Author Topic: The Cryptic Crossword Clue Thread (Read 112661 times)

citoyen · « **Reply #525 on:** 02 November, 2021, 01:57:28 pm »

Quote from: Pingu on 01 November, 2021, 10:45:00 pm

I see you used all the letters in that one.

Well spotted!

citoyen · « **Reply #526 on:** 02 November, 2021, 08:07:28 pm »

A few gems from the excellent Tramp in today’s Guardian:

Standard partners getting off with sadists (5,3,7)

Tories’ lying has extraordinary scale: that’s what they do (4,10)

Secret Service after prince over Virginia (7)

Pingu · « **Reply #527 on:** 07 November, 2021, 04:54:40 pm »

TV show presented by insufferable prat with ego (3,4)

citoyen · « **Reply #528 on:** 08 November, 2021, 10:22:54 am »

Quote from: Pingu on 07 November, 2021, 04:54:40 pm

TV show presented by insufferable prat with ego (3,4)

Wowbagger · « **Reply #529 on:** 08 November, 2021, 05:57:40 pm »

Quote from: Pingu on 07 November, 2021, 04:54:40 pm

TV show presented by insufferable prat with ego (3,4)

That is superb!

citoyen · « **Reply #530 on:** 12 November, 2021, 01:40:05 pm »

My latest effort is a 'quick cryptic' - ie aiming to be very much towards the easier end of the spectrum...
https://mycrossword.co.uk/quick/19

What this exercise has taught me is that sometimes, it's actually much harder writing 'easy' clues than tricky ones. The late, great Rufus, who used to regularly set the 'easy' Monday puzzle in the Guardian, often came in for criticism from solvers (especially for his cryptic definitions), but when you try to do this yourself, it really brings home how good he was at what he did - not least for his ability to churn them out week after week.

citoyen · « **Reply #531 on:** 12 November, 2021, 01:41:26 pm »

Quote from: Wowbagger on 08 November, 2021, 05:57:40 pm

Quote from: Pingu on 07 November, 2021, 04:54:40 pm
TV show presented by insufferable prat with ego (3,4)

That is superb!

As one of the commenters says:
"If you never write another clue as long as you live, you can die happy for having come up with [that one]"

citoyen · « **Reply #532 on:** 17 December, 2021, 01:54:03 pm »

My latest effort is now up as a guest puzzle on Alberich's website (the top crossword pro for the FT, not the Wagner character):

http://www.alberichcrosswords.com/pages/widdersbel.html

Spent a lot of time polishing this one, and I like to think it shows. For anyone who tries it, I apologise in advance for 27a (which has more going on wordplay-wise than may first meet the eye, so to speak).

slope · « **Reply #533 on:** 17 December, 2021, 05:06:11 pm »

Downloaded and printed off for a bash at it tomorrow

Pingu · « **Reply #534 on:** 17 December, 2021, 05:24:42 pm »

Gah - no Reveal button

slope · « **Reply #535 on:** 18 December, 2021, 01:07:25 pm »

Quote from: citoyen on 17 December, 2021, 01:54:03 pm

My latest effort is now up as a guest puzzle on Alberich's website (the top crossword pro for the FT, not the Wagner character):

http://www.alberichcrosswords.com/pages/widdersbel.html

Spent a lot of time polishing this one, and I like to think it shows. For anyone who tries it, I apologise in advance for 27a (which has more going on wordplay-wise than may first meet the eye, so to speak).

Completed yesterday evening but struggling to parse 5a and 21a. Also unsure where the letters UR come from in 2d? Any hints please? They'll probably jump out at me now I've posted!

Favourites were 10a, 15a and 18a

citoyen · « **Reply #536 on:** 18 December, 2021, 02:37:56 pm »

Quote from: slope on 18 December, 2021, 01:07:25 pm

Completed yesterday evening but struggling to parse 5a and 21a. Also unsure where the letters UR come from in 2d? Any hints please? They'll probably jump out at me now I've posted!

Favourites were 10a, 15a and 18a

5a is probably easier to break down if you ignore the punctuation marks. It has a three-word definition

21a is an Azed-style compound anagram - the solution plus extra word(s) is an anagram of another word or phrase. It’s all there in the clue!

2d it’s the sense in which it is used as a prefix in German

If you’re still stuck…

(click to show/hide)

slope · « **Reply #537 on:** 18 December, 2021, 03:50:28 pm »

Brill, many thanks.

5a. My ignorance of Shakespeare and his many characters failing me yet again!

21a. Very good indeed - probably COD

- am always late to see AZEDy compound anagrams

2d. Sneaky infiltrating Germanspeak!

New to me were colleeen (with a small c) as a defintion - and potman, which Chambers online gives as: 1. A pot companion 2, A pot boy (and thence gleaned that a potshop is a small public house!)

Also realised I still can't parse 23d. Is vicar a synonym for pope? Or am i probably missing something quite different? Happy to add Religion to my list of ignorances along with Shakespeare and German!

Could do with a 15² blog . . .

Forgot to mention that 17d is another fave

citoyen · « **Reply #538 on:** 18 December, 2021, 04:18:23 pm »

Quote from: slope on 18 December, 2021, 03:50:28 pm

Also realised I still can't parse 23d. Is vicar a synonym for pope?

(click to show/hide)

I think ‘potboy’ is more common than ‘potman’, but they’re the same thing really.

I struggle with compound anagrams, which is part of the reason I was determined to include one - good way to learn how they work.

Quote

Forgot to mention that 17d is another fave

Ta!

Jurek · « **Reply #539 on:** 18 December, 2021, 04:23:51 pm »

Apropos of nothing in particular, I have taken to only completing the simple as well as the cryptic crossword in the Metro every day on my way in to work.
It renders me less angry than reading the rest of the paper does.

slope · « **Reply #540 on:** 18 December, 2021, 04:43:05 pm »

Quote from: citoyen on 18 December, 2021, 04:18:23 pm

It’s PREVIOUS (former) - REV (vicar). ‘No longer’ is the deletion indicator - I was quite pleased with myself for that one!

Ooh I like that too

Pingu · « **Reply #541 on:** 20 December, 2021, 09:10:37 pm »

Quote from: citoyen on 17 December, 2021, 01:54:03 pm

My latest effort is now up as a guest puzzle on Alberich's website (the top crossword pro for the FT, not the Wagner character):

http://www.alberichcrosswords.com/pages/widdersbel.html

Spent a lot of time polishing this one, and I like to think it shows. For anyone who tries it, I apologise in advance for 27a (which has more going on wordplay-wise than may first meet the eye, so to speak).

Did it this evening, ta!

slope · « **Reply #542 on:** 06 January, 2022, 05:09:49 pm »

Today's Guardian 28,647 cryptic by Vlad had a rather dull anagrammatical clue (5,8), the answer being the American writer - Upton Sinclair. Who apparently once penned?

“adding a lane to a highway to reduce congestion is like letting out your belt to lose weight.”

(perhaps I might consider using an anagram of of the combined letters of my real name now into - Upton Swale?)

citoyen · « **Reply #543 on:** 06 January, 2022, 06:44:51 pm »

Ha! That's a great line.

citoyen · « **Reply #544 on:** 06 January, 2022, 07:55:29 pm »

For me, the best clue from Vlad today was:

I help part of UK initially during recession (5)

Took me far too long to spot what was going on there.

Pingu · « **Reply #545 on:** 06 January, 2022, 08:54:10 pm »

The first part of 5D was quite amusing.

Pingu · « **Reply #546 on:** 09 January, 2022, 10:50:51 pm »

Because reasons I'm a week behind on the Graun prize crossword, so I've just noticed the theme for last week's one

citoyen · « **Reply #547 on:** 10 January, 2022, 09:19:26 am »

Quote from: Pingu on 09 January, 2022, 10:50:51 pm

Because reasons I'm a week behind on the Graun prize crossword, so I've just noticed the theme for last week's one

My enjoyment of that one was slightly marred by twerps on the internet giving the game away before I’d even looked at it. Chiz!

citoyen · « **Reply #548 on:** 13 January, 2022, 10:39:39 am »

Voter knew about Johnson's party! (4,5)

from:
https://twitter.com/7upislemonade/status/1481240979738877952?s=20

Pingu · « **Reply #549 on:** 13 January, 2022, 12:18:41 pm »

Quote from: citoyen on 13 January, 2022, 10:39:39 am

Voter knew about Johnson's party! (4,5)

from:
https://twitter.com/7upislemonade/status/1481240979738877952?s=20