Guardian Cryptic 29,399 by Vulcan

60 comments on “Guardian Cryptic 29,399 by Vulcan”

1. Nice, gentle start to the week. I liked ANNEX, BURPEE, HASHTAG, YOU NAME IT and GESTATION. Glad to see Ely got a rest in the pleasing DEXTER. I thought ROYALTY was barely cryptic, though.

   Ta Vulcan & manehi.

2. Ah! EAT = worry. I got the GREAT/serious bit but was trying to match worry with ‘grate’, and not quite getting there.

   But yes, good stuff – not too taxing but not a walkover either.

3. 13ac
   I think the answer should be ROYALLY

4. Loved the misdirections, and I thought the mark showing one has passed was going to be a reference to death!
   Thanks Vulcan and manehi

5. Yes a good gentle start to the week.

   I liked: UNABASHED, RETIREE, INTERIM, PSHAW, GESTATION, DEXTER

   Thanks Vulcan and manehi

6. Thought of the children’s prog MAGPIE but this is my Monday ear worm
   https://youtu.be/uhLhkieY20Q?si=ajgaZWeOfP1Gj2AL.

7. I could not parse 6d – oh, that’s a very good clue!

   New for me: PSHAW (such a strange-looking word, and I had to go online for help on how to pronounce it); (on) APPRO – although I had vaguely heard of buying on approval, I was never really sure what that meant: GR = grey; BURPEE.

   Favourites: UNABASHED, DEXTER, FOOTPRINT

   Thanks, both.

8. Unfamiliarity with the foothall team and the Scottish island were my only speed bumps. And I’ve never heard of PSHAW. Otherwise no problems and enjoyable.

9. Thanks Vulcan for a fun start to the week. Thanks manehi for a clear blog; I particularly appreciate your elaboration on the cryptic elements «surface is meant to suggest…. » All too often such clues are labelled ‘cryptic definition’ with no further elaboration.

10. Thanks manehi. My firs thought about the ”Mark that shows one has passed” was a cross, or an epitaph, on a gravestone.
    And ”on the hoof”, as a cattleman’s daughter, didn’t bring to mind the idea of ”in passing”, but live cattle. Online dictionaries have both meanings.

    Liked INSIPID for the surface, and YOU NAME IT, and PANTHEIST.

    Agree with AlanC’s comments about DEXTER and ROYALTY.
    I also felt that PAPERCLIP, ENHANCE and ON-OFF were a bit too obvious.

    Don’t understand the definition for HASHTAG, content indicator, but then I’m not very tech savvy.

    We’ve recently had the indicator ”on back” for a reversal, as in BURPEE. I didn’t get it then, despite help, and I still don’t. Didn’t know BURPEE, but now I do I get the picture. Is a BURPEE what happens when you don’t have a WHOOPEE cushion?

11. BURPEE was a complete unknown, and I couldn’t fathom out GREAT at all. Leaving also the BURGER unsolved/unchewed. A DNF therefore, unusual for me on a Vulcan Monday…

12. For 9a, I was misled, yes, but like sincam@4, was thinking of obituaries and tombstones, not exam marks.
    For 12a, not being familiar with “on the hoof”, I was not misled at all… I just read it as a straight clue wondering where the crypticity came in.
    Liked “You name it” and was held up by “Great”.
    Thank you to Vulcan and Manehi

13. paddymelon@10
    BURPEE
    The ‘on back’, I understand is a crossword version of ‘on one’s/its back’.
    Someone may explain it better, of course.
    # (HASHTAG) is a social media thing. It is a content/topic indicator.
    #Me too: You are certainly familiar with.

14. Another one who found GREAT tricky to parse. I do find some of these initials tricky. Should I assume OR for orange, TU for turquoise etc?

    Many thanks for your blog manehi.

15. Larry@9
    Agree with you.
    manehi’s blogs are always neat.
    As you have pointed out, the cryptic defs are very clearly explained in today’s blog.
    I liked all those cryptic defs.

16. PROMPT at 1 across reminds me of my favourite 1 across clue of all time from a crossword many years ago. It read “Quick, fill in the missing words (6)”.

17. I liked PANTHEIST but I find (not very) cryptic definitions like PAPERCLIP slightly underwhelming.

18. I got BURPEE because I because I mistook physical exercise for PE, but then was lost for the last E

19. GREATly stumped too. Couldn’t work out how REAT related to worry.

    Thanks manehi and Vulcan

20. I’d have to differ with the surface for APPRO; after looking it up, it seems a very appropriate way of buying.

21. A gentle start to the week, with a great blog by manehi. Somewhat confused by lucky horseshoes ON a horse https://www.livescience.com/33116-lucky-horseshoes.html

22. Held up for a while after bunging in SUPPLE for “after massage”.
    Couldn`t see where the TY came from after ROYAL.
    However, PAN THE IST is much classier than PANT HEIST, so a big tick.
    Great for not wasting too much time at the beginning of the week.

23. YOU NAME IT raised a smile. Crossing the BURP too. I decided to reveal BURPEE because I couldn’t believe it’s a real word.
    Geoff Down Under@8 PSHAW is a staple of U.S. crosswords, but rather surprised to see it here.

    Thanks Vulcan and manehi.

24. Thanks Vulcan and manehi
    Nice puzzle. I tried PLUMPER first at 1d as a “smoker” in crosswords is of ten a LUM, but the rest doesn’t work.
    Slight question mark about ENHANCE – it’s a verb, but “an upgrade” indicates a noun?

25. For those asking about PSHAW, the following from PG Wodehouse may help:
    ‘”Pshaw!” said Arthur.
    I am aware that Arthur’s dialogue might have been brighter, but he had been through a trying time.’

26. muffin@24. the ”an” comes from the fodder, ”hence an”, so ”upgrade” can be a verb. Surface/solution?

27. Enhance can be transitive or intransitive, which is why I think the definition is “upgrade needed”, but I suspect that someone better than me needs to explain it better .

28. Good Monday puzzle. I didn’t get BURPEE so bunged in an unparsed SUPPLE.
    Thanks both.

29. 14D held me up for an inordinately long time even after I had YOU, IT, and both remaining crossers. I groaned when the penny finally dropped.

    Thank you manehi and Vulcan.

30. I agree with Anna. “A wealthy family” would be ROYALTY, but “such a wealthy family” requires an adjectival answer, ROYALLY.

31. The burp in Burpee isn’t due eructation: Burpee is the surname of the chap that devised the devilish exercise.

32. As a new grandparent, I thought since I’m the burpER the baby must be the burpEE. I know diddly squat 😉 about strength training. It looks hellish, anyway.
    Nice puzzle and great blog; and as others have said, Manehi’s explanations should help newer solvers. Thanks very much.

33. Enjoyable puzzle. My favourite was the very inventive ANNEX (ANNE X). Also ticks for YOU NAME IT, and “You nab a shed” in 22a.

    I doubt whether anyone in real life has ever actually said PSHAW, no matter what the case was in (dated) fiction.

    I was a bit doubtful about GR for grey in 26a, but it is in Chambers. In what context would the abbreviation be used?

    Many thanks Vulcan and manehi.

34. I know BURPEEs from PE lesson time trials when testing healthiness of school kids and them all grumbling about them when they came back into lessons. They’re not that nice, but I look at them and realise I go through those moves, albeit a lot slower, when yoga stretching.

    Lord Jim @33 I’ve heard PSHAW spluttered by various older family members, it’s an onomatopoeic representation of a certain expression.

    I found this a lovely Monday-ish crossword.

    Thank you to manehi and Vulcan.

35. As per Alastair @28 l also bunged in an unparsed supple. Barely cryptic in places so manehi explanations greatly appreciated – thank you. NHO of Burpee, but unsurprising as l avoid anything to do with thrusting or squatting. Although I did squat quite often during the 1980’s, much to the annoyance of my local council. Thanks Vulcan

36. KVa @ 13. Thanks for that explanation of ‘on back’. I had the same puzzlement as Paddymelon. I’ll file that one for future reference.

37. Anne x was fun, a neat (and new?) use of the vote. You name it was neat too, but not new. A hmm or two, like the unneeded needed for enhance, but otherwise pretty smooth from the highly skilled Imvulc. Ta to them and manehi.

38. Good Monday start, although the cds are sometimes a pain to unravel. I did like FOOTPRINT, however. I didn’t think the cd for ROYALTY was obvious; why not Windsor or some such?

    I liked the wordplays of ANNEX, UNABASHED and PANTHEIST, and the anagram for NEOLITHIC.

    Lord Jim @33, gr is from horse racing, I think.

    Thanks Vulcan and manehi.

39. Noticed lots of “one”s in the clues. Maybe one “one” too many.

40. Ken @ 30
    Great minds think alike, eh?
    (Wait for someone to come along and say ‘grate minds …’)

41. This took longer than it should because of the clever misdirections. Thanks Manehi for describing them and Vulcan for bringing the smiles. Last one in was GREAT but I couldn’t parse it as I forgot that eat means worry.

42. A very enjoyable exercise involving some fun clues and with just the right amount of challenge for me. Thanks to Vulcan and manehi.

43. BURPEE
    Benchillian@36
    manehi has considered only ‘back’ in the blog. There could be a better explanation for the ‘on’ bit. My take may well be wrong.

    ENHANCE
    Tim C@27 (attn: paddymelon@26)
    I also took ENHANCE as a verb like you did. However, I am not able to understand why the ‘needed’ should be part of the def.
    A possible cryptic reading (maintaining the def as in the blog):
    HENCEAN* (is what) upgrade needed (to lead to ENHANCE).
    Someone says: Can’t you come up with something more convoluted?
    (Tim C: Someone better than you may come up with a better explanation. What do I do till then?
    Thought I should share my thoughts in the meantime)

    ROYALTY
    Anna@40
    My take: The solution seems all right to me. As it’s a cryptic def, the whole
    clue should be read as one block. That leads us to a noun.
    It could be reworded as:
    A wealthy family such as this (is) unlikely to be Republicans.
    (The great minds of you and Ken remain great minds whether or not you
    accept this explanation. 🙂

44. Anna@3 et al: doesn’t the plural ‘Republicans’ exclude ‘royally’?

45. I’m surprised UNABASHED hasn’t got more love here, I think it’s brilliant.
    I also fell down on BURPEE, bunging in ‘supple’ instead.

46. I too think 13ac should be ROYALLY

47. A fun mix of Monday-lite clues and real cleverness in places. GREAT was my LOI, and needed manehi to parse it for me. Lovely to see PSHAW get an airing; a word that ought to be in use much more often! Held up in the SE corner by putting ‘you call it’ (an Americanism?) buy YOU NAME IT came to me after a while and the last few dropped into place. Thanks Vulcan and manehi.

48. This one wouldn’t be out of place in the quiptic slot. Hadn’t heard of BURPEE but ‘massage’ was a dead giveaway.

49. Thanks both.

    Somewhere in the recesses of the pate there is the story of a dinner party where GBS (as in George Bernard..) is discussing a putative magazine with, among others, Oscar Wilde. And what would it be called? GBS: ‘”Shaw” obviously.’ Wilde: ‘Yes, but how would you spell it?’. (Much laughter..).

    It’s not a great story but I think it’s true and my recollection is that GBS was inclined to tell it against himself.

50. Seemed like a plethora of cryptic definitions when I started this one! Maybe it was the order I which I tackled the crossword?!
    Liked: INSIPID, ANNEX, DEXTER

51. Thanks for the blog , good puzzle for the Monday tradition but where is the Kafka theme? 100 years today since he died . Bagpuss was 50 earlier this year and no theme .
    What is the Guardian playing at ? Ignoring the two most important cultural icons of the last century .

52. Alphalpha@49 reminds me of the fish ghoti

53. Dave Ellison@52: I’ve embarked on the ‘ghoti’ story before only to fail at the ‘-o-‘ = ‘-i-‘ component. (My research assistant reminds me that it comes from ‘women’. I can’t think of another candidate.)

54. Young Kiwis wouldn’t get it. For some unaccountable reason they say women like we say woman. Not sure how they say woman.

55. Burpee? A bit odd given everything else was a write-in.

56. Sadly, I remember burpees!

57. Having heard of (possibly tried?) the exercise, BURPEE went in easily for me. Stumped by GREAT, did not know grey was GR. Other than that I found this enjoyable. UNABASHED being COTD

58. Solving BURPEE without any difficulty may be the only long term benefit of those exercises the PE teacher used to instruct us to do when we were 12 or 13.

    Everything went in very smoothly today, with only a slight hesitation over ‘needed’ in the clue for ENHANCE, but I thought along the same lines as KVa@43. I thought the clue for ROYALTY was ok, but I can see how ROYALLY (almost) works too. If the setter, the setter’s tester and the editor don’t think of the alternative, it’s easy to see how the clue would slip through.

    Thanks to Vulcan for a pleasant diversion, and to manehi for explaining the setter’s intentions.

59. Alphalpha @53 ghoti comes from
    gh as in rough
    o as in women (wimmin)
    ti as in ration (or any of those -tion words)

    It’s one I grew up with.

60. I thought this was a perfect Monday puzzle – accessible and witty. I’ve had to wait since Vulcan’s last effort three Mondays ago. So thank you!

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