“Clues are normal and in conventional order; bars (which would not be symmetrical) must not be shown. Numbers given are answer lengths. Three cells each containing more than one letter must have each group replaced by a symbol. In the completed grid 20 cells containing two names and one letter showing a position in a sequence must be highlighted and three letters italicised; the centre cell is left empty. Solvers must empty six further cells which allow BAND TO reset, leaving real words. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.”
The theme is Test Card F, shown below:
The test card shows Carole Hersee and the clown Bubbles. They are placed thematically in the grid, as are the nought and cross, the F, the italicised BBC, and the digit 1.
A really sweet idea, and well executed.
Notation
(xxx) = definition
[xxx] = (anagram/homophone/container/etc.) indicator
XXX* = anagram
< = reversal
” ” = homophone
Please post a comment if the explanations are not clear.
| Comics A (acting) [in] BE (live) NOS (numbers) (6) | BEANOS |
| Wear out F (following) RAZZLE (lively spree) (7) | FRAZZLE |
| Soft cloth, BAR (without) THE [stuffing] [repeatedly] A (absent) (8) | BARATHEA |
| Detectives obEY EState [guards] (4) | EYES |
| Stop [part of] speECH Offending (4) | ECHO |
| Swamp transport BOA (snakes) [in] AIRT (direction of Inverness) (7) | AIRBOAT |
| Trial version BE |
BETA |
| Scraps SORT (rarely fit) [start to finish] (4) | ORTS |
| Scatter like gold dust, FR (frequently) [carrying] LUR (trumpet) (5) | FLURR |
| < SOB (Weep) [outside] H (hospital) [over] shocking sounds (4) | BOHS |
| Bosses [stuck together and exposed] |
UMBOS |
| [O (Nothing) for A (adult) in] CRASS (insensitive) staff (5) | CROSS [X] |
| [After swapping terminals], BAT (battery) LET (gave power to) electronic device (6) | TABLET |
| [Broken] BLADES* darkened in lines (6) | SABLED |
| Spread “FLAIR” (stylishness) [on radio] (5) | FLARE |
| Block that protects URETHR |
HURTER |
| Adjudge early T |
ARETT |
| Mineral from E (earth) ITSELF*, [processed] [into lead] (7) | FELSITE |
| Turn back < [revolutionary] moB BEfore [barricades] (3) | EBB |
| C |
CLOAK |
| Limit advantage (4) | EDGE |
| Stock managers sometimes R (run) [further backwards], [avoiding] HER (lady’s) D |
HERDESSES |
| Stand in L (line) [after] EASE (rest) (5) | EASEL |
| Measure < ERA (years from one point} [in retrospect] (3) | ARE |
| Different people – |
OTHERS |
| Pedal wear, in some places H (hard) [to stop] SOON (readily) (5) | SHOON |
| Heavy cloth, [shifted] {FAR ENOUGH}* [to cover] T [one in IT] (10) | FEARNOUGHT [FEAR0] |
| RAIT (Soak0 [peeled] |
RAITA |
| [Tangled] HAIRS* AFT (behind) ventilation inlet (8) | AIRSHAFT |
| PriZE BUll [covering] cow, maybe (4) | ZEBU |
| Hide substitute LETTER* [in anagram form], [obscuring] EA (each) THE (by so much) (11) | LEATHERETTE |
| Baltic tribesman < fougHT SEveral [bears] [going north] (4) | ESTH |
| { |
OBFUSCATE |
| < BUT (Merely) [turned] BY (away), sounding dull (5) | TUBBY |
| Missile POLARIS |
POLARIS |
| Plates for printing? T ([Head to] Twitter) ERE (before) [entering] SOS (‘help’) (7) | STEREOS |
| Elderly group of slaves RED (tidied up) [after] MAN (staff) (6) | MANRED |
| Go over SCOR |
CROSS [X] |
| TB (Disease that’s contracted) [in] LEE (shelter) left undisturbed (5, two words) | LET BE |
| Wild dog {HELD O (over)}* [barking] (5) | DHOLE |
| Group that develops from tadpoles, BU |
BUFO |
| Nymph ARO |
OREAD |
| Eat out in {THE C (cold)}*, [shivering] (4) | ETCH |
| Sound measures < [lifted] SEN (without) |
SONES [S1S] |
| B | E | A | N | O | S | F | R | A | Z | Z | L | E |
| B | A | R | A | T | H | E | A | I | E | Y | E | S |
| O | S | E | C | H | O | A | I | R | B | O | A | T |
| B | E | T | A | E | O | R | T | S | U | P | T | H |
| F | L | U | R | R | N | O | A | H | B | O | H | S |
| U | M | B | O | S | X | T | A | B | L | E | T | |
| S | A | B | L | E | D | B | O | F | L | A | R | E |
| C | N | Y | E | E | H | U | R | T | E | R | E | R |
| A | R | E | T | T | O | F | E | L | S | I | T | E |
| T | E | B | B | C | L | O | A | K | 1 | S | T | O |
| E | D | G | E | H | E | R | D | E | S | S | E | S |
A nice, clear preamble to start with, the only bit I didn’t understand being ‘BAND TO reset’, which was intentionally mysterious. I especially liked being given answer lengths.
As usual, I filled in the grid on a copy, and I admit to having disobeyed the rather strict instruction not to insert bars. They helped! (But the final diagram definitely looked better without them.)
I felt the only way into this was to target a corner and try to build a group of words with the help of crossing letters as they occur. As the top left and bottom right corners yielded next to nothing I was inclined to give up. I returned to the puzzle much later with the idea of trying the top right corner next and just seeing how far I would get.
In several short sessions throughout the week I took the route determined by the solvable clues, which was anticlockwise from the top right to the bottom centre and finally, yesterday evening, the bottom right. Only the last clue remained unsolved, evidenced by a single empty cell.
I saw BUBBLES in the grid and got the theme from that, and the other thematic items followed – and then finally the last clue.
My highlights were (1) seeing and appreciating the way in which the features of Test Card F were incorporated into the grid; (2) the repetition of CROSS, going down as well as across; and (3) the fact that the entry length for the last clue (until confirmed by the answer) could have been 4, 3, 2 or 1. (In the event it was 3: S-ONE-S.)
Thanks to Ifor for a doable, well-designed puzzle, and to Mister Sting for the solution (I understood everything except ‘bat’ = battery in TABLET – not difficult, really!).
I found this hard but ultimately satisfying. I still don’t really understand the title other than there’s a band of colours in the test card. I assumed there would be a suitable anagram of BAND TO but couldn’t find one. Am I overthinking this?
BAND TO were the other 6 letters in the noughts and crosses grid.
Those were left blank along with the central square.
I spent a long time trying to unpick enough clues before trying to fit the answers together in the grid.
The resolution was very satisfying.
Congratulations to Ifor for an excellent puzzle and thanks to Mister Sting for the blog.
Thanks Cap’n. Now I remember that was it – amazing how much one forgets after a week…
I did not finish this puzzle until after completing 1447, then I cam back to it. I found some of the clues quite tough but enjoyed sorting them out. I thought this was a very clever idea for the theme. Thank you to Ifor and Mister Sting.
Definitely at the gentler end of the Ifor spectrum for me but really enjoyable. At the outset I said ‘that’s a noughts & crosses grid’ in the centre but it took googling ‘Carole’ and ‘Bubbles’ to get to the finish line. As soon as the picture came up I was taken back to growing up in the 70s and the test card being a frequent image on TV. Thanks to Ifor for the puzzle & Mister Sting for the blog.
Thanks for this puzzle Ifor, very enjoyable. I got stuck for a while with the single cell entry for Cross and thought I’d got the whole thing, but as ever it came to me when I was mucking out the horses. I had thought it had something to do with noughts and crosses as soon as I saw the blank grid so I’m not sure why that particular light bulb moment took so long to arrive. As Chris says at the gentler end for one of your puzzles, but at least I finished this one 🙂
that should read thought I’d got the whole thing wrong btw
I really enjoyed this puzzle – a very elegant bit of construction with the various thematic elements in the right places. Spotting Bubbles and Carol (I didn’t spot the E initially) was my way into finding the theme too. Thanks Ifor for the entertainment.
I absolutely loved this. Great grid construction with everything falling into place nicely. I too got caught up with the single X checked cell. After unravelling that, the endgame was delightful and brought back memories of television as was. I think I’d rather watch this test card than 90% of the guff that’s on the box these days.
Thanks to Mister Sting for the blog and to Ifor for yet another cracker.
This really took us back to a very familiar sight. Of course we initially (like Alan B) inserted bars. A lovely compilation. Many thanks to Ifor and Mister Sting.
My usual thanks go to blogger (especially for the detailed clue expositions) and those who took the trouble to comment. I’d just mention that the grid shown in the blog is that before the deletion of BANDTO so as to leave the largely blank game grid.
Alan@1; I hope you won’t mind my singling you out, on the basis that we’ve amicably crossed swords on several previous occasions. I’m really pleased that you felt able to persist with my puzzles and apparently enjoyed this one. Many more in the future, I hope.
Ifor @12
I don’t mind at all. After my first two attempts at this my expectations were somewhat lowered, but after a bit of persistence and patience I found this to be in the end a rewarding experience. Congratulations on an impressive puzzle that was evidently well received by others too.