Special Puzzle – 014
Untitled by Elgar
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
Today we are pleased to present a special puzzle set by Elgar for the 2025 York S&B event. Click on the grid above to access the puzzle.
The instructions said:
Celebrating some recent news nominally relevant to York, wordplay ignores up to eight consecutive letters of each Across answer. Downs are normal.
As with all Elgar York Special Puzzles, the trick is to ignore the instructions that don’t make any sense to start with and go with Downs are normal and start solving those clues first to give you some checking letters to help with the Across clues
Once you get going, it becomes easier to see what the missing parts of the wordplay are and so, as Elgar’s York puzzles go, I didn’t think this most difficult, so I will be interested to learn how those solving in groups at the S&B got on
The crossword has the word Untitled at the top. This does not mean that Elgar couldn’t think of a title for the puzzle, but refers instead to the recent news that someone nominally relevant to York had been un-titled!
Across
8d At the beginning, you’ll like the Inquisitor (5)
PEERY A themed word goes before the beginning letter of You
9d Israeli PM retreating I saw right (5,4)
GOLDA MEIR The clue that helped to spot the theme because I knew what had to fit – A reversal (retreating) of the abbreviation for Right, I (from the clue) and a verb meaning to cut wood (saw) into which is inserted a theme word
10d Ecstasy on the increase (5)
EKING The letter by which the drug Ecstasy is know and a themed word
11d Old woman toting gun animated Great Dane (9)
MARMADUKE An informal name for a mother (old woman) into which is inserted (toting) a weapon (gun) followed by a themed word – as well as animated films, the Great Dane appeared in a newspaper cartoon strip
13d From on high, command a second instalment of Graham Greene novel (7,5)
GENERAL ORDER An anagram (novel) A (from the clue), the second letter (instalment) of gRaham and GREEN into which is inserted one of the themed words
18d Fishy product finally distilled from tree kernel (7,6)
PRINCES SALMON Remove the final letter of Distilled from a nut (tree kernel) The themed word goes at the front
20d Stirring melodramas killing off old headliners (7,5)
MARQUEE NAMES An anagram (stirring) of MElodRAMAS without (killing) OLD. The themed word is in the middle of the result
26d Designated endless chain of food and drink venues (3,3,3)
ALL BAR ONE Given a name to (designated) without the outside letters (endless). The themed word should then be inserted
28d Gallons of open spaces (5)
GLADY Of open spaces in a wood – the abbreviation for Gallons and a themed word
29d Aberdonian’s little time after work? (9)
WEEKNIGHT The Scottish (Aberdonian) word for little and, you’ve guessed it, a themed word
30d Positive type (5)
PEARL This one held out to the last, partly because I had 1a wrong and thought a themed word was appearing twice and also I didn’t know the solution was a type. Mrs Bradford did, and that’s good enough for me. The abbreviation for Positive and a themed word we’ve seen before!
Down
1d Troublesome priest heading for cooler (5)
PESKY The abbreviation or first letter (heading) of Priest and an Australian portable cooler for drinks
2d A damaged relic in parts more like Edward than Andrew! (10)
PRINCELIER A preposition meaning for each or a into which is inserted an anagram (damaged) of RELIC and IN (from the clue)
3d Month since bringing up collection of old letters (4)
OGAM A reversal (bringing up) of the abbreviation for Month and an adverb meaning since
4d Salmon, trout and deer species might all be this, so data bases both say (6)
PLURAL The words salmon, trout, deer, species, data, bases and both can all be both singular and ….
5d Fair spoken, like one in pub (6)
BAZAAR A homophone (spoken) of like and A (one) inserted into a pub
6d Decide not to accept official custom (6)
REFUSE An abbreviated football official and a custom
7d Command sequence (5)
ORDER Double definition
12d Wheels around in public remorse (4)
MERC An informal name for a particular make car (wheels) is hidden in reverse in the last two words of the clue
14d Passage through centre of Renfrewshire town (5)
AISLE The inside letters (centre) of a town in Renfrewshire
15d Vacuously miss deadline manipulating statistics to support them? (6,4)
DAMNED LIES An anagram (manipulating) of the outside (vacuously) letters of MisS and DEADLINE -part of a phrase referring to the persuasive power of statistics to bolster a weak argument
16d Called … spoke (4)
RUNG Double definition
17d Unwanted, this son has plan to move north (4)
SPAM The abbreviation for Son and a reversed (to move north in Down solution) plan
19d It’s so sad one’s giving up assumed title (4)
ALAS Remove the ‘one’ from an assumed title
21d Uppity assistant takes slippery customers off (6)
ASLEEP A reversal (uppity) of an abbreviated assistant into which has been inserted some slippery customers
22d Odd as prince being out of beer (6)
QUAINT An adverb meaning in the capacity of (as) and the abbreviation for Prince removed from a particular measure of beer
23d Quite restricted by 2000-2009? (6)
ENOUGH Although this decade was known as the Noughties – however, here I think e we need thE NOUGHts as that is the only way to remove equal numbers of letters from either end
24d Legal judgment concerned with fighting without boundaries (5)
FATWA A preposition meaning concerned and a two-word phrase meaning fighting without the outside letters (without boundaries)
25d Arrange naval types together on a deck (5)
ADORN A verb meaning to arrange and the abbreviation for the Royal Navy go on or after A (from the clue)
27d Viands pinched by exile at Sandringham (4)
EATS Hidden in (pinched by) the last three words of the clue
The themed words were, of course, PEER, DAME, KING, DUKE, LORD, PRINCESS, QUEEN, BARON, LADY, and KNIGHT and EARL
I found this special puzzle belatedly, and then had to hunt a bit for the review since the link didn’t work (it was off by a day). I suspect that is the reason I don’t see other comments here, so I thought I would delurk to say this was very clever and fun, but tricky enough that I needed help with parsing some clues. Both puzzle and review are much appreciated!