Listener 4087 Double Shuffling and Dealing by Auctor

[Ruthrobin]

We have found the clues a step up in difficulty from previous ones and had to go to the Internet for the quotation. Certainly not a puzzle for newcomers this week!

[cluelessJoe]

Agreed s436, though I suppose there is a tenuous connection. Sadly the endgame was anticlimactic for me too.
bobbycollins - great, I was thinking of you yesterday, so pleased they made it. One of the first matches I attended was to see my boys playing Blackpool - memorable because Tony Waiters brilliantly saved two Billy Bremner penalties. We still manged to scrape a 3-0 win courtesy of two goals from who else but Bobby Collins (and I think maybe one from Norman bites yer legs).
Yes, it took them a while to regain their breath after losing Simon Grayson but some recovery! I hope he does not regret the switch to Leeds, but I reckon he'll not be too bothered.
Considering your other (non-tangerine) shirt to see you admitting to supporting Tranmere too - weren't they at one time Liverpool reserves?
Enjoy the ride, it might only last one season but nice to see the unfashionable enjoying their 15 minutes of fame! Cheers

[jacinth]

I've just thrown in the towel. Far too hard for me this week - the first time I've not filled a grid for ages - I can vaguely see what's going on with the definitions, but only have seven answers. Quite looking forward to the numerical...

I'm sure Blackpool will do the double over my Man City next season!

[silversolver]

Like others found this one a bit of a struggle - difficult to get going although once I realised what globaaly affected definitions meant things speeded up considerably. Finally completed the grid and found the author but I have not as yet worked out the four-word phrase. I also seem to have 6 rather than 5 locally affected definitions in the down clues - will have to go through them and see if I have made a mistake somewhere.

[Clamzy]

Bobbycollins - Rotherham. Not much of a team and no home ground these days but although I left the town 40 years ago I still like to keep an eye on the results. There's just a possibility that they could end up in the same league as their illustrious neighbours from Hillsborough.

[midazolam]

put the author or one of the main words into the search facility here:

http://www.askoxford....otation_dict/?view=uk

[silversolver]

Thanks midazolam - I finally got there!

[qwerty99]

Finally got it! By dint of spotting the author, rather than solving the anagram. A somewhat underwhelming PDM!

I'm glad it is a number puzzle next week too, but that's because I can't do them, and as I am going to Turkey for a week on Friday (in search of some cooler weather) I won't have to worry about missing out on my weekly Listener fix!

[tilbee]

Like many found ths tough this week. Have been entertaining most weekend, so only really got a chance to focus on this later this afternoon, For me I found slow perseverance was the name of the game. Have now completed the grid, so time to rest the grey matter before endeavouring on a search for the author - and hopefully thereby resolving the associated quotation.

[qwerty99]

I was held up by becoming fixated with a name found in 16 across, one of whose works has a far less tenuous link with the "general theme" than the correct one; but that work is not a play, so it was a red herring of my own making. There seemed to be a lot of superfluous slog in this puzzle. Cracking the A letters does not aid one's progress, as the grid must have been pretty well filled to identify them, so the omitted letters have already revealed the theme. And it seems you can finish the puzzle without nailing down all the local / global effects. Liked some of the clues though; especially 33 and 36 across

[Zabadak]

Looks like this one's a bit of a Marmite puzzle: I liked the spread of themes, and would most certainly have felt let down if we'd stopped with the A-stuff. I can't see how the play fails to connect with the theme: my version even has a word in common - how could it be closer? I took time out to match up the dislocations because it was fun, and (though I had a wrong shot the first time round) the last of the A letters definitely helped to identify 28d, which I was otherwise flummoxed on.
On other points: perhaps 16a and/or 12 are there as additional bits of thematic deception - decent red herrings, and why not? I also think an earlier version of this puzzle had the B phrase in grid order: it's very nearly there if you check. Having it in anagram form is much more fun (or at least it is when you know what it is - sorry to those who are still struggling!)
Lastly hail and well done to Blackpool, see you at the Lane!

[bobbycollins]

Many thanks to the football fans for all your words of encouragement. This confirms my opinion that this board is used by ladies and gents of refinement and generosity of spirirt. I really do welcome the complete lack of one-upmanship and rancour that rears its head elsewhere.

Thank you all.

[perseverer]

Glad to see I'm not the only one to struggle with this. Took to Sunday morning to get started, then with considerable help from the Chambers CD things began to fall in the place. 28d was my last solve! Was also confused by the first sentence of the rubric. Agree that it is easier to find the author than work out the four word phrase, but the author is not well-known - to me anyway. Trying likely words based on what we were trying to do and what had happened in some clues led me up blind alleys for a while. The English title of the play - not given in my (old) ODQ fits well enough with the theme

[teuchter2]

Thanks for your suggestions as to easyish clues Ruthrobin. I got there in the end, but not through the ones you suggested! 12a was my breakthrough! I'd definitely advise looking for the author rather than trying to solve the anagram. The quotation is in the ODQ.
Its great to hear of someone enjoying footballing success after I have endured a season of rubbish or mediocrity. We have steadily descended to this state since ManU stole our manager! (Admittedly it was a long time ago.)

[Rogue-Elfe]

First of all, Hi to everyone. This is my first reply to a Listener forum, but needed to express the fact that I wouldn't have solved it this week without the assistance of the comments on this board - thankyou.
The most useful, to those stuck on the B quotation, is AHearer's remark. I thought that the 16 letter version (with the extra A) was the correct one until I read that. Note also the exact wording of the rubric, telling you something about the relevance of the quotation itself.
There was also a discussion about the author's name being in a conventional location - I wouldn't exactly say that it is so, however (without hopefully giving too much away) the letters of the name are contiguous and more than one answer is required to 'find it'. (5:18).

[Zabadak]

Hi R-F, and welcome to the board. I like "find it". Very cute, and though I was looking for other hidden authors and such in the grid (just for fun) I hadn't seen it.

[Zabadak]

Sorry, typo. Should have written Rogue-Elfe in full!

[Roundhillbob]

Finally done. A nice puzzle. Thanks to Auctor. I agree that it is not necessary to solve the 'B' letters to get the author; but it is always satisfying to do so - and be doubly sure one has the correct author.
Re R-E's first comment; I think it was not the quotation that was to be relevant, but the title of the play it comes from - which certainly is.

[qwerty99]

I must confess I missed the title of the second play, which was a bit slack; it all makes sense now.

This was the first time I'd used my new Chambers CD-ROM, which arrived the other day. It's quite brilliant! I soon got over the small frisson of guilt. What a time-saver! Might still have to get a paper copy of 2008 though, for the likes of 28 down.

[cluelessJoe]

Nice one bobbycollins ... and here, in a temporary change to my avatar, is a salute to you from Uncle Bob.

[bobbycollins]

cluelessJoe...I thank yow

If your'e interested I've got MP3s of every Theme Time Radio Hour broadcast. I'm sure that I could fit them onto a couple of 10p DVDs. E-mail me at [email protected] or [email protected].