Listener 4154: Downsizing by Dilwitch

[midazolam]

Another debut! I am usually not one for Listener's where there's no PDM etc but I enjoyed this one. Difficulty enhanced by the difference in definition and wordplay together with some tough clues.

Good clues were the & lit in 16A, the clever wordplay in 7D and excellent 1A. I also liked the new usage of waterboard in 38A

Less favourable clues were the odd 28D (wordplay being the whole clue and definition being only half - just doesnt work), 11A (definition veering away from BRB - although given my avatar..say no more!) and the obscurities in 15A (capitalisation & random made up word)

Overall a fun, challenging debut. Thanks Dilwitch

[email protected]

[jim360]

In response to clamzy - I did actually go on to solve this mostly on my own and the "bring in the hint givers" was a bit premature on my part. In my defence I'd looked at 4154 for about an hour, say, by then, with not much progress. Then, as often happens when you hit a wall and walk beside it for a while, you find a gap, cross it and make rapid progress then on to the next wall.

I worked through this puzzle in such gluts, starting with recognising the anagrams in three or four clues (but not yet solving them because the words were new to me), and then breaking into 3d, 26a, 14a... top half mostly done that evening over about 4 hours, and then another wall. Bottom half over by the end of the day, save for 39a.

Time was when I collected all the TImes crosswords over a period of a couple of months, and working backwards from solution to clue I got the hang of it then went forwards again until I could solve them properly. It was a good feeling completing my first! Since then I dropped away from the Times (not enough time, ironically...) but picked it back up again. Attempting listeners because I'm getting bored of skipping over them!

Incidentally, how can you join the Friday club when I only get the Listener in the Saturday Times?

[BlackHugh]

Jim - to join the Friday club (not that I am a member) you need to first join the Times crossword club online. The Listener is published there on Friday at 4pm.

[jim360]

Ah I see. Thought it would be something like that.

£25 per year? Might think about it.

[trux]

Re : TCC - I live in Geneva and a Saturday hard copy of the Times now costs SFR 7,80 which is about £ 6 or $ 10 .... so the £ 25 a year sub - and the fun of getting the Big L ahead of time - is an absolute snip IMHO ...

[jim360]

Probably right. I might subscribe at some point, right now though I'm still getting into listener mode so might wait a while and anyway university year starts soon so might not have the time needed to devote 6+ hours every weekend plus some time on weekdays.

[ichkeria]

"I take back the 28D clue (soemwhat), looking in BRB I can see where Dilwitch was coming from. However if the clue was simply GRASS it would be more impressive and work better. I will await the backlash from the Ximeneans! "

I don't agree -the definition of the answer in Chambers would make "grass" on its own a questionable definition. "Grass up", OOTH, is just perfect.

[easterfool]

Joined teh Friday clube - but unfortunately a week late! Enjoyed this one and most of the comments. I started the Listener many years ago, having been introduced to it by a friend (who remains one!). I also got a lot of help, particularly with preambles that made little sense to a poor lad from the barbaric and illiterate North. I'm in favour of people enjoying what I have enjoyed - so Jim - good luck with University (which?) and with finding the time to keep your hand and brain in.
I take my hat off to Dilwitch and all the setters who come up with new ideas and new looks at old ideas.
Must start on the next one soon - still won't make the Friday (1st) club!

[Mysterons]

Is there a typo in the wordplay of 4 down - ? should be "fins de siecle"

[perseverer]

Mysterons - are you looking towards a clue answer one letter different from the correct one, but then the downsizing would not work?

[jim360]

It's Cambridge, easter.

[Mysterons]

Thanks for your reply perseverer, but if you mean an L for an E in position 5, then no. However, I was reading the definition as the first 2 words, and I now think that the second clue word is actually the wordplay for the first 3 letters of the grid entry, so 'fin' singular would work fine (I had over-complicated the wordplay to read it as S and E (in French), being the ends of siecle).