CCCWC March 2018 competition results
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43 clues entered. 35 votes cast (31 competitors, 4 others).
SEAWATER
A clear winner this month – David demonstrating he will be a strong contender for the title again this year with a clue that conveyed a convincing story.
John Tozer achieves his first top 5 finish of the year with a simple, but effective anagram for second place.
Don made best use of some popular anagram fodder by utilising the most appropriate anagram indicator and also bags his first podium of this year.
Anthony managed an impressive alternate letters construction and in the process his first placing for a couple of years.
Pete completes the podium with a neat &lit which sadly is very true and very much in the news of late.
Well done to all – and good luck with SOLITAIRE!
| Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | David McKie | Beginning of revolution saw English tea thrown into this? | R SAW E TEA (anag) and semi lit – with ref to Boston Tea Party 1773 | 61 | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | 31 | John Tozer | Swear tea is off – it’s undrinkable | anag. | 39.5 | 1 | |
| 3 | 38 | Don Manley | What could make rocky areas wet? | anag. & lit. | 35 | 4 | 1 |
| 4 | 13 | Anthony Nannini | From time to time I see narwhal. They're in their natural surroundings (8) | From time to time = alternate letter indicator (I)s(e)e(n)a(r)w(h)a(l)t(h)e(y)r(e) + definition | 30.5 | 5 | 2 |
| 5 | 1 | Pete Milne | A plastic waste area, mostly? | Anag of WASTE+ARE(a). &lit | 28 | 3 | 3 |
| 6 | 24 | Toby Robertson | Our ocean environs are swimming with waste | (are,waste) anag. | 27.5 | 3 | 2 |
| 7 | 41 | Dhirendra Tripathi | What oceans are filled with is debris, ultimately we are at fault (8) | Definition: what oceans are filled with wordplay: (-debri) S (debris ultimately) + (WE ARE AT)* anagram indicator, fault | 24.5 | 3 | 2 |
| 8 | 8 | Steve Randall | Britain's quitting, rebate was sadly a drop in the ocean | RE[B]ATEWAS* (sadly) | 23 | 6 | 1 |
| 9 | 37 | Luciano Ward | What constitutes most of Earth, as we perceived when flying? | EART(h)ASWE anag; &lit | 19 | 2 | 4 |
| 10 | 40 | Tom Borland | What leaves wet areas on rigging? | *WET AREAS; &lit. | 16.5 | 5 | 2 |
| 11 | 35 | Was a tree pulped to make content of The Waves? | Anag. WAS A TREE; cryptic definition. Ref to Woolf novel. | 14 | 2 | ||
| 12 | 16 | It boundlessly bears waste plastic | [(b)EAR(s) WASTE]*, semi &lit. SEAWATER contains micro-particles of plastic as well as discarded fishing nets, bottles etc. | 13 | 3 | 1 | |
| 13 | 20 | Main component of unusually wet areas | WET AREAS* | 12 | 0 | 1 | |
| 13 | 36 | What a seaman might wring out of a sweater? | Anag ASWEATER. | 12 | 2 | 1 | |
| 15 | 29 | Spooner's urologist reportedly has not a drop to drink! | urologist = wee sorter >>> see worter (reportedly* homophone indicator (to qualify spelling change)) // def = has not a drop to drink! (from Rime of the Ancient Mariner) – ! for wordplay & CD | 11.5 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 11 | Formaldehyde is found in ocean! (8) | The chemical formula for formaldehyde is ch2o, so C for "sea" + h2o for water = seawater = found in ocean. | 11 | 0 | 4 | |
| 16 | 21 | Main contents are waste liquid | (ARE WASTE)* | 11 | 1 | 1 | |
| 18 | 42 | What will keep sailors buoyant? A sweater's bust! | *A+SWEATER; buoyant=happy/afloat | 10.5 | 0 | 2 | |
| 19 | 6 | Brine pickles are waste (8) | AREWASTE* | 9 | 1 | ||
| 19 | 9 | Crackers article regarding sweat – it's salty. | Anag(crackers):a+re+sweat; def | 9 | 1 | 1 | |
| 19 | 26 | Sadly, wastes are still primarily dumped into it! | (WASTESARE)* – S; semi-&lit | 9 | 2 | 2 | |
| 22 | 32 | The contents of disposable waste are what's filling our oceans. | waste are (anag) | 8 | 3 | 1 | |
| 23 | 22 | Man is surrounded by this close to endless stormy wet area | (endles)S +(WET AREA)* ref Isle of Man | 6 | 1 | ||
| 24 | 12 | Found in wet areas, offshore. | Anag. (found in) of "wet areas", "found in wet areas" defn, offshore to distinguish seawater from freshwater. | 5.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 24 | 30 | Stormy area west of the briny deep? | Anagram of AREA WEST; anagram indicator = Stormy; def = of the briny deep? | 5.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 24 | 34 | The main ingredient? (8) | CD – crossword staple – main=sea | 5.5 | 2 | ||
| 27 | 2 | A sweater soaked in brine? | Anagram of A SWEATER soaked gives SEAWATER or brine | 4.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 27 | 17 | It comes in waves as we eat rotten, raw starter | Def = "It comes in waves"; ASWEEAT* + R[aw] | 4.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 29 | 19 | Knit a sweater all around the Aran Islands? | knit is anagram indicator. Aran sweaters are well-known. | 4 | 3 | ||
| 29 | 25 | Plastic waste are the main issue (8) | Main issue – Punny Def, Waste are*, Plastic -Anind | 4 | 1 | ||
| 31 | 4 | Atlantic's content when Tyler joins Queen after a great deal | SEA+WAT+ER | 3 | 0 | 1 | |
| 31 | 27 | Sear a wet cod in this? | SEAWATER (sear a wet)* | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| 33 | 3 | Are trunks at last wet after initially jumping into this? | ARESWETA* – extended definition | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| 33 | 7 | Briny stuff: sounds like CHOO! (8) | Direct = briny stuff. C = sea, HOO = H 2 O = water; sounds like = indicator | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 33 | 28 | Sound of third conflict leads to terror; enemy rejecting a pacific solution (8) | Sound of C + WAR + T + E + R. Solution found in the Pacific Ocean. | 2 | 0 | 1 | |
| 33 | 43 | What's in the drink? Befuddled we stare at it disappearing | ((WESTAREAT) – (i)T)*; "the drink" = "the sea". Chambers give "t" as a contraction of 'it'. | 2 | 1 | ||
| 37 | 18 | It's in the main area west, all over the place. | Definition: 'It's in the main' (= the high seas). 'area west' is the anagram. 'all over the place' is the anagram indicator) | 1.5 | 1 | ||
| 37 | 33 | The main component in a sweater's unravelled | The main component = definition; anagram of "a sweater" | 1.5 | 0 | ||
| 39 | 14 | Host independent remote server for main content | SEA(host) + WA(i)TER; i=independent | 0.5 | 1 | 2 | |
| 39 | 39 | What is, in the main, dry, with a wet, fluid content? | Def. ("what is in the main")/a + wet (anag) in sear = dry | 0.5 | 1 | ||
| 41 | 10 | Expect I left Sibyl outside to read the main content | SE (AWAIT – I) (= expect) ER (Sibyl outside); main content = def.. | 0 | 0 | ||
| 41 | 15 | Ingredients in solution irritating wet areas one gets with incontinence. | * WET AREAS = SEAWATER. ONE GETS (i.e. one hears) WITHIN CONTINENTS (e.g. Black, Caspian Seas). | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 41 | 23 | North of Venezuela, parting waves tear around on this (8) | #down clue. North of Venezuela is V - Anagram of (WAVESTEAR-V)*. Whole clue is an extended defintion (semi&lit). #down clue – North of Venezuela is V (Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea are north of Venezuela) | 0 | 0 |