Independent Magazine - Inquisitor #1

[kettledrum]

Can anyone remember this?
I've got terribly behind over Christmas & New Year and only looked at this last night. I 've finished the grid ( and am reasonably confident they're right) but can't progress from there.
- - - - - - - from - - - - (7,4,4)
The first letters of 11 normal clues spell out the 2 words to complete the title.
The letters I've got are F, E, T, R, P, A, B, A, E, E, T.

Where have I gone wrong?

[Quizmonkey]

Wasn't it Message from Loda (or whoever the setter was)? Did it a while back!

[Quizmonkey]

It's all coming back now... the letters to be highlighted in the grid spelled 'Happy new year to all the solvers' (or sthg similar) in the shape of 2007. But it then asked for 9 further 'appropriate' squares to be highlighted - which totally baffled me.

[kettledrum]

Thank you Quizmonkey....I really am going very gaga in my old age....It's first letters of CLUES ( written quite clearly ) and I've been looking at the first letters of the answers!

[Quizmonkey]

No prob - hopefully you got the same as I did. But if you ever do suss out those other 9 letters, I'd love to hear...

[kettledrum]

Yes - thank you v much - I think I've hacked it except that I appear to have an extra A. (in 11a) napped = stole / deperate DAN & P(enny) leaving A & P surplus. I can only incorcorate P into the 2.

[kettledrum]

Sorry! I really am going gaga! It's P & E which fit fine.

[kettledrum]

Do you have the grid in front of you? I can certainly 'talk' you through it.
As you say ' A Happy New Yew to all Solvers'

Numbering columns 1 - 12 & rows A - L

B9 / A2 (A3) B3 C3 D2 E1 / F1 F2 F3 / D4 C5 D6 (E6) (F6) G6 H5 G4 (F4) (E4) / etc

[kettledrum]

or indeed new year!

[ulysses100]

Just to add to the confusion :
A Happy new Year to all Solvers is only 25 letters. The setter has said that there are 28 to be highlighted, plus another appropriate 9. I managed to highlight 26 fairly straightforwardly which include "the" in the 2nd e of 31ac, the t in 34 ac and h in 36 ac.
The word solvers I can make contiguously for solver, but there is a letter in between (b or a) to make the plural.
I suppose that it doesn't make much of a difference now as the closing date is tomorrow !
But I'm glad to know that I wasn't the only one who gave up in the end ! It's so frustrating, especially when the grid is completed.

[kettledrum]

Oh dear! I know I'm no typist, but I really am making a terrible pig's ear of everything today.
Ulysses, I should have written... 'all THE solvers': That then makes 28.
The extra letters are 2 each on the sides of the zeroes ( in 2 00 7) joining the tops to the bottoms, (E6 & F6 and E4 & F4) and the 9th I've highlighted is the 3rd letter of 1a ( to give a curve to the 2)
I've lurched straight from the 4th letter of 36a to the first S in 40a to give the plural - passing between the B & the A.
I've just popped mine in the post.

[Quizmonkey]

Sorry, maybe I'm missing something here... Are you saying that you think the extra letters just 'fill out' the outlined 2007? Surely that would disrupt the message - and couldn't be described as 'appropriate'? I think I threw my grid away unfortunately...

[kettledrum]

I'm afraid that's precisely what I'm saying . I've searched and I've searched - as presumably have you & Ulysses - for another message or something else 'appropriate', and that was the best I could come up with.

[Quizmonkey]

Good luck!

[kettledrum]

Thank you Quizmonkey for all your help. I wasn't really expecting anyone to have much recollection of it so long after 30th Dec. Now I'm going to try to get #2 done before #3 arrives. What's it like?

[Quizmonkey]

Very clever (as usual!), more straightforward - work on a copy, not the original grid!

[ulysses100]

I've only just started on #2 -- and so far have only one clashing square. It looks as if it'll be another difficult one !

[kettledrum]

Thanks for the tip, Quizmonkey - and thanks for sorting me out at the beginning of this exchange.

[ulysses100]

QM and kettledrum -- if you are still on this thread.
For Inquisitor #2 can you explain why tercel is the answer to 21ac ?
Fibre net goes around tip of crow's wing.
Otherwise I've completed the grid. The correct letters are RENFLABSOF ; the alternatives are LEUEWISLES, but from here I cannot see where to go. Can you head me in the right direction please ? (Just a clue thanks)

[mad max]

was just going to post question and found this thread I have TEGMEN for 21a (not sure why apart from definition) and this makes two further clashes MC & LN

[mad max]

my mistake 21a is TENCEL(fibre) annagram NET-C-EL just seen one combination of the letters RENEWABLES?