The Times Crossword Friday Masterclass: Episode 20

** TODAY'S PUZZLE **
In the 20th edition of our attempt to solve a Friday Times crossword, Simon takes on today's puzzle, which is an absolute brute.
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[@codingentity]

Simon: 'I'm immediately thinking of *the answer*' me: 'I'm Immediately thinking I don't know what any of these words are or how english works anymore...'

[@MitsuoRLCoach]

I laughed so hard when Maverick flew over when you were talking about a fanatical airman

[@listey]

🎶 That's C in the corner. That's C in the spotlight. Losing its religion. 🎶

[@darreljones8645]

Two corners, actually. The upper left AND the upper right.

[@Ruddigore]

A truly brutal cryptic today. Having lived just a few yards away from the Grand Union canal for most of my life, my friends and I always referred to it as 'The Cut'.

[@KrisCadwell]

Wikipedia says cryptic crosswords started to appear in the mid to late 1920's. I think it would be interesting to get one of the oldest cryptics and watch you solve it. Would the difference in culture between these time periods make the clues more difficult? I think it's worth a try.

[@ConManAU]

I think the early cryptics were a bit of a mix of "ridiculously easy by modern standards" and "a lawless wasteland where standards don't exist". A lot of the standard forms of cryptic clue were codified by a setter who went by the nickname Ximenes, and you'll see a lot of talk about "Ximenean" cryptics being the standard for tough-but-fair.

[@archivist17]

I think they might demand an in-depth knowledge of classics. I remember a lot of Latin in the Telegraph* in the 70s. * Disclaimer: I have never bought a Daily Telegraph in my life; my dad had it delivered. 😆

[@Shif80]

I think Simon has already done this. Quite recently too

[@Stu_1977_SEmelb]

@@Shif80 A bonus, private video for subscribers, I presume?

[@Shif80]

@@Stu_1977_SEmelb I’m not a subscriber so I don’t think it could have been

[@joeclark5633]

Amazing, thank you Simon; you and Mark really are some of the most generous content producers on the whole of KZbin. At some point, if one of you were able to solve another Listener crossword live on the channel then that would absolutely make my year! Thanks again, and all the best.

[@trisha2584]

Simon struggling on some of the answers (and getting frustrated with himself) is like I am with almost every clue. If Simon thinks he is stupid sometimes then I would hate to think what would he think of my pathetic efforts!! Keep going Simon - you are educating some of us.

[@peterdunlop7691]

I just got an ad for Tesco strawberries “perfect for an Eton Mess” straight after Simon solved 28A. The ad integration in your videos is becoming seamless - thanks AI!

[@Jablicek]

As someone who rarely tackles the cryptic, your managing to get through this one was a form of wizardry. The Tea of Victory was surely awaiting you downstairs after this one!

[@rockhopper_penguin]

Simon, that was a masterclass in how to solve an almost insolveable crossword. Thanks for perservering with it and explaining the solutions. I learn so much from your videos

[@emilywilliams3237]

Kind. There, a kind comment (and truly, as I am typing this, all of the comments here are kind, I would say). This kind of puzzle is beyond me even when the puzzle is not the hardest ever on the snitch rating. The fact that you could do it at all - really, Simon, you are brilliant. Never mind your lack of Latin or whatever else your education may have been missing, you are amazing at these cryptic crosswords. I feel as if I learn more about them every time I watch, and I will eventually be able to solve them if I watch you and Mark long enough! Thanks for the video!!

[@davidrattner9]

More perfectly written words from you. 😃

[@annastevenson27]

Never in a million years would I have finished this. I don't care how long it took you. That was a great watch!

[@longwaytotipperary]

That was hugely tough!! I’m watching for third time to understand what you’ve already explained. Very impressed with your persistence!

[@davidrattner9]

Brilliant from him! Extremely tough indeed. Had to watch couple times myself. 🙂

[@longwaytotipperary]

@@davidrattner9 😁

[@davidperkins3621]

Anyone living north of Watford Gap would know that the Canal is always ‘The Cut” - see also Cruising the Cut!

[@davidrattner9]

Great way to end June! Continous thank you Simon and Mark for solving these! 75 minute?? Doozy today. 😀

[@thecallingtreecompany7261]

Love the videos, mostly listen to them as seeing the screen difficult. Could you mention the length of the answer more often please? Would be a a big help. Keep up the great work!!

[@glum_hippo]

"Damage can start to impair it?" If an alien came to earth and this is the first cryptic clue they encountered, I'm sure they would repair back to their home planet immediately -- or vaporize us forthwith using a very large laser.

[@theak56]

I exclaimed "WHAT, NO!" when Simon typed in "it" to the dictionary and it came up as Italian vermouth. Ludicrous!!! What a clue.

[@arthurcharest9061]

My favorite of the videos so far, what a tough one!

[@MarcMcMillin]

Yaay! It's Friday's Master Class 🙂

[@KestrelQ]

I understood maybe one of these clues lmao, my brain is definitely not wired towards crosswords, but the logic and the speed with which you apply it is astounding!

[@jadeEpeace]

I really enjoyed this one Simon. Its fun when you don’t get the answers immediately as it gave me plenty of time to think of the answers, I still didn’t but it was fun to try! :)

[@andyleighton3616]

COLLEAGUE - Institution (COLLEGE) welcoming A U(niversity) accepting teachinG ultimately. So College containing AGU. But that is one too many G. So not a big fan of that clue.

[@mikechappell5849]

it's telling us to take the word College and add au. Where? not together but around the g. A bit awkward maybe but it works

[@andyleighton3616]

@@mikechappell5849 Yeah I know but I still don't like it. I can't recall a clue constructed like that before (at least not in The Times). Not a clean clue at all - especially when compared to the rest of the grid - which I thought were all good clues (albeit some of them difficult).

[@maavinkayi]

Agree - this clue is simply not fair at all. Even though Simon complained about endless F(INAL)S, I thought that was fair. Not this clue.

[@apiyo_puzzles]

@@maavinkayi Agreed as well. Colleague was an awful, clunky construction that's totally unfair to the solver. If you're using such an unconventional clueing device it can't be presented with additional misdirecting qualities. Regardless, it's just a convoluted construction with no pay off for the solver.

[@peterdunlop7691]

I grew up in Liverpool near the Leeds & Liverpool canal which was known as the cut. Great solve.

[@jonhansen9622]

Wow, a sudoku length hour 15 minutes! Getting the popcorn ready early today!

[@JohnLeeShaw]

Thanks so much for this, Simon! I'm trying to improve my cryptic crossword solving and I learn so much from your videos. I've read some books along the way and they have given me very useful basics, but watching you and Mark live solve, hearing your thought process, is invaluable. Also, I really appreciate you seeing it through, even though you were clearly suffering -- kudos!

[@thedivinemrm5832]

Well done on getting there eventually. Since you overlooked it at the end, "cut" is certainly a valid term for a canal. Yes, I was shouting at the screen!

[@Windgonner]

There is even a KZbin channel named "Cruising the Cut" by a guy living on a narrow boat on the English (mostly) canals.

[@Shif80]

@@Windgonnerlove that channel!

[@vinyl1Earthlink]

I use the technique where I look at all the across clues in order, and all the down clues in order, which gives me all the easy ones up-front - then I start to work on likely areas with multiple crossers. This should produce maximum efficiency, but I'm still usually slower than Simon, never mind Mark. But I still solved several of these clues more quickly than Simon - for example, I put in mourn and face cream right away. But my time on this little beauty was still 60 minutes - I think if Simon was really going for it, he might have finished in 30 or 35 minutes. BTW, Simon, you have overlooked Jason James' incredible time of 5:38, he must be really good at biffing long answers. Even John McCabe came in well over his average solving time.

[@LiamWakefield]

The mere fact that I managed to get 2 answers before Simon whilst he was bouncing between the final clues has made my month. I also had a "how did I not get that"? moment for 1 across. Over thinking can sometimes stifle progress as much as not thinking.

[@grenvillephillips6998]

I made a reasonable start but then got sucked into the blackhole of doubt, ignorance and confusion. Definitely the Eiger north wall of cryptic crosswords. Seeing Simon battle through made for an enthralling video.

[@robmcinroy480]

For the first time with these videos I could feel vaguely smug because we finished this puzzle (probably not as quickly as Simon, spread over the day) but there were a few clues we got relatively easily which Simon struggled with. That said, as usual there were some we struggled with which Simon just typed straight in. Great video, Simon, thanks.

[@richardfarrer5616]

The New Cut in Bristol is an artificial channel to allow the Avon to continue flowing rather than become stagnant while the Floating Harbour retains water in it to stop ships from becoming beached. So canal = cut seems fine to me.

[@andyhanson4235]

Wow a crossword video that’s over an hour. Can wait!

[@GordonjSmith1]

Followed along the whole trek! I agree that a couple of the clues appeared to be 'slightly out of bounds'. However you solved it! Love it.

[@watchmakerful]

In fact, "complaisant" and "complacent" have the same exact origin, but different ways to English: "complacent" came from Latin directly, but "complaisant" via French. By the way, "complaisant" is pronounced with a voiced "s" [z], again due to its French origin.

[@Anne_Mahoney]

I came here to write just that! English has a handful of such doublets; a favorite example in my classes is REGAL (from Latin rex = king) and ROYAL (from French roi, earlier roy, also from Latin rex), along with the non-cognate native KINGLY. Both complaisant and complacent go back to Latin complacēre (careful: pronounced kom-pla-KAY-re, with accent on second-to-last and no "ch" sounds, in classical Latin), but their meanings have diverged a bit in English. Simon, confusing those is hardly a sign of ignorance; don't beat yourself up!

[@no-feetmcgee5577]

Well I did get most of the last bits of the grid before Simon, but certainly wasn't shouting at my screen... those were some brutal, brutal clues! Each one had me sighing in relief and thinking "golly, that's hard!"

[@ServantOfSatania]

I'm quite proud of myself for seeing 1 across and from there 4 down before Simon, even if I'd never even get started were I to do this myself. Didn't even know 4 down was a word but airmen and fanatical didn't leave room for anything else

[@archivist17]

It's good to see you struggling just once in a while. And i, too, was misled on 15 across with the anagram of parent to entrap us! 😉

[@dethbygaming]

Some of these clues were absolutely brutal and I feel the average person would find them completely unfair. I linked inaugural to maiden's, as in a ship's maiden voyage being its inaugural voyage, but had no idea how to make it fit with the wordplay. Same thing with rearranging, it was the only word I could think of that fit and meant changing, but the wordplay was out of my league. A lot of the others I as completely lost on. Also I have literally never heard of the word complaisant until this video. Complacent, yes, but not complaisant. This was absolutely by far the single most difficult crossword I have personally ever seen.

[@zachpekarsky6905]

7:08 for mohn! Kudos to you!

[@listey]

Completely agree that the AlphaGo documentary is awesome. I'm sure if I put a link it'll be deleted but easily searched on KZbin for anyone who has a spare hour and a half.

[@abergavennypeal]

Well done and thank you for posting an honest video! Really enjoy watching. -William_J_S

[@SnugglesPlays]

If it makes you feel any better, I also thought complaisant, in that meaning, was spelt "complacent". In fact, I'm still sure it is, I've never come across the word spelt the other way. I guessed face cream but couldn't figure out why. Well done Simon. 🙂

[@d08scl]

Speaking as someone who is still struggling with the Telegraph cryptic, but nevertheless trying to migrate to the Times, I must say that my reaction to some of the dodgy wordplay constructions was exactly the same as yours… At least it makes me think I may be getting somewhere! Many thanks Simon.

[@bobfish7699]

I got configure in about 10 seconds. Didn't solve a single other clue. So better than normal..

[@nfc153]

Must be that time of year. Today's Guardian cryptic was a nightmare (for me at least but I don't think I was the only one).

[@vinyl1Earthlink]

Do you mean 29,110 by Harpo, or 29,111 by Paul? I always take like to take a shot at the hard ones.

[@grez88uk]

@@vinyl1Earthlink I'm sure he's referring to Friday's (29110), it was ridiculously hard for me, there was 5 or 6 words I'd never heard of, would be interesting to see Simon try it.

[@PaulReinerfelt]

"Configure" was actually one of my first thoughts for 1A but I may have set up too many software applications…

[@davidotoole9328]

Baffling someone could find something unkind to say.

[@Stu_1977_SEmelb]

Simon, as usual you're way too hard on yourself. I was trying to solve along with you, so the video certainly did not feel like an hour and a quarter. If it were me trying to do this video it would have been over three hours long and I still wouldn't have solved more than half of the clues. So kudos to you and thank you immensely for bringing back regular crossword content to your wonderful channel. 📝 🏆 👏 💕

[@richardfarrer5616]

A sharp gimlet: that augers well.

[@andrewgrant6516]

Every day you learn a little something. Today I learned not to be complacent about how to spell complacent.

[@DevilboyScooby]

I appreciate the explanations of where abbreviations come from- I don't care if E is England in the dictionary, who actually calls it E?

[@MultiNacnud]

Best hour and seventeen minutes of the week. Simon get yourself some nutrition, pour yourself a Martini and if you smoke have a fag. Don't forget to relax to it all with a morceau of music, you deserve it.

[@jdudb]

Cut can be slang for canal.

[@glorkspangle]

Do you ever solve cryptic crosswords from other papers? Guardian? Listener?

[@mashpojayde-o]

Well martini’s certainly impair me…. Haha

[@Shif80]

Not knowing the synonym for ‘canal’ may be a geographical thing. I think it’s used more in the midlands and the north

[@mashpojayde-o]

My thoughts re: colleague immediately are that it’s just meaning by accepting teaching ultimately that a and u are surrounding the g? I’m sure I’ll find out soon enough when you get back to it :P

[@jessterine]

omfg being american i was not expecting the answer to 14 across and simon’s easy ability to say it 😅

[@inawoodenhouse]

and on the last day of Pride 😅

[@compacta_d]

I'm no crosswordy, but I think the institution is just a League

[@compacta_d]

I might start though

[@davidhulmes4481]

Cut is a word for canal, used a lot in the north. It was hard so it was good to see you struggle too.

[@beanielowery6017]

me, an american, hearing simon solve 14A in the background: O.o

[@rm-fe7xt]

My gran used to drink 'gin and it' which apparently is a sweet martini

[@333name]

I don't know if I've ever seen Simon so appalled at a puzzle before with the inaugural and colleague words. He's kind of like me whenever I try to do a regular crossword and don't understand it

[@six_5000]

hearing Simon repeatedly say the word for 14-across really did a number on my american ears

[@vinyl1Earthlink]

Also current UK slang for a cigarette.

[@Anne_Mahoney]

It's always had a variety of senses, and the offensive one seems to be the latest to develop (OED has it from the 1920s, with the longer word it's taken from used in this sense about 10 years earlier). There's also a sense in later Middle English, "blemish in a piece of cloth," and the word can also still occasionally refer to a sheep tick. But I agree that the word is jarring over here -- what a way to end Pride Month.

[@willjohnsnow]

@CrackingTheCryptic could it be possible to do a live stream solve of one of these? It would be great to chime in with suggestions etc. E.g. as you solve 27a "Keen reporter's start to the day" I would love have to asked you if you through 'reporter's' was a homophone indicator, and it could have been a homophone of 'start to the day' to mean Keen. (I haven't watched yet to the solution of this clue.) Love these videos as ever, I realised I can access the entire back catalogue of the Times Quick Cryptic, so now I'm not just limited to one a day! (Not sure if that's a good or a bad thing....)

[@ymiros0953]

Hmm yeah I will never solve something like this, shy confused my so much, even when you said coconut shy I was incredibly confused, so I looked it up and what?? The entire thing has nothing to do with neither coconuts nor being shy!

[@richardlyons7582]

What was Marks time?

[@Anne_Mahoney]

We didn't see him in the leader board on Simon's screen, so maybe he hadn't done it yet. But I'm guessing fast, very fast. 😸

[@listey]

Surely The Times should be able to get some fairly basic software able to tell them whether times are real or have been solved offline and input?!

[@Math.Bandit]

Not sure how the software could detect whether someone is solving quickly or just solving based on an answer sheet.

[@vinyl1Earthlink]

@@Math.Bandit - The SNITCH has solved this problem. Our buddy in Australia uses statistical analysis to detect neutrinos - if the times reported do not vary with the difficulty of the puzzle, then the times are not real.

[@Bonar09]

1:16:10 - I have no ability to solve these crosswords, but doesn't the definition part simply refer to "partner" instead of "institution" in this case? A word for Partner = Colleague! No need to define institution, I think?

[@prismaticharpy]

That's right, which is why institution is used as a synonym for "college", which then includes "agu"

[@DevilboyScooby]

Interesting how you ignored your own advice about a superfluous A in the colleague clue - read "a university" but only added u.

[@DaVane]

The Ultramarines are also the iconic chapter of Space Marines serving the God-Emperor of Mankind in Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 franchise. They are painted as a rich, royal blue, and basically they are deployed throughout the galaxy as needed. You can't really get more overseas than that! Marines are basically sea-borne infantry troops deployed by naval forces around the world, the most famous of which are obviously, the Royal Marines of the Royal Navy, and the US Marines, which are part of the US Navy.

[@apiyo_puzzles]

If the colleague clue is intended as you've proposed, I can only see it as a poor clue. It's a completely unconventional clueing device obscured by words that suggest completely conventional ones, not a hint in that direction, and ends with no pay off for the solver - no Aha, no chuckle, no interesting surface read. Surprising the editor let it fly.

[@francesT5877]

I finished slightly before Simon with a mistake that is even more indefensible on my part because I know the word ULTRAMARINE perfectly well. Yes this was a real beast and I really only managed what I did with Simons help. I think I got about one third of these on my own. I wonder if anyone else is having problems commenting. Quite often I don’t get the “add a comment” space. I know I’m not in trouble with KZbin or this channel since I’m commenting now, but I often have to go in and out of the video before I see the space appear. Weird. I’m sure it’s a KZbin glitch.

[@Raven-Creations]

Very tricky, at least in parts. You were hampered by mis-parsing some of the clues (although the setter obviously intended this). You always warn about not taking phrases as written, but you took "length of cloth" verbatim. In fact, it was removing length...of cloth as standard (i.e. flag) giving fag. 14D was face = experience, cream = the best, giving face cream = preparation for features. I had originally assumed it was bog, which left me thinking 14D was "base" something. Complaisant was a tough one, definitely not a word in most people's daily vocabulary. When you said "it's not complacent", I said "yes it is", then realised you were meaning the homophone. Morceau was also an obscure word, although the word play was quite nice. For colleague, I interpreted "a university accepting teaching ultimately" as "A and U are wrapped around the G [in college]". Inaugural was a tough, but nicely worded clue. When the start and end of the answer are from the middle of a clued word, it's pretty tough to get a handle on it, especially when the surrounded word is fairly obscure. I wouldn't go so far as saying it was unreasonable though. I didn't have too much trouble with curtailment. It does help if you know cut can mean canal. I've never seen ultramarine used to mean overseas. Yes, it comes from the Latin meaning over the seas, but as far as I was aware, that was its etymology, not its definition. You seemed to forget that "parent" can be a verb. I got rearranging, but couldn't really justify it using the word play. It appeared to be raging (which seemed possibly a military engagement) around n(ame). I never even considered ran + gig around n. I can find no reference which has anchorite used as an adjective. All dictionaries I have access to only have it as a noun. This seems like a borderline clue, to use an adjective as a definition for a noun. I.e. solitary = anchoritic would be fine.

[@rm-fe7xt]

A valid measure of cloth is an ell - 'L' removed from flag, which is a standard

[@dizwell]

My earlier comment having disappeared for some reason, I'll simply point out that "solitary" can be used as a noun, not just as an adjective. Which makes using the noun "anchorite" perfectly legit.

[@Raven-Creations]

@@rm-fe7xt I did wonder about that, but I wasn't sure L is a valid abbreviation for ell (the measure), whereas it is a valid abbreviation for length.

[@prismaticharpy]

I'm new to cryptic crosswords, but my issue with 3D is that promise is the one hampered by endless exams, or "augur" hampered by "inal" yet it's the other way around, with "inal" being hampered by "augur". I can't think of a way to read it like that though

[@TorgieMadison]

You know... I 've watched tons and tons of your Sudoku videos, and they're always a treat. I like that the rules are presented, the logic followed, and a solution is found. This is my first time watching a Cryptic Crossword, and I have to say, I absolutely hate it. The clues are so coded, to the point of seeming like hostile gatekeeping. The puzzle constructor comes across looking like a pretentious asshole. It's like they *want* to mislead and create misery. Quite the opposite of the Sudoku constructors, who appear to genuinely want the solver to experience moments of joy. I get that not every type of puzzle is everyone's cup of tea, but man... I'll stick to the numbers 😅

[@user-yl3pp8fy9w]

OK these videos are starting to go the way of the Sudoku ones where Simon over explains everything making them too long.

[@robmcinroy480]

this was long because it was an exceptionally difficult crossword which Simon had difficulty with but still explained very clearly.

[@ahope1]

Simon’s explanations were no longer than usual. And, as usual, they were very helpful. Thank you, Simon, for demystifying and clarifying and picking apart each clue with such precision and lucidity! The video was long because the clues were very difficult to solve, as reflected by the puzzle’s Snitch rating, as Simon pointed out at the start of the video.

[@leojs5673]

at 42:29 i felt suddenly called out by simon and almost jumped out of my bed until i realized what he meant