The puzzle may be found at http://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/26694.
A welter of CDs and DDs; the puzzle is also notable for several “definitions” which are more allusions.
| Across | ||
| 1 | RABBIT PUNCH |
Food and drink not allowed in the ring (6,5)
A charade of RABBIT (‘food’) plus PUNCH (‘drink’). |
| 9 | ANGLING |
The protracted use of lines (7)
A cryptic definition (or double definition?), with reference to the angle-measuring device, the protractor, and to fishing. |
| 10 | ESCAPER |
One who should be inside out (7)
Cryptic definition. |
| 11 | RESIDENCE |
Decree nisi produced when one abandoned home (9)
An anagram (‘produced’) of ‘decree nis[i]’ without an I (‘when one abandoned’). |
| 12 | TROOP |
The capital gets poor return in this company (5)
A charade of T (‘The capital’) plus ROOP, a reversal (‘return’) of ‘poor’. |
| 13 | EARL |
Listener and learner in the Lords (4)
A charade of EAR (‘listener’) plus L (‘learner’). |
| 14 | SEED PEARLS |
Observe pedlars setting out small gemstones (4,6)
A charade of SEE (‘observe’) plus DPEARLS, an anagram (‘setting out’) of ‘pedlars’. |
| 16 | PROPRIETOR |
He holds his own (10)
Cryptic definition. |
| 19 | STYE |
Small yet troublesome inflammation (4)
A charade of S (‘small’) plus TYE, an anagram (‘troublesome’) of ‘yet’. |
| 20 | GIFTS |
Presents one’s natural talents (5)
Double definition. |
| 21 | DISPLACES |
Girl’s taking positions as cashiers (9)
A charade of DI’S (‘girl’s’) plus PLACES (‘positions’). I raised an eyebrow at the definition, but Chambers gives a definition of cashier as “to discard or put away”. |
| 23 | ORCHARD |
Where one may grow fruit or vegetable (7)
A charade of ‘or’ plus CHARD (Swiss, ‘vegetable’). |
| 24 | REFRAIN |
Do without the chorus (7)
Double definition. |
| 25 | STRIP SEARCH |
Chief follows priests out for personal inspection (5,6)
A charade of STRIPSE, an anagram (‘out’) of ‘priests’ plus ARCH (‘chief’). |
| Down | ||
| 1 | REGISTRY OFFICES |
Hitching posts? (8,7)
Cryptic definition (and I think one of the better ones at that). |
| 2 | BAIRD |
TV producer (5)
Cryptic definition, for John Logie Barid, the Scottish inventor who is credited with the first demonstration of a practical television, and who did much other poineering work in the field. |
| 3 | INGENUE |
Her naive appearance could be genuine (7)
An anagram (‘could be’) of ‘genuine’, with an extended definition. |
| 4 | PRETEND |
Put on an act before nurse (7)
A charade of PRE (‘before’) plus TEND (‘nurse’). |
| 5 | NICETIES |
Refinements of elegant neckwear (8)
A charade of NICE (‘elegant’) plus TIES (‘neckwear’). |
| 6 | HIPPOCRATIC OATH |
Doctors swear by it (11,4)
Cryptic definition. |
| 7 | CARRIER PIGEON |
Winged messenger (7,6)
Cryptic definition. |
| 8 | PREPOSSESSING |
Ownership in advance is very attractive (13)
Double definition (PRE-POSSESSING). |
| 15 | FRESH AIR |
Invigorating new tune (5,3)
Definition and literal interpretation (but is ‘invigorating’ more an allusion than a definition?). |
| 17 | ENDED UP |
Eventually made it to the top (5,2)
Perhaps best described as two overlapping definitions, ‘eventually made it’ and ‘made it to the top’. |
| 18 | OBSERVE |
Keep giving notice (7)
Double definition. |
| 22 | LIFER |
One unable to serve any longer? (5)
Cryptic definition. |
Thanks to Rufus and PeterO. I paused briefly over several of the CDs and DDs (and initially had ESCAPEE in lieu of ESCAPER) but finished very quickly. An enjoyable romp.
Usual Rufus, thanks for blog PeterO.
Another brief ‘escapee’ here who saw no overlap in 17d.
Another ESCAPEE here – it’s a completely fair answer. I can’t see any circumstances where I’d use ‘invigorating’ to mean FRESH AIR. And I didn’t much like ENDED UP either.
Other than that, some enjoyable stuff from Rufus. Enjoyable if you like cds and dds, that is. I do; some don’t.
Thanks to S&B.
Yes. I enjoy and am often amused by Rufus’s cryptic definitions, so thanks to him.
However, I am having difficulty justifying the apostrophe in the clue for DISPLACES – makes the clue grammatically untidy and Dis as a plural of girls would be equally acceptable.
Yet another ESCAPEE here. Usual Rufusian stuff, and as usual enjoyable but mildly frustrating because of somewhat dubious CDs. Favourites were RABBIT PUNCH, STRIP SEARCH and LIFER. Thanks to Rufus and PeterO.
Thanks Rufus and PeterO
Rufus at his most irritating. Some strange “definitions”, as noted (in what way does a proprietor HOLD his own?), and two or three ambiguities. ESCAPER has been noted, but no-one has mentioned that the “correct” name for the hitching posts is REGISTER OFFICES. 8d might have been PREPOSSESSION, though I agree that the ING ending works a little better.
muffin: “Rufus at his most irritating” is exactly how I felt about this – too many vague and/or ambiguous definitions. And I’m glad I’m not the only one who was annoyed by REGISTRY OFFICES.
[Do try today’s Quiptic – it’s a cracker!]
Thanks Rufus and PeterO.
Enjoyed the puzzle, Sunday’s and Monday’s crosswords are the ones I can usually solve.
Am I the only one who entered PROCREATOR at 16a? Another REGISTER OFFICES and ESCAPEE here.
Plus one for REGISTER OFFICES. And plus two for ESCAPEE.
Gentle start to the week, thank you Rufus, thank you PeterO.
Thanks PeterO & Rufus.
Rufus can be tricky to get a hold on with so many so called ‘definitions’. A classic is PROPRIETOR for ‘he holds his own’. Could be almost anything. Having said that, the great attraction of The Graun crozzie is the range of different styles and Rufus is always interesting.
I’m not quite with Job @4 re the apostrophe in DISPLACES. I see nothing wrong with Di’s = girl’s.
Nice week all.
Rotten puzzle- hardly worth arguing about.
Not bad. I seem to be in the majority with ESCAPEE initially but was OK with REGISTRY as I’m sure that’s what I was married in. However I did chuckle that the divorce-based 11a crossed with it.
FOI was PREPOSSESSING so I was an ESCAPER. I had no problem with REGISTRY OFFICE; It may not be “correct” but I bet it’s what most people say.
I liked NICETIES, PROPRIETOR and FRESH AIR and rather enjoyed the whole thing.
Thanks Rufus.
Thanks Rufus & PeterO.
My ODE gives for usage of Register Office: ‘The form Register Office is the official term, but REGISTRY OFFICE is the form which dominates in informal and non-official use.’ So now we know…
I thought the clue for HIPPOCRATIC OATH was hardly cryptic.
I liked ANGLING.
All fairly straightforward, though the west side took a bit more thought. No problems with REGISTER/RY OFFICE since I thought both might be possible and used the crosser. Last in (rather annoyingly) was BAIRD.
Thanks to Rufus and PeterO
It’s immaterial whether or not REGISTRY is valid usage. The clue is still ambiguous without the crosser.
Thanks Rufus and PeterO
Actually enjoyed this puzzle more than usual for this setter – not quite sure why … but probably that I found myself having to correct a few answers and thinking “You nearly got me that time, ya rotter !” ESCAPEE was the first, had originally rushed in NECKTIES at 6d until doing a double-take and had curiously filled in ONGOING at 9a until getting ‘angels’ out of my head at 7d and finding CARRIER PIGEONS.
Finished up with the barely cryptic BAIRD who I had never heard of previously.
Nice start to the week … now to round up some of the old ones again !
DISPLACES only poses a problem in the surface, it should be said, in that an individual taking positions as cashier (i.e. having many jobs doing the same thing) would be preferable. Unless being a cashiers is a job. Well, in my view anyway. But DI’S taking PLACES as DISPLACES seems grammatically sound to me. As opposed to 1 across or 15 down, for example.
The ambiguities are a bit careless for one as experienced as Rufus, I would argue, as it’s such a common problem with clues that have no SI.
I enjoyed it even though I share some of the reservations above. My favourites are ANGLING, RESIDENCE, REGISTRY OFFICES and LIFER. I saw the possible REGISTRY/Register issue, but I don’t have a problem with that for the reason given by the ODE. In my case, I already had EARL so I could enter REGISTRY immediately.
Thanks to Rufus and PeterO.
I enjoyed this, thanks Rufus. I didn’t put in displaces but could not think of anything else. I never thought it meant cashiers. I am aware that one gets married in a register office but am also aware that virtually everyone calls it a registry office. It was a very easy solve but I liked 23a orchard.
Some of this is frankly odd ( 16, 21 ) and some is barely cryptic ( 7, 17) Still, bless him…….
I didn’t find this annoying at all! Another reasonable Rufus as far as I’m concerned.
Not too easy but by no means taxing. Just a gentle canter.
Personally I’ve only ever heard of “Registry Office”. Perhaps it’s my North west routes. If one looks online one will fnd that almost all these offices are now referred to as “Registration Offices” anyway.
Come on Muffin you surely can’t complain about needing the crosser from EARL. Isn’t that why they’re called “CROSSwords”?
Thanks to PeterO and Rufus
Inevitably, there have been many comments on ESCAPER and REGISTRY. I left them as REGIST– and ESCAPE- until I had the crossers.
‘Escapee’ is far more common than ‘escaper’, and has the weight of dictionaries behind it, but I prefer ESCAPER, the word required here, because I can’t help finding the idea of ‘one who has been escaped’ (the literal or logical meaning of ‘escapee’) somewhat incongruous. But of course, English has many oddities, ‘amputee’ being another.
I was rather disappointed with the setter’s choice of REGISTRY OFFICES, mostly because it was surely not necessary for him to use this form, which appears to be in popular use but does not correspond with the name of any actual register office in this country except Tower Hamlets as far as I can find out. Instead of E-R- (EARL) in 13 across, Rufus would have had the straightforward E-E- to fill in and clue.
There was no cryptic or any other indication in either of these clues (10 across and 1 down) that pointed the solver to the spelling required.
Apart from all this, I found this puzzle entertaining and easier than most.
Alan Browne
BNTO @23
Yes, in fact I did have EARL first, so there wasn’t an actual problem. However I think a clue that can’t be definitively solved without a crossing letter is unsatisfactory.
I dropped in “marriage notices” for 1d. I think that’s maybe a better cryptic definition. I was soon put straight by EARL though. Yes, “escapee” for me too for a while.
Many thanks one and all.
@25 I have no problem with clues that need the crossers – it’s when they’re still ambiguous with the crossers that I’m annoyed.
Ralph @27
Yes, that would be unforgiveable. However, although the crossers obviously help with getting to a solution, I don’t think that one should be needed in order to decide between two equally valid answers.
I hate escapee as much as I hate attendee.
Alphalpha
Well, one who amputates is only under very specific circumstances an amputee.
How jolly we are.
8d: why does observe = keep? I wanted to put in reserve, thinking of serving notices again.
Whoops, that should have been 18d
Hi Thommo
It’s in the sense of acknowledging an occasion (anniversary, memorial, etc) – as in observe or maintain / keep a minute’s silence.
Thanks for the explanations of DISPLACES and such-like. REGISTRY OFFICES – ambiguity is part and parcel of crosswords. I don’t see the problem.Chuckled at “Brendan(not that one)” – a fellow traveller?
Ambiguity most certainly is not ‘part and parcel’ of crosswords. Or shouldn’t be, at any rate.
Clues should lead unambiguously to one answer (and one spelling thereof, incidentally). Ambiguity is only ever excusable where deliberate, and even then it needs to be very good (as it was, of course, in a recent Donk puzzle).
Thanks PeterO and Rufus.
We love him but he’s so infuriating.
I was another ESCAPEE until I twigged 8dn and could only pencil in another 7 answers (9ac, 16ac, 21ac, 7dn, 18dn 1dn and 22dn) until I had the lot.
But then he hits us with the odd gem like STRIP SEARCH.
Bless.