Have your confusions sorted out for this week’s spectacular.
And a late breaking word of warning:
Instructions AWOL from today’s DA crossword- “Each clue lacking a definition is a 7-down.” Please don’t shoot the messenger. @smh @theage
— David Astle (@dontattempt) October 26, 2017
Really been struggling – but now think this is themed and at least in SMH this is not flagged.
Anybody able to enlighten / correct me?
Thanks.
I think it’s themed 7D, Ray, … 10A wordplay gives name of one! Also 8D/21D I think a rather famous one. Will tweet DA see if there’s a response …
Celia – yep am very sure now – think Hint should be “11 clues share a theme and do not have a definition – all the rest are normal” or something like that.
No, Ray, 11D is the theme, not there are 11 clues (unless you’ve found them all, which I doubt). 10A is an example of 11D: “fate of disenfranchisement” letters 1-6, “back to pitiful” letter 7. Awaiting DA’s tweet in reply, hope he doesn’t sleep in.
you threw me, 7D is the theme. Have you found 11?
Yes – and agree re 7D being the theme.
Miscounted – I have 9 (depends how you count 8/21).
Has DA made a mistake in 27A, the anagram is out by one different letter (a second N for unused S?)?
The Age app regularly fails to download the crosswords. This morning DA cryptic failed to appear. Anyone else experiencing this problem?
Timvdo you have Twitter? DM your email to @ABCRustedOnToRN for copy!
Thanks for the tip Celia, but I pay for the subscription so shouldn’t have to run around to get what I have paid for.
DA has just tweeted …
Instructions AWOL from today’s DA crossword- “Each clue lacking a definition is a 7-down.” Please don’t shoot the messenger. @smh @theage
Yes, Tim, I also sometimes have a problem downloading from the Age, and I also have a subscription. Especially frustrating when I need to leave early for work and I want to do it on the train. It usually works eventually…..
Celia, 27a is ok. It is a low end 7d.
Justdiscovered the unstated theme!
Phew, I thought I woke up dumb.
see 5:24 post, Mary-Jane
Roughly two hours from getting puzzle, five found, so all the above meaningless at this stage. Oscar? Never even look at them, don’t watch any films or read about hem. Would Google help there?
Yes, found 7D. Thank you Google.
Yes, Tim. Still can’t get on iPad… fingers crossed will appear soon
I am stumped, can’t get the theme. Any help with 7 down would be appreciated!
I cracked the theme with 17d… “supporting” 7d so to speak.
> The Age app regularly fails to download the crosswords. This morning DA cryptic failed to appear. Anyone else experiencing this problem?
I have been getting this once a week or so in the SMH for the last few months ; the Quick appears but no Cryptic. Usually killing the app and starting it again helps, but not today.
Anyone know the trick to getting it on the Canberra Times website?
Hi Brett,
It feels a bit early to give hints for the theme itself. Perhaps I should just say that 11a and 17d are easy themed clues
Brett: to get you started on 7D, take one of the actor Oscar winners from 2014 and turn it ‘over’
> Still can’t get on iPad… fingers crossed will appear soon
Success! I went into the facsimile of the paper in the iPad app and took a screenshot of the cryptic, sent that to my desktop computer, and printed it off.
Thanks Dave, Son and Pea! Got it now.
Sigh. Everyone finished but me. Have theme and I think most theme related answers but stuck top left and bottom right 1d 3D 9a 11a 20d 29a 25a
Help!!
1D: def is first 3 words of clue. Words 4-6 give letter 1, a synonym for ewer with the last letter removed gives letters 2-7
9A: is a themed answer. A word meaning just (as in ‘barely’) gives letters 1-3, 7, binding (containing) a word meaning heel for letters 4-6
11A: also a theme. “Squirrels” means includes, here – look carefully at the first two words of clue.
20D: also a themed answer. ‘Fire’ in the sense of ‘energy’ gives letters 1-3 ; letters 4-7 are ‘person’ with ‘on drifting off’.
25A: Answer is a synonym for both clue words, in very different meanings. ‘cape’ is a geographic term here.
I finished this puzzle before coming here and reading about the AWOL instruction. No wonder I found it so difficult!
A point about the Oscars: They are presented early in the year for the previous year, so the one in 7D is actually for the 2013 calendar year. There should be a convention in quizzes and crosswords for how such questions are asked.
I have not quite rationalised the wordplay in 14A, although I have the answer.
14A: Campus gives letters 1-3. The Staff referred to is a musical one, with left out, making letters 4-6.
Thanks AndrewT. I actually googled that word but it was defined as a musical symbol rather than a staff. I’ve not heard it before in any context.
I am stuck on 19a. Can anyone help please.
19A can be read as non-cryptic. Where would you go to be charged (not in money terms)?
Thanks Jack I eventually got it.
So close. Stuck on 22 down, any help….
22D: is a themed answer. Stuff gives letters 1-3, A gives letter 4. Letters 5-6 should be very familiar to you … !
22D is themed. Stuff = 1,2,3. Constructor = 5,6
Thanks so much Andrew and Jack!
Two (at least) unsolved. 19A, 16D. If my themed answer at 8D is correct, I can’t understand any of the clue. could someone explain please?
Anyone still on-line? We are stuck on 29 across.
Arthur 19a is a load of bull.
16D is a themed answer. Shop gives 1-3 and 8. The bit in the middle is a scream- or an uprising.
Ben & Lynne 29A – read the first two words of the clue like a bogan.
Brian, i thank you, but sadly, am no nearer an answer to either of those. i initially g=had FREETOWN at 19a, but 20D ruined that. have to abandon this one for tonight, get those answrsw tomorrow. Still no understanding of 8-21D, if i have put in the right answer. o yasumi nasai (rest well).
I’m another who couldn’t get on to my subscription replica this morning. Thought it was just me. Have phoned them before and they told me to delete cookies and temp files and I did that several times. And now I find there was a missing instruction. Wish I still had thump thump on the grass a 4 am. Only now it’s just an inaudible singular quiet thump.
That was worth waiting for! It helped to have the missing instruction posted above. Kudos to Trippers who solved it without that. Managed to get all from wordplay, except for 8/21 which was parsed after the event.
Loved the head of staff, 7 and 9, the tourist place, and republican hawking.
ArthurC, if you’re still after the wordplay for 8/21. ..
reversal of staff 6,5,4 and ruling 3,2,1
letters 7-10 secure as an adjective
letters 14-11 reversal of a capital city with its first letter deleted (after start)
Thanks Gayle – very helpful. Can you explain 26a for me please? I have all the cross letters but can’t see the answer. Think it ends in IGE but can’t get the graduate clue.
Sue E, the graduate in 26A is at 6-7, it appears your 22D may be incorrect thus. 26A def is “electronics company”, “rubbish” is 1-4.
See Andrew T @ 4:08 pm 27/10 for parsing of 22D.
Happy solving.
I normally try to get as far as I can before coming here. Was mightily relieved when I finally gave up and saw the reason I was struggling.
Nevertheless, after reading everything above, I’m still stuck on a few.
2d – I have a themed answer but can’t parse the wordplay and it seems to make 13a impossible so I’m 99% sure it’s wrong.
18d/23a – got everything around them but can’t get either of these. I’m guessing 18d definition is first word?
Any hints for these three would be very welcome – thanks.
Jason L re …
2D not themed, a herb. “my” is an exclamation giving 1-3.
18D not themed “to buff up” 3-1, “row” 4-7, def “trimmer”.
23A not themed letters of “ratio” give 2-3 components, you provide their anagrind:at 1-4. 7 & 9 are examples!
Jason 2d. My! (as in an old-fashioned exclamation) letters 1-3. I read the remaining letters as an anagram (diced)of diner + a, although I think the diced and the coats are kind of awkward grammatically.
Just as well I only attempted to reply to one of your requests Jason L. Celia wasn’t even there when I started. Slow typing, me.
Thankyou Celia, much appreciated.
AAAARRRRRRGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Been flogging away at the crossword all morning and getting nowhere, started to suspect from 8D 10A 7D that there was a theme that had not been stated, appears I’m correct. Somebody owes me two hours of my life back.
Thanks Celia and Gayle. I got there in the end with those tips. Turns out I had another one wrong too which made everything harder.
Still can’t get 19 across. Have everything else. Any more hints please….
Forget it…just didn’t get the bull clue, but my husband just did….all done
Thanks Brian, at least I have the answer, but I’m still not sure of the wordplay for 29A. Any assistance parsing very much appreciated –
Also not sure of wordplay for (1, 6 and 7) of 3D or (3-6) of 5D.
Like others, had all sorts of trouble and could only get about two answers our before coming here to find the missing theme clue.
So, thank you to all the ‘Trippers’ (yet again)
LJ –
29A. Kind of = defn; small = s; trunk = aorta, which evidently is the ‘trunk’ artery (had to look it up); missing crown = -a
3D. 1,6 and 7 = follow (as in understand), up.
5D. You and me both!
Thanks IanF- much appreciated
Thought I was losing my touch until I got 22 D totally from the word play with no idea why that was correct. Then another across answer from the word play only came out as something in the same theme. Realised that there must be an explanation gone AWOL.
um, if you read this forum and/or subscribed to the posts, the missing theme definition alert arose in the very first post here around 3am EST, and subsequent subscription posts (tick the boxes under) from later in the morning contained a copy of DA’s Twitter alert thus.
The moral is … if you think there’s a problem, drop by here to check!
5D. Pretty sure 3-6 is anagram of “AMEN” – with “revolting” = anagram indicator and “? Right on” as indirect
Could it be that a revolt = the last rising to the top? DA doesn’t tend to do indirect anagrams, as far as I know.
Thanks Ray and TT – I did think about AMEN for ‘right on’ and then revolt as the anagram indicator. But … even though I can’t really say why, it doesn’t seem quite right to me.
Anyway, time for me to cease obsessing over this, as only 2 more sleeps until I can start obsessing over a new DA.