Spectator 1860

[greyfox]

Here you are Spectator fans:

http://www.spectator.co.uk/article_assets/arti cledir_1230/615296/crossword.pdf

Have fun!

[cruciverbali]

Thanks greyfox - always good to get the Thursday fix !

[kayakamina]

Thanks for the link greyfox.

Can sit down with a coffee and battle with 'DOC'

[kayakamina]

Not one of his stiffest challenges once i'd realised the 'positioning' of the title.

[Rapparee]

Thanks for the link, greyfox.

[Lezapping]

Thanks for the link, Greyfox! Greetings to Rapparee and Kayakamina and Cruciverbali! I am enjoying this one, what with all those sneaky anagrams! Now, I know full well that the title is significant as usual,but I just can't see it yet! Can someone give a hint? The "positioning" of the title??? I will keep looking with this in mind. Ad thanks in advance for any pointers!

[shaneystar2]

Hold hands with me Lezapping..I am about half way through it and cannot see the connection either !

[Lezapping]

Well, I don't feel too badly when I find myself in the same boat as the luminaries...I am not quite halfway yet, but it's coming along nicely...Cheers! And as the French say, "bon courage", Shaneystar2!

[kayakamina]

Lezapping

Don't confuse the title numbers! 23 does not mean Twentythree, & 56 is not fiftysix!!

Good luck K

[Rapparee]

No one has mentioned the anomaly at 22a where the clue leads to the answer EVANGEL but this is not the word to be entered. This held me up for a while as I had written it in with a fair degree of certainty but eventually had to erase it and look again.

All done and dusted now, thankfully!

[Quizmonkey]

What a pointless crossword! Must be one of the worst 'advanced thematics' I've done in a long time. You finish and think 'is that it?'. Nul points.

[midazolam]

rapparee - i got the answer early on but it was one of the last to enter as I couldn't see the reasoning for Gospel?

[Rapparee]

Midazolam

I came up with EVANGEL as the definition of Gospel and the wordplay goes
foremost = van, set = gel
so I get E VAN GEL

Of course EVANGEL doen't fit so I'm left with NEA?E?T.
I've put in NEAREST as there seems to be a sort of indication of anagram of Eastern. That would leave foremost being the definition of nearest - but is it? I have strong doubts. I think the wrong clue has been printed in the first place (not for the first time either).

[greyfox]

I think the wrong clue has been printed as Rapparee suggests as his/her reasoning for Evangel seems entirely correct.

NEATEST also fits what's left. What should a confused solver do?

[greyfox]

I've emailed Doc about 22 across. If he replies I'll let you know.

[Rapparee]

Thanks, Greyfox. I was going to settle for NEAREST but if Doc can clear it all up so much the better.

[kayakamina]

greyfox I took it as one of the undefined clues mentioned in the preamble - let's see what Doc says.

[greyfox]

Aren't the undefined pair 17 and 18 down kayakamina?

[kayakamina]

They are!

I shouldn't refill my glass quite so early in the evening!

Cheers

[midazolam]

yes agree with you all, nearest goes with the clue except gospel, so will await doc's reasoning