A Puzzle by Jaffa
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The puzzle is available by clicking on the above grid
It has been quite a while since Jaffa set us an NTSPP – this one was tricky in places to both solve and then explain
Across
1a 90's boy band reportedly worth £30 (3,5,6)
THE THREE TENORS: Not exactly ‘boys’ but the name could describe something totalling £30
9a Old couple take old airline home (5)
TWAIN: The name of an old airline and the usual two-letter home
10a Brother's clothing fitted and was not inhospitable (9)
HABITABLE: The clothing of a monk (brother) and a synonym for fitted
11a Prayer Book ignored by American Wilbury who's no longer Travelling (6)
ORISON: The surname of an American who was a member of the Travelling Wilburys without the abbreviation for Book
12a Co-ordinate employing energy-mass transfer to create entity (8)
ORGANISM: A verb meaning to co-ordinate where the symbol for Energy at the end is replaced (transfer) by the abbreviation for Mass
14a Poultries regular return to 3 could repeatedly produce six packs (3,2)
SIT UP: A reversal of the regular letters of PoUlTrIeS
15a Northern Neanderthal who didn't quite make it (6,3)
NEARLY MAN: The abbreviation for Northern and a description of a Neanderthal
17a Traditional institution with a tie? (3,6)
OLD SCHOOL: This phrase meaning traditional could also describe an institution with a tie
19a Works steadily at ballet exercises (5)
PLIES: Works steadily or with an accent on the É, a ballet exercise
21a Doctor, Doctor! I'm a small character in Morse (8)
MICRODOT: An anagram (doctor) of DOCTOR IM
23a Hancock's requested donation is heard to be bad in Bow (6)
ARMFUL: A Cockney living in Bow would not pronounce the H in a synonym for bad
25a Periodic Table element (9)
ALUMINIUM: The chemical symbol for a particular element is found in the even (periodic) letters of tAbLe
26a Dolphin sanctuary created by my Spanish-French friend (5)
MIAMI: The Spanish word for my and the French word for friend
27a Actress expressing delight gains wealth when French inn lacks running water (6,8)
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: This actress's first name sounds like an expression of delight which then ‘gains’ or is followed by some wealth and a French inn without their word for water (running telling you they aren’t in that order in the inn)
Down
1d Edinburgh displays of skinny pictures? (7)
TATTOOS: Displays in Edinburgh or pictures on skin
2d Haggard having been defeated at internet chess with covert US involvement (9)
EMACIATED: The letter indicating that something is on the internet and defeated at chess, into which is inserted the abbreviation for the American intelligence agency
3d Wee lassie has shop for egg collection (3-4)
HEN-COOP: A Scottish word for a wee lassie and a shop which usually has a hyphen in the middle of its name
4d Mimic sounds of Italian author's footwear (4)
ECHO: Sounds both like an Italian author and a brand of footwear
5d Chapel invites in the salt of the Earth to berate badly (10)
TABERNACLE: The chemical symbol for sodium chloride (salt of the earth) inserted into (invites in) an anagram (badly) of BERATE
6d Game advantage from playing tall Ben? (7)
NETBALL: An anagram (playing) of TALL BEN
7d Docked tail-ender at Lord's is a learned man (5)
RABBI: An inferior cricket player used at the end of the batting order without his final letter (docked tail)
8d American's greeting for warder at the Tower? (6)
YEOMAN: This could sound like an informal American greeting
13d Advancing old age observed in a reduced Church of England (4,6)
ANNO DOMINI: The abbreviation for the Church of England can be used these days to replace the abbreviation meaning in the year of our Lord – the solution can also be used informally to mean advancing old age
16d Name a firm manufacturing large number cruncher (9)
MAINFRAME: An anagram (manufacturing) of NAME A FIRM
17d Chance a low sound will arise from two blows (6)
OOMPAH: A reversal (will arise) of a synonym for chance or accident and a sound made by a cow (low)
18d Oz choir cooked this on the barbie? (7)
CHORIZO: An anagram (cooked) of OZ CHOIR
19d/20d Ancient property scam? (7)
PYRAMID SELLING: This scam sounds like it has something to do with an Ancient Egyptian property
22d Good mannered when dismissed in church (5)
COUTH: Dismissed as a batsman inserted into the abbreviation for church
24d Once in Rome, I love embracing Mark for magazine articles (4)
AMMO: The Latin word for love ‘embracing’ the abbreviation for Mark
A very enjoyable challenge from another infrequent Jaffa offering to start my Saturday with some e-help required to get across the finishing line.
Smiles for 1a (boy band??), 15a, 23a (a nice reminder of the great Mr Hancock), 1d, 7d (a reference to our own RD?), and 17d.
Thanks to Jaffa and in advance to CS.
A fun puzzle from Jaffa – many thanks to him.
It’s rather disappointing that puzzles of this calibre attract so few comments.
I don’t understand where the I comes from in 27a and shouldn’t there be a homophone indicator in 8d?
I particularly liked 1a (very neat), 15a, 23a and 2d.
Couldn’t agree more re the lack of comments. Puzzle every bit as entertaining as Donny’s excellent SPP & 1a worth the price of admission on its own.
Even attempts to drum up enthusiasm in the main review comments yield little response.
Ditto on the lack of comments.
I’ve now realised where the 27a I comes from.
A most enjoyable solving experience with 1a, 12a and 25a making up our podium selection.
Thanks Jaffa.
Just returned from a wet couple of weeks in the Med and really enjoyed your puzzle, Jaffa. Thank you. Several favourites including 1a, 15a, 17d, 23a and 27a. We look forward to your next one. Thanks in advance to CS.
Terrific puzzle Jaffa. Loved it. The boy band pipped the blood donor for top spot on the podium with 19/20d edging out no longer travelling Roy in 3rd spot.
Many thanks.
Thanks Jaffa for a very entertaining puzzle. 1a was a great start and glad to find I’m not the only one able to remember the brilliant blood donor episode! Some other inventive clueing with 15a 25a and the 19/20d combo also standing out. I’m not sure the indirect anagram extraction is quite legit in 27 across but the answer was pretty clear.
Many thanks for the fun. Look forward to your next one
Thank you for the comments – so far? 🤔 You are very kind.
I guess when you’re competing for people’s time with the Winter Olympics, 6 Nations Rugby, T20 Cricket World Cup and the FA Cup, let alone domesticity the NTSPP may be low on the list of priorities! I’ll comment again tomorrow in more detail. Perhaps there might be a few insomniac cruciverbalists out there to add to the comments 😂
Good morning, Sue. Thank you for your review. I struggled with parts of this and I held off from commenting hoping for clarification of several things. Although there were many excellent clues (e.g. 15a, 23a, 25a, 2d, 13d, 19/20d), I still don’t understand several things:
The definitions for some of the clues don’t seem to me quite to lead to the answers: 14a, 21a, 3d.
27a – isn’t rearranging the letters of “eau”, a word which does not appear in the clue, an indirect anagram?
4d – Shouldn’t it be “sounds of Italian author and footwear” not ” ‘s’ “?
6d – Isn’t “advantage” surface padding?
17d – Isn’t “a low sound will arise” doing double duty as part of the wordplay and part of the defintion?
Finally, much as I would much prefer it otherwise, the superb group referred to in the excellent 11a are The Traveling Wilburys not Travelling.
Thanks Jaffa but this was nearly but not quite for me. I am pleased others have enjoyed it.
Thanks to Sue , and to Jaffa whose promise to rerun today led me to look at this (nothing to do with the appalling weather).
I found this reasonably straight forward, but also found myself mirroring RD’s feelings, particularly definitions which didn’t point to the required answer (particularly 21a) and I Ecco his comment re 4d.
1a my favourite.
Sorry to be late commenting, but I was at a family engagement party for most of yesterday, which was held at a micro-brewery and which also had the rugby playing on a big screen! Jaffa’s NTSPP provided an excellent diversion during the train journey to London; I might not have done so well had I kept it for the return journey…
I particularly enjoyed some misleading definitions in the puzzle like the ’90’s boy band’, the ‘skinny pictures’ and the ‘magazine articles’. A reminder of ‘The Blood Donor’ episode and the lovely word in 22d both brought smiles. I did have a few question marks amongst my annotations, but they were greatly outnumbered by the ticks – far too many to be restricted to a podium: 1, 12, 15 & 25 Across and 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 & 24 Down. My double tick COD went to the 19/20d ‘Ancient property scam?’ I hadn’t heard of the brand of footwear in 4d and I also needed CS’s explanation of 13d – I’ve never reconciled myself to this alternate version of AD and BC.
My thanks to Jaffa for the entertaining puzzle and to CS for the instructive review.
A relaxing and enjoyable solve. Thanks, Jaffa and CS.
Just a few minor points – I thought a few clues could have done with question marks, such as 1ac. And in 14ac I’ve never come across the plural of ‘poultry’ if it exists; in any case I thought it should have an apostrophe after the s to improve the surface reading.
Apologies for a rather late post but I got rather engrossed in the Men’s Curling at the Olympics. Sadly the wrong result however but a good watch.
Thank you for all of the comments. It never ceases to amaze me how many different interpretations there are of what I presumed to be cast iron clues. Having said that, as I put this crossword together about 7 months ago, I now, in some cases, find myself agreeing with you!
To address some of your concerns:-
14a – yes SIT UP. It sort of works I think but the definition is not clear enough. In retrospect bad wording. The word poultries does exist (meaning chickens, ducks, geese etc) as I remember searching for it at the time. I’m just struggling now to find the whereabouts of the definition…..
21a – guilty as charged. MICRODOT is not the dot used in Morse code. I think I was seduced by the surface reading and neglected the accuracy. Slapped wrists again
3d – HEN COOP. I think I’ll fight harder to defend this. Is a hen coop not a place where eggs are collected?
4d – ECHO. Yes the apostrophe probably doesn’t really work. Rewording needed
6d – NETBALL. Yes advantage improves the surface reading but is probably padding. Without it the clue probably needs restructuring
17d – OOMPAH. I’m reversing HAP (chance) and MOO (a low sound or a low) to give the result of two blows. I guess it hinges on whether sound is thought to be part of the definition. If it’s not I guess the definition needs expanding.
27a – Guilty as charged. It is an indirect anagram. Using auberge for French inn would have solved the problem I think and reduced the word count. Too clever by half!
11a – THE TRAVELING WILBURYS. Sorry, can I blame autocorrect? I remember checking the spelling of Wilbury very carefully but…
Despite all of this 18 out of 30 clues were mentioned in dispatches by various people as favourites so I guess it’s not all bad.
I was quite shocked when I checked to find that I have been contributing to the NTSPP for just over 8 years. My first offering, when I was fresh from Rookie Corner, attracted over 30 comments. Gazza’s and others observations about the number of comments seem very valid. I guess everyone was watching the Olympics!
Thank you for all your comments, they are much appreciated and thanks of course to Mr K and Sue for making this all happen.
Jaffa, many thanks for popping in again and for your further comments.
I’d like to stress that this was very far from “all bad”! There was much to enjoy here.
The number of people commenting on the NTSPP has sadly been in a slow but steady decline, which is a great pity given the high quality of the puzzles in this slot.
Thank you Dave.
I suspect that 12 noon on a Saturday is a pretty busy time for a lot of people. I have to confess that I don’t attempt the NTSPP as often as I should. I guess it could still be the NTSPP on a Sunday but would it make any difference?
I also forgot to say, as Senf suggested, that you did cross my mind when I was writing the clue for 7d. You are of course ever present in my thoughts when compiling, figuratively looking over my shoulder for unattributed Americanisms and vague boys and girls…..😂
👍 Thanks for thinking of me …