A Puzzle by Teeby
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The puzzle is available by clicking on the above grid.
As usual, the setter will be delighted to receive feedback from you, the solvers. We do ask that you remember that for most setters this is a new experience, so please only offer constructive criticism.
I think that over a year’s absence from the Rookie corner shows in Teeby’s latest crossword as the number of technical issues in the clues has increased since their last appearance in August last year. There were several good clues such as 9a, 11a, 15a, 1d and 5d. However, there were too many clues where some basic rules of setting clues were not observed. The commentometer reads as 7.5/29 or 25.9%.
Across
9a Grateful I rearrange rota for arena fighter (9)
GLADIATOR: A four-letter word meaning grateful followed by the I from the clue and an anagram (rearrange) of ROTA.
10a Stop inhaling a vapour (5)
STEAM: A four-letter word meaning stop includes (inhaling) the A from the clue.
11a Money paid into account settled matter (7)
DEPOSIT: Double definition.
12a Snap of each pinball lever (7)
FLIPPER: A four-letter word meaning snap followed by a three-letter word meaning of each. The three-letter word at the end really should be for each, not of each. It would work as “Snap a pinball lever”.
13a Sudanese recycled useless type of litter (5)
SEDAN: An anagram (recycled) of SUDANESE without the letters in USE (useless). The placing of useless, means that the instruction to remove USE does not work in the cryptic reading of the clue. Perhaps “Sudanese uselessly recycled litter?” would work better.
15a Fighter aircraft leaving base out of spite, discharges guns (9)
SPITFIRES: The E (leaving base out) from spite and followed by a five-letter word meaning discharges guns.
17a Head of government department‘s certain I’m bent crookedly (7,8)
CABINET MINISTER: A faulty anagram. It looks as though it should be an anagram (crookedly) of CERTAIN IM BENT but this omits an IS required to complete the anagram. Whilst, the ‘s in the clue could provide the IS, you cannot combine the definition and the wordplay in this way, and it is also dangerously close to an indirect anagram. “Head of government department is certain I’m bent crookedly” would work.
19a Home to hunched campanologist “by no means inflamed”, misheard French friend (5-4)
NOTRE-DAME: A phrase (3,3) meaning by no means inflamed followed by a homophone (misheard) of a French word for friend. I don’t think that the homophone works on two levels. Ame is the French word for soul or spirit, not friend and a homophone of ami/amie does not work in solution.
21a Car component‘s bad smell after reversing wheel furrow (5)
TURBO: The abbreviation for body odour after a reversal of a three-letter word for a wheel furrow.
22a Express partners’ exclamation of surprise (7)
HEAVENS: A five-letter word meaning express or throw up followed by the abbreviations for bridge partners.
24a Keep left after announcement found in evidence (7)
CITADEL: The abbreviation for left after a two-letter word for an announcement or advert in a four-letter word meaning to evidence. Try to avoid repeating wordplay ideas using the same word. Here after as the positional indicator was also used in 21a.
27a Sluice drain’s lowest point (5)
NADIR: An anagram (sluice) of NADIR. I don’t think that sluice works as an anagram indicator. As a verb it means to swill with water, not to mix or rearrange something.
28a Regularly ignored imposter reversed almost one generation’s practice of spying (9)
ESPIONAGE: A reversal of the odd letters (regularly ignored) in imposter followed by the first two letters (almost) of one and a three-letter abbreviation for generation. Another repetition of wordplay. Reversed repeats the same root word (after reversing) used in 21a.
Down
1d Characters in stage debut getting past it (4)
AGED: The answer is hidden (characters) in the third and fourth words of the clue.
2d Bach intermittently used up conductor’s last quiet string-instrument (4)
HARP: A reversal (used up) of the even-letters (intermittently) in Bach followed by the last letter of conductor and the abbreviation for quiet. The hyphen is not required in the definition.
3d Clash from key is really new part of performance (10)
DISSONANCE: A letter for a musical key followed by the IS from the clue, a two-letter word meaning really, the abbreviation for new and the final four letters of performance. You cannot use “part of” to indicate a random number of letters to be used from a word.
4d Discloses Southbanks’ museum benefactor (6)
STATES: The repeated abbreviation for south, includes (banks) the four-letter name of a museum benefactor. Not all editors would accept the unindicated lift and separate to get from Southbanks’ to south banks. Even then, the clue only indicates one of the letters S required in the solution.
5d King and leaders of army flee attack on island – is writing on the wall? (8)
GRAFFITI: The regnal letters for King George followed by the initial letters (leaders) of the fifth to tenth words of the clue.
6d On account of time without yours truly, opens wine (4)
ASTI: A two-letter word meaning on account of followed by the time from the clue without a two-letter word meaning yours truly. Unless opens is a link word, which I do not think works, it is padding in the clue.
7d Doctor reports concealing bad air for breathing apparatus (10)
RESPIRATOR: An anagram (doctor) of REPORTS includes (concealing) an anagram (bad) of AIR.
8d Stage manager‘s opera is ruined, wrapping-up right after upsetting note (10)
IMPRESARIO: An anagram (ruined) of OPERA IS includes (wrapping-up) the abbreviation for right all after a reversal (upsetting) of a two-letter musical note. Another repetition of after as the positional indicator.
13d Previously owned and passes around often? (6,4)
SECOND HAND: Double definition, the latter being part of a watch.
14d Bad credits disrupted payment methods (5,5)
DEBIT CARDS: An anagram (disrupted) of BAD CREDITS.
16d Brief consideration of covering road traffic accident with twisted tinfoil (10)
FLIRTATION: Put an anagram (twisted) of TINFOIL around (covering) the abbreviation for road traffic accident.
18d Move locomotives without one bit of buffer (8)
TRANSFER: A six-letter word for locomotives without the letter I (one) and the final three letters (bit of) buffer. Without as used a deletion indicator in 6d. Again, you cannot use “bit of” to indicate a random number of letters from a word.
20d Avoid headland, following directions (6)
ESCAPE: A four-letter word for a headland after (following) two compass points (directions).
23d Organs able to bear rings but not ringing (4)
EARS: Cryptic definition of something you can hang rings from but which you do not want ringing in them.
25d Pull tie (4)
DRAW: Double definition.
26d Release of secrets on the radio, exposes Welsh icon (4)
LEEK: A homophone (on the radio) of LEAK (release of secrets).
Quite a few technical problems with the wordplay in places, but despite this, we enjoyed solving this puzzle. The setter obviously has a good feeling for what makes a good clue and we look forward to what will follow next.
Thanks Teeby
Welcome to Rookie Corner, Teeby, with what I thought was a very promising debut. Yes, there are some rough edges and a few surface readings don’t make much sense. However, the most important thing is that it was fun to solve.
13a – (one for Prolixic) does the instruction “useless” need to be adjacent to the anagram fodder as the solver needs to remove the letters USE before recycling?
17a – using ‘s instead of “is” makes this effectively a partial indirect anagram, which is strictly forbidden.
19a – even with the rider “misheard”, the final three letters are nowhere near a homophone of “ami”.
22a – for me, “express” is too much of a stretch for “heave”.
27a – despite the trend of ‘anything goes’ anagram indicators, I don’t think “sluice” works.
2d – there shouldn’t be a hyphen in string instrument.
4d – I am probably missing something, but I can’t make this clue work. I assume ” Southbanks’ ” is intended to be a “lift and separate” device but where does the second S in the answer come from? In any event the Tate Modern is located on the South Bank. As a suggestion for this clue, how about “Discloses special South Bank’s museum benefactor”?
6d – “opens” looks to me like surface padding.
18d – “one half of buffer” would be more precise.
23d – I don’t understand the relevance of “but not ringing”.
On the positive side, I had a lot of ticks: 9a, 10a, 11a, 12a, 15a, 24a, 1d, 5d, 13d & 20d.
Well done and thank you, Teeby. I look forward to your next submission. Thanks too in advance to Prolixic.
This is Teeby’s third crossword
Ah, yes, so it is. Quite a while since his previous submissions.
I echo 2K’s comments. Thanks to Teeby for an enjoyable puzzle.
My favourite clue was 11a.
I agree with the 2Ks and Gazza
My favourie clue was 23d
Thanks Teeby
I enjoyed this very much despite a few issues with some of the clues, and thought this a very sound puzzle for RC.
1a – for me the surface might have been smoother with a comma after grateful
17a – as with RD I’m not convinced this is legit
19a – if I’ve got the parsing right, the homophone does not work for me.
3d – “part of” is a very loose way of instructing one to use what in this case are four letters of an 11-letter word.
4d – I’m not certain this entirely works
6d – again, I’m with RD on this one
18d – and again
But most enjoyable, and I would certainly look out for one of your puzzles in the future. Thank you Teeby and in advance also to Prolixic
Welcome back, Teeby, although I must admit to having forgotten about your previous submissions to the Corner. My learned friend, RD, has already mentioned the queries that had occurred to me but I would ask you to pay more attention to surface reads in the future, they count for so much to many solvers.
Take careful note of the review from Prolixic and hope we see another puzzle from you in the near future,
Hello again, Teeby.
RD has detailed most of my own observations about the puzzle, but I will add that eight anagrams in twenty-nine clues is a little on the high side, although I did enjoy tackling and solving your latest submission. I’m not a great fan of verbal phrases to clue nouns (the second definition of 13d) and I do feel that once or twice you were guilty of being too ambitious with your wordplay. Overall there were far more positives than negatives, in my opinion, but Prolixic will put you right about the clues that don’t quite work.
I thought your two best clues were 11a and 20d.
Many thanks and good to see you again after quite a gap, Teeby.
Many thanks for the review, Prolixic. Looks as though Teeby has a fair bit of ‘brushing up’ to do where his setting skills are concerned. I’m sure he can do it if he pays attention to your words of wisdom, his ideas are good, just the execution that lets him down,
Thank you all for taking the time to leave a review. I really appreciate it and will take note of the comments.
Regardless as to its defects, I did enjoy solving your Rookie puzzle, Teeby.
I ticked a good number of clues, including 10a, 11a, 15a, 21a, 1d, 5d, 14d, 20d, 23d, 25d and 26d. I also liked 19a as I understood the intention of it.
Many thanks for the enjoyment, Teeby. Please follow Prolixic’s excellent guidance and please return here soon with another puzzle.
Many appreciative thanks to Prolixic for the review.