Ximenes Competition No. 364 Ximenes Slip | ◀ 360 | 369 ▶ | Other competitions
| No. | Date | Clue word | Clue type | Clues |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 364 | Xmas 1955 | HELLEBORE | normal | 20 |
| Award | Clue writer | Clue | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | T. E. Bell | A flower of surpassing beauty that returns amid the old white splendour of the Christmas scene | belle (rev.) in hore, & lit. |
| Second | Dr S. L. Paton | I blossom forth in December showing beauty returning in old age | belle (rev.) in hore, & lit. |
| Third | Miss E. J. Campbell | As a rose in December, beauty returns in old age | belle (rev.) in hore |
| HC | C. Allen Baker | A blooming early riser sets the alarm when retiring to ring hours before needing to be about! | bell (rev.) + O all in h + ere |
| HC | E. A. Beaulah | Prominent beauty makes a come-back in very cut version of H.M.S. Pinafore as Buttercup | belle (rev.) in H(MS Pinaf)ore |
| HC | S. A. Cheetham | Crowfoot results from revulsion of beauty in old age | belle (rev.) in hore, & lit. |
| HC | R. N. Chignell | It can lend colour to Christmas where spirits are followed by duck with free beer all round | hell + O in anag. |
| HC | W. M. Easther | May mean a most unpleasant death—produced beneath the earth’s surface | hell E bore, & lit.; some species of h. are poisonous |
| HC | A. S. G. Fish | Old madman’s radical cure for the evil power that weighed ’im down | hell ’e bore; h. used by ancient Greeks to treat mental disorders; radical = of root |
| HC | Mrs N. Fisher | The end of December leads to an exclamation about its beauty recurring always | (Decemb)er + belle in oh (all rev.), & lit. |
| HC | T. P. Fooks | The principal male’s a girl (confusion!) and Beauty is back in his arms: a hardy perennial | belle (rev.) in anag. of hero; ref. panto “Sleeping B.” [see comments] |
| HC | Mrs L. Jarman | This drug may kill Tinker Bell here and now—clap in the circle and the light will appear | O in anag. of Bell + here; some species of h. poisonous; audience must clap to save TB; TB’s light, crossword light |
| HC | L. Johnson | Briefly, he will be changed by the end of Pinafore, Buttercup providing the solution | he’ll + be (rev.) + (Pinaf)ore |
| HC | C. J. Morse | Greek girl stopped on cross-channel flight was carrying dope | Helle bore; ref. the flying ram (Krios Khrysomallos), who rescued Helle |
| HC | R. Postill | Beauty returns in old age, like a rose that blooms anew in winter | belle (rev.) in hore |
| HC | T. E. Sanders | He’s got about 1¼ yds. drill, but you’ll need to double that for a pair of winter bloomers | ell in he + bore; double, i.e. 2 hellebores |
| HC | Mrs E. Shackleton | Example of this season’s bloomers—modern style requiring 1⅓ lengths drill | H ell e(ll) bore; H-line |
| HC | J. A. L. Sturrock | Heavily censored version of H.M.S Pinafore includes cartwheeling French beauty—that’s something like a Buttercup! | belle (rev.) in H(M.S. Pinaf)ore |
| HC | H. T. R. Twyford | Variegated English herb, inner parts of yellow, petals white when it’s black! Do you see it now? | anag. of E herb (y)ello(w); black h. has white petals at Christmas |
| HC | R. A. Walker | He’ll be back with the makings of a pig in a poke | he’ll + be (rev.) + ore; pig = unforged metal; poke4 = white h. |
Runners-Up in competition 364: