Guardian 26,502 – Rufus

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Eleven cryptic definitions out of 26 clues? I think that must be a record, even for a Rufus puzzle; and some of them are rather weak, or otherwise satisfactory, as noted below. So, not to my taste, but others may disagree.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Across
1. ANACHRONISM A case of mixed dates (11)
Cryptic definition
9. PLACARD Bill prepared for posting (7)
Cryptic definition
10. DENUDES Strips study used for revision (7)
DEN + USED*
11. ABOLITION There’s no alibi to put out for the cancellation (9)
(NO ALIBI TO)*
12. MALTA Cross-country? (5)
A rather vague allusion to the Maltese Cross
13. INST The present month, in a way (4)
IN + ST[reet]
14. INGLENOOKS One loses one’s head getting no permissions to make chimney corners (10)
[S]INGLE + NO OKS
16. GEOLOGISTS Experts on the rocks? (10)
Cryptic definition
19. STEN Kind of gun with catches reversed (4)
Reverse of NETS
20. ASWAN A bird’s dam (5)
A + SWAN
21. FREE AGENT He’s not bound to release a spy (4,5)
FREE (release) + AGENT (spy)
23. TORTURE It may result in a painful admission (7)
Cryptic definition
24. DIABOLO Top game can be the very devil (7)
Double definition – the game uses a kind of “top”
25. SPLIT SECOND ’Arf a mo! (5,6)
Cryptic definition
Down
1. AT A LOSS FOR WORDS Nonplussed, having mislaid the script? (2,1,4,3,5)
Double definition
2. ABACI You can count on them (5)
Cryptic definition
3. HADRIAN He built a wall and kept rain out (7)
HAD (kept) + RAIN*
4. ORDINAL Maybe first or second row in exam (7)
DIN (row, noise) in ORAL
5. IGNOMINY Move west from Wyoming in terrible disgrace (8)
(WYOMING IN)* less W
6. MIDDLE-OF-THE-ROAD Possibly the safest course for non-pedestrians (6-2-3-4)
Cryptic definition, I suppose, though not a very accurate one if so
7. SPEAKING PARTS No roles for dumb blondes, presumably (8,5)
Cryptic definition – again not very satisfactory, as “blondes” has no relevance
8. ASSASSINATION An illegal dispatch (13)
Cryptic definition
15. JOHN BULL He stands for England (4,4)
Cryptic definition
17. INFLECT Inspire about fifty to make changes in speech (7)
L in INFECT
18. TREADLE Downtrodden machine worker (7)
Cryptic definition – a treadle “works” a machine (e.g. my auntie’s sewing machine) by being downtrodden
22. ALAMO A doctor tours the French battle scene (5)
LA in A MO

49 comments on “Guardian 26,502 – Rufus”

  1. Thanks,Andrew – I agree.

    Another very easy Rufus crossword, I thought.

    I used to play with a diabolo as a boy.

  2. Thanks Rufus and Andrew
    I enjoyed this, but, as always, there are quibbles. I still don’t understand PLACARD. Other countries are associated with “crosses”, though to be fair, MALTA is the only 5-letter one I can think of. INST is an abbreviation (for “instant”) – should this have been indicated? Is JOHN BULL cryptic? Does “infect” mean “inspire”?

  3. All pretty straightforward despite the surfeit of CDs. Last in was PLACARD after SPEAKING PARTS. IGNOMINY was nice.

    Thanks to Rufus and Andrew

  4. Thanks, Andrew and Rufus.

    I think 12ac also refers to the fact that Malta was awarded the George Cross in 1942 and, in fact, is known as the George Cross Island.

    I liked IGNOMINY, too.

  5. PLACARD clue was rather iffy, I thought. I liked SPLIT SECOND and INGLENOOKS. As others have said, a mixed Rufusian bag as usual. Thanks to him and Andrew.

  6. Thanks Rufus and Andrew. Rufus filling his brief, perhaps, but filling this in was a little too brief for me. One for the newbies perhaps.

    Muffin @2, PLACARD took me a while to understand; I think “posted” means “placed on a post” in this case.

    Wasn’t keen on the clue for ANACHRONISM – that’s not really mixed dates to me. Also, why pick on blondes in 7d?

    INGLENOOKS defeated me – never heard of it, a lovely word though.

  9. BH@8 – I think you have hit the nail on the head.

    JA@6 – Thanks, felt sure there was something about PLACARD I was missing. Might be a better clue than I thought.

    Eileen @4 – I knew about the medal but not that the island was so named. I think the medal was awarded to recognise the bravery of its people during the long siege that the Germans and their Allies imposed.

    Only recently I suggested that this setter was refining his art…perhaps this one had been held on file for some time?!

    Nice week, all.

  10. Thanks Andrew and Rufus.

    Just right for me! I did like the downtrodden machine worker. Captcha allotted appropriately, ? x four = 4.

    Andrew, you have left the W out of SWAN.

  12. Thanks Rufus & Andrew.

    As others have said, quite straightforward although I hesitated about SPEAKING PARTS. I think cholecyst @7 has adequately explained the ‘blonde.’ The clue for INGLENOOKS was somewhat nonsensical. I agree with Andrew that MIDDLE OF THE ROAD would probably not pass muster from the Green Cross Man – I think ‘safest’ could easily have been omitted.

    I, too, liked IGNOMINY.

  13. Oh come on INGLENOOKS has an excellent clue. Didn’t much care for PLACARD though. This was a quick solve and I have to agree about the lack of cryptic. Perhaps not one of this setter’s best but not as bad as some have suggested. I enjoyed it.

  14. Peter @13 – “Perhaps not one of this setter’s best but not as bad as some have suggested”. Who are the “some” – I can’t see anything above that is more than mildly critical, unless you think easy is a criticism (now can I manage one x 1?).

  15. Thanks to JA@6 for making a good case for PLACARD which I had not understood. And it took a couple of goes to remember how to spell IGNOMINY (after a couple of ignominious failures – groan!).
    Meanwhile, back to yesterday’s Azed……

  16. Hiker@14: “easy” is often used as a criticism of the much maligned Rufus.My impression of some of the comments and,indeed, the blog- there was surely meant to be an UN on satisfactory in the intro-is that this was happening today.
    Just saying!

  17. PA@16 Yes, I also like Rufus. He’s just a bit different and usually puts in some slightly iffy clues. All part of the Grauniad’s rich tapestry.

  18. Thanks for blog agree mostly but think 6 down better than first appears. Pedestrian as adjective can mean uninspiring.

  19. I admit to not correctly parsing the clue for “Inst.” This is because “The present month, in a way,” is a straight-up definition of the abbreviation. Given that it’s Rufus, I thought that was all there was to it. (He has, in the past, used some not-cryptic definitions; and a couple of these come pretty close.)

    John Bull: not-so-cryptic, for example.

    As I’m American, when we send a bill we mail it, we don’t post it, so the “Placard” clue also wasn’t cryptic for me. (Another famous trans-Atlantic difference there: in Britain, the Royal Mail delivers the post, while here, the U.S. Postal Service delivers the mail.) If you walk around New York or (less commonly) Chicago, certain walls where the owner has gotten annoyed by their use for others’ free advertising will have a painted notation, “POST NO BILLS.” So anyway, a bill ready to be posted is of course a placard.

    Diabolo, the toy, was new to me, and inglenook was unfamiliar. Always good to learn from the crossword.

  20. Forgot the second half of my talkback here: I liked “ignominy,” which is very elegant. (Sounds like the plot of a Western, doesn’t it?) And I also should highlight ALAMO, which had me spending a bit of time trying to think of French battlefields that started with A. (Ardennes is too long, as is Agincourt, and that’s all I could come up with before I rethought and parsed the clue correctly.

  21. I have no problem at all with “INST” for “the present month” as I have never used the longer “instant” in business correspondence.

  22. I enjoyed this, although, for some reason it took me a while to get started. With the exception of John Bull,I think all of these clues were excellent.

    Whilst every Monday some bloggers must say how Rufus is too easy, I will carry on saying that the Guardian crossword is not set for 20 or so ‘experts’ but for the amusement of all of those who buy the paper. I wonder how many bloggers actually fork out for the price of the paper.

  23. JohnM @22

    Except when I’m blogging them [and, yes, I do buy the paper and I have never said that Rufus was ‘too easy’, nor, I think, claimed to be an ‘expert’] I don’t reckon to comment on Rufus puzzles these days, after years of defending him in the unspeakably tedious round of criticism of his, as John Appleton notes @6, faithfully filling his brief. He used to drop in here fairly regularly himself to explain this but he’s perhaps as tired as I am of the weekly tirade.
    I’m just surprised that, as someone who appreciates his puzzles, you should have been the one to spark off today’s ‘too easy’ debate. The detractors don’t need any encouragement! 😉

    I really only came back to say that I’m mortified that, although I thought of this two Mondays ago, when it was my blog, I forgot to remember until now that it was Rufus’ 83rd birthday yesterday.

    Many happy returns, Rufus – in both senses. 😉

  25. mrpenney@19
    In the UK the usual notice is “BILL STICKERS WILL BE PROSECUTED”, which generally had the inevitable graffiti addition “Bill Stickers is innocent, OK!” (echoing a widespread campaign to release a certain George Davis).

  26. As relatively new crossworders we always we enjoy Rufus as a setter that we can usually complete but not without a struggle. Always surprised by the sneering that goes on by those more able than ourselves. I suspect it says more about them than Rufus. So thanks Rufus for giving us beginners an insight into cryptic crosswords and many happy returns.

  27. Eileen @23, I don’t think John M @22 sparked off any debate, much more likely John Appleton @6.
    Anyway, the fact that there often is debate proves that these puzzles are just right for the Monday slot.

    Thanks again Rufus, and many happy returns.

  29. Thanks Eileen for coming to Rufus’ defence and reminding us of his birthday, congratulations!

    Although I did enjoy the crossword, I still think, Peter Asplnwall @13, that the clue: ‘One loses one’s head getting no permissions to make chimney corners’ is nonsensical in its surface. The wordplay is fine but what does the clue actually mean? Maybe you’re not referring to the surface, in which case we can agree that there is nothing wrong with the wordplay.

  30. I enjoy Rufus, and I don’t understand the debate, really. Each setter has a style, and I see Rufus’s as one of many possible styles. Variety is the spice of life. And his puzzles are by no means always easy, let alone too easy.

    To be sure, double- and cryptic-definition clues can be ambiguous, and there’s always a danger that your cryptic definition won’t be cryptic enough to mislead. But there are minefields involved in setting all types of clues. That’s what keeps fifteensquared in business—sorting out those minefields!

  31. Robi @29, I think one can lose one’s head not getting permission to do something. French friends of ours had a medieval house and were refused permission to put a bathroom in; they certainly “lost their heads” for a while and ended up selling the place.

  33. Easy but thankfully not as easy as last week’s offering.

    Actually I quite enjoyed this one. I liked all the long clues on the periphery and a couple in the interior.

    Thanks to Andrew and Rufus

  37. Don’t want to harp on but an inglenook is a chimney corner. What’s wrong with that?
    Oh and happy birthday Rufus.

  42. Peter Asplnwall @37, I agree, and I don’t think one would get planning permission easily for the old type these days; one of my aunts had one where you could sit inside on either side of an open fire.

  43. Am totally in agreement with Johnm and Eileen – its always the usual suspects carping and nitpicking YAWN. Once again i thoroughly enjoyed this amusing puzzle. Happy birthday Rufus – Long May You Reign!!!!x

  44. I’m with Johnm,Eileen and shaar. As the kids say “haters gonna hate and moaners gonna moan”. Happy Birthday for yesterday, Rufus.

  45. I don’t understand what JohnM, shaar, John McCartney et al are complaining about. If analysing the mechanics/soundness of specific clues is nitpicking, that removes a large part of the raison d’etre of the site. When I say that a crossword seemed easy or straightforward, that does not imply any criticism, since as Eileen rightly points out that is part of Rufus’s brief. There are very few comments here that look at all disrespectful to me.

  46. Well said BH, I totally agree.

    The whole point of this site is surely the discussion of 15×15 cryptics. All I ever post is my honest reaction to each puzzle as I’m sure others do. If some people or even the setter find this offensive they should “get over themselves”!

    P.S.BH, do you think we are included in JohnM’s “20 or so ‘experts'”? I do hope so. I just wonder what the many hundreds of solvers who would make us look like amateurs are classified as?

  47. “do you think we are included in JohnM’s “20 or so ‘experts’”?” – I’d like to think so too but I think JohnM is the only one who can answer that – there are certainly plenty of regulars here (probably more than 20) who are more expert than I am.

  48. Well said Eileen. I totally agree with your comments about Rufus I have been doing the crossword for well over 45 years and buy the paper daily. I think Rufus is unique and certainly doesn’t deserve this level of criticism. I enjoy the variety of puzzles throughout the week. Variety is the spice of life after all. I liked inglenooks.Happy birthday Rufus and hope you’re back next week

  49. Thanks Rufus and Andrew

    Took an age to finally get INGLENOOKS after writing IGNOMITY (instead of IGNOMINY) at 5d for some reason. I find that he often draws this sort of error – perhaps when the ‘this is easy’ phenomenon takes over :(.

    Initially had a problem with the INFECT / INSPIRE definition, but it is there in the context of “His courage infected the others.” This is another common trait of his, to take the lesser known definition of a common word.

    Happy Birthday, Rufus !

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