ACROSS
9 - A slithery one in jail quarry (7) - LAMPREY {LAM}{PREY}
11 - Assemble one more time or purge out (7) - REGROUP*
12 - After some talk, evenly revalue the country house (7) - CHATEAU {CHAT}{rEvAlUe}
13 - The cheat brushes the instrument (4,5) - CARD SHARP {CARD S}{HARP}
15 - Just the place to fit in a classy tap (5) - SPOUT {SPO{U}T}
16 - With things getting packed, Herb's got to pull (7) - STOWAGE {S{TOW}AGE}
19 - Child playing with Lord William briefly (7) - TODDLER Anno pending
20 - The instrument could be a pen, love (5) - CELLO {CELL}{O}
21 - Communicate one on one before opening London fair (9) - IMPARTIAL {IMPART}{I}{A}{L}
25 - Cultivate and close back (4-3) - REAR-END {REAR}{-{END}
28 - Would study the grotto curving inwards (7) - CONCAVE {CON}{CAVE}
29 - Follow one on the way to the gallery (7) - IMITATE {I}{M1}{TATE}
DOWN
1 - He was collared at the circle, by accident (6) - CLERIC*
2 - An instrument on space station Mir rotates, keeping time (6) - IMAGER {IM{AGE}R*}
3 - The old ship comes in as the war goes on (4) - ARGO [T]
4 - In a short sighted move, I pay money (not the Japanese one)
(6) - MYOPIA {I+PAY+MOney}*
5 - Eccentric would opt out following a break (8) - CRACKPOT {CRACK}{OPT*}
6 - Just the person for service abroad, perhaps (10) - AMBASSADOR {MASS+ABROAD}* semi&lit
7 - Piece of hardware has the advantage, haul up (4,4) - EDGE TOOL {EDGE} {TOOL<-}
8 - An electrical devise that could initiate a choice (8) - INDUCTOR [DD] (Correction - {INDUCT}{OR} - See comments)
14 - A so-so paper represented for some entertainment (4,6) - SOAP OPERAS*
16 - Fire all those people — that should get them hopping (4,4) - SACK RACE {SACK} {RACE}
17 - Application? Remove cap, mix and apply it (3,5) - OIL PAINT APpLIcaTION*
18 - Leo Verdi could be the offender (8) - EVILDOER*
22 - Father brought Herb back, looking sick (6) - PALLID {PA}{LLID<-}
23 - From some points of view, it could be home at a distance
(2,1,3) - IN A WAY {IN} {A WAY}
24 - After fifty he sums up a way to get up there (6) - LADDER {L}{ADDER}
27 - A spike up among the Tamilian population (4) - NAIL<-
8 - An electrical devise that could initiate a choice (8) - INDUCTOR [DD]
ReplyDeleteSaw it as a charade
initiate=induct
a choice=or
Me too, but I have a problem with 'devise'. Shouldn't it be device?
DeleteMaybe a typo
DeleteThe puzzle as a whole was enjoyable.
ReplyDelete19 - Child playing with Lord William briefly (7) - TODDLER Anno pending
Stumped by this. If it was Edward, could have had it as (LORD + TED)*, but no clue how/which William = TED.
Also surprised by the indirect anagrams.
I too was not sure of anno though I filled in toddler.
ReplyDelete'devise' as a verb tallies with initiate (induct). Am I right?
Some one should devise a device that will adv ise how to give advice?
ReplyDeleteYesterday's Scintillator's cryptic crossword beat even NJ in it's confusion that confounded every solver ! A new genre' evolving?
Raju,
DeleteI think that's an unfair comparison. I don't think there is anyone who can beat the redoubtable(sic) NJ.
Hi raju, Instead of passing such vague comments, I reckon you could 1) go through the blog carefully to understand how clues have been annotated 2) pass comments/critique on individual clues which you think are unfair.
DeletePlease remember there is a big difference between saying "I was not good enough to crack a puzzle" and "The puzzle was dumb and unfairly clued."
I too think Raju's criticism of Scintillator's puzzle is unfair.
DeleteAny THC crossword can indeed be dismissed but not in this cavalier fashion. If a solver is 'confounded' (I take it to mean 'defeated') is the cwd bad? If a solver is confounded (I take it to mean 'confused') by some clues, then they must say what, how, etc, so that others can help and prove the solver right or wrong.
Shuchi, I and others have indeed criticised THC on occasions but we have always quoted the clues and said where the problem lay. Criticism must be constructive. Is a def vague? Is the breakup of the word not up to the mark? Is there a grammatical mistake? Is there an abusage of the language? Is the allusion or reference too vague? Say what!
Even now it is not too late.
A Guardian crossword, an Independent crossword or even a Daily Telegraph crossword might be better than THC and might be preferred by a solver. I too might agree with this general view. But I will not be dismissive of THC even as I criticise some clues in some crosswords for some valid reason.
I'm with Colonel, Scintillator and C'Vasi on this. Unsubstantiated criticism is not fair at all to the setter.
ReplyDeletecould s and herbs. :-)
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed todays puzzle .
I take a bow to all of you and wave a white flag!! So many of you in attack mode on me? The charge of the light brigade ? ( In crossword light I mean)
ReplyDeleteAll of you missed my last comment,'a new genre' evolving?' My allusion to NJ might have been not THAT fair but I always welcome and have even admired all new compilers with their fresh and unconventional style , including NJ and Scintillator. May their crop of imagination grow wilder.
The more complex the crossword, the greater will be the challenge for all of us and me in particular. But I did find PROVOSTS,VACUOLE, FEYNMAN way out of the ordinary and they were all wet socks on my face. I'm not good at annotations and merely enjoy all cryptic puzzles, particularly the new challenges, as an inveterate solver.Therein lies the beauty of versatality. The Hindu compilers are a new breed for me as I was so used to the UK compilers.
So sorry folks, no offence meant to any one and to you in particular, Scintillator. Alas, my dry humour seems to have gone aloft way amiss.
yeah yesterdays crossword was challenging and enjoyable .btw what's light in crossword :-(
ReplyDeletei was looking for a musical instrument in 2D too :(
ReplyDeleteAjeesh; A light in crossword lingo is a clue or a lead. Maybe, CV, DG and Schichi can dilate on this better.
ReplyDeleteIt is nice to see some camaraderie among setters for a change. There might have been those amongst us who thought Gridman's criticism (and lengthy diatribes at that!) of NJ 'unethical'.It is another matter that NJ opted to go the PM's mode.
ReplyDeleteThough I did not solve Scintillator's crossword yesterday I do look forward to Scint.'s crosswords each cycle as I find them nicely done as do many here. I recently started doing the Times puzzles from the UK and it is actually quite interesting how much leeway the setter gets to make the clue a challenge. And Scint.'s clues and some of the others do compare well.
ReplyDelete