Solvers of my puzzles will know that I rarely do theme crosswords, however they are almost mandatory for the Christmas and New Year period running up to Australia Day. The Australian Financial Review (AFR) publishes bumper editions where I write large themed cryptics with more than 70 clues. Since my debut in the AFR I’ve written 26 Christmas or New Year themed puzzles, all containing different ideas. As the holiday period approaches, I rack my brains trying to find something new, but some topics have limited scope. After the days of Christmas and the reindeer, there’s really not a lot left for Christmas. Even though it’s a religious festival, a religious theme these days has the tendency to offend people, so I stay away. New Year is even worse – apart from the date change, what else is there? Fireworks? Done. Thankfully the cryptic element of crosswords allows for other possibilities like “New Year” in a clue meaning an anagram of “year”. A few years ago I wrapped a Christmas cake recipe into the crossword that was great fun and very tasty. This year I’ve done the same in the AFR but with a twist. One thing that always surprises me is that something always seems to pop out, even when there appears to be no more ideas to be had. If nothing spectacular comes to mind, there’s always my default gimmick which is to incorporate an appropriate message somewhere in the grid to acknowledge the time of year and my appreciation of solvers.
I find the larger grids offer much more room to incorporate a theme and allow everything to stay normal from a grid design, grid-fill and cluing sense. A standard 15×15 is a tight space to work in and compromise is often needed to squeeze in that extra theme word or make a gimmick work. Nothing worse than leaving yourself a really obscure word or two to clue that obviously don’t fit with the style of rest of the puzzle. These misfits can stand out so much that they push the theme into to background and spoil a lot of hard work.
Across | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
1 | LACROSSE | |
A pass from the wing played in middle of athletic sport (8) | (A + CROSS) inside ATH(LE)TIC | |
5 | RIPPER | |
Current agent knocked back an excellent thing (6) | RIP + (REP reversed) | |
10 | WHALE | |
High-roller who reduced alcohol (5) | (WH)O + ALE | |
11 | APOSTOLIC | |
Papal stool roughly drawn in a picture (9) | Anagram of STOOL inside (A + PIC) | |
12 | BUMPER-TO-BUMPER | |
Worthless forward arranged more pub crawling (6-2-6) | BUM + PERT + anagram of MORE PUB | |
14 | DUNG | |
Manure turned over containing nitrogen (4) | DUG outside N | |
15 | MEET WITH | |
The writer and comedian involved in the rotten experience (4,4) | ME + (WIT inside anagram of THE) | |
18 | PAD | |
Pressure applied to commercial paper group (3) | P + AD | |
19 | NURTURED | |
U-turn complicated by traffic light may be brought up (8) | Anagram of UTURN + RED | |
20 | TEAM | |
Drink with married people who work together (4) | TEA + M | |
23 | DEVILS ADVOCATE | |
One who likes to argue was withdrawn and sad about entering ballot (6,8) | LIVED reversed + SAD + (CA inside VOTE) | |
26 | MARKED OUT | |
Duo’s medley staged in shopping centre is described (6,3) | Anagram of DUO inside MARKET | |
27 | BLIMP | |
BMW’s first flexible air-bag (5) | (B)MW + LIMP | |
28 | SPLASH | |
Prominently display special tie (6) | SP + LASH | |
29 | GRADIENT | |
Rise and decline in government subsidy (8) | DIE inside GRANT | |
Down | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
1 | LAW-ABIDING | |
A tender handled by Los Angeles branch is compliant (3-7) | (A + BID) inside (LA + WING) | |
2 | COAL-MINER | |
Digger reserved one claim located next to river? (4-5) | Anagram of ONE CLAIM + R | |
3 | OPENER | |
Withdrawn elements of polystyrene polymer may be key (6) | polystRENE POlymer reversed | |
4 | SHANTY | |
Six-footer located in retiring mariner’s hut (6) | ANT inside SHY | |
6 | INTIMATE | |
Confidential tip nearly admitted by prisoner (8) | (TI)P inside INMATE | |
7 | PULSE | |
Vibration from bearing trapped in pipe (5) | S(outh) inside PULE | |
8 | RACY | |
Blue vehicle overturned close to freeway (4) | CAR reversed + FREEWA(Y) | |
9 | DOUBTED | |
Debut rescheduled after celebration is questioned (7) | Anagram of DEBUT after DO | |
13 | CHAMBERPOT | |
Hot, orangy-yellow pee sat in bed pan (10) | (H + AMBER + P) inside COT | |
15 | MAD | |
Funny American magazine produced in cut-down form (3) | (MAD)E | |
16 | ITERATIVE | |
Repetitious item not completed by four in class (9) | (ITE)M + (IV inside RATE) | |
17 | BUSINESS | |
Firm coaches accepting home schooling initially (8) | (BUSES outside IN) + (S)CHOOLING | |
18 | PENSION | |
Writer is upset about allowance (7) | PEN + (IS reversed) + ON | |
21 | EDITOR | |
Print controller went on backing up with input from IT (6) | RODE reversed outside IT | |
22 | MORBID | |
Unhealthy ball, one nursed by doctor (6) | (ORD + I) inside MD | |
24 | ENROL | |
Recruit, one holding up right and left (5) | (ONE reversed outside R) + L | |
25 | XMAS | |
Crazy Mexicans giving up nice holiday (4) | Anagram of MEXICANS minus NICE |
I look forward to Wednesdays when I can download another challenging crossword. Always enjoyable and usually there is an opportunity to learn a new word or recall a word not used for a long time. This week it was ‘pule’. I remembered hearing the term relating to a child but did not readily make the connection with pipe. It was a was a great clue.
I hope you have a happy Christmas. I look forward to another year of Stickler puzzles. Thank you.
David, Thank youf or this challenge. I really have to get back into the groove.ust say I am not really happy with “meet with”. I have seldom found this to be a rotten experience. My limiteds searches do not reveal any link between pipe and pule, although if one is anti bagpipes you might conclude that he sound is indeed a pule.
Oops, silly me. It is experience as a verb – the rotten relates to “the”
No wonder I had a problem with this one! Vehicle overturned (van) close to freeway (y) Blue = navy (navy blue)?
I enjoyed this and didn’t need to resort to pattern matching but I finished it over a period of days. There were a couple of surfaces that might have been a little risqué for a published puzzle, but I enjoy that sort of thing. 🙂
One thing: 24-across: I can get ENRO out of ‘ONE reversed holding R’ and out of ‘[ONE holding R] reversed’, but I don’t see how ‘ONE holding reversed R’ produces it. Am I missing something?
Thanks,
Steve = : ^ )