Toughie No 3549 by Donnybrook
Hints and tips by Whybird
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BD Rating – Difficulty ***/**** – Enjoyment ***
Welcome to another Toughie week!
I often struggle to get onto Donnybrook’s wavelength, and today was no exception. And as a double-whammy, the number of Classical and Literary references pick on definite weak suits. However everything is fairly and clearly clued, and there are a few gems in there that certainly made the solve worthwhile for me. There’s a lot of “inserting” to be done, which I didn’t notice during the solve, but certainly did when writing the explanations.
I thought 12a and 30a would be battling it out for the prize, but they were trumped when 26d finally clicked. I am very interested to hear how others have approached 26d. Thanks to Donnybrook for a rigorous Tuesday workout.
Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
Good afternoon. I thoroughly enjoyed this even if I had to use the dictionary. The anagrams were brilliant. 9d, 20a, 20d and 21a were my last solves. 2d is my COTD as I am currently in Germany. Thank you for the review and to the setter.
Lots of GK today from Donnybrook but all very fairly clued – thanks to Donnybrook for the entertainment and to Whybird for the review.
My ticks went to 1a, 12a, 16a and (my favourite) 26d.
I didn’t find this easy by any means, but managed to complete it.
I made a mess of 21a to start with, and was slow to parse 27a. Also Mitford-approved went over my head…
Favourite clue, 30a.
Thanks to Donnybrook and to Whybird.
A couple of new words for me at 11a and 6d but as our blogger says, fairly clued and gettable.
Some cracking clues, I liked Alf Garnet’s daughter in 28a, the Duke that was stuck up in 30a and the stuff that gets in yer belly button at 26d, which I had as a double definition, as down also refers to the fluffy bed cover filling.
Very enjoyable, my thanks to Donnybrook and Whybird.
Yes, I too had 26d as a DD, Frankie.
Great puzzle, a very satisfying challenge and a stimulating workout. I’ve never read 22a, so took the (biffed because I couldn’t be bothered to check the anagram) answer on trust, and 11a was only very faintly familiar and beautifully disguised; I did feel that ‘graduate’ was rather vague as definitions go.
Honours to 27a, 29a and 26d (huge clang as that one dropped!)
Many thanks indeed to Donny and to Whybird
A nice Toughie, one of those where it helped if you knew ‘stuff’. I took thought 26d was going to be a palindrome but once the penny dropped about the double definition, it became my favourite clue
Thanks to Donnybrook and Whybird
Has the parsing of 26d been fully resolved? I see it as a DD with the first being as described above and the second being the soft, fluffy sub-feathers of some waterfowl or very fine hair/fluff found covering some plants.
It looks like double definition is the dominant view so far, although we won’t know for sure unless Donnybrook enlightens us. I’m not convinced the solution and down are synonymous, and the ? isn’t needed for a straight double definition, but that’s not conclusive. Not that the fine detail really matters, Pop-pickers, it’s the “double allusion” that works.
Fluff and down are synonymous in the sense of the massed fine hairy structures found on a mature dandelion or similar.
That was very hard work for my old brain cells and Mr G was called on for help with several new words. A great sense of satisfaction when the finish line was eventually crossed but this was right at the limit of my solving abilities.
Top clues for me were 12,16&18a plus 26d with a mention for my young granddaughter in 27a.
Thanks to Donnybrook and to Whybird for the excellent review and the perfect illustration of 16a!
I was scurrying around the internet too to plug some gaps in my GK. Glad you liked the choice of Silver Fox!
With regard to the latest entry to the FAQ’s… #38.
A lurker is a hidden word clue in which the solution can be found in two or more consecutive words in the wordplay which constitute the fodder. The solution should begin within the first word of the fodder but not with the first letter of the first word.
Today’s 6d Claw embedded in Archelaus (5)
That might be what the FAQ says, Franco, but I think there’s nothing cast in concrete that requires a lurker to spread over 2 or more words – certainly I’ve seen single word lurkers in other cryptics.
It would be interesting to know whether the editorial “style guides” for the DT and other papers lay down specific requirements for lurkers: I do hope not, other than that if in more than one word they must be consecutive.
Struggled to parse 29a as I’d never heard of the stone tablet. 26d is a cracking clue. Thanks to Donnybrook and Whybird.
I’m not a big fan of “proper noun clues” and there were rather too many of them here. But that said there are different kinds of PNCs and 3d is one of the good ‘uns. 30a made me smile too.
For what it’s worth I took 26d to be a straightforward double def.
Thanks to DB and Whybird.
This was a very cleverly constructed puzzle which I felt was more suited to a Thursday than a Tuesday.I too was fooled by the clever deception of 26D so after the penny dropped it got my vote as favourite.
Thanks to Whybird for the helpful blog and parsing which explained my answers and to Donnybrook for the challenge.
Classic example of being on the right wavelength. We finished this in very short order and struggled to see how this could be anything stronger than **!
If you had ever accidentally ripped the zip out of a down sleeping bag like I did, you would have seen a surfeit of 26down. It defied all attempts to sweep it up as the merest approach sent it bob bob bobbing away. Every time I get the tent out I find a little bit more.
Thanks to Donnybrook and Whybird.
P.S. Whybird, if you put a page break between the preamble and the rest of the blog it will stop the spoilers appearing uncovered in the outgoing email.
Thanks SJB. I wasn’t aware that was happening, but I’ve done as you suggest. Let’s see if I remember next Tuesday…
Late posting today due to a family commitment. This was very enjoyable and all the bits of GK unknown to me were fairly clued.
26d was my favourite.
Many thanks to Donny and to Whybird.
11a was new to us and held us up considerably, so not a rapid solve for us. Favourite was 12a.
Thanks Donnybrook and Whybird.
Hadn’t envisaged this pre lights out solve taking anywhere near as long as it did. Completed (eventually) without a letter reveal but with a fair amount of GK checking with Mr G – the claw, the Greek god, the ear infection, the Keats poem & the boundary all needed confirmation. Never read OMF but saw the BBC adaptation & could recall who played the character though not his name. The SE last to yield – I too messed about down the palindrome blind alley at 26d & with George at 28a.
Tough for a Tuesday & for the likes of me but very enjoyable – 5,12,16&30a plus 15&26d particular likes.
Thanks to Donny & Whybird for the review
Dnf yesterday but the final corner went in easily this morning. If only I knew how to spell the third word at 12 it would have made solving 7d a lot easier! Thanks NY it was an absolute pleasure to solve it’s always good to learn new things and they were in abundance. Merci
to Whybird too, I needed you to explain 29a.