| Clues in archive | First Prizes | Other Prizes | VHCs | HCs | Hons points | First mention | Latest mention | Career span |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. E. Gates | 58 | 3 | 5 | 50 | 82 | 66 | Feb 1946 | Jan 1963 | 16y 11m |
| Clue word | Award | Clue | Explanation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ximenes competitions | ||||
| 1962-1963 | ||||
| 721 | KERB-MERCHANT | VHC | “A bit stony and on edge? Take after me and flog some horse-flesh,” suggests a barrow-boy | kerb me r chant; chant = sell horses fraudulently |
| 1961-1962 | ||||
| 656 | FIDDLESTICKS | Third | Caustic comment evoked by traffic jams! | fiddle sticks; traffic = trade disgracefully |
| 651 | NIPCHEESE | VHC | If you fancy a snifter, the old number one brand, the purser’s the man for you! | nip, cheese2 |
| 647 | MADCAP | VHC | Heedless of danger, the policeman has come up with the first man and grasped him by the head | i.e. A of Adam inside PC (all rev.) |
| 1959-1960 | ||||
| 573 | SCAPEGALLOWS | VHC | Head girl in slacks deserves suspension! | cape + gal in slows |
| 560 | CONGENITALLY | Third | I’m “a little Conservative”—information I reckon that illustrates “how Nature always does contrive” | Con gen I tally; ref. ‘Iolanthe’ |
| 543 | NUTRIA / ERMINE (Right and Left) | VHC | Up with an iron at St. Andrews, involving something of a putt—a hair-raising four-footer! It’s enough to daunt a rabbit, but I’m up and in—an eagle! | (p)ut(t) in airn (rev.); I’m (rev.) in erne; rabbit = inferior golfer [see comments] |
| 1958-1959 | ||||
| 538 | BANISHING | VHC | It’s enforced retirement for the first person with a shin damaged in a collision | anag. + I, all in bang; ref. Brendan McNally’s broken shin in 1959 Cup Final |
| 525 | MORALE (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | Aaron and Ta/ft’s laughter in their wake | Tamora, Titus Andronicus |
| 490 | CLEAR def. WEIGH (Wrong Number) | VHC | De Gaulle’s for getting round the French in an outspoken way | way; le in car |
| 1957-1958 | ||||
| 477 | SEDATENESS | VHC | I am unmercifully teased over art à la française in the New Style—an unruffled temperament is called for | anag. + es (= art, Fr.) in NS |
| 460 | ASTONISHMENT (Misprints) | VHC | Villa-like, maybe, and antique semi-detached kind of shack | shock; i.e. Aston-ish + ment (ming. vb.); ref. Aston Villa FC |
| 451 | MEGAPODE | VHC | I may be found making a rough dome round a vacant spot—the start of an eggery | gap in anag. + e, & lit. |
| 1956-1957 | ||||
| 434 | CARTON | VHC | The tumbril—a French one—did for Syd! | cart + on (Fr.); ref. Sydney C., ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ |
| 412 | SERVIETTE | VHC | I’ve gone broke—in Queer Street. If you don’t give me a ring, I’ll just fold up! | anag. in anag.; napkin ring |
| 408 | BILLET | VHC | U.S. bid goodbye in revulsion after British start to intervene. That’ll add fuel so the flames! | B + i + tell (rev.); ref. Suez crisis |
| 404 | POLENTA | VHC | Ian will hae naething tae do wi’ siccan unco Neapolitan parritch! | anag. less Ian, & lit. |
| 386 | CLEITHRAL | VHC | With half the ceilings in need of repair, it’s endless drudgery keeping a roof over one’s head | anag. of ceil(ings) + thral(l) |
| 1955-1956 | ||||
| 360 | WRINKLE / EGG-BIRD (Right and Left) | VHC | As for the crease, when Wednesday comes round you’ll find the bowling area a lake: it’s often partly under water according to a bloke attached to the Oval | rink + L in We (abbrev.); egg bird |
| 343 | EPIGONI | VHC | In the East I find a rough bar, getting half-seas-over. There’s the younger generation for you! | pig on in E, I; on = getting drunk |
| 338 | SHE-ASS | VHC | Once the companion of a Bobby in the South of France, she’s apparently ensnaring a copper in Italy! | as3 in she’s; ref. R. L. Stevenson, ‘ Travels with a Donkey’ |
| 1954 (2) | ||||
| 304 | ORLEANS | VHC | I am involved in a series of charges to which there is no complete answer—so was my maid! | orle ans(wer); ref. trial of Joan of Arc, Maid of O. |
| 1954 (1) | ||||
| 261 | DECANTER | VHC | Not necessarily a bottle of whisky, but does (as often as not) hold Scotch with a high content of spirit | cant4 in deer, & lit. [see comments] |
| 1953 (2) | ||||
| 243 | LODESTAR | First | Leader of the Magi, subtly portrayed by del Sarto | anag.; ref. Andrea d. S., Renaissance painter |
| 1953 (1) | ||||
| 229 | MASCOT | VHC | It’s all “nuts” about the Colonel being the image of the regimental goat! | CO in mast2 |
| 223 | MELODRAME | VHC | Don’t finish the cucumber! You’ll be having a bad dream next, and that would be a minor tragedy! | melo(n) + anag. |
| 1952 (2) | ||||
| 203 | WEATHERS | VHC | Breasts in which we must anticipate broken hearts | we + anag.; breast vb. |
| 201 | AMETHYST | VHC | Stumped by a yard at the end of a miserably tame hour—for a Blue that’s definitely not exhilarating! | anag. + h + y + st |
| 199 | HONESTY | VHC | Often seen in gardens—egg lying outside nest | nest in hoy2 ( = incite, egg) |
| 196 | SHAMAN / SERIAN (Right and Left) | VHC | Out of the orient has arisen mysteriously a sort of witch doctor—not the genuine article! | anag.; i.e. a sham an |
| 195 | WALLABAS | VHC | We have an agent down in Cayenne, and branches all over the Guianas | walla + bas (Fr.) |
| 194 | KNOWLEDGE BOX | VHC | A bowler often disguises it—Knox, for example, bowled deceptively | anag. of Knox, e.g., bowled; ref. Neville A. K., Surrey fast bowler, ret. 1910 |
| 1952 (1) | ||||
| 191 | DENIGRATE | VHC | Thoroughly run down; and I mayn’t move out of the wretched garden before term begins | i.e. ‘I’ must stay in anag. of garden + te(rm) |
| 183 | SAUSAGES | VHC | The Springboks have been shown superior to us over a long period. They’re so compact of guts and brawn | SA us ages; ref. S. rugby tour 1951/2 |
| 1951 (2) | ||||
| 180 | HESPER (Printer’s Devilry) | VHC | Her Eric/? I shall weal this good-for-nothing in the end! | …riches perish, all wealth… |
| 178 | HIDEOUS | Second | The little I had has been sunk in a jerry-built house. It’s simply shocking! | I’d in anag. |
| 177 | DESOLATE | VHC | Descriptive perhaps of Mary’s plight—dramatically alone with the tiny sandbank beginning to be encircled by the Dee | sola3 + t(ee) in Dee; ref. Kingsley, ‘The Sands of Dee’ [see comments] |
| 176 | SPIGOT | First | A splutter when it’s about to start? Must be one of the plugs! | go in spit |
| 175 | HAIR-LINE | VHC | Hard to the boundary via the air! What the scribes might call an “uppish stroke”! | H air line |
| 173 | HATCHING | VHC | Looks like a wicket!—Not out! Good! Very nearly out for a duck! | hatch1 + in + g |
| 171 | SERINGAS | VHC | We supply material for erasings | anag. & lit. |
| 1951 (1) | ||||
| 167 | PARMESAN | Second | Italian food designed to give perfect figures to people without glamour | par (golf) + SA in men |
| 158 | RATING | VHC | After a train smash there’s little good in sorting out the different classes! | anag. of train + g |
| 156 | LAVEROCK | Second | Look fondly over King’s College backs. You may hear its carols in the distance | la2 + anag. of over + KC (rev.); fondly = foolishly, i.e. anag. indication |
| 1950 (2) | ||||
| 152 | SEA-LION | VHC | The brute makes a horrible noise about nearly everything | al(l) in anag., & lit. |
| 150 | CAPILLAMENTS | VHC | Can camels go through the eye of a needle? Pliant camels can, but they must be very pliant! | anag. |
| 149 | DOMESTIC | VHC | Change of occupation for a comedist. (Any help in Chambers? Yes and no!) | anag.; comedist not in Chambers, d. is help in chambers |
| 1950 (1) | ||||
| 123 | LEECHES | VHC | Scheele was a great chemist, but he has been sadly misrepresented in medical circles | anag.; ref. Carl Wilhelm S., 18c. chemist |
| 1949 (2) | ||||
| 114 | TAPPIT-HEN | VHC | Diagnosis:—hip disease and ill-adjusted patten. Prescription:—aqua vitae ad lib.! | anag.; p. = hoop used for hip disease; a.v. = spirits |
| 108 | HACKNEY | VHC | Where a wryneck may be seen in a hedge within 3 miles of St. Paul’s | i.e. anag. of neck in hay2 |
| 1949 (1) | ||||
| 100 | Word containing ADDING | First | A summer in the heather spells ruin to nylons | laddering; adder in ling |
| 1948 (2) | ||||
| 80 | GONERIL | VHC | She had been “worth the whistle”: apparently the poor girl had swallowed one | one in anag.; Lear IV.2.33 |
| 1948 (1) | ||||
| 66 | CHRISTMAS PIE or TURKEY CARPET | VHC | Seasonable fare calculated to give a full Mr. Chips indigestion | anag. of a Mister Chips |
| 1947 (2) | ||||
| 53 | SHIN | VHC | This bone, when grafted on to a broken leg, will be cut short | i.e. shingle (short haircut) = s. + anag. |
| 1947 (1) | ||||
| 51 | LLANELLY | VHC | It’s all up with Helen: it must be the port! | all (rev.) + Nelly |
| 46 | LYSANDER | VHC | Possibly slyer and definitely less of a hero than a Grenadier | anag.; ref. ‘Some talk of … L.’, song The British Grenadiers |
| 1946 (2) | ||||
| 28 | HELCOSIS | VHC | Roughly close his open sore | anag |
| 1945 (2) | ||||
| 18 | LAMIA | VHC | After fifty am I a witch? | am I a after L |
Ximenes competitions
1962-1963
730 ARCH-PIRATE
725 SILENUS
712 RHEUMATICKY
703 SCAPEMENT
1961-1962
682 PARAMOUR / CHIN (Right and Left)
678 TESSELLATED
669 DRUM
664 MANIPULATE
660 RUBBER (Misprints)
1960-1961
626 WOMAN-TIRED
595 INORNATE / OMADHAUN (Right and Left)
1959-1960
578 GATHERED def. LEVANTER (Wrong Number)
564 SHE-BEAR
555 JURYWOMAN
1958-1959
534 RAIL-SPLITTER
529 BUTTY-COLLIER
519 RIDICULE (DLM)
517 CAROTID
495 PARTISAN
1957-1958
467 A humorous definition (Humorous definition)
456 PLAFOND
1956-1957
417 SINECURE
400 Word with 400 theme (Quatercentenary)
390 HESITATE (Printer’s Devilry)
1955-1956
382 ABSTAIN
377 MALISON
364 HELLEBORE
351 LUSTRE
347 TELEVISOR
334 CHEROOT
329 HAMADRYAD
1954 (2)
316 BATHROOM
306 CHICANE / RAMPART (Right and Left)
302 MARTIN
289 CISTERN
1954 (1)
281 SCRAPS def. LOCALS (Wrong Number)
279 CRYPTOGRAM
277 PRODIGALLY
271 TRIPLET
269 ASCENT
265 THERMAE
259 AGANIPPE
1953 (2)
257 PYROTECHNICS (Straight Clue)
255 SCUTTLE
251 UNMETHODICAL
247 VAMPIRE
245 GLAMOUR / SOPRANO (Right and Left)
235 ASPHETERISM
1953 (1)
219 SOCIALIST
217 DEPOSIT
207 PAGEANT
1952 (2)
206 PIEPOWDER
205 CANTANKEROUS
1952 (1)
193 TRADUCER
192 WATSON
190 CHEQUERS
188 Beware the Ides of March (Anagram)
186 ASHMOLEAN
185 STOUT
1951 (2)
174 ANACREONTICS
168 PIPS (Misprints)
1951 (1)
165 CABBAGE
163 LORICATE
159 SPANIEL
1950 (2)
153 SAMISENS
151 OPEN-SESAME
146 BELDAME
139 HECATOMB
135 STRIPPED
1950 (1)
121 SNAPSHOT
119 UMBLE-PIE
1949 (2)
117 LION
105 SMITHEREENS
1949 (1)
101 BARRACKS
96 INTERLOCK
95 SPOONER
92 PARTRIDGE
1948 (2)
88 BRISTOL
87 SISKIN
84 SHINGLE / THIRSTY (Right and Left)
82 CURARE
1948 (1)
70 GARBAGE
| Year | Prizes (1, 2, 3) | VHCs | HCs | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ximenes competitions | ||||
| 1962-1963 | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 1961-1962 | 1 (0, 0, 1) | 2 | 5 | 17 |
| 1960-1961 | 0 | 0 | 2 | – |
| 1959-1960 | 1 (0, 0, 1) | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 1958-1959 | 0 | 3 | 5 | – |
| 1957-1958 | 0 | 3 | 2 | – |
| 1956-1957 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 8 |
| 1955-1956 | 0 | 3 | 7 | – |
| 1954 (2) | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 1954 (1) | 0 | 1 | 7 | – |
| 1953 (2) | 1 (1, 0, 0) | 0 | 6 | – |
| 1953 (1) | 0 | 2 | 3 | – |
| 1952 (2) | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| 1952 (1) | 0 | 2 | 6 | – |
| 1951 (2) | 2 (1, 1, 0) | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| 1951 (1) | 2 (0, 2, 0) | 1 | 3 | 10 |
| 1950 (2) | 0 | 3 | 5 | – |
| 1950 (1) | 0 | 1 | 2 | – |
| 1949 (2) | 0 | 2 | 2 | – |
| 1949 (1) | 1 (1, 0, 0) | 0 | 4 | – |
| 1948 (2) | 0 | 1 | 4 | – |
| 1948 (1) | 0 | 1 | 1 | – |
| 1947 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| 1947 (1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| 1946 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| 1945 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |