Serpent has given us quite a challenge today.
I got three of the four 10-letter entries quite quickly which also very quickly created four mini crosswords in each corner. I found those quite difficult.
There were at least a couple of cryptic definitions – APIARY and BRIDESMAID. I’m not a great fan of cryptic definitions but I realise that they are just one of many different clue types that setters can use.
It was good to see a hidden word extending across five words in the clue at 18 across
I liked the clue for TRAVERSE where the definition was well disguised in a clue that focused on a political picture that didn’t generate an image of the entry.
I also enjoyed the clue for EVENTIDE which took the outer letters off each of two consecutive words.
On a Thursday Independent puzzle there’s usually some kind of theme or message, but I’m not clever enough to spot one here. That doesn’t mean there isn’t one though.
| No | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
| Across | |||
| 1 |
Perhaps queen’s family tree displays this dependent? (6) |
CAT (an adult female cat is a queen) + KIN (family) CAT KIN |
CATKIN (a crowded spike or tuft of small unisexual flowers with reduced scalelike bracts, as in the willow, hazel, etc.; a dependent that is displayed on specific types of tree) |
| 4 | Desperately try to get hold of game(8) |
SCRABBLE (grope for with hands or claws; desperately try to get hold of) SCRABBLE |
SCRABBLE (board game) double definition |
| 9 | Bald man almost mistaken for character in Greek tragedy? (6) |
Anagram of (mistaken for) BALDMA LAMBDA* |
LAMBDA (letter of the Greek alphabet which will be found in the text of a Greek tragedy) |
| 10 | Exasperating uneducated woman stops one perhaps reading books (8) |
RITA (reference the Willy Russell play Educating RITA) contained in (stopping) (I [Roman numeral for one] + R [Reading, one of the three Rs of education] + NT [New Testament; books]) I R (RITA) NT |
IRRITANT (something that causes exasperation) |
| 11 | Hit originally contained Heroes sample (6) |
SWAT (hit) + CH (first letters [originally] of each of CONTAINED and HEROES) SWAT CH |
SWATCH (sample especially of cloth, or of carpet, wallpaper, etc) |
| 12 | I don’t know man pursuing me about coming out (8) |
ME reversed (about) + ER (expressing hesitation implying ‘I don’t know’) + GENT (man) EM< ER GENT |
EMERGENT (coming out) |
| 14 | On-line diatribe by grown-up debasing agent (10) |
ADULT (grown-up) + E (electronic; on-line) + RANT (tirade; diatribe) ADULT E RANT |
ADULTERANT (debasing agent) |
| 18 | Provide a list I compiled partially based on worthy principles (10) |
IDEALISTIC (hidden word [partially] in PROVIDE A LIST I COMPILED) IDEALISTIC |
IDEALISTIC (based on worthy principles) |
| 22 | Cross-party members caught in the middle of voters (8) |
RAVERS (people, usually young, who attend mass gatherings to dance to loud music under bright flashing lights, often associated with the use of certain drugs, especially Ecstasy; party members) contained in (caught in) TE (central letters of [in the middle of] VOTERS) T (RAVERS) E |
TRAVERSE (cross) |
| 23 | Emigré created by collapse of this government (6) |
Anagram of (created by collapse of) EMIGRE The clue describes the anagram the other way, but the principle is the same. REGIME* |
REGIME (government) |
| 24 | Calculated time required to replace pair in hands-on session (8) |
T ACTICAL |
TACTICAL (calculated) |
| 25 | You are caught punching young man in office (6) |
(U [sounds like {caught} YOU] + R [sounds like {caught} ARE) contained in (punching) BEAU (boyfriend; young man) B (U R) EAU |
BUREAU (office) |
| 26 | 70 aides get exposed late in the day (8) |
EVENT IDE |
EVENTIDE (a time late in the day) |
| 27 | Firm support for driver’s seat (6) |
SET (firm) + TEE (support for a golfer’s ball when driving) SET TEE |
SETTEE (long seat with a back) |
| Down | |||
| 1 | Huge deficit beginning to accumulate in depression (8) |
(LOSS [deficit] + A [first letter of {beginning to} ACCUMULATE]) contained in (in) COL (depression or pass in a mountain range) CO (LOSS A) L |
COLOSSAL (huge) |
| 2 | Man put out about recollection of my crucial part in hearing (8) |
Anagram of (out) MAN PUT containing (about) MY reversed (recollection of) T (YM<) PANUM* |
TYMPANUM (the middle ear; a crucial part in hearing) |
| 3 | Show charge orbiting an electron (8) |
(INDICT [charge with a crime] containing [orbiting] A [an]) + E (electron) INDIC (A) T E |
INDICATE (show) |
| 5 | Non-professional guards not just about serving protocol (10) |
(LAIC [non-professional] containing [guards] [NO {not} + MERE {only; just}]) all reversed (about) (C (EREM ON) IAL)< |
CEREMONIAL (prescribed order of service or ritual; serving protocol) |
| 6 | Where to install a buzzer if you want it to work (6) |
APIARY (one type of buzzer is a bee, so you might keep it in an APIARY) APIARY |
APIARY (some bees are drones [workers] who will work in the APIARY) cryptic definition |
| 7 | He raises game in early edition of programme on radio (6) |
BEATER (sounds like [on radio] BETA [denoting an early version of a software product that is still under testing]) BEATER |
BEATER (a person who rouses game birds) |
| 8 | What’s left after passing car? (6) |
ESTATE (The total extent of the real and personal property of a deceased person; what’s left after passing [dying]) ESTATE |
ESTATE (model of car designed to carry passengers and goods) double definition |
| 13 | Female match assistant? (10) |
BRIDESMAID (female assistant for the BRIDE at a wedding) BRIDESMAID |
BRIDESMAID (female attendant at the match [wedding]) cryptic definition |
| 15 | Comfortable position that’s safe to hold at home (8) |
SECURE (safe) containing (to hold) IN (at home) S (IN) ECURE |
SINECURE (an office without work, a cushy job |
| 16 | Urgent demands ultimately introducing temporary accommodation providing housing for free (8) |
S (last letter of [ultimately] DEMANDS) + (TENT [temporary accommodation] containing [providing housing for] RID [free]) S T (RID) ENT |
STRIDENT (urgent) |
| 17 | Plan to drop Christmas broadcast (8) |
SCHEDULE (sounds like [broadcast] SHED [drop] YULE [season of Christmas]) SCHEDULE |
SCHEDULE (plan) |
| 19 | Motionless figure standing overlooking centre of Paris (6) |
STATU STATUE |
STATUE (motionless figure) |
| 20 | French port having diplomatic immunity? (6) |
GAUCHE (French for left [port side on a ship]) GAUCHE |
GAUCHE (tactless; not being diplomatic; having diplomatic immunity) |
| 21 | Bored delinquent receives great present (6) |
DT (letters remaining in D D (EPIC) T |
DEPICT (describe; present) |
Another fantastic challenge from Serpent. He always creates puzzles at the limit of my solving capability, yet doable without any recourse to cheats or aids. The NE & SW quadrants held out the longest. That Serpent is no mere mortal imo.
Serpent puzzles invariably have some hidden extra but, whatever it is this time, I can’t see it either. No doubt, I’ll end up kicking myself.
Thanks both.
Some great clues here as usual but I cant spot his “signature”-when I do it usually helps finishing the puzzle off
Thanks duncanshiell for blog and Serpent for puzzle,
Thanks, Duncan and Serpent. Little Richard, who died very recently, features in the “internal perimeter” with his full name: RICHARD WAYNE PENNIMAN.
Thanks Neil. Looked at the “internal perimeter” but still failed to see that.
NeilW@3 Well spotted!Thanks
A proper Serpent challenge – of course I didn’t spot Little Richard!!
Thanks to Serpent for the extreme brain stretching and Duncan for the blog
Even though I didn’t know who he was, spotting RICHARD WAYNE PENNIMAN – or at least taking a stab at that name for the I and the second R of RICHARD – helped me to finish the SW corner, and I ended up with only BEATER (I had ‘bearer’) up in the NE incorrect. A real challenge, with one new word – CATKIN – and STATUE and GAUCHE unparsed – both obvious now of course.
Brummie in the Guardian yesterday was tough, but this was even tougher. Wonder what today’s Vlad will be like. A doddle, I’m sure.
Thanks to Duncan and Serpent
This took us far longer than usual, even though we were helped by the nina which we were on the lookout for, this being a Serpent puzzle. GAUCHE and BEATER were our last ones in, and even then it took a while to get the ‘diplomatic immunity’ bit – one meaning of ‘gauche’ being ‘tactless’ so if you don’t have tact (diplomacy) you must be immune to it.
In hindsight it all looks pretty straightforward and fair, but that’s usually the way with toughies.
Thanks, Serpent and Duncan
Yet another cracking puzzle from Serpent. Took me a while, but spotting the nina helped me finish with 11a. I was thinking along the lines of Fudge, Whispa, etc in a box of Heroes until I got the W in place.
5d was a tricky one to parse.
Total defeat for me. The top left and bottom right I got eventually, but the rest, nothing.
A difficult solve but fair. We needed a word search for our LOI and kicked ourselves when we saw DEPICT. We’d thought of it earlier but just couldn’t see the parsing.
Totally missed the nina despite looking for one.
Thanks to S&B.
Many thanks to Duncan for the excellent blog and to everyone who has taken the time to comment.
For the first time ever for me, a complete bust. Not a single clue answered. A Serpent so fiendish as to rival Quetzalcoatl himself.
I completely failed on this one, just couldn’t get into it all for some reason and only solved half a dozen before running out of time.
El_Gwero / Tatrasman – I used to have great difficulty getting into Serpent’s puzzles as I just couldn’t seem to get on his wavelength.
I now enjoy them immensely (though they are often a struggle but always fair} so keep having a go – it’s well worth the investment.
Cheers reddevil, I won’t deny it can be frustrating at times, but at the end, I’m left deeply impressed by the skills of the setters and solvers who have developed the required skills for this level of xword. Just makes me more determined to keep learning. I was pleasantly surprised by how far I got with Serpent’s previous puzzle, and remarked that he/she had been generous – and today is where I found out quite how generous that was!