AZED CROSSWORD 447

URTICARIA / APOGRAPHS

1.  G. Johnstone: Eruptive outbreak – “ ’air cut! ’air cut!” repeats a Petty Officer evaluating lines of ratings (anag.; a PO graphs; cut = drunk).

2.  C. Loving: ‘Double ’air cut’ ordered rash Petty Officer, ‘Part with gash curls – no time for nice models!’ (anag. of air air cut; anag. incl. PO less t; gash⁴).

3.  D. V. B. Unwin: Oh! Grappa’s in cocktail – doubles get the wind up after furore of tauric eruption (anag.; anag. + air (rev.)).

VHC

C. Allen Baker: Rash: just up and shaved I caught one, getting the breeze up… psora – horrific! A G.P. treated others just the same (tru(e) (rev.) + I c a + air (rev.); anag. incl. H; former film certificate).

E. J. Burge: ‘ “Hurricane” missing first and last two in frame, with a tie not quite done up, gets rash’ prints a posh rag page (sporting) (anag. of (H)urrica(ne) a ti(e); anag. incl. p; ref. ‘H.’ Higgins, snooker player preferring open neck).

A. J. Crow: Papa’s rough, non-U, reels, spits, renders, without a bit of style, rustic song. I burn (anag. less U; anag. less s + aria; spit n.).

S. Goldie: Phosphorus, half wound with a rag, spits fire from touching air – cut air supply (anag. incl. phosp(horus); anag.; spit n., supply adv.).

J. F. Grimshaw: Active grasshopper jumps without hesitation and second copies exactly the same convulsive motion finding itself amidst poisonous root – a rash type (a + anag. less er, s; tic in urari a).

P. F. Henderson: Rash primaries in USA – really, those idiots Carter and Reagan (ignoring Anderson) – you can’t choose between them! Perhaps hostages will be released – then you could say: ‘He’s set these free’ (first letters; comp. anag.; ref. US election, Iran crisis).

V. G. Henderson: This ‘nettly’ rash could be acutely irritant source of anxiety; photographer’s first to go spare endlessly upset about wench’s bottom: perfect models are required (comp. anag. & lit.; a p + h in anag. of go spar(e)).

E. M. Holroyd: Rash modification of repeated air – cut a page, turn over, scrambling unfinished phrase – photocopies needed? (anag. of air air cut; a p + go (rev.) + anag. of phras(e)).

C. H. Hudson: This may sting – treating it with a curari dressing can make a rash go pop (nothing lost in reproductions) (anag. in anag.; anag. less 0).

Miss E. H. C. Jenkins: Spasm in original song leads to rash transposition of a G-sharp op. – copies wanted (tic in ur-aria; anag.).

J. R. H. Jones: Doubles softly round to G.P. with rash breaking out: after a skin eruption suffered with no hospital, one gets wind up about little cases (a + p O + anag.; (H)urt + ca. in I air (rev.)).

D. F. Manley: Tenors gasp and harp on about love, a complaint conveyed perhaps by touching hesitancy in diction and jerking melody (0 in anag.; ur tic aria; on = getting drunk).

D. P. M. Michael: Re-writes unaltered Greek in a version of Sappho after some hesitation; nervous reaction to song causes complaint (a + Gr. in anag.; ur + tic + aria).

W. L. Miron: Herbert in awkward love grasp facsimiles primitive convulsion: strain causes eruption (A.P.H. in anag. incl. 0; ur-tic aria; ref. writer and broadcaster).

J. J. Moore: Skin eruption – it’s to be treated with curari – active initially as pimples or gatherings, with painfully sharp repetitions (anag. + a; a p o g + anag.).

R. A. Mostyn: Precise reproductions, pungent, taken from a photograph (head of self) can bring out irritating blemishes, the heart of caricature about one, possibly (anag. less hot + s; I in anag. of (c)aricatur(e)).

N. O’Neill: Effects of rubbing, perhaps, variations in quantity in lather of soap, signs of hesitancy, nervousness, strain:– skin rash! (graph in anag.; ur tic aria; ref. brass rubbing).

R. J. Palmer: What accompanies ‘The Sting’? Early sort of tune with jerky movement in it copies a piano rag with posh playing (tic in ur-aria; anag. incl. p; ref. Joplin theme music for film).

T. E. Sanders: Copies Sappho, a Greek improperly rash, with primitive sexual attraction exalted by the ultimate in lyric song (anag. incl. Gr.; ur- + it (rev.) + c + aria).

W. J. M. Scotland: Heartlessly, the devil in print, filling a page to attempt over Sabbath, duplicates irritation – nothing’s removed from our endless suffering without 1 Ac. solved! (Ra(l)ph in a p, go (rev.), S; (0)ur + anag. in tria(l)).

W. K. M. Slimmings: A go with partner initially and sharp mixed doubles? That’ll make you itchy, warm and dry: a lemon, maybe, cut up is the answer (anag. incl. p; air a citru(s) (rev.)).

Mrs M. P. Webber: Rash critic with aura caught out for reviewing pop rag has distributed duplicate copies (anag. less c; anag.).

HC

J. Beasley, Mrs E. R. Beattie, C. J. Brougham, Rev C. M. Broun, Mrs M. J. Cansfield, E. Chalkley, P. R. Clemow, P. F. Coltman, Mrs M. P. Craine, P. Dellot, Dr V. G. I. Deshmukh, N. C. Dexter, J. H. Dingwall, L. Eveleigh, B. Franco, O. H. Frazer, F. D. Gardiner, O. Greenwood, B. Greer, E. J. and S. D. Griew, J. C. Hobbs, E. M. Hornby, J. G. Hull, A. H. Jones, R. E. Kimmons, F. P. N. Lake, G. G. Lawrance, J. H. C. Leach, P. W. W. Leach, J. C. Leyland, C. J. Lowe, P. Macdonald, L. K. Maltby, H. W. Massingham, L. May, C. G. Millin, C. J. Morse, T. W. Mortimer, Mrs K. D. P. Norman, D. B. Oaten, C. W. Robins, B. F. Russell, A. D. Scott, D. P. Shenkin, B. D. Smith, R. C. Teuton, D. H. Tompsett, I. Torbe, P. M. Trott, A. R. Trowell, Miss B. J. Widger, T. Wightman, D. C. Williamson, W. Woodruff.
 

COMMENTS
378 entries, and only one mistake that I saw – SPURS/ROWELS for SPUDS/DOWELS. A below-average competition, both numerically and in terms of overall quality. Perhaps the double-clue challenge proved off-putting for more would-be entrants than usual. I must, I suppose accept part of the blame for that. Contrary to my usual policy of looking for clue words which offer (or appear to offer) a wide and interesting range of possibilities, I gave you this pair knowing that they’d probably be tough. I don’t see why you should always be featherbedded after all! The important thing was to keep your head and not lose sight of the basic soundnesses. Had more competitors done this my task would have been a lot more difficult. As it was a technically sound if rather dull clue was almost all that was required for its author to make the lists above. An astonishing number of you gave only a definition (no cryptic indication) of one of the pair, or clued one of the pair only, or (even more bewildering) clued APOGRAPH as one of the pair.
 
I do tend to favour R & L clues in which the ‘join’ is disguised by not being signalled by punctuation pauses. Two separate clues, one to each word, with no link whatever, are clearly not going to win any prizes. They ignore the whole point of the thing. One or two of you argue that the exercise is pretty pointless anyway. I disagree. As in any other special clue-type, it requires a little extra element of ingenuity, in this case establishing a verbal link between words which may on the face of it have absolutely nothing in common, and doing it with a reasonable degree of economy (20 words ought to be enough, I feel, though one or two VHCs allowed themselves more). Mr. Johnstone’s clue succeeds admirably (and amusingly) on both counts. It pipped Mr. Loving’s to the post simply because in the latter there seems no special reason why the P.O. is described as ‘rash’.
 
I was much saddened to learn last month of the recent death of Mr A. D. Legge. Since the Azed series began he hardly missed a competition and won frequent mention in these slips. The comments which often accompanied his entries were unfailingly courteous and friendly and on the one occasion when I met him in person (at the dinner for No. 250) we enjoyed a delightful conversation together. He was I think a professional calligrapher and it was his hand-drawn design which became the AZ motif for Azed ties. I shall miss his impeccably written entries and offer his wife and family my sincere condolences.