Sunday Toughie No 147
by Zandio
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Zandio with his usual entertaining not to tuff tuffie. I found it quite hard to choose which clues to hint but here are half of 14a and 14d clues and I hope there are enough checkers to get you over the line
There are quite a few literary references to styles of writings from Aesop to Hans Christian Anderson but I may be going 16a to call it a theme
Here we go…
As it is a Prize puzzle I can only hint at a few and hope that will give you the checkers and inspiration to go further. I’ll be back just after the closing date with the full blog. Don’t forget to follow BD’s instructions in RED at the bottom of the hints!
I hope I don’t have to redact any comments but I am new at this and don’t want to rock the boat. If in doubt, I’ll rub it out! I think that sentence is a bit redundant. You have all been so helpful in sorting out prior parsing failures, and I am sure I will need similar help again.
Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also” Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious. Don’t forget the Mine of useful information that Big Dave and his son Richard so meticulously prepared for us.
A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions. Some hints follow: Remember the site rules and play nicely
Across
1a Rush through diet suited to hospital room (4-7)
Split 4,3,4 this might be a Nil-by-Mouth diet suited to a hospital room, on a music/video player it looks like this 8
7a Flowing west in France, the channel abuts a northern plain (7)
Flowing west is a reversal indicator, Take a French the, a channel or groove, a from the clue and the abbreviation for north and reverse them
13a Intellectual went to the left (4)
“Went” for “number ones” to the left
14a Writer’s friend: “Does it begin with ‘Cz’ or end with ‘que’?” (10)
What a writer may use for assistance with how to write the country abbreviated as Cz or the financial instrument that ends “que”
16a Outrageous in public, that man getting to Papa (4-3-3)
A synonym of in public, a male pronoun, to from the clue and the international radio code letter that Papa suggests is outrageous
25a Rev linked with writing dangerous article (7)
Not a religious Rev, more what one may do to an engine to annoy neighbours on a Sunday morning, it follows a style of writing
26a One spirits up another’s words (5-6)
A cryptic definition of someone who helps compose an autobiography for a less accomplished author
Down
2d One presents essentially entertaining copy … (6)
The essential or central letters of presents contain to copy or plagiarise someone else’s work. I cant separate copy from the definition so will call it an all-in-one or &lit, especially as the elision… links it to the following unhinted clue
6d See five hundred and ten quit, disheartened (7)
A Roman five hundred, the letters that look like ten and a synonym of quit that has been disheartened of its central a – There is a vacancy in Canterbury if you are interested
7d Who could create El from enamel for his mate Elvis? (4-7)
A cryptic definition of what you have to omit from enamel to show an over-familiarity to Elvis, be it Presley or Costello
9d Get stuck in digital fluff? (7,4)
Part of your digits where they bend and the fluff of an eider duck
12d Nude, full-frontal, to get herself hugs (10)
A lurker (hugs) hidden between definition and indicator
15d Dangerous point with steps up and down, 16 to climb (8)
The steps used to get over a wall and a reversal (to climb in a down clue) of the abbreviation of 16a
(The same steps as used by Dada in 3d of the backpager)
19d Forest striker that makes the cut with Belgium – he’ll be hitting the net? (7)
He who strikes with an axe in a forest follows the IVR code for Belgium. A nod to all the good folks here who provide hints and tips in Big Dave’s corner of the internet, I wonder who will be our new hinty person this Wednesday?
20d Oops I have run out of hints but you will find the obvious musical link in my post-amble
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We had two Beatles songs in the last Zandio now we have a whole disc! – disc-like because they revolve in the heavens and are close enough to show a disc rather than a point of light
That’s All Folks…
I have never been the first to comment before!! Or maybe by the time I have finished typing someone else will have beaten me. I thought at first that this was very difficult but it has all fallen into place with a nudge from SJB. I don’t think I have a favourite – possibly the lurker. I am slightly shocked by 13a. Really ? What about data protection or whatever, that young man won’t be very pleased when he is about to be made chief constable or something. 🤭 An officious little person stopped me from walking round the church bazaar with a small basket selling 50 exquisitely produced and presented packets of Christmas gift tags – which I have done for the past 50 years. I was told it was now against Health and Safety. I was in church so restrained myself. Many thanks to Zando and SJB for taking my mind off the injustice.
I was most amused by the pic for 13a particularly the direction he was “wenting” it fitted in with the clue but now I am worried if he does aspire to be Chief Constable
I have a couple of lurkers here in 1d and Danny Kaye?
Sorry about the elf and safety gonk, if you have any tags unsold I am sure there will be plenty of 8a people who will buy them
I am reminded of a lovely occasion in Finland accompanying George on a business trip. We stayed
in the Savonlinna house of the family as they had decamped to their summer ‘hut’ where we joined them for a day.
George and Uoni were in the sauna and two adorable little short haired tinies in t-shirt and jeans were dashing in and out.
George eventually asked Uoni if there was a loo. He laughed, no just go into the forest, which he did, accompanied by the
two children. To cut a long story short, George showed them how to write one’s name in the dust. So far so good, they were greatly amused
then the nanny came to take them off for a bath and they came back to say goodnight dressed in NIGHTDRESSES! George’s face was a
study and he was very quiet on the way back to town. I think I have just blown the contract, he said to me, highly embarrassed. However,
the Finns all thought it was a great laugh thank goodness. I often wonder if they still talk about that funny Englishman…..
I’m afraid that particular bit of ‘elf & safety law has been in place for years now, DG. I’m surprised that nobody’s taken you to task over it before now – our branch of The Wildlife Trust was severely reprimanded some time ago over the same issue. Another pointless bit of legislation……….
Really? You are kidding me! And I have been mentally bad mouthing the Poisoned Dwarf for the last 24 hours.
I shall have to do 100 Hail Mary’s on my knees.
Press-ups might be quicker… Or maybe not these days !
A top-notch and not too tricky puzzle from Zandio – thanks to him and SJB.
Lots to like including 14a, 21a, 25a, 7d and 9d.
As usual there are too many clues to hint or tick but I agree with all your picks today
Very enjoyable puzzle. Pretty straightforward I thought. 25a just edged it over 7d for my cotd, but there were other near misses too.
Thank you Zandio, and SJB whose hints I shall now read
I enjoy being tortured on Sunday I always need help but to me it is enjoyable (do I have a problem) Ha Ha joking off course
To echo SJB, “Zandio with his usual entertaining not to tuff tuffie.” The Sunday Toughie setters always seem to come up with the goods, delivering a nice range of “tuffie”-ness. It took me a while to spot the device in 12d – a very nice example with a good surface reading; but my podium places went to 10a, 14a and 21a.
Thank you, Zandio, and my thanks also to SJB.
I will have to learn to use my 14a and maybe then I would have had the right number of o’s in too
Oops! [Or should that be ‘Ops!’] Sorry to draw attention to that – quite inadvertent on my part! Copy-and-paste can be a bit like predictor text and have unintended consequences…
Very enjoyable SPP with the exception of both the clue and illustration for 13a. Tops for me on the humour front were 1&26a plus 9d.
Thanks to Zandio for the puzzle and to SJB for the hints.
I have changed the illustration for 13a even though I thought it was a light hearted image in response to Zandio’s clue, I have taken DG’s and your thoughts on board and picked something else
Thank you, John, always best to play it safe in that sort of instance.
You’re welcome, this 19d always wants to please
I reckon I’d have known this was a Zandio even without a byline. 14a’s so him, 2d/3d pleased me enormously and 7d’s delightfully/typically bonkers. Hearty laughs and gentle-ish fun. Many thanks to him and Sloop. Cracking clips, though I remain intrigued as to what your original 13a was!
Me too
Loved the puzzle & plenty ‘tuff’ enough for the likes of me thank you. 13&25a were the two holdouts at the end – the parsing penny dropped with the former but just biffed in an answer to the other without twigging the why, if indeed it’s correct. 14a +7&9d my podium picks/co favourites with ticks also against 8,11,21&26a plus19d. Very enjoyable indeed.
Thanks to Zandio & as ever to John.
I was awoken by someone revving an engine this morning and I would have been annoyed but it did help with parsing 25a, the style of writing is that which you use to guide The Mythical Pen rather than a keyboard
Other than the fact that I’d be tempted to happily take my answer to someone revving their engine outside my bedroom window early doors (aiming at the tyres I should add) I’m still none the wiser but thanks anyway
One of the definitions of the last three letters of your answer is a slang term for the accelerator or overaggressive use of it
If I could show you the notes I made last night you would notice my style of ****writing is not very stylish
Got it – unfamiliar to me. Ta
Hello, compiler here. Thanks very much for taking the time solve, hint and discuss. Very much appreciated.
Thank you for a very good puzzle which amused and challenged in equal measure
Oh what fun this puzzle was! Lots of penny drops accompanied by snorts of laughter. Well done, Zandio! Wish I’d seen SJB’s original hint to 13a.
A challenging but enjoyable puzzle, which would have been completed in a fairly impressive time (for me) but for 8a, for which I spent a significant chunk of my time trying to parse a wrong solution (having convinced myself the “left people” were a certain Neil and Stephen!
Sorry, that should say 8a!
Double sorry, I thought my edit had not saved.
Also forgot my thanks to SJB and Zandio.
It’s late, I should be asleep!
I am glad that Neil and Stephen didn’t occur to me – they fit the checkers too!
Took a while but go there in the end.