. Thanks PeterO for the blog.
For some reason I made a bish of the anagram in 1d, and I spent ages trying to work out whether MOUSEHARMING could possibly be the answer. D’oh!
Got there in the end, though.
All in all a really fun solve.
Valentine @50
The “going” is an indication of how soft the course is. Some horses can cope with softer ground than others. See here (though I have heard “bottomless” as well!).
The office was closed due to oil leaking from the ceiling so I was allowed to work from home and finish at 4 giving me an extra hour in which I solved nearly all of this chewy but satisfying puzzle. Charivari new to me but parsable; didn’t know dam = parent and misspelt dadaism so Paganini had a slight delay. Interesting comment from Peter O about challenge and implicit suggestion that Quiptic and Quick Cryptic have replaced the ‘easy’ Monday puzzle particularly given Everyman blog this weekend. I maintain a clue is only easy if you know the answer. Thanks to Peter and Picaroon and I shall return to the office and late night comments tomorrow.
Thanks for the blog , perhaps I should say very little but we get so many middle of the road Guardian crosswords , do we need one on a Monday as well ?
Picaroon is arguably a step up in difficulty for a Monday, but this had lots of fun clues, and nothing unfair, and so made for an enjoyable solve.
CHARIVARI is one of many words I only know as a result of crosswords, as is ELAND, the definition of which, “horny bounder”, was a favourite. I also liked EL GRECO for the combination of creative types, though posters above have cited previous some very similar clues in past puzzles, which takes the shine off just a little.
Seemed to be a few musical references in the clues and some solutions (…CREAM, DERVISH, PAGANINI, TIDDLY OM POM POM, HOUSE …?), but I didn’t spot any other theme.
Thanks P&P
Roz@56 – you say very little, but I’m not sure what you actually are saying (I’m not sure how you define a “middle of the road Guardian crossword” unless it’s something in between Vulcan and Vlad, and that covers a lot of puzzles).
I always appreciate your insightful comments, so I am curious to understand, as you seem to be damning this puzzle with faint praise, and I enjoyed it (I also enjoy Vulcan and Vlad: it may be I’m more easily pleased than you!).
[I recall an old Readers Digest joke: Tell your wife you love her daily. If you haven’t got a daily, advertise for one]
Danny@58 I just found it very dull. At the moment nearly every Guardian crossword is the same standard . There should be two puzzles a week for newer solvers and some puzzles to challenge seasoned solvers, one a week or one a month or even one a year … I live in hope.
nb. Because of a moderated comment, the entry referenced here is now 1961Blanchflower@59
PeterO.
I loved this one. Favourites were the moving celebration at 1d HOUSEWARMING, the well-hidden GORBACHEV at 15a, the clever clue for the A of 13a ASCOT, the deceptive football surface of 14d CHARIVARI, and the WITty wordplay of 7d OU/TWIT/HIT.
PostMark@11, re 15a, I would argue that BACH is far from a mere historical character – his music transcends his age, and speaks to us today as if it was written yesterday.
Apart from Roz’s unusual complaint that the puzzle was too difficult 😉 the only dissenter on this blog was Alastair@46. I wonder if he enjoys being a lone voice. (Forgive me if I have misread his contributions.)
Thanks Picaroon for the typically witty puzzle, and PeterO for the typically excellent blog.
[Roz@60 although l enjoyed this puzzle very much, l do see your point about varying challenges that encourage and test. That’s a good idea.]
nb. Because of a moderated comment, the entry referenced here is now Roz@61
PeterO.
[ Marty @61 I have been doing the Guardian a long time , the tradition was always 3 levels of puzzle , 2 of each per week . Now the standard hardly varies, good setters , fine puzzles but monotonous. ]
nb. Because of moderated comments, the entry referenced here is now MartyBridge@63
PeterO.
I’m really not seeing your objection to this puzzle, Roz – I thought it was a particularly fine example.
No real objection but it is just read the clue, surely that is not the wordplay , oh yes it is , write in the answer , repeat and repeat .
I would like to think and I would like to be surprised.
Roz@63 and 65
I wonder if part of it is that as you have been solving crosswords for a long time, you have naturally got better with experience, and have seen many of the setters’ tricks before. I go back to the 1970s with the Graun and Observer, and I see far more “write-in” clues than I used to, not because I am getting more clever as I get older (far from it!), but more because I have come across the same device before. Having already done the hard work in the past, the solution is more obvious in the present.
As regards the puzzle today I found it fun enough, if not one of Picaroon’s most inventive.
I wasn’t really aware of the three levels you mention, though on reflection I suppose I always had different expectations from say a Janus puzzle (dead straightforward if entertaining) compared with a Bunthorne (generally beyond me!), with Araucaria’s trickery somewhere in between, if that’s what you mean.
I do think with Paul, Brendan, Qaos, Picaroon, Brendan et al, and some of the relatively new setters too, our puzzles are in good hands.
nb. Because of a moderated comment, the entries referenced here are nor Roz @64 and Roz@66
PeterO.
Danny@66 we had Janus, Quantum , Custos , Mercury at one end , great setters for newer solvers . Bunthorne, Fidelio , Gemini seriously tough , and many in between.
John Perkin was editor for a long time and his stated policy was two easy , two medium , two hard , each week.
The setters you mention are all talented , we get good puzzles but if I was rating them for difficulty then virtually every day is 5 or 6 out of 10. It is the lack of variety that annoys me. The Guardian most of all should aim for some diversity. I admire all the newer setters but they are also a similar level.
I have said more than enough, screen off.
Scraggs@45 As so often, Shakespeare provides an example. In Macbeth, Macduff reacts to news of the murder of his wife and children with the line, What, all my pretty chickens and their dam at one fell swoop?
I think Roz needs a Boatman? For my own part I love a Picaroon, as I used to love an Arachne, because I know that I won’t be referring clues to VAR (although a foul might be called occasionally – it’s all in the game). I know what Roz means (I think) – barred puzzles for instance are often breathlessly astonishing in their wit but I can’t be doing with the amount of time they take. I like to think that I devote the minimum/optimum amount of time to a crossword but that doesn’t mean I want a write-in. The interstitial pauses are the source of the greatest pleasures. But one person’s ‘interstitial pause’ is another’s ‘stumped’ so it’s horses for courses (DAMs for ASCOT?).
On PAGAN(ini) and whether a pagan is ‘one lacking belief’ might I offer (as an ecumenically inclined pagan) that on Monday I worship the Moon, on Tuesday I worship Tiw (but sometimes Mars – it depends what country I’m in), on Wednesday Woden, on Thursday https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thor, on Friday Fria, Saturday is Saturn’s day to get the reversing genuflection (not easy) and I visit the tanning salon on Sunday with some friends. It’s an old system of beliefs but refuses to go away.
Autolycus@68: Gervase@49.
Cellomaniac@61. Couldn’t agree more re J.S. The absolute master.
nb. Becauuse of a moderated comment, Cellomaniac’s entry is now @62.
PeterO.
[ Zoot@71, your moniker suggests an affinity to a certain tenor saxophone player. Me too, although my #1 from that era was Stan Getz (the non-bossa nova version). ]
A lovely crossword though I too struck out with the parsing of EATEN. Favourite was NAIVEST. Very subtle and classic James.
Jack of Few Trades @24.
Pagan/heathen reminds me of this part of the Wicker Man:
HOWIE
And did he too keep up the Godless charades of your grandfather, sir?
LORD SUMMERISLE
He became fascinated by the old ways, if that’s what you mean.
Indeed, he went further. What my grandfather had started out of expediency, he continued because he truly believed that it was infinitely more spiritually nourishing than the life denying, God-terror of the Kirk. And I might say, sergeant, he brought me up the same way – to love the music and drama and rituals of the old pantheism, and to love nature, and to fear it, and rely on it and appease it where necessary.
He brought me up to …
HOWIE (shouting)
To be a pagan.
There is a silence between them.
LORD SUMMERISLE
(softly)
A heathen, conceivably, but not I hope, an unenlightened one.
Not sure why there were so many early comments about the difficulty level ? Personally I thought this was one of the more straightforward of Picaroon’s offerings, undoubtedly helped by 1d and 1ac being both long answers and easily gettable. I found I completed the top half quickly but the bottom took longer. Definitely not Vulcan/Rufus/Janus level though, and perhaps that is a tradition which the Guardian should stick more closely to for Monday puzzles. I took a while to parse ASCOT and it was a “D’oh” moment when I fell in. EATEN/ETON fell straight away, mainly due to the Guardian article last week which mused on the idea that setters should include more modern references for the benefit of younger solvers if cryptics are not to eventually die out – which said in part that “School” is invariably ETON. Thanks to Picaroon and to PeterO.
I didn’t manage to finish this till after midnight and so wasn’t going to say anything, but then I worked my way through the comments…
I’m genuinely pleased that so many of the commenters absolutely adored this puzzle: clearly the Guardian’s new crossword editor’s apparent desire to raise the complexity-level has delighted his target demographic.
Then, 46 comments in, there was Alastair – and I agree with every word he wrote.
Time was, I’d work out a clue, or guess at something and work out the parsing afterwards. Now, after anagrams have given me a toehold, I frequently have to plough through word-searches (once my shameful “last resort”) and check the meaning of possible contenders (yes charivari, I’m looking at you). It’s not as much fun.
The tipsy trio of Englishmen clearly weren’t Tom Dick & Harry, nor Freeman Hardy & Willis, nor Sue Grabbit & Run, nor Rag Tag & Bobtail. Had there been the merest indication we were talking Australian slang, I might have been in with a chance…
Perhaps the likes of me aren’t wanted here anymore.
I’m enjoying taking advantage by checking answers in the app, confirming letter hunches by checking obviously wrong answers, and using the crossword solver Web pages – how else was I going to get charivari, and sometimes saying well x fits but I can’t see why.
Classical music is my specialist subject, but when a composer is required 100 spring to mind.
Please tell me you find words that fit or answer the definition and then confirm because only very rarely can I build an answer from the cryptic elements
I am much enjoying the explanations and chat here. Thank you
John @76 crossword solving is a long journey that never ends. When I was learning I would often be totally stuck on a puzzle and without letters it is hard to progress. I would treat it as a quick crossword and look for definitions at each end of the clue, also using a small thesaurus to find synonyms with the right length. It works surprisingly well and once you have some letters in you can tackle more clues.
Now I solve nearly all clues from wordplay , this is essential for puzzles like Azed , but I have had rather a lot of practice.
My father used to listen to ITMA but I’m a bit too young to remember it: I’m only 82. Puzzles are getting harder or brain cells not regenerating. Amusing puzzle and blog, thank you both.
A good one, although for some reason I had ABUSE for 26. Dervishes, of course, are actually rather stately in their whirling, but frenzied in common English usage.