*** TODAY’S PUZZLE ***
In the 24th edition of our attempt to solve a Friday Times crossword, Simon takes on today’s puzzle, which is rated harder than average! Simon guesses this puzzle is by Jason Crampton!!
The puzzle is available to play on The Times crossword club website (which is behind their paywall):
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/puzzleclub/crosswordclub/puzzles/crossword/46173
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The Friday crossword video is always a treat. Not having the arcane knowledge needed to explain the "ab ovo" clue is entirely forgivable.
For testator, I was thinking just in case (in case) someone dies and is put in a coffin (one in box), there is a will for those they leave behind.
Absolutely brilliant! Thank you so much for doing this in such a complete and inspiring way! I really look forward to the next one 🙂 In the meantime, have a great weekend and all the best for next week!
I thought the clue for SWINDLER was quite poor. The last four words of the clue didn't really do anything. I was pleased to get quite a few answers before Simon did, although I still could never have finished the whole puzzle on my own. This one did not require a lot of specifically British knowledge, which I often find a stumbling block.
I bet whoever made this puzzle felt like a genius coming up with that football clue.
Still a great solve, thanks Simon!
Well solved (as usual), a good mix of clues today. Some as easy as ABC and some well above my head.
Got 17 down from the French (as did someone else) fairly easily, but 1 across was a real doozy…didn't like that one.
Looking at this puzzle, I came up with a clue: "one of a kind lust and greed for rupee" (8)
I wonder if this would be valid in a puzzle.
I have watched all of these Masterclass videos, and I think that this one was the hardest puzzle in a video. That 'above' was particularly odd, but there were several other very challenging ones. I don't solve these at all, so they are all impossible for me, of course! Don't be too hard on your brain, Simon! I am beyond impressed!!
Testator==witness in court. Aphorist= AP+ anagram. Ab OVO from latin for 'from the egg' meaning from the start or opening.
You're not a very good lumberjack?
Oh come on, Simon. We all know that you're a lumberjack and you're ok.
This was an incredibly tricky puzzle. And boy, Simon's offhanded "I didn't study classical languages" was some brutal foreshadowing. I felt terrible watching him struggle with 6-Down (now, to be perfectly fair, the only reason I knew about the Latin phrase "ab ovo" is because it occasionally shows up in American crosswords, or sometimes just OVO). But if you've never heard the expression before, there's really no way you can glean it from the wordplay. Every once in a while, we'll all come across a puzzle where, even after we finish it, there's more a sense of frustration or bewilderment instead or joy or relief – it definitely seems like the former for Simon today (still, full marks for solving the puzzle despite all the hang-ups).
I biffed 8 down so just understanding it, really made me laugh.
What a tense finish. I'd looked up ab ovo about 15mins before.
Watching this now from Ottawa, Canada's capital! 🙂
Despite having travelled by train from Turin at 7.36 am to Bath via Paris and London the first thing i did after pouring myself a glass of good pop was to watch in awe , again. Marvellous.
I got 9A straight away. Spoor was easy, once I thought about what game trackers might use.
I got aphorist from the checking letters before reading the clue, so parsing the clue was a doddle. The setter really got into your head on this one. When you had S, T, and O, why did you not consider that "short" also has those letters? You only have H and R to place. If it was Jason's puzzle, and he watched this, I bet he was laughing like a drain after your earlier conversation. I'd love to know if it is his, and his reaction to your solve. Please let us know in next Friday's crossword video if you find out.
Football was a classy clue, as was goldfish bowl.
Shipmates was a bit sneaky, but a nice clue – the question mark was certainly necessary. You really got fixated on smiths, even after working out you only had one I. You didn't seem to notice the question mark, which is usually an indicator of a questionable or quirky definition.
Alphabetical was really nice misdirection, especially as the checking letters also hinted at an -ican ending which would fit nicely with a religious order.
Narrow also was great misdirection.
Singular was also a quality clue, sheep being both a singular and plural noun, but goats only being plural. It was fun use of the quirkiness of the English language. I got this as soon as the checking letters were in place. You'd have been better not thinking about the clue, and just finding a word to fit.
Testator was brilliant, but cruelly fiendish. A to R for "every letter in answer" was hilarious word play. The definition of the legal term for someone in a coffin in an inheritance case was also wonderfully cryptic.
I couldn't get the wordplay for above either. Some searching revealed "ab ovo" meaning from the beginning. I think anyone could be forgiven for not knowing that. Don't be too hard on yourself (not for that clue, at least). You can beat yourself up over not getting some of the other clues, but you were completely in the setter's thrall.
There is indeed a mitre joint. It's the sort you get on picture frames.
Amazed i got some of these before Simon but I couldn’t finish this on my own. I figured out “ab ovo” but only after I had given up. I know it from the Antrobus stories by Lawrence Durrell. Recommend them.
I really appreciate these they are fun to watch even when I can’t do them.
I adore these videos! Look forward to them every Friday!
I am proudly saying that after watching Simon I tried a crossword puzzle in my own language for the first time in my life – and I've got about half of the clues.
I can't help but wonder sometimes if the self-flaggelation that Simon puts himself through drives away more people from cryptics than they want to attract. The point of playing a game is to enjoy yourself; Simon puts such absurdly strict restrictions on himself that casual players think they're somehow 'doing it wrong'.
Was the wordplay for KALEIDOSCOPE explained?
Ab ovo Latin for from opening or again, minus o inconclusive:-)
Will we ever get to see Maverick’s plane?
I think the deal with testator is: "one in box in case" = "the one in the coffin during a court case", that is, in a court case such as a disputed estate settlement the deceased would be referred to by the legal term testator. My time in philanthropic trust management has finally paid dividends on the crossword scene 🙂
4d is possibly the easiest clue ever.
I love this Friday ritual. And I felt very clever when I figured out SPOOR almost at once. OK, that makes one clue, but it's a start. Simon did brilliantly as always — c'mon, man, don't beat yourself up for being slow! 😺
Is testator = “someone who testifies”?
I had five I couldn't do in this, and they were the last five that Simon put in, so I feel slightly vindicated! I got singular but couldn't work out why. I actually worked it out just before Simon.
I was sure that it was "afore": from opening (F, the opening of "from"), a word for inclusiveness (or), and e as the final letter of white
Thanks once again Simon for a brilliant masterclass. That 6 Down was brutal. I did study Latin at school but had never heard of ab ovo.
Ok, no I didn't get the Above and why (well, the Why anyway) but the Comments section is wonderful again. But I got Alphabetical right off the start, Spoor was not instant, but I got it before Simon. Really felt for Simon with "short" being anagramed… and that Above…
for 6-down I was also thinking about "atone", equating the "superior position" with "at [position] one", but couldn't connect it with the "opening" clue.
I think there is another meaning of testator, being someone who gives testimony. Hence the reference to the (witness) box in (a court) case.
I don’t do well on these but I was screaming ”alphabetical” immediately
Simon, I thought that one across goats is a sports reference "Greatest Of All Time".
At first I wanted “from opening” to be DA CAPO but that didn’t work. Fortunately when it came time, I remembered AB OVO from an earlier puzzle. I do think that those who excel at crosswords are those who excel at remembering random definitions and facts.
I have the Chambers dictionary on my phone, and if you look up ABOV? it gives just ABOVE and AB OVO. But apparently the one Simon has on his computer only has the first word.
1 Across. The checking letters yell SINGULAR at me. However I cannot figure out why it should be correct.
Well, I can barely solve the Guardian's Monday cryptic so i can't complain if Simon takes an hour over the week's hardest in The Times 😂. Great Video full of insight and hints. Thanks Simon.
I hope you don't mind if I don't agree that using a dictionary is cheating for me personally. I'm not a native speaker and I'm able to solve big portions of quick cryptics if I use everything I can. Too bad this is pretty much impossible in my language
Ngultrum, the silver coin of Bhutan
When a clue is so clever it brings tears to your eyes when you solve it. More so when you get it before Simon! 😂
Thanks for another brilliant video – you are incredibly brave to do these live like this and show when you are struggling – I hope you know that this really helps us and certainly makes me feel better when I am finding clues difficult too!! Please don't stop making these videos – I am learning so much from you!
Well done, Simon! On a related note, I was reading about The Listener crossword over the weekend, and it says that the current record-holder for the longest streak of correct solutions is one Simon Anthony, at 320. That's extraordinary.
Looking forward to watching this shortly but I wonder: how many editions until this series is no longer a 'bonus' but promoted to a regular instalment! Always enjoy these, thank you
I don't mind your struggles Simon! These Friday 'cryptics' are wonderful.