Comments on: Toughie 176

By: Libellule

Libellule — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 16:21:30 +0000

17d threw me too, until I cross checked the (mis) spelling on Screwed-up.

By: bigboab

bigboab — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 16:04:46 +0000

Thanks Dave, my wife has “loaned” my Chambers to my daughter, so I’m struggling without it. (I’m sort of hoping a new one might be arriving in a couple of weeks for my birthday. Hope springs eternal.

By: Big Dave

Big Dave — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:49:52 +0000

On 17d I took “wrongly fired” as the anagram indicator, but, on reflection, your explanation is better.

I agree on 14a.

I also thought 22d was poor, with padding in the middle of the anagram fodder.

By: gazza

gazza — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:40:09 +0000

On 17d, I took the “wrongly” to mean that the setter was deliberately asking for the alternative, but incorrect, spelling.
On 14a, I don’t like the use of “misses” to mean “missing from”.

By: Big Dave

Big Dave — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:24:01 +0000

BigBoab

I only got 5a from the wordplay.

On 15d, a cess is an old tax.

With 17d, this is what Chambers has to say: “hari-kari ~ an incorrect form of hara-kiri” thus endorsing your comment.

I struggled with today’s cryptic, but found this one easy. I think a lot of it depends on havfing seen words like cess before.

By: bigboab

bigboab — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:14:42 +0000

Must just be me BD, I found this a hard one, I had the speling of 17d the other way round (as taught in school ) I didn’t get 5a without your help and Im still not sure if the 4th letter of 15d is c or f .