Comments on: Independent 6783/Bannsider (12-07-08)

By: nmsindy

nmsindy — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:46:29 +0000

A brilliant crossword, full of clever invention, very very tough, but as Neildubya says, well worth sticking with for the gems revealed.

By: neildubya

neildubya — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:24:51 +0000

7d - E,BONY. On a piano keyboard, the flat notes are black or EBONY.

By: Joins

Joins — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:39:48 +0000

The only clue I didn’t understand was the one to which the answer appeared to EBONY. Can anyone explain it?

By: Fletch

Fletch — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:03:55 +0000

Was it Bannsider last Saturday? Damn! I’d given up hope of ever seeing him again and didn’t get the paper.

By: beermagnet

beermagnet — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:09:28 +0000

18A OUR is very much first person, it's just first person plural (possessive) rather than the singular I or my that we somehow naturally think of when we see the words first person's. I too pondered about the royal we before realising the generality. 29A VLADIMIR PUTIN: Surely the U comes from accepted in the U vs. non-U sense, and the rest of the anagram is from (IN MID-APRIL TV) 6D You meant to write ALS[-o] I really really enjoyed this crossword. Struggled with 8D and had nearly all the crossing letters before it clicked - I thought ground was the anagrind.

By: eimi

eimi — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:41:45 +0000

I’m not sure “Lean times ultimately for Spurs” was designed to curry favour, but with Berbatov and Keane on the verge of leaving and Bent probably staying it could prove to be prophetic. I understand that the long answers at the perimeter are Bannsider’s 5/2.