◀  No. 4102 Mar 1980 Clue list No. 419  ▶

AZED CROSSWORD 414

UNBOSOMER

1.  T. E. Sanders: Bust-reducing agent? Rub some on bust – gets a lot off the chest (anag., 2 defs.).

2.  Mrs B. Simmonds: He could be one interminable bore, having swallowed a few (’un + some in bor(e), & lit.).

3.  S. Goldie: A Mae West for confidence? See Bosun or me for issue (anag., 2 defs.).

VHC

Mrs E. Allen: Enormous? ‘B’ fitting wrong – I might reveal too much (anag.; wrong adv.).

T. Anderson: She simply pours out exposing bally enormous bust without support (anag. less ally).

D. R. Appleton: Ol’ man river was never one; was the Amazon? (2 mngs.; “He don’t say nothin’”; Amazons reputed to amputate a breast).

A. J. Bulman: Penitent sinner? No rum, almost sober, reformed (anag. incl. sobe(r)).

E. J. Burge: To get it off my chest, I pour out what’s bottled up, rub some on freely (anag.).

R. S. Caffyn: One rubs M.O. the wrong way? More than likely! (anag. & lit.).

E. Chalkley: Could reveal what’s almost non-existent without considerable padding (some in unbor(n)).

Dr I. S. Fletcher: I’ve no reserve playing sub no more (anag.).

E. H. Freedman: One prepared to talk freely on mob sure is in trouble (anag.).

R. E. Gillson: Gossip like Agatha’s butcher? (2 mngs.; martyrdom of St A. involved cutting off her breasts).

B. Greer: Number 007? Not even when tortured (anag. incl. 0 0 s(even), & lit.; ref. James Bond).

D. R. Gregory: Still awaiting delivery? Missing letter contains some information I want to share (some in unbor(n)).

Dr J. F. Grimshaw: I confide freely in one local neighbour that comes round a great deal (’un + some in bor).

R. B. Harling: With him, neighbour has to swallow a great deal (’un + some in bor).

Mrs N. Jarman: An awful snub his name aroused that Romeo was to nurse (anag. of snub Romeo).

C. J. Morse: Bunnies’ leader with enormous bust reveals what some would hide! (anag. incl. B; ref. Playboy clubs).

F. R. Palmer: Energy boom runs out, leaving man with no reserve (anag. incl. E).

R. J. Palmer: One commonly has certain touch of reticence about B.O. – I’d tell friend what the trouble is (BO in ’un some r).

Mrs E. M. Phair: Place number’s ‘00’ – to mean one that’s not reserved (anag.).

D. E. Poole: He reveals double-O’s number under stress (anag. incl. O O’s; ref. James Bond).

Mrs E. J. Shields: Remedy some rub on – one to get trouble off chest (anag.).

F. B. Stubbs: Wrong hormone – bust reduced on both sides, I do confess (anag. less h, t).

Dr E. Young: One pours out, developing enormous breadth – suggesting Amazon? (anag. incl. b, 2 defs.; Amazons reputed to amputate a breast).

HC

D. W. Arthur, R. L. Baker, H. J. Bradbury, J. M. Brown, C. O. Butcher, E. J. Collins, A. E. Crow, Dr V. G. I. Deshmukh, N. C. Dexter, P. Drummond, P. S. Elliott, R. A. England, E. R. Evans, J. D. Foster, J. Francis, B. Franco, J. J. Goulstone, D. V. Harry, P. F. Henderson, J. P. H. Hirst, R. Holmes, C. G. T. Hunt, R. Jacks, Miss E. H. C. Jenkins, Mrs D. B. Jenkinson, V. Jennings, B. K. Kelly, Miss H. Kimble, F. P. N. Lake, M. D. Laws, Mrs P. Lloyd, H. W. Massingham, D. G. May, Rev M. R. Metcalf, C. G. Millin, C. J. Milner, H. B. Morton, R. A. Mostyn, K. Nisbet, Lt Cmdr A. R. Nolan RN, S. J. O’Boyle, R. O’Donoghue, S. L. Paton, Miss I. M. Raab, K. Reed, A. Royle, W. J. M. Scotland, Dr W. I. D. Scott, W. K. M. Slimmings, T. A. J. Spencer, D. M. Stanford, L. E. Thomas, D. H. Tompsett, D. V. B. Unwin, V. C. D. Vowles, A. J. Wardrop, Mrs J. Welford, Miss B. J. Widger, C. E. Williams, Miss K. Willis.
 

COMMENTS
507 entries and no mistakes that I spotted. No major perplexities either except for the rather large number who said they hadn’t understood the clue to ARTLESS (He shows heart that is so simple’). I thought this too straightforward to merit a solution note and I dare say there will be a few red faces if I spell out the third word in the clue ‘heART. All clear now?
 
UNBOSOMER provoked a positive orgy of boobs, bums and busts, some of which even brought a faint blush of embarrassment to the cheek of your broad-minded setter. Though undeniably diverting this display of flesh was not entirely called for, in that an unbosomer is not really one who reveals his (or more popularly her) bosom in the physical sense, but rather one who unburdens himself (or herself) of feelings that lie heavy on the bosom or heart. In the broadest sense he is one who reveals anything, which could include parts of the body but need not do so. To define an unbosomer as a sort of striptease artist therefore (without a ‘perhaps’ or an ‘e.g.’) won’t really do. As usual there are ways of (sorry !) covering oneself so that one’s clue may be read as referring to both the general and the particular.
 
With nothing more to say about this puzzle and pausing only to acknowledge the appreciative comments on my St. Valentine’s Day versifying last month, I’ll press on to the business of composite anagrams as promised. No one, I think, would question a clue constructed on the lines of x + y + anagram indicator = z, where x and y consist of one or more words or letters (such as abbreviations, etc.) each, possibly separated by intervening verbiage which indicates that they are to be dealt with together. It is a relatively small step from that construction to one which goes: x is that which + y + anagram indicator would/could give z, or alternatively x is that which z – y + anagram indicator(s) give, where x is the answer to the clue. The first of these two variants (which involves addition rather than subtraction) is both neater and easier to manipulate since I would maintain that in the second the clue-writer should include anagram indicators for both z and y before the subtraction process occurs except in the rare cases when the letters in y may be subtracted from z in their natural order. Those who object to composite anagrams of this kind do so on the grounds that the clue-writer is helping himself to extra letters when those he has to start with look unpromising as anagram material. I can’t deny that this is what he is doing. I do think however that carefully and wittily used, and especially when an ‘& lit.’ clue is achieved thereby, it can be legitimate and very effective. When the size or extent of the addition or subtraction (y in both examples) is too big the clue can become uncomfortably cumbersome and no pleasure to solve (an important consideration). As usual it is for the individual clue-writer to decide whether he has achieved the right balance of succinctness, wit and accuracy to impress the judge. I can’t accept the assertion that the composite anagram is an insidious and unhealthy innovation. Anagrams involving additions and subtractions have been around for years. All that can be said is that a comp. anag. clue will never achieve the same degree of brevity as a clue which restricts itself to the component letters of the clued word. But that is not to condemn it as an acceptable device.
 

 

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