Comments on: Guardian 24,325 (Sat 1 Mar)/Enigmatist - Killer Queen

By: nick

nick — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:52:50 +0000

m6hjmT hi! hice site!

By: xbuster

xbuster — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 16:32:03 +0000

Hi Rightback

Not fully convinced…..

28ac: I know “some slap” could refer to make-up, but why should it? Devious…hmmm.. obscure, more like?

8/9dn: Agreed, but again, it could refer to any historic figure, why specifically her? Vague - agreed, for me too vague.

24dn: OK, it’s the weekend crossword so we are not on the train and can go to Chambers, if we have one. Still think it’s contrived.

11ac/3dn: Hands up, I missed the “i” in I’ll. But “just about works” is stretching it to the limit of generosity surely? I guess like many I got the solution long before I got close to understanding it!

Any one of these per puzzle would be acceptable in my view, it’s the combination of all in one which makes me feel Enigmatist can tend to substitute obscurity for elegance sometimes. I’ll have try more of his/hers to get into the mindset……….

By: rightback

rightback — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:41:19 +0000

In defence of Enigmatist…

28ac: “Slap” is slang for any make-up, so “Some slap” for MASCARA is surely fine (if devious).

8/9dn: The definition for Lady Jane is “who had…”, not just “had…”, so I think this is ok, if a bit vague. A guess “limited” is a reference to the brevity of her reign.

24dn: Esky is an Australian word (trade name) for a portable fridge. To be honest I haven’t seen it outside of crosswords, but it’s in Chambers which the Guardian seems to use as its main reference.

11ac/3dn: Wind caught by misdirected craft? For certain I’ll be responsible (3-7,10)

Here “Wind” = ROLL (as in to wind a watch), “misdirected” is anagram indicator for “CRAFT FOR CERTAIN I” and this all gives AIR-TRAFFIC CONT(ROLL)ER. If you read “[wi]ll be responsible” in the cryptic reading to mean “will be responsible for [i.e. give] the answer” then it just about works as an &lit. Having said that, you can blame a lot of things on air-traffic controllers, but holding them responsible for the wind is a bit harsh!

By: xbuster

xbuster — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:16:29 +0000

Surely with this puzzle Enigmatist has crossed the fine line between clever puzzle and obscurantism. “Slap” - mascara? “had limited influence in the past” - why should this be Lady Jane Grey? “Esky” - Aussie fridge- ???
And 11,3 just does not work, does it? Can anyone explain it in full?
I like a puzzle to be tough, but this was just unfairly abstruse. I’ll stick to good old Araucaria from now on, you know his clues can be trusted, no matter how difficult.

By: John H

John H — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 11:55:26 +0000

I was thinking of a cricket scorebook. Sorry.

By: Fletch

Fletch — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 12:08:37 +0000

Agree that Paul B’s interpretation makes the most sense.

By: Paul B

Paul B — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 10:20:14 +0000

Well, perhaps the ‘evidence in b OO k’ are the rings we’re all desperately searching for. They’re ‘ducks’ as well aren’t they, those OOs! Perhaps sOOn someone will tell us how to parse this one.

According to Collins, the finest dictionary in the world, ‘down’ can be any bird’s feathers.

By: Dave Ellison

Dave Ellison — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 08:10:49 +0000

Thanks, Amnesiac.

10a Is it possibly from drawing a ring around something of interest in a book?

By: Amnesiac

Amnesiac — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 21:59:08 +0000

5d COO = “I’m surprised”

24d (I can’t claim knowing this beforehand - I read it on the Guardian Talk site): An ESKY is an Australian portable fridge, i.e. cooler and if (as it’s a vertical clue) you drop E to the end, you get SKYE.

10a - Not entirely sure where the RING comes from (ring in a book as evidence that someone left a mug on it? R = evidence, G = book?) but I suspect that the “of” = S as in possessive apostrophe S… Don’t know whether that helps anyone to figure out the rest…

By: Dave Ellison

Dave Ellison — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 21:32:32 +0000

This was a tough one. I was on holiday so had no access to cheat books or the internet, so made little progress at first. I returned to it about 5 times and managed about 3/4 eventually.

5D what is coo in relation to rat?

24d I guessed it was sky, but I don’t understand the clue; what is esky? e for ecstacy??

19d I didn’t get the answer, but I see now is very suggestive. “Way bits of groping react advantageously?”

If you grope the right bits of some anatomy, this will have the same advantageous effect as taking viagra!