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ZED regulars have been
anticipating this special for some time, and speculating on how the setter might
approach the theme of 2500. Now all is revealed, and we find that Azed can
still pull off an original clueing device after nearly 50 years of weekly
puzzles.
Typically for Azed, the requirements
are spelled out clearly in the preamble. The challenge is to find two words,
each of which contributes half its letters to one solution and half to another,
creating a grid of mostly non-words. As each word is defined in two different
clues, there is an approach available; namely to solve one clue then search for
a matching definition in another.
Consequently Dr
Watson found that the ten-letter entries, of which there are only four, fell
first, followed by the eights. The sixes and twelves held out longer due to more difficult definitions
or wordplay. The wordplay in clues to four-letter entries was generally easier,
but with sixteen words and so little contributed by each in its entries, it was
difficult to keep track of them. It didn’t help that two pairs sharing the same
last letters (LING/RANG, RAGA/GUGA) are mentioned in the preamble, while three pairs
and one triplet sharing the same first letters (LIRK/LING, PEBA/PEPO, REKE/REDO,
RAGA/RANG/RAYS) aren’t mentioned. Also three grid
entries (RA-GA, RA-NG, LI-NG) are identical to three of the contributing words.
Some book-keeping was needed at the
end to ensure that every word was accounted for (see the list after the
clue notes).
Huge congratulations to Azed
on reaching this milestone after 48 unbroken years of compiling some of the
best crosswords in the business. Regulars will look forward to celebrating it at
the postponed lunch in September, lockdown allowing.
In the notes
below, definitions are underlined, and the grid entry is the part outside the
brackets.
1. Paddle
boat with twice getting into unyielding reedy stuff ‘speared’ delicacy STERN-W(HEELER
SPARRO)WGRASS (w, w in stern grass) Sparrowgrass is another name for asparagus.
9. Severely
criticize constitutional activity when limited by the crown PAS(EAR BER)ATE
(as in pate)
11. Hot-food
stand governess, English, wrapped in quilt DUE(NNA TRI)VET (E in duvet) A good def. for ‘trivet’
even if the rest of the surface creates an unlikely picture.
12. Ancient
landmass, one shifting evasively, almost regularly shifting LAUR(ASIA
WRIG)GLER (anag. less y)
14. The old
care about armadillo – it’s trapped in wire basket RE(KE PE)BA (hidden) The first clue Dr
Watson cracked, a simple hidden, but requiring a look-up of both words.
17. Beams
rattle round fruit
RA(YS PE)PO (rap O)
18. Processed
butter to cook freshly butchered hog with date stuffing GH(EE RE)DO (d in anag.)
19. Bum opposed
to active Scottish race AR(IS AG)IN (a rin)
20. Posting round
Cambs city military force that’s present
but not obvious MAILE(D FIST
UNDER)LYING (Ely in mailing) With a couple of letters in place, one of the easier
10-letter solutions that helped Dr Watson open up the grid.
22. Love poet,
gin drunk, ignores the alarm? Effect of the elements OVERS(LEEPS WEATH)ERING (0 verser + anag.)
25. Called
‘a wrinkle’, loveless language LI(RK
RA)NG (ling(0)) Dr Watson assumed that the LI in this solution
came from ‘line’ and didn’t match it to ‘lirk’ in 5
down until a tally of the 4 letter solutions after completing the puzzle
revealed the mismatch.
26. Plated
creature, small bird, ends in cheap pie, cooked hastily PE(BA TO)DY (last letters) Tody is one of four
birds in the solutions (along with takahe, guga and saker), so the definition helped less than it might have. ‘Plated
creature’ is a clever def. for the culinary surface.
27. Oil for cooking
kingfisher’s cousin, to set alongside peeled neep
TO(DY GH)EE (to (n)ee(p))
30. Berry,
an enticement for each guest’s centrepiece PE(PO
LU)RE (per + e) Dr Watson solved the wordplay quickly, but
didn’t find the contributing words until the final stages.
31. A suit,
ragged with age, covering a large expanse of old TEGU(MENT LAUR)ASIA (anag.)
32. Chaperone
returned one behind threefold grate bracket TRI(VET
DUE)NNA (trin + an, rev.)
33. Flightless
bird, a jackdaw seized by female falcons SAK(ERS TAK)AHE (a ka3 in
she; see kae)
34. See preamble ESPAGN(OLETTE
STRENG)THENER ‘Espagnolette’ was the very
last word that Dr Watson found, with only ‘catch’ from 1 down to go on.
Competitors have quite a task on their hands with clueing this entry.
1. Vegetable
box – loot tree scattered – catch SPARRO(WGRASS ESPAGN)OLETTE (spar + anag.) Showing signs of the difficulty of creating a
cogent surface for every grid entry.
2. Stroll
secure, beside a river rail TAK(AHE PAS)EAR (take + a R)
3. King with
commander called ‘The Toothsome Gannet’ RA(NG GU)GA (R + aga) Azed
creates an amusing surface from the most unpromising material.
4. What
lie-abed often does: cries about almost all the suffering, coming safely
through WEATH(ERING OVERS)LEEPS (anag. less e in weeps)
5. Fold edible
wee seabird – champagne served up? GU(GA LI)RK (Krug, rev.)
6. Go over
Indian piece as encountered in heart of Kerala RE(DO RA)GA (e.g. in (Ke)ra(la))
7. Fiddle
churn almost tilting over suddenly SEE(THE VIO)LIN (seelin(g);
seel3)
8. What
powers US vessel? Catching fish herring set I released
STRENG(THENER STERN-W)HEELER Azed seems to have
missed out an anagram indication here, perhaps overlooking that ‘released’
indicates the subtraction of I.
10. Muddled up
barristers gutted, document half missing: writ case SUBP(OENA TEGU)MENT (anag. of up b(arrister)s + (docu)ment)
13. Military
might find rudest scrapping fundamental UNDER(LYING MAILE)D FIST (anag.) Some good misleading wordplay makes this one
of the most enjoyable clues
15. Contra
behind start of attack on US troops? AG(IN AR)IS (a + GIs)
16. I age, worn
out, one trying to evade summons? WRIG(GLER SUBP)OENA (anag.)
21. Heather?
Day going, idyl’s dispersed sunlight
LI(NG RA)YS (anag.
less d)
23. Kit? Old
cannons, strength about over VIO(LIN SAK)ERS (o’er in vis) Two obscure
definitions solved by a process of elimination amongst the six letter
solutions.
24. Dress down,
get agitated with rage, almost put to bed? BER(ATE SEE)THE (berthe(d))
28. Old trumpet,
one in middle of flat wind, far from warm LU(RE PU)NA (un in (f)la(t))
A
tricky definition for lure2, a type of prehistoric trumpet.
29. Sitar
performance, maybe, new in jazz style, Scottish row? RA(GA LI)NG (n in
rag)
‘Ling’ is indicated as Scottish, but Dr Watson initially matched it as ‘line’
with 25ac.
30. Concern
for the old round our country is exercising bleak elevated region
PU(NA RE)KE (UK in PE) Another
solution where the wordplay yielded long before the definitions.
The list shows which solutions each four-letter word contributes to
AGIN 15dn 19ac
ARIS 19ac 15dn
GHEE 18ac 27ac
GUGA 5dn 3dn
LING 21dn 29dn
LIRK 25ac 5dn
LURE 28dn 30ac
PEBA 26ac 14ac
PEPO 30ac 17ac
PUNA 30dn 28dn
RAGA 29dn 6dn
RANG 3dn 25ac
RAYS 17ac 21dn
REDO 6dn 18ac
REKE 14ac 30dn
TODY 27ac 26ac
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