Listener 4348 - Quads By Shark

[TheBear69]

A magnificent follow-up to Shark's Ascot Gold Cup...Thanks for a superb Listener, Shark!

[Vagans]

Indeed! Magnificent construction, and a completely fair challenge.

[Cagey]

I think I have finished, I think I understand what the second instruction is wanting me to do, but do not actually understand the instruction. Given where I end up though reasonably sure I have all but one letter nailed down. A. Real challenge, and a good one. My other half went out just as I was starting a small glass of wine and the crossword. She got back three and a half hours later to find me still cross legged on the floor, the glass untouched and the crossword just about done. That must surely be testament to a challenging and engaging puzzle. Thank you Shark.

[jim360]

Grid-fill fairly easy. First instruction also obvious, and quite remarkable to see it work. The rest? Hmm ... not really sure I understand what's going on.

[aldanna]

I thought this was quite brilliant. How it was planned to ensure real words everywhere I simply can't imagine. As Jim says, the gridfill was relatively easy, but I roped in Himself and we spent at least as long on the totally satisfying endgame. Many thanks, Shark.

[perseverer]

It's hard to believe that it is actually possibly to meet the constraints Shark set for himself, so hats off to him for that. Having said that, it took me longer to understand and execute the endgame, than to fill the grid, and I always think filling the grid should be the main thing in a puzzle.

[upsetter]

We have got plausible first and second versions but have not understood 2, must have over-simplified 3 and have no means to apply 4.

[TheBear69]

Correction: The Ascot Gold Cup winner was Rood which is a collaboration of Shark and Nudd; so Shark was co-winner.

[tilbee]

A magnificent construction indeed, but although all else is clear I find myself with one cell still to fill (related to instructions and 31d). Came here to check whether there may be a misprint, but clearly not, so need another look.

[tilbee]

Looks like I did Shark a disservice and now understand the full splendour of the construction. Many thanks to Shark.

[Cagey]

My grid is now fully done too.Well done Shark, a top puzzle.

[fyellin]

Missing one letter. Very exasperating. . . .

I was hoping that the instructions would end up resolving the ambiguity, but it seems not to only eliminate one of the three possibilities.

[upsetter]

Got there in the end.
it was a fantastic piece of construction but rather a mechanical grind to get to the final denouement.

[Nudd]

Thanks for the mention TheBear69 - but I think that from this puzzle it's pretty obvious where credit for our AGC grid construction is rightly due! Another stunning effort from Shark who never disappoints - a salute from the od half of Rood.
Superb, keep them coming Shark.

[borealis]

Wow.

Got stuck where fyellin was for a bit, but as generally with a good Listener, no ambiguity at the end. No many contributions here yet for a Sunday, so I assume others are taking some time on this, too - encouraging!

Thank you very much indeed, Shark.

[UglyUncle]

Addictively absorbing, with a wonderful succession of PDMs (inter alia). I simply cannot understand how so many essential variables can have been accommodated, or how long the whole thing must have taken to assemble. Any chance of a setter's blog? As someone whose setting efforts have never been more than sporadic and pedestrian I am in awe of masters like Shark. Certainly a contender for POTY.

Fyellin, the second instruction removes the ambiguity that I think you're referring to.

[AHearer]

A masterly construction by Shark. I particularly like the way the various instructions had to be used to come up with the final unambiguous solution. I think I spent more time on this one than on any previous puzzle this year. Generally I am not in favour of puzzles where the end-game takes much longer than the initial grid-fill, but that's bound to be a very subjective opinion, and also very dependent on how long it takes the various Ps to D. Thanks, Shark.

[icynorth]

I can only describe that construction as 'showboating'.

Oh, and 'brilliant'.

[borealis]

Doing the Listener often provides an introduction to new words. I think I had to use Chambers to look up more words to finish this puzzle than in any other single Listener in the past; anyone concur?

[olichant]

Brilliant.

[moffat]

Fishy torture (last week) might include eelectric sharks to the pollocks. At least it might give the bloater a haddock.