AZED CROSSWORD 118

OPERETTIST (Misprints)

1.  N. Gambier: Trio and septet orchestrated for Strads, e.g. (Straus; anag.; Oscar S.).

2.  W. K. M. Slimmings: I produce light snores, making love – model gets up in huff (scores; 0 + sitter (rev.) in pet).

3.  J. R. Kirby: Disorderly pet store – it may be the source of many pongs (songs; anag.).

VHC

R. H. Adey: Easy shot hoisted, tucked away by favourite, love set to him. His play’s like Gorman’s (German’s; sitter (rev.) in 0 pet; Sir Edward G.; ref. Tom Gorman, US tennis player).

C. Allen Baker: Merry widow I treated to drink titters tipsily – no head for it (created; (t)ope + anag.; ref. Lehár operetta).

Mrs K. Bissett: Musical waiter creates titter with pose (writer; anag.).

A. R. Chandler: O dear! Embracing towering dolly birds might try my handy-work (bards; O + sitter (rev.) in pet).

E. A. Free: Artist’s model, head over heels in love, sulks, longs for the night’s entertainment he’ll provide (songs; sitter (rev.) in 0 pet).

Dr G. B. Greer: Ali’s not serious in his compositions – ‘prettiest’ has end of nose displaced after round (all’s; O + prettiest with e moved; ref. Muhammad A.).

J. M. Houghton: Carousal’s perpetrator? Toper set it in motion (Carousel; anag.; ref. Rogers & Hammerstein musical).

R. E. Kimmons: Potter? He’s left The Potteries surprisingly (Porter; anag. less he; Cole P.).

Mrs S. M. Macpherson: My scones are light, and here’s a piece of cake rising in a round hump (scores; sitter (rev.) in O pet).

L. May: Frill, for example, on prettiest dresses (Friml; o’ + anag.; Rudolf F.; dress = come into line).

R. H. Maynard: Filbert was prettiest o’ nuts (Gilbert; anag.; W. S. G.).

D. P. M. Michael: Maestro of the vocab – could be number one, top setter (vocal; anag. incl. I).

E. Potter: Tight music composer disorganises trio and septet (light; anag.).

T. A. J. Spencer: Temperamental artiste lacking a top E might strain producer (light; anag. less a).

F. B. Stubbs: He conjures up the night air – tries to pet bats (light; anag.).

J. B. Sweeting: Arrangement of septet and trio exemplified in Igor (Ivor ; anag.; I. Novello; ref. Borodin opera ‘Prince Igor’).

D. J. Thorpe: Playful poet pinches rising model – makes good use of fingers (singers; sitter (rev.) in anag.).

Mrs M. P. Webber: Light airs are a force of one – it’s shown up in movement of treetops (forte; it (rev.) in anag.; ref. Beaufort Scale).

Rev C. D. Westbrook: I set to with copper boiling, after putting in to soak. Pinafore’s whiter, maybe (writer; ret in anag. incl. p; ref. ‘HMS Pinafore’).

C. E. Williams: His works may be hung – from treetop? – it’s doubtful (sung; anag.).

HC

R. Abrey, F. D. H. Atkinson, T. E. Bell, E. Chalkley, G. H. Clarke, J. Coleby, Mrs M. P. Craine, A. J. Crow, Miss L. Eveleigh, A. L. Freeman, M. A. Furman, H. J. Godwin, J. J. Goulstone, E. M. Hornby, Mrs N. Jarman, A. Lawrie, J. H. C. Leach, A. D. Legge, Miss J. S. Lumsden, D. F. Manley, S. M. Mansell, H. S. Mason, R. S. Morse, S. L. Paton, M. F-X. Potts-Tortonese, A. Rivlin, T. E. Sanders, Brig R. F. E. Stoney, G. A. Tomlinson, D. Tompsett, C. Tooth, L. C. Wright.
 

Comments
The toughest puzzle for some time, clearly. Only about 205 entries and quite a lot of mistakes. The words which caused most difficulty were SNOG, FORSLACK and LIRIPIPES, none of which had particularly easy clues, I admit. There was the faintest suggestion of an unintentional red herring in the clue to SNOG: N in COY (soppy) giving CONY, with ‘get’ misprinted for ‘pet’. This would, however, have given too many misprinted across clues. My needlessly archaic spelling of ‘dispensable’ (based on a dim Latin fourth conjugation echo!) can’t have helped FORSLACK solvers, but I think the clue’s all right otherwise. Nuts are small lumps of coal. Dispensable nuts are not worth having, like slack (nutty slack), coal-dross. ‘Are negligent’ (not ‘is’) shows plural verb form. Quite a number of you (especially regulars) forslacked over LIRIPIPES and had LIRIPOOPS instead. I cannot see how ‘poop’ will do for ‘weep’.
 
Cluing on the whole was uninspired this month. Not much unsoundness, but not much brilliance either. Several solvers spoiled their chances by writing straight clues. Do read the preamble always. The commonest fault was a tendency to define OPERETTIST by an example of one, unadorned. ‘Offenbach’ tout seul won’t do as a definition of OPERETTIST (what would all the others say?); it must have a question-mark or ‘e.g.’ or ‘say’ or some such appendage. ‘Operettist’ would of course do as a definition of OFFENBACH, but that’s a different matter.
 
Solvers may be interested in a new collection of crosswords plain and fancy, Crosswords for the Devotee by Don Putnam, Dogop of the Listener and an intermittent Azed competitor. This follows the highly successful Crosswords for the Enthusiast which I reviewed briefly for the Observer on publication. It contains 55 puzzles, the last 15 of them harder than the rest, though a number of the others are easier ‘specials’. Published by Elliot Right Way Books at 35p.