Ev Sunday Telegraph Enigmatic Variations 1076 Sunday June 23Rd 2013

[Twit-Who]

Help! No EV on the Telegraph Crossword site or is it just me? Have they omitted the puzzle in the paper too? If they have printed one and anybody can scan and send it to me I would be very grateful. If I know it has been printed I can always go out to buy a copy but that's very annoying when I've already paid for it via subscription. What shall I do without my Sunday EV fix?

[toalisi]

I can scan a copy and send it to you if you give me an e-mail address.

[Twit-Who]

[email protected]

Thank you so much

[toalisi]

On the way.

[Twit-Who]

Puzzle is now on The Telegraph Crossword site.

[Twit-Who]

Brilliant puzzle - loved it. So much going on. So happy I didn't have to miss this one. Not totally sure of my answer to be written beneath the grid but many thanks to Samuel.

[Twit-Who]

I had just submitted my entry as I was feeling more confident of the phrase and in a blinding flash of enlightenment the correct answer came to me. Very clever - unlike me. Oh well....

[dr b]

All done save for one shortish answer: I am also missing one of the 8 thematic entries so it seems they must be the same clue. Will put it down for a bit.

For those of you who keep obsessive track of my whereabouts at all times, I'll be missing the EV fun for the next two weeks as I will be trekking in Washington (state, not DC!).

[jim360]

This is Samuel's first puzzle as the new editor of EV-- I hope he doesn't mind me saying that. Anyway it's a cracker -- took a while to find the theme and was confused until then, but once that hurdle had been crossed everything came together very nicely.

A surprising grid, though -- I'm sure most other setters would have struggled to get away with a 4/10 and 5/11 level of unchecking in a word!

[dr b]

Finally got it. Ha! Good one!

[copelander]

Terrific!

[ringer]

How clever! Not the easiest to complete and even the end game had me struggling. Well worth the perseverance.

[Christiana]

Not quite finished yet. Have also only identified 7 thematic answers, two of which I haven't solved and not yet certain of the 'thematic equivalence' to be written under the grid. I thought I had it but after comments below am no longer sure. Will look again tomorrow

[Christiana]

Well, down to one to do, and found all 8 thematic answers now. I'm staring at 24d which appears to have only one possible answer but so far haven't made sense of it.
Otherwise I've found it an enjoyable, complex and mind stretching puzzle. A great start to Samuel's reign as editor.

[Christiana]

Oh and should have said it's the 'and worry' part of the clue I don't get.

[turast]

Christiana.

Similar worries, but for a different reason. I'm not sure my amended definition is a synonym for my solution. I think the AND in the wordplay is a one letter abbreviation much beloved of those naming shops, hairdressers etc and also often apostrophised. + a three letter word which means worry but can also mean dine. I'm also suffering on my amended definition for 25 across, where I'm placing a G by elimination from my thematic phrase (7,7).

[dr b]

For 24d, both the grid entry and the amended def. share a definition of "undiluted."

[Christiana]

Hi dr b, yes had got the amended definition and grid entry okay, but 'and worry' didn't seem to provide a cryptic element. Have now worked it out (thanks turast). turast the answer to 25a (with capitalisation) has the amended definition as one of its meanings in Chambers.

[kayakamina]

Very late getting to this EV (too much sport on), but a most enjoyable
puzzle by Samuel.

The end game was well worth the head scratching & very clever.

dr b enjoy your annual trek.