Listener 4020: Raj by Llig

[midazolam]

Even though the weekly link for the listener has been taken away, I thought I would create a thread anyway.

Llig gave us a fairly straightforward puzzle last year concerning Ralph Vaughan Williams, and this one is also a fairly easy, but satisfying, effort. (Compared to last 2 weeks)

Lots of anagrams and hidden answers for beginners to the Listener world. Enjoy and if anyone misses the paper tomorrow I can e-mail a copy of the crossword to you:

[email protected]

[cruciverbali]

Rollo, The Times may change, but people generally don't. As I always say (or was it Terence ?), 'Quot homines, tot sententiae'.

(O-Level 1977)

[Sarrie]

I agree with you Lewap: the shorter one should have been
connected with the other one, in my view. There was an
obvious candidate to link with the longer one, if I am not
barking up the wrong tree.
(Latin O Level)

[Lewap]

Ah yes! - incidentally, Philoctetes, that was my final answer too...Classics at Bristol Uni for me.
Lewap

[bobbycollins]

Nice one Terence!

Had to look it up though. 1968 O-Level not up to the job without a hint.

I'm temorarily indisposed with a dodgy knee so have taken a few days' leave. Nothing to do but read and crosswords. May I recommend this week's Spectator & Mephisto? I found both more difficult than the Listener under discussion. Off to do AZED before the Leader of the Opposition gets home.

[robinruth]

Only just completed it (thanks Midazolam, we are snowbound in the Alps with more falling and no access to the Times).
We found the quotation difficult to spot at first - missed the obvious three-letter hint.
I have to agree that the 'possible alternative for the shorter high-lighted word' might have been preferable.
Like Clueless Joe, O level then four terms of extra A level Latin to fill free periods but I went on to teach it to Americans who invert all the declensions (porta portae porta portam portae porta etc.) Picture that for a headache.

[ziller]

Can someone please explain the wordplay for 1ac?

[Cruncher]

Hi Ziller - guess that depends on what answer you got....

There's a missing A in the grid answer which adds to the final letter of the answer to give a word for rock (lava). The first three letters of the answer are a reversal of a word for John (= toilet)

[ziller]

Thanks Cruncher.

I had (hope no-one minds me posting this) 'tala'. I realise now that John = lat - couldn't see that - & never heard of 'aa'

All clear now...........cheers!

[Cruncher]

You're welcome

[Mysterons]

Can I too add my praise for this uncomplicated puzzle. Given the clear theme I did wonder why this one was not published a week later ?

[perseverer]

A week later you want a happy ending?

[bobbycollins]

Off subject but I owe a Thank You to Growf.

I am catching up on a back log of puzzles whilst hors de combat, and was struggling to finish Spectator 1898 until a google produced an Answerbank posting from growf advising that a list of Spenser's nereids could be found at the end of Canto XI of book four of The Faerie Queene. Thanks, growf.

Whilst googling I was saddened to learn that Spenser was an advocate of razing Ireland to create famine conditions. It rather put me of the chap.

[rabet]

I agree absolutely with the earlier remarks concerning the teaching of Latin. I was taught the subject in the 1950s, so I'm practically a contemporary of Caesar et al.

Enjoyed the puzzle but I too was not entirely happy with one of the highlights.

[Philoctetes]

Tried googling the two words, and (though I understand not a lot of what was written) it seems that a one of them was approaching the other on Feb 6th. But i would suggest this is tenuous in the extreme, and suggests I have too much time on my hands!

[Mysterons]

Not at all Philoctetes, it's a great discovery, and might well explain better the timing of the puzzle !

[Apache4D]

Despite the step change in difficulty, I still enjoyed this one and thought that the highlighted sections were very clever(though lucky the number of cells was specified, or I would have been looking for a certain 6 letter sibling for some time!).

The title also made me chuckle, I was definitely sold a dummy on that one till the quotation became clear.

As for me, have not studied any later since pre GCSE, and am an Engineer :)

[Apache4D]

......that would be latin, lol......i'll credit that to lack of sleep!