Quiptic 987 by Pan

9 comments on “Quiptic 987 by Pan”

1. Thanks Pan and nms

   By the time I got to this, 21d had been changed to “songs”.

   Rather odd the chance (?) repetitions – Eve, service, vegetable appearing in clues or answers more than once. Apart from that this was OK, though clueing BEN as “chap” in 8d is rather lazy.

   Favourite was DEFIANCE.

2. Thanks for the blog. I thought this was rather good.

3. 21d had been corrected by the time I got to it, but I’m still a bit puzzled by one aspect of that clue: in what circumstance is “independence” abbreviated “I”?

   This puzzle fit the Quiptic bill perfectly, I think. The construction of the clues was impeccable (with the exception, apparently, of that one error that I never saw), and the surfaces were smooth and often amusing. For some reason, I was particularly diverted by the alarmed amphibian, and “stop in dodgy side street” is very pleasing in its simple, efficient construction.

    

4. Ted @3

   Chambers does give I for independence, although I can only think of its use in combination. The change from ‘song’ to ‘songs’ does no damage to the clue, but I would defend the original as a collective noun: “Schubert had a substantial orchestral output, but his forte was song”.

5. Thanks, PeterO @4.

   I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t own an actual copy of Chambers. I go look things up at chambers.co.uk, which doesn’t list “independence” under “I”.

   That site appears to be based on “Chambers 21st Century Dictionary”. I know, of course, that there are multiple Chambers dictionaries. When people refer to looking something up in “Chambers”, which one do they mean?

   Finally, a quote from the great Tom Lehrer:

   “‘We must protest this treatment, Hubert,’

   says each newspaper reader.

   As someone once remarked to Schubert,

   Take us to your Lieder.”

   (This one hasn’t actually aged as well as many of Lehrer’s songs, because nobody remembers the political controversy that inspired it, in which Vice President Hubert Humphrey was thought to be disrespected and ignored by his own President.)

6. Thanks Pan and nms. I thought this was a good Quiptic.

   Ted @5; it’s The Chambers Dictionary (now 13th Edition)

7. … ps, sometimes called the BRB (Big Red Book.)

8. Thanks, Robi!

9. Ted @3 Could it be in the political sense? I know in the US people are either Republicans (R), Democrats (D) or Independent (I). I know that’s independent, rather than independence, but the state of being an independent could also maybe be “I”? Or is that a stretch?

   And thanks, @newmarketsausage, though it looks like a cut and paste mishap has occurred in your answer to 4D, where “(partner)” has ended up in the middle of a word.

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