Sunday Toughie No 159
by Beam
Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee
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Beam has brought us his third Sunday Toughie. I found a couple of “traps” for the unwary and some tricky parsings here, but I think I have them all right now. Trademarks abound (less than 5.35 words per clue, single-word answers, the Queen and sweetheart, lurkers and initial letters too.)
I hope one of my usual commenters spots the name check in 16d and Senf gets a first name check too 10a!
A generous 16a and 16d clues today and I have hinted 7 of each – leaving me the scope for a bonus nudge or two if you ask
Here we go, Folks…
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 return with the full review blog just after the closing date. 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 Plan scheme to import European drink (10)
A plan or map and a scheme, usually devious, containing the abbreviation for European. Did anyone else discover an aged bottle of this in the back of a grandparent’s drinks cabinet? Putting them off booze for life (well a few years/months maybe)
11a A vacuous rotter in domestic tale (9)
A term for domestic or home grown contains A from the clue and what remains of rotter when vacuous
13a Of late, unwilling person? (9)
An all-in-one &lit, an adjective of someone who becomes “late” without making a Will
19a President famously honest on cut tree (5)
A familiar term for an American President (not the one who was honest about cutting down a cherry tree) and most of the “on” side on a cricket pitch – A noun for the white poplar tree
20a Missiles pounding hollow in boats (7)
An abbreviation for Surface to Air MissileS contains (pounding) a hollow in the ground for salt evaporation
27a Paw sweetheart in advance for congress (9)
The paw (of a cat perhaps) and Beam’s ™ swEet-heart in a synonym of to advance
29a
30a Bias of papers covering young gang (10)
A term for newspapers contains a slang term for a gang of youths. Bias in the way of coming to an opinion beforehand. I thought Beam was wasting a word here but the BRB supports the view that young is not redundant.
Down
1d Mongrel exhausted one with dog collar? (6)
A dog of low breeding and exhausted or consumed, one who wears a “dog-collar”
2d Intensify a volume inside silver jar (9)
The chemical abbreviation for silver and a synonym of jar, contain a from the clue and the abbreviation of volume. I suppose the definition is interchangeable with the last word but I think it reads better this way
5d Trick flipping huge flans (9)
Extremely large flans or pastries are reversed (flipping) for a trick or ruse
8d Small key almost revealed key type (8)
Revealed or disclosed follows S for small and almost all of key
16d Net’s over a damn short gladiator! (9)
A synonym of nets or catches is reversed over a from the clue and shortened to damn or swear at
18d Violent revolting hit involves a killer (8)
A hit contains a from the clue and the first person to commit murder all reversed (revolting) A perfect opportunity to play this…
24d Turn using second gear (4)
Take care here, I almost fell into the trap. The obvious answer for a turn or revolution is probably wrong. I couldn’t make the last three letters I had at first fit gear without looking at rack & ***ion steering. The website no longer confirms the correctness of answers, but I am almost sure the turn we seek is a satirical sketch in dramatic or literary form, the last three letters of which is a much better synonym of gear. My parsing notes last night contain Phew! When this penny dropped
Compiler
Beam
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1a was smart, 19a was new to me, but very fair, and 5d’s fun. Many thanks to Beam and Sloop. You had me slightly worried there with Toyah but Bruce saved the day. He always does!
I missed his half time show at the superbowl, but it sounds like it was a belter for a 12 minute show
Mr T had his Beam hat on with a vengeance today and some of the parsing took me a great deal of time. Like ALP, I didn’t recognise the name of the 19a tree but at least I didn’t fall into the potential trap at 24d. Think my favourite was 20a.
Devotions as ever to Mr T/Beam and thanks to SJB for the hints.
I normally go to bed and wait for the puzzle to appear about 23:20 but last night I slipped off to the land of Nod before I saw this. I woke with a start and although I filled the grid much faster than usual, parsing the tree and the turn certainly exercised the grey matter
Unfamiliar with the GW cherry tree tale so the famously honest bit of the surface at 19a was lost on me – couldn’t be owt else with wordplay/checkers but had to check with Mr G. Funnily enough the pitfall at 24d never crossed my mind otherwise I’d have probably fallen for it. Yet again the grid fill was marginally quicker than the back-pager though a wee bit of post completion parsing was required. Podium spots for me were 27a along with 5&18d & 1a narrowly out of the frame.
Thanks to Beam & to John – cracking rendition from Bruce of a great song. Just listened to a couple of songs off Our Man in the Field’s Company of Strangers album – reminded me a little of Ray LaMontagne.
You have released the name I was trying to find from the tip of my tongue, very RayLT and appropriate on a crossie from Ray T too
Although I knew the tree, I couldn’t justify the tale with the president. And then got r*****d (oops) by a cricketing term! It did take longer than usual, but I liked 16d, 17d, but 1a took the biscuit.
Thanks Sloop and Beam
Ha ha – self censorship is fine by me but I wonder if Senf is suffering from 4d from hearing his name used in that manner😉
Typically Beam – thanks to him and SJB.
I was confused by the ‘young’ in 30a until the BRB clarified it.
For my podium I’d pick 19a, 17d and 18d.
I too wondered if Beam had wasted young but I should have had the confidence to trust him
Oh I hope you don’t mind me pinching a cartoon for 1d
Nice cartoon.
I thought of Frank & Jesse until I remembered that was the Younger Gang
Really enjoyed this, thank you MrT/Beam and SJB
I’ve just finished it apart from 6a which eludes me. Any tips Mr Bee that will not put me in the stocks? I think 1a is my favourite just because it is pretty! Just off to yoga but have been reading about an 80 year old who can do the splits !!! Good gracious 😌
Good morning Lady Penelope,
6a is a double definition, an abbreviated county or the place for border plants in the Luton area
Well stap me, as my grandfather used to say. Don’t know what it means just hope it isn’t rude. I thought of that straight away but couldn’t parse it – now I see the borders. Jolly clever Beam. I enjoyed your toughie and thanks SJB for the nudge. George’s sister is a ‘lady’, I am not even a dame! Just Call Me Madam.
I had a ‘Beam’ing smile when I saw 16d last night. After enjoying Jaffa’s ‘gladiator’ last week, 16d was homing in perfectly. Talk about seeing your name up in lights (except in this case down)! How can this possibly be bettered next weekend…?
In the morning I still had three clues I was unsure about: 19a needed some e-research as I had never heard of the tree, but I duly accepted my answers for 20a and 30a without properly understanding the ‘pounding hollow’ or the use of ‘young’. Fortunately both are nicely resolved in SJB’s diligent hints and tips. My favourite clue was undoubtedly 16d, with further podium places awarded to 1a and 3d. As with Huntsman, the 24d pitfall never crossed my mind, but there were no checkers to mislead me as it was an early foothold in the grid.
Many thanks to Beam and to SJB. I hope I’m excused the naughty step despite the appearance of my customary pseudonym in this comment…
Do football grounds still have 3d? – I bet Terence didn’t have to go through one to see Chelsea crash out of the FA Cup
I’m not sure that they are ubiquitous any more, but I am of an age to remember them clearly. An early memory is of visiting Villa Park as a youngster and going through the ‘cages’ to get in. I watched Charlton, Best and Law in the Man Utd side that particular day, which I do believe Villa won by the same score as against Spurs yesterday in the FA Cup. So, together with the England rugby result, a much better weekend of sport for me than last week!
Got there in the end but needed hints for last two in: 18d and 19a. Thanks.