ordStats| Clues in archive | First Prizes | Other Prizes | VHCs | HCs | Hons points | First mention | Latest mention | Career span |
Also listed as | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M. Coates | 66 | 3 | 2 | 61 | 176 | 71 | Sep 1973 | Mar 2022 | 48y 6m | M. M. Coates |
| Clue word | Award | Clue | Explanation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-2022 | ||||
| 2586 | BALDERDASH | VHC | Dimension Lear’s book had, possibly | anag. incl. D, b, & lit. |
| 2019-2020 | ||||
| 2495 | BUNG | VHC | Square peg in a round hole | 3 mngs.; square = bribe, peg = throw |
| 2018-2019 | ||||
| 2430 | CLERIHEW | VHC | Rhyme whose content is going to be funny, while facet of character is involved | anag. incl. r(hym)e, c, & lit. |
| 2016-2017 | ||||
| 2309 | GLOBETROTTER | VHC | E. g. Cook (Captain) getting ball on foot | globe + trotter; ref. Alistair/James Cook |
| 2014-2015 | ||||
| 2239 | ERADIATE (Spoonerisms) | VHC | Around one fantastically aerated dames flew | flames do; I in anag. |
| 2230 | GATES OF DEATH | VHC | End of life Fates had got ordained? | anag. incl. e, & lit. |
| 2226 | DOUBLE-PARKING | VHC | Hazard for drivers means triple bogey for short hole on card | double par + king |
| 2012-2013 | ||||
| 2135 | LOB | VHC | See Hick toss ball up, missing wicket | bo(w)l (rev.) |
| 2011-2012 | ||||
| 2078 | RÉCOLLET | VHC | Electoral rolls are missing one withdrawn on religious grounds | anag. less a |
| 2064 | COLD TURKEY | VHC | Old tucker dished up before the end of Hogmanay? | anag. + y, & lit. |
| 2010-2011 | ||||
| 2031 | EMBROIDERY | VHC | What might make elaborate my dire robe? | anag. & lit. |
| 2012 | BLOATING | Third | Complaint of sheep having grass for feed – too much can lead to this? | oat for eat in bleating |
| 1992 | FOULARD | VHC | Like Shakespearean murder, a king died. Was this the cause of Duncan’s death? | foul + a R d; ref. ‘murder most foul’, Macbeth and Isadora D. |
| 2008-2009 | ||||
| 1932 | NINE-TO-FIVE | VHC | Keeping time, I’ve no FE in working thus? | t in anag., & lit.; Further Education |
| 1914 | VE(S)TAL (Letters Latent) | VHC | Virgin trains late after electric power cut | V + anag.; V = volt |
| 2007-2008 | ||||
| 1862 | UNALIKE (Spoonerisms) | VHC | Turning endlessly about a kiln damaged potter’s knees? | not as peas; anag. in ue(y) |
| 2006-2007 | ||||
| 1797 | HEART | VHC | The part away from the heads? | (t)he (p)art, & lit. |
| 2005-2006 | ||||
| 1775 | ROUGH-AND-READY | VHC | Your garden had run wild, uncultivated but pleasant | anag. |
| 1753 | DIAGONAL | VHC | Obliquely I go and a line I am | anag. incl. l, & lit. |
| 1750 | PLOUGHMAN | VHC | Stellar group with expression of admiration for one responsible for many furrowed brows? | Plough + man!; ref. AZ lunch |
| 2004-2005 | ||||
| 1719 | ANHELATION | VHC | It makes one inhale not freely | a + anag., & lit. |
| 1715 | RELEASE / RASPING (Right and Left) | VHC | Encompassing a new Spring is the sound of cricket fields constantly echoing about delivery or a catch | a in anag.; leas in e’er (rev.), 2 defs. |
| 1689 | SYNOD | VHC | Sunday’s empty with no finishing of Azed, a convention religiously observed | S, y + no d |
| 2003-2004 | ||||
| 1676 | CRINGE-MAKING | VHC | Uncontrolled smacking in rage, as about to be banned, is sickening | anag. less as (rev.) |
| 2002-2003 | ||||
| 1619 | GISMO (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | Cats don’t need attention, but ado/re demanding | |
| 1606 | TEOSINTE / INTELSAT (Overlaps) | VHC | It’s in what herds taste around centre of Abilene? | it in anag. + I, & lit. |
| 1602 | FENESTRA | VHC | Zip fastener for what may be held by sash | anag. |
| 1593 | MANSUETE | First | What’s use meant ‘broken’? | anag. & lit. |
| 1589 | JOKESMITH | VHC | Card? Certainly one associated with spreading chestnut | J oke smith, & lit.; ref. Longfellow, ‘The Village Blacksmith’; J = Jack |
| 2001-2002 | ||||
| 1541 | CHUPRASSY | VHC | Rupee pays such to be orderly | anag. incl. r, & lit. |
| 1998-1999 | ||||
| 1402 | PENTOSE (Definition of Anagram) | First | What has ovine content, covering those not hot | posteen; pen + t(h)ose, & lit. |
| 1996-1997 | ||||
| 1260 | OUT-AND-OUT | VHC | Unreservedly being topless, you are prominent when there’s no sun | (y)ou + (S)tand out |
| 1995-1996 | ||||
| 1234 | AVANT-PROPOS | VHC | Opening salvo, without line being wayward, traps one with many short legs forward | ant prop in anag. less l |
| 1229 | GRUPPETTO | VHC | Turn to play? Try holding putter out, gripping softly | p in anag. in go |
| 1994-1995 | ||||
| 1165 | YAPSTER | VHC | Hick’s ton precedes English runs – tail wags after him | yap’s t E r |
| 1993-1994 | ||||
| 1143 | DEATH (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | Flowers from bri/ers, end off, are tossed to guests | |
| 1992-1993 | ||||
| 1087 | OLD SOLDIER | First | One may have held Martini | double mng.: Martini = drink and rifle |
| 1991-1992 | ||||
| 1043 | PESTO (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | They made a seconda/ry film after King Kong that was not so good | |
| 1990-1991 | ||||
| 982 | ALMANAC | VHC | So serene an achievement when not caught on the boundary may be found in e.g. Wisden | (c)alm an ac(t) |
| 1988-1989 | ||||
| 874 | BLUESTOCKING | VHC | Female it’s being wasteful to entertain merely for procreation | stock in blueing, & lit. |
| 1987-1988 | ||||
| 792 | DISTHENE (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | During zoo visit, save task – show ba/ck of the giraffe | |
| 788 | CROW | VHC | Crack clues’ initial sequence and finish – name concealed | c + row, crow(n); ref. AZ’s name in diagram |
| 1986-1987 | ||||
| 774 | VICTORINE | VHC | Marks, say, on skin when it is no longer ripe | Vic to rine, & lit; ref. V. M., cricketer |
| 757 | ETHEROMANIAC (Misprints) | VHC | The nice aroma in a stew somebody cooked on gas | hooked; anag. |
| 753 | SHEEPDOG | VHC | What might be unsettled by hog speed | anag. & lit. |
| 1984-1985 | ||||
| 675 | CONSTERNATE | VHC | Take aback to the core and at once upset | stern in anag., & lit.; stern2 vb. |
| 640 | MACHETE | VHC | Odds for hockey team reduced – it scores heavily in America | anag. incl. alternate letters; ref. Olympics |
| 1983-1984 | ||||
| 618 | CRETISM | VHC | Miscreant may have spread this, if swallowed | anag. less an2, & lit. |
| 615 | HISTORIETTE | VHC | Tho’ terse, it, when unfolded, may captivate one | I in anag., & lit. |
| 603 | FIGULINE | VHC | Pot one red almost in making slight contact with ball | I gul(y) in fine |
| 1982-1983 | ||||
| 543 | STAYING POWER | VHC | This will make one stop wearying, if developed | anag. & lit. |
| 1981-1982 | ||||
| 525 | PABOUCHE | VHC | Pop corked while fermenting has a kick like a mule | pa + bouché |
| 482 | BODY-SNATCHER | VHC | One used to collar stiff, freshly done by starch | anag. |
| 1980-1981 | ||||
| 439 | LINGA (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | Transplant team is no good if it does not have the hea/rt | |
| 434 | JARDINIÈRE | VHC | Feature of florid Chelsea display causes uproar in the air, jeer that is coarse | din in anag.; ref. C. Flower Show |
| 1979-1980 | ||||
| 404 | CANDLE-HOLDER (Spoonerisms) | VHC | ‘Bear wax up’ appears. My function might be described | where ‘backs up’; double mng. |
| 1978-1979 | ||||
| 366 | MONKEY-SHINE | VHC | Jonathan’s bamboozling is nonsense about clue, nothing less | key in mo(0)nshine; J. = American and AZ’s first name |
| 362 | SEA-SOLDIER | VHC | Blue, an alternative to red and white (for workers), is jolly | sea soldier; ref. types of ant |
| 332 | NUT-CASE | VHC | That to which crackers may be applied | double mng. |
| 319 | PODESTA | VHC | One who filled Etrurian jug, perhaps, or Spode standing-bowl? | hidden |
| 1977-1978 | ||||
| 310 | STERNFAST | VHC | Rash on rump may restrict movement in riding | stern + fast |
| 285 | BOYFRIEND (Misprints) | VHC | Regular rate provokes fiery outburst in union | date; anag. in bond |
| 267 | MORRIS-DANCE | VHC | Hopping and skipping carried on on the First of May, with a pole in the middle? | M + S in anag., & lit. |
| 1975-1976 | ||||
| 165 | Lance, pompano, bonito, porbeagle, thornback, menhaden, albacore, huso (Anagram) | VHC | ‘Ombrophobous’, ‘ancon’ and anagram can help keep bonce lithe or able | |
| 161 | ANCON | VHC | Found within agrarian confines or the human construction? | hidden twice, & lit. |
| 1973-1974 | ||||
| 95 | THUNDERCLAP | Third | Bewildered U.D.R. can’t help this sudden explosion | anag.; Ulster Defence Regt. |
2021-2022
2595 FIFTY YEARS
2573 HANDS-ON
2569 BILBO
2020-2021
2556 TOERAG
2551 SPAVIN (Spoonerisms)
2547 FILATORY
2019-2020
2512 OSCITATE
2500 ESPAGN(OLETTE STRENG)THENER (Half and Half)
2486 BRUHAHA
2480 STOCKING FILLERS
2473 INTERPLAY
2464 BRAINPOWER
2018-2019
2451 CAPUT
2443 ERATHEM (Printer’s Devilry)
2434 STONKERED
2425 EPILIMNION
2421 SPASMODICAL
2017-2018
2408 LUNCHEONETTE
2399 CHARMEUSE
2390 POISSON D’AVRIL
2386 PENNY-A-LINER
2382 STRIPE def. HARLOT (Wrong Number)
2369 FACETIAE
2360 VIDENDA
2016-2017
2343 RESTORE (Printer’s Devilry)
2338 TRUMP
2330 BRAZEN / MOPISH (Right and Left)
2322 VENTRICOSE
2015-2016
2291 AVESTA (Printer’s Devilry)
2287 VALET
2274 SIMPATICO
2261 GANGSTERLAND
2250 MILESTONE (with missing O) (Missing Letter)
2014-2015
2244 AVANT-GARDISTE
2218 FOREIGNER
2213 SOLECISM
2013-2014
2178 PARISON
2161 FARRAGO
2157 MELODRAMATIC
2012-2013
2144 INFERNO (Spoonerisms)
2139 DE RIGUEUR
2100 A STITCH IN TIME
2011-2012
2091 SNIFTER
2083 BEWITCH
2065 DERMESTIDAE
2010-2011
2036 AL CONTO
2000 TWO THOUSAND
2009-2010
1979 FAR-OUT
1975 SEPTENTRIONAL
1971 WATERMANSHIP
1962 ANADEM
1960 NGANA (3 defs + letter mixture) (Parcels)
1949 PALFRENIER
1945 PRISON
1940 SCANT def. SNEAP (Wrong Number)
2008-2009
1927 TONSURE (Spoonerisms)
1923 ELLIPTIC
1908 WE THREE KINGS
1901 SANITISE
1893 EARTHY
2007-2008
1884 FREELOADER
1879 LITTER BASKET
1871 FAIRY GOLD
1858 HUMONGOUS
1849 AUXESIS
1845 UPBRAID
2006-2007
1831 MARGINALIA
1827 AMAKOSI def. DENUDED (Wrong Number)
1804 CLOTHES SENSE (Spoonerisms)
1788 ETHEREAL OILS
2005-2006
1758 BIMBETTE
1733 PALESTRA
2004-2005
1724 MONEYBAGS
1698 CROSSTIE
1694 MISINTERPRET
1685 MINO (Printer’s Devilry)
2003-2004
1672 IMPASTOS (Spoonerisms)
1667 CLARINI
1659 SCAREDY-CAT
1650 SAPHENA
2001-2002
1550 MEMORITER
1546 TRANSPARENT
1533 MASTER-MARINER
1528 STROP (Spoonerisms)
2000-2001
1506 BARE(-)BONES
1476 LIGNIPERDOUS
1472 TORAN (Printer’s Devilry)
1999-2000
1463 REVERSIONAL
1459 GREATEST (Spoonerisms)
1439 JOHN CANOE
1998-1999
1411 LOOK-SEE
1406 CHASSEPOT
1389 ALL-OVERISH
1380 RAPPORT (Misprints)
1996-1997
1303 PONIARD
1995-1996
1250 SONEOCARDIA (STENOCARDIA) (Ten to One)
1238 ELASTIN (Printer’s Devilry)
1220 CASSANDRA
1207 EPOCH-MARKING
1994-1995
1186 GRISELDA
1181 SLADE
1993-1994
1147 MAYDAY
1139 BENJAMIN
1134 TOVARICH
1128 CHRISTMAS PRESENT
1122 BASILIAN
1113 EMPLASTRUM
1104 BURYING-PLACES
1992-1993
1095 STINK
1069 (P)OSTICHE (Headpieces)
1991-1992
1034 BURLAP
1017 SCHAPSKA / PEARMAIN (Right and Left)
1008 SPORTSCASTER (Misprints)
1004 OIL PAINTINGS
995 STASIMA (Printer’s Devilry)
1990-1991
969 BUNTER
956 SPEAR-SIDE
952 STAR (Spoonerisms)
1989-1990
917 HOOLIGANISM
1988-1989
887 MONSTER
866 NECTAREOUS
840 SONDE
1987-1988
818 EMBUSQUÉ
1986-1987
770 HERMITS
766 GUBBINS
764 CHILDERMAS
762 OBELISE
740 ESCADRILLE
1985-1986
731 STRING
709 GINGER
705 MUSICOTHERAPY
696 ANTIMNEMONIC
1984-1985
670 TURNIP-FLEA
644 EASY STREET (or STAPELIA)
1983-1984
610 DOUBLETHINK
607 CARNEY
594 DOINGS
1982-1983
558 MINCEMEAT (with one extra R) (Extra Letter)
547 GLEEMAN
1981-1982
506 ELANET (Printer’s Devilry)
486 JUMPED-UP
473 HERRING-BONE
1980-1981
469 APLUSTRE
460 SWOOP
443 STEEPLECROWN
430 TEGULA
426 MISL(E)ADING (Letters Latent)
423 ACCOUTRE
1979-1980
419 RAMILLIES
401 GO-AHEAD
393 INTRACARDIAC
384 OUTSPREADING
371 GRADIN
1978-1979
354 SHEER-HULK
349 ODDCOMESHORT
340 BOOKSIE
336 ELF-ARROW / CUTHBERT (Right and Left)
1977-1978
294 HUMECT
289 AMNESIAC
272 MALAGUETTA
263 ERIACH (Printer’s Devilry)
1976-1977
238 CRAMBOJINGLE
229 METRICATE
221 PADDY-WHACK
216 SCANTITY
212 SURCINGLES
1975-1976
203 BOGY
190 CASSANDRA
187 POWDERING-TUB
183 PICKLE
1974-1975
148 BALLYHOO
127 FRITHSOKEN
123 SCATTERGOOD
110 GALLOWS-RIPE
1973-1974
92 BRAINWASH
79 SLAPSTICK
| Year | Prizes (1, 2, 3) | VHCs | HCs | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-2021 | 0 | 0 | 3 | – |
| 2019-2020 | 0 | 1 | 6 | – |
| 2018-2019 | 0 | 1 | 5 | – |
| 2017-2018 | 0 | 0 | 7 | – |
| 2016-2017 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 2015-2016 | 0 | 0 | 5 | – |
| 2014-2015 | 0 | 3 | 3 | – |
| 2013-2014 | 0 | 0 | 3 | – |
| 2012-2013 | 0 | 1 | 3 | – |
| 2011-2012 | 0 | 2 | 3 | – |
| 2010-2011 | 1 (0, 0, 1) | 2 | 2 | 29 |
| 2009-2010 | 0 | 0 | 8 | – |
| 2008-2009 | 0 | 2 | 5 | – |
| 2007-2008 | 0 | 1 | 6 | – |
| 2006-2007 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 2005-2006 | 0 | 3 | 2 | – |
| 2004-2005 | 0 | 3 | 4 | – |
| 2003-2004 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 2002-2003 | 1 (1, 0, 0) | 4 | 0 | 13 |
| 2001-2002 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 2000-2001 | 0 | 0 | 3 | – |
| 1999-2000 | 0 | 0 | 3 | – |
| 1998-1999 | 1 (1, 0, 0) | 0 | 4 | – |
| 1996-1997 | 0 | 1 | 1 | – |
| 1995-1996 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 1994-1995 | 0 | 1 | 2 | – |
| 1993-1994 | 0 | 1 | 7 | – |
| 1992-1993 | 1 (1, 0, 0) | 0 | 2 | – |
| 1991-1992 | 0 | 1 | 5 | – |
| 1990-1991 | 0 | 1 | 3 | – |
| 1989-1990 | 0 | 0 | 1 | – |
| 1988-1989 | 0 | 1 | 3 | – |
| 1987-1988 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – |
| 1986-1987 | 0 | 3 | 5 | – |
| 1985-1986 | 0 | 0 | 4 | – |
| 1984-1985 | 0 | 2 | 2 | – |
| 1983-1984 | 0 | 3 | 3 | – |
| 1982-1983 | 0 | 1 | 2 | – |
| 1981-1982 | 0 | 1 | 3 | – |
| 1980-1981 | 0 | 2 | 6 | – |
| 1979-1980 | 0 | 1 | 5 | – |
| 1978-1979 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 15 |
| 1977-1978 | 0 | 3 | 4 | – |
| 1976-1977 | 0 | 0 | 5 | – |
| 1975-1976 | 0 | 2 | 4 | – |
| 1974-1975 | 0 | 0 | 4 | – |
| 1973-1974 | 1 (0, 0, 1) | 0 | 2 | – |