AZED CROSSWORD 1988

PERIQUE

1.  N. C. Dexter: Partly a pauper, I queued for possible refill of bowl. (Twist, maybe) (hidden; ref. Oliver T.).

2.  T. J. Moorey: Spain take cracking game sealing final that’ll make a quid or two (E r in pique(t); seal = set apart; ref. World Cup semi-final).

3.  T. C. Borland: Priest leading High Requiem Mass leaves pungent smoke (P + anag. less m).

VHC

D. Arthur: Salute this twist, perhaps giving quiet pleasure (comp. anag. & lit.).

D. & N. Aspland: What’s US pipe require? Pure —— is misconceived, perhaps! (comp. anag. & lit.; ref. strength of tobacco).

Rev Canon C. M. Broun: This American cause of pollution spied at sea could come from broken pipes? – queried (comp. anag.; ref. Gulf oil spill).

B. Cheesman: One prefers quid for chewing? Send for this (comp. anag. & lit.).

C. A. Clarke: The Faerie Queen is without measure – this might constitute a plug (peri + que(en)).

R. Gilbert: Edmund’s head required after dubious quip about Queen Bess’s ‘piquant snout’ (ER in anag. + E; ref. ‘Blackadder’).

D. V. Harry: I’m prepared to puff and huff to secure ends of porcine litter (e r in pique; ref. wolf in ‘Three Little Pigs’).

R. J. Heald: Weed: small person, one quite devoid of sex appeal (per. I qu(it)e).

E. C. Lance: Pipe contents exhaled with pungent aroma, by the sound of it (p(ip)e + ‘reek’).

J. C. Leyland: Fairy Queen has eyes on Bottom but certainly isn’t available for Snout? (peri + Qu + e(yes); ref. MND).

M. A. Macdonald-Cooper: Early signs of eruption in long-dormant peak, source of pungent smoke (er in pique³).

D. F. Manley: A smoke? With port it could be quite proper (comp. anag.).

K. Milan: Buds on this develop into one superb quid (comp. anag. & lit.).

I. Simpson: Contents of pipe with queer ming? (anag. incl. (p)ip(e), & lit.; ming^1,2).

P. L. Stone: Inspirational stuff lit up Proms’ opening performance of unfinished ‘Requiem’ (P + anag. less m).

R. C. Teuton: Piper’s quote, ‘——’s top blend’ (comp. anag.& lit.).

J. R. Tozer: Louisiana shag in danger when close to oil spills – half getting sick (peri(l) + que(asy); ref. Gulf oil spill).

Ms S. Wallace: Blending up stuff with —— could produce super puff quite possibly (comp. anag. & lit.).

A. J. Wardrop: Snout’s turned on in stir (re (rev.) in pique).

Dr E. Young: Repair re-equips cut fuel pipe in US with plug of this? (anag. less s; ref. Gulf oil spill).

HC

T. Anderson, D. Appleton, J. Appleton, D. K. Arnott, M. Barley, R. E. Boot, C. Brady, Dr J. Burscough, E. Cross, C. Daffern, C. M. Edmunds, A. G. Fleming, Dr I. S. Fletcher, M. Freeman, P. F. Henderson, E. W. Kelly, Dr A. Kitching, M. Lunan, G. Maker, K. Manley, P. W. Marlow, Rev Prebendary M. R. Metcalf, D. S. Miller, C. G. Millin, C. J. Morse, M. L. Perkins, B. Roe, S. J. Shaw, N. G. Shippobotham, B. Solomons, Ms M. Stokes, M. Taylor, Mrs A. Terrill, D. H. Tompsett, C. J. A. Underhill, Dr A. J. Varney, N. Warne, R. J. Whale, S. Whyld, D. C. Williamson.
 

ANNUAL HONOURS LIST (13 COMPETITIONS)
 
1 (equal). J. C. Leyland (3 prizes, 8 VHCs), D. F. Manley (2,10); 3. M. Barley (2,8); 4. R. J. Heald (3,4); 5. C. J. Morse (1,7); 6 (equal). M. A. Macdonald-Cooper (1,6), T. J. Moorey (1,6); 8 (equal). N. C. Dexter (1,5), Dr I. S. Fletcher (2,3), J. R. Tozer (1,5); 11 (equal). D. Arthur (0,6), R. Gilbert (0,6), J. Grimes (1,4), P. F. Henderson (1,4), A. Plumb (0,6), P. L. Stone (0,6), A. J. Wardrop (0,6); 18 (equal). T. Anderson (0,5), D. K. Arnott (2,1), T. C. Borland (2,1), G. I. L. Grafton (0,5), R. J. Hooper (1,3); W. F. M ain (1,3), P. W. Marlow (1,3), R. J. Whale (1,3), G. H. Willett (1,3); 27 (equal). D. & N. Aspland (0,4), M. Barker (1,2), C. J. Brougham (1,2), C. A. Clarke (1,2), V. Dixon (0,4), C. M. Edmunds (1,2), D. A. Harris (1,2), M. Hodgkin (0,4), G. Johnstone (0,4), C. G. Millin (0,4), I. Simpson (1,2), Dr A. J. Varney (0,4), A. J. Whittaker (1,2).
 
CONSOLATION PRIZES D. Arthur, R. Gilbert, A. Plumb, P. L. Stone, A. J. Wardrop, T. Anderson, G. I. L. Grafton, D. & N. Aspland, V. Dixon, M. Hodgkin, G. Johnstone, C. G. Millin, Dr A. J. Varney.
 
Comments
 
213 entries, no mistakes. A slightly harder plain than usual, according to many of you. The reason for this may have been the unusually large number of obscure words in the grid. This is not something I consciously aim for, intrigued though I always am by the more remote corners of the lexicon. I tend to assume that Azed solvers share this fascination, while recognizing that you like some easier words just to get started. I seem to remember that Ximenes said he liked to include at least half such familiar words, but I’ve never deliberately tried to copy him in this. Favourite clue, of 14 receiving at least one mention, was ‘Brushlike tail of Reynard behind’ for DAFT, reviving memories of Ken (‘’Allo, I won’t take me coat off, I’m not stoppin’’) Platt, the northern comedian of yesteryear who I think used ‘daft as a brush’ as one of his catchphrases. I suspect it is a north-country simile: it certainly sounds better in a Lancashire accent. The only clue mentioned as giving special difficulty was ‘One such, to love denied?’ for POET. The solution note should have explained it adequately ((E. A.) Poe + t(0)). These ‘self-referential’ clues can be tricky to spot, which is probably why I resort to them sparingly, but there doesn’t seem to me to be anything unfair about this example of the genre.
 
An interesting word, PERIQUE. Though apparently French in origin, it is not in either of my (largish) French dictionaries. Further research on the Internet suggests that it may have been the nickname of the Louisiana tobacco-grower who popularized it, but according to another theory it originated in a coarse name for the membrum virile because of the shape of the plant itself. Anyway, it’s clearly pretty strong stuff, with a vinegary taste. The French connection is strengthened by the fact that there is a liqueur made from the (presumably imported) tobacco in Saumur. As a word to clue it proved more productive than might at first have seemed likely (what with the dreaded q and all). Composite anagrams were popular (see above), as were references to the Fairy Queen and the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
 
I was struck this month by the number of nearly good clues which in the end failed for me because of their syntactic structure. Here are a couple, chosen more or less at random. (i) ‘Mixture going in pipe for smoke, we’re told’ ((pi)pe + ‘reek’). It’s that ‘for’ I don’t like, since the solver is meant to interpret it as meaning something like ‘to be supplied alongside’, more than it can stand in my view. (ii) ‘Strong Louisianian leaves with pride to make pipe required for combustion’ (comp. anag.). Again, though the surface reading makes reasonable sense (but where is this guy leaving for?), I’m just not happy with the ‘with … to’ combination as an adequate indication of the composite anagram structure of the clue.
 
Congratulations to all those who feature in the annual honours list above, especially to Messrs Leyland and Manley for sharing first place. Competition at the top remains as fierce as ever.