Guardian Cryptic 28,061 by Crucible

by

The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/28061.

The SW corner took me longer than the rest of the puzzle together, with the obscure AVIZANDUM (and its equally opaque wordplay) as last in. there is a clear John le Carré theme: the novels Smiley’s People,The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, or A Perfect Spy or Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy (at least in the first part of SPYglass), The Night Manager, The Constant Gardener, Single & Single, Our Game, The Secret Pilgrim and Agent Running in the Field are present at least in part in the answers, and there are various related answers as well – and a reference to Philby (the essay Afterworld) in 14A. Crucible seldom fails to please me, and he does not here – fail, that is.

ACROSS
1 STETSON Don’t change this lad’s headgear (7)
A charade of STET (‘don’t change’ in editing) plus SON (‘this lad’).
5 MANAGER Nancy’s to dine, hosting a boss (7)
An envelope (‘hosting’) of ‘a’ in MANGER (French, to eat, “Nancy’s to dine’).
9 INDEX It may consist of cards in packs, as stated (5)
Sounds like (‘as stated’) IN DECKS (‘in packs’).
10 GOLDENROD Plant study by staff after record’s retrieved (9)
A charade of GOL, a reversal (‘retrieved’) of LOG (‘record’) plus DEN (‘study’) plus ROD (‘staff’).
11 EYE CONTACT Big wheel in London to call meeting of viewers (3,7)
A charade of EYE (‘big wheel in London’; the London Eye at the time of its opening in 2000 was the tallest Ferris wheel) plus CONTACT (‘call’).
12 HERO Personnel screen English Oscar star (4)
A charade of HER, an envelope (‘screen’) of E (‘English’) in HR (human resources, ‘personnel’); plus O (‘Oscar’).
14 DOUBLE AGENT Bizarre legend about Philby, for one (6,5)
An anagram (‘bizarre’) of ‘legend about’.
18 PIEDS-A-TERRE Journalist stayed in Parisian stone flats (5-1-5)
An envelope (‘in’) of ED (‘journalist’) plus SAT (‘stayed’) in PIERRE (French, ‘Parisian stone’).
21 GRUB Grand Polish food (4)
A charade of G (‘grand’) pus RUB (‘polish’).
22 COMPROMISE Undermine company male with potential (10)
A charade of CO (‘company’) plus M (‘male’) plus PROMISE (‘potential’).
25 AVIZANDUM Scottish case review, one specif­ically with limits in UK (9)
A charade of A (‘one’) plus VIZ (videlicet, ‘specifically’) plus AND (‘with’) plus UM (‘limits in UK’ – United KingdoM).
26 SUGAR Portion of asparagus revolts pet (5)
An anagram (‘revolts’) of RAGUS (‘portion of aspaRAGUS‘).
27 SOYBEAN Very little money inspires Yankee oil producer (7)
An envelope (‘inspires’) of Y (‘Yankee’) in SO (‘very’) plus BEAN (‘little money’ – “I haven’t got a bean to my name”).
28 SUSPECT Questionable cult defends American power (7)
An envelope (‘defends’) of US (‘American’) plus P (‘power’) in SECT (‘cult’).
DOWN
1 SMILEY Sunny race in suburbs of Sydney (6)
An envelope (‘in’) of MILE (‘race’, one of that length) in SY (‘suburbs of SydneY‘ – outskirts, that is).
2 ENDUED Finished importing uranium provided (6)
An envelope (‘importing’) of U (chemical symbol, ‘uranium’) in ENDED (‘finished’).
3 SEX GODDESS Bardot, say, dodges unruly head of state after congress (3,7)
A charade of SEX (‘congress’) plus GODDES, an anagram (‘unruly’) of ‘dodges’ plus S (‘head of State’), with ‘after’ indicating the order of the particles, and ‘say’ for the indication by example.
4 NIGHT Dark man on board heading off (5)
[k]NIGHT (chess, ‘man on board’) minus the first letter (‘heading off’).
5 MOLECULAR Atomic group’s spy meets uni­versity lecturer in vehicle (9)
A charade of MOLE (‘spy’) plus CULAR, an envelope (‘in’) of U (‘university’) plus L (‘lecturer’) in CAR (‘vehicle’). The apostrophe S justifies the adjectival answer.
6 NOEL Book centre out for Christmas (4)
NO[v]EL (‘book’) minus its middle letter (‘centre out’).
7 GARDENER Frenchman and Yank upset one managing plots (8)
A reversal (‘upset’ in a down light) of RENE (‘Frenchman’) plus DRAG (‘yank’).
8 REDCOATS They entertain camp old soldiers (8)
Double definition, the first referring to the entertainment staff at Butlins holiday camps.
13 SAFE HOUSES Peter puts up 20 homes for agents (4,6)
A charade of SAFE (‘peter’) plus HOUSES (‘puts up’), with 20 being the answer to 20D, SECRET.
15 UNTRODDEN Don turned off, such are Wordsworth’s ways (9)
An anagram (‘off’) of ‘don turned’, with reference to Wordsworth’s poem “She dwelt among the untrodden ways”.
16 SPYGLASS Traveller briefly repelled girl viewer (8)
A charade of SPYG, a reversal (‘repelled’) of GYPS[y] (‘traveller’) minus the last letter (‘briefly’) plus LASS (‘girl’).
17 SECURITY Collateral damage done to city user (8)
An anagram (‘damage done to’) of ‘city user’.
19 SINGLE A bundle of surprising letters left on shelf (6)
A hidden answer (‘a bundle of’) in ‘surpriSING LEtters’.
20 SECRET Small island, close to front, private (6)
A charade of S (‘small’) plus ECRET, which is CRETE (‘island’) with the last letter moved to the head (‘close to front’).
23 PUMPS Quizzes police sergeant about Unionist politician (5)
AN envelope (about’) of U (‘Unionist’) plus MP (‘politician’) in PS (‘police sergeant’).
24 GAME Plucky people may have to pluck this (4)
Double definition.

 

image of grid

43 comments on “Guardian Cryptic 28,061 by Crucible”

  1. A fairly rapid and continuous solve, with only 25A needing a little side-research and confirmation.

    I never look for themes and rarely notice them from my crossword desk, but this time 1D gave the game away, and I recall that “a desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world.”

  3. Done in by 25a, which a really clever solver (e.g., PeterO or rodshaw) could get, but I would have appreciated a slightly more straightforward clue for such an obscure word. Also failed on 8d, not being familiar with the camp entertainers, but I should have gotten that one from the old soldiers reference. I don’t want to come across as too negative about what was mostly a pleasant way to spend an evening, so I’ll just add my thanks to Crucible and PeterO.

  4. I did not pick up on the theme (as usual) except that I saw that there were references to spies in it. My favourites were SECRET, SPYGLASS.

    New for me was ENDUED, and AVIZANDUM which I failed to solve.

    Thanks, Peter and Crucible.

  5. Well done to those who parsed hero and avizandum, which i couldn’t. Also need to brush up on plant names ending in rod given aaronsrod last week!
    I parsed sugar as simply a reversal of part of asparagus. Can ‘revolt’ be used in that way?

  7. As above – never heard of avizandum, and the clue to it more difficult than any I’ve encountered lately. Great puzzle.

  9. Would I have got 25ac if I hadn’t spent 40+ years in the law?

    Annoyed with myself for not getting 24dn.

    But a very enjoyable puzzle.

  10. Thanks for blog and parsing of AVIZANDUM (I could see VIZ and AND but too lazy to finish off the parse)

    Thanks too for pointing out Le Carre titles-I just picked up on espionage-just things like Double Agent, Suspect, Security and Pieds a Terre

    And I do believe GOLDENROD has form but not from Le Carre

    Thanks to the ever pleasing Crucible.

     

  11. loi AVIZANDUM was boatmanesque in the way it was hiding in plain sight. Will be interesting to see if the guardianistas are offended by the use of GYPSY? The RFU fined Joe Marler £20k for using it. Thanks to Peter and Crucible for an excellent workout

  12. Crystal clear as always from Crucible, except for the opaque 25a which was only arrived at through much use of the check button. Thanks to PeterO for the blog and highlighting the theme which I didn’t even look for, and to Crucible for the puzzle.

  13. Thanks Crucible and PeterO

    Saw the theme for once, but didn’t get all the parts of it. Also finished in the SW – needed a wordsearch for AVIZANDUM.

  14. The simple ‘Rufusian’ clue for GAME, with one straight and one vague definition, was the toughest for me, and last in.  I got AVIZANDUM just before that, managing to work it out except for UM (but I had the M already).

    Another excellent crossword following yesterday’s.  I spotted the spy theme, but despite having read four of le Carre’s spy novels I didn’t associate the thematic items with any particular book titles.  (But I didn’t identify all the items!)

    Many very good clues, including PIEDS-A-TERRE, DOUBLE AGENT, EYE CONTACT and MOLECULAR.

    Thanks to Crucible and PeterO.

  15. Smooth and steady progress until running into the sand with AVIZANDUM & GAME which took ages but was pleased to parse the former once I found the word.  Sadly though, it’s one of those words which are so case-specific that I doubt if I’ll recall it to mind next time!

    Unforgivable missed theme as I’ve read (and re-read) all of these.

    Lovely surfaces everywhere with ticks at SOYBEAN and GAME.

    Not wild about sat = stayed at PIEDS-A-TERRE but I suppose its close enough.

    Many thanks, Crucible and PeterO for the comprehensive blog.

  16. Another defeated by avizandum but otherwise a fairly straightforward solve. And also another who did not note the full theme, having only seen the spy references, but then I am not familiar with all of Carre’s oeuvre. Lots to enjoy and particularly liked SOYBEAN and GAME. ENDUED was a new word for me but this one was easily gettable from the clue, unlike avizandum.
    Thanks to Crucible and to PeterO.

  18. Thank you Crucible and PeterO.

    I did not spot the theme and was yet another to be defeated by AVIZANDUM.

    I parsed SUGAR like Nitsuj @5 using ‘revolts’ as ‘rises up’ (‘up’ the line since this is not a down clue).

  19. Add my name to the list of people floored by AVISANDUM. I don’t know the word, and couldn’t parse anything that looked reasonable. The clue is fair and parseable in hindsight so no complaints but I have to class it as a DNF for me.

    Some very enjoyable clues from a setter who always gives me pleasure. I liked the theme and it’s giving me an urge to dip back into J le C, having only read a couple.

    Thanks to PeterO for the notes

  20. I guess ‘revolt’ meaning revolution could be used as a reverser. Anyway, I saw it like that.

    Precise cluing giving a pleasurable solve with AVIZANDUM last to go in. I liked GARDENER, SECURITY and SINGLE.

    Thanks Crucible and PeterO.

  21. William@15, sit and stay are synonymous in blackjack when you stick with the cards you’ve been dealt rather than discading one hoping for a better one (misspent youth).

  22. Fairly easy and enjoyable until 25a. Then I needed a lookup of Scottish legal terms to get the answer and parse after the fact. Would never have got it without looking up, but in retrospect I probably should have!

    Thanks Crucible and PeterO.

  23. 25a is about the most difficult clue I can remember! Got there by a degree of research that could be construed as cheating (but not the check button!). Noticed a vague espionage theme, not that it helped much. LOI the really easy GAME.

    Enjoyable nonethless, so my thanks to Crucible and to PeterO for the parsings.

  25. Another word for the theme (which I completely missed as usual) is the second half of SPYGLASS for The Looking Glass War.

    I thought SECRET was S plus T (close of fronT) containing the island, and was there an island called Ecre?

    I think there’s been a reference to holiday camps, probably Butlin’s, in an earlier puzzle or two.

    Also stumped by AVIZANDUM.  I don’t recall seeing a Latin word with a Z in it before.

    Didn’t know ENDUE though it seemed vaguely familiar.  When I looked it up I found it got “imbue” as a second definition, which reminded me of Flute as Thisbe wailing, “Come blade, by breast imbrue.”

  26. Couldn’t parse AVIZANDRUM but got it from a search. I got as far as A VIZ and thought that confirmation enough. Most of the rest went in fairly quickly. GAME took a long time though,and SINGLE and SUGAR also delayed me. I didn’t look for a theme and I doubt if I would have seen it if I had.
    Thanks Crucible.

  27. Admit using some wordsearch to get AVIZANDUM from checkers. LOI GAME but had to think hard with the dreaded _a_e pattern which has a million words.

  28. Ong’ara @27
    GAME was my LOI too. I estimated there were 113 words that could reasonably go there, not a million, but your point was well made. I tried to ‘intuit’ the word without aids, but in the end I looked up ‘Plucky’ in my red Bradford (do you know the book?), and ‘Game’ came straight out.

  29. Being a rather pleasant pheasant plucker myself I pencilled in 24d as one of my FOI. 1d my LOI. New to me were endued and avizandum but managed to parse them both.

    I loved this crossword. Still kicking myself for getting 12a wrong tho. How could I have thought it was veto?

  30. I have changed my mind re: GAME. I first thought that the right half wasn’t quite right for 2 reasons: 1. Game animals don’t require plucking (but the “may” takes care of that). 2. Game birds no more need plucking than, say, chickens, so it may be true but way too unspecific. However I now see that “people” comes to the rescue. Fowl you find in the supermarket are usually plucked by machines, but with game birds, as I understand it, it is more if a do-it-yourself experience. So the clue is cleverly written and quite fine. The only problem with it was the unhelpful crossers!

  31. [Dr. Whatson @30

    I’ve a friend who’s a very good cook. She never plucks game birds; she skins them instead – very much quicker, she says! I’ve never tried, as I’m not very keen on eating game birds anyway (taste rather than ethics).

    btw if you look back at the Pasquale blog, you’ll see that I agreed with you about the not &lit.]

  32. Dr. WhatsOn @30

    I do like your analysis of the clue for GAME: you have proved that the clue is sound.  When I described it earlier as having ‘one straight and one vague definition’ I wasn’t using ‘vague’ in a judgemental sense – I was in fact picking up the setter’s clever use of ‘may’ to give that part of the clue that quality.  (And ‘Rufusian’ was not an insult!]

    Soundness is one thing, but that is not the only thing that makes a good clue.  I would call it a weak clue as well, mainly because the second part gives the solver so liitle to work on in the face of a grid entry that has -A-E at best (what you call ‘the only problem with it’).  I would not be happy submitting a clue like that in this context even though it is sound – but then I don’t have Crucible’s judgement, experience and standing!

  33. Thanks to Crucible and PeterO.

    I got SMILEY early on and smelt a theme, with rolling of eyes, but progressed nicely with spies in the back of my head until hitting the SW.  AVIZANDUM is so very obscure – too obscure for, well, for words imho.  That the puzzle called for a smattering of French was challenging enough without requiring a knowledge of the obscure crannies of Scottish law.  I liked DOUBLE AGENTS.

    [muffin@: we crossed in the &lit discussion under Pasquale and I wanted to thank you for that but cookie got your thanks as well as her own, which I suppose you spotted…]

  37. Meadian @36: A “peter” is a slang term for a safe. Its usage appears to be confined to the UK, and I never encountered it outside of crosswords.

  38. 8d, the dye used in those coats, wasn’t it cochineal, from the scale insects found on prickly pear cactus in Central America? Or did I just make that up? That’s a lot of little bugs.

  40. Peter is thieves’ cant for a safe, and a peterman is a safe-cracker, but I’ve no idea why. Some of the language of the British underworld goes back to Elizabethan times.

  41. A DNF as I missed GAME, didn’t get the fowl application. My Chambers app gives 167 matches for _A_E. Word search brought AVIZANDUM.

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