CCCWC Christmas Special 2018 competition results
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37 clues entered. 32 votes cast (27 competitors, 5 others).
TURKEY (STONES) (Wrong Number)
We finished 2018 with a very close run contest, with Don Manley squeaking home by a mere point! Perhaps the different approach from the other contenders made the difference, so well done Don! His first win for a while and good to see him back on top of the pile!
Tough luck to Pete Milne who was that mere whisker behind – his second podium in a row rounding off a fine year for him.
Bhalchandra was even closer in third – just a half point the difference! Bhalchandra has been having a fine run of form – one to watch in 2019?
Tom Borland completed his excellent year with yet another top 5 finish! Steve Randall completes the podium with very similar wordplay to Tom. Another who scores two top 5 finishes in a row.
And that completes another year of fine competition…
ANNUAL RESULTS 2018
…hearty congratulations to Tom Borland who is one of our most comprehensive winners of the Annual Competition ever – a superbly consistent year and a well-deserved victor!
Congratulations to the chasing pack of David McKie, Pete Milne, Satyen Nabar and Steve Randall who along with everyone else who took part this year have contributed much entertainment – thanks to all and good luck for 2019!
| Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | Don Manley | For me, Christmas is the pits — your take, having demolished seconds, must be different! | anag. less o, a; pits | 38.5 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | 4 | Pete Milne | At leaving, UK treaty rocks country | Anagram of UK+TREATY minus AT. Anagram indicator = rocks. Rocks = stones. Def = country. Ref Brexit. | 37.5 | 1 | 2 |
| 3 | 11 | Bhalchandra Pasupathy | Country heading for recession, yet UK rocks | def:country; (R YET UK)*; rocks as anag indicator(v) also meaning stones(n); surface referring to potential fallout from Brexit | 37 | 3 | 1 |
| 4 | 30 | Tom Borland | UK entry rocks, leaving Norway an abject failure | *UK E(N)TRY; def. an abject failure; rocks = stones; ref. Eurovision | 33 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | 35 | Steve Randall | When finally released, UK entry rocks the country | Anagram of UK ENTRY minus [whe]N | 29.5 | 2 | 1 |
| 6 | 32 | David McKie | UK try renegotiating with Europe? It's the pits, ratings-wise | UK TRY E (anag) – turkey as in ratings flop; pits | 27.5 | 1 | 4 |
| 7 | 29 | Anthony Bradley | Two pounds of this meat makes folk truly swell in the middle! | &lit comp anag: (LL OF TURKEY) = (FOLK TRULY E); pounds | 23.5 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 | 31 | Vinit Wankhede | UK treaty on the rocks – not a time for Christmas feast (6) | Christmas feast – definition, UKTREATY – fodder , on the rocks- anagrind , not a time – deletion of AT, UKTRE(-at)Y* | 19.5 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | 5 | Brian Dungate | Bird disheartens jailer | BIRD = def.. TUR (-N) KEY (disheartens jailer); DISHEARTENS = STONES def.. n.b. Bird also = prison, so improved the surface reading | 18.5 | 2 | 3 |
| 10 | 10 | Satyen Nabar | Complete failure rocks EU! Try to accommodate UK finally | (EUTRY)* around (-u)K; rocks= extra defn and anag ind, complete failure= defn | 17 | 3 | 2 |
| 11 | 9 | Bomb that rocks theatre? | Bomb = failure; a commercial failure (especially in the theatrical world) is known as a turkey. 'rocks' = 'stones' | 15.5 | 1 | 3 | |
| 12 | 22 | Security risk rocks this country, crisis? (6) | (security risk)* = (TURKEY + crisis)*, composite anagram, def=this country ; rocks (stones), used as an anagram indicator | 13.5 | 3 | 1 | |
| 13 | 19 | Initially, unforeseen red tape rocks island country | Initials, U + R + T anagram ('rocks'), key = island – a post-Brexit vision | 13 | 0 | 2 | |
| 13 | 26 | "The Heartless Screw" -at the box-office, it's the pits | TUR(N)KEY. Def.(1) "at the box-office, it's the pits" (2) "pits" (i.e.. (fruit) stones) | 13 | 0 | 4 | |
| 15 | 8 | Blockhead pits Tory against confused UK Queen (6) | Blockhead (Turkey) pits (stones), deletes centre of Tory (leaving TY), to go against (i.e. near) confused (anagram) UK +queen (ER) = TURKEY | 12 | 1 | 1 | |
| 16 | 28 | Three strikes for heartless warden | In tenpin bowling a turkey is 3 strikes in a row, TURnKEY; strikes (i.e. makes a violent attack on) | 11 | 0 | 3 | |
| 17 | 24 | Starts to take up rocks on important land | T[ake] U[p] [R]ocks + KEY; def = land; def for STONES = rocks. | 10.5 | 1 | 2 | |
| 18 | 3 | A true Yank rocks, pulling a Northern bird for Christmas. | true Y(an)k/rocks. Anagram of true y(an)k pulling (removing) (a [N]orthern); rocks is indicator plus def. for stones; turkey is a bird; "for Christmas" is superfluous, but makes it seasonal. | 9.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 19 | 34 | What starts to undergo roasting, vital for one of the jewels of Christmas fare. | Starts..T/o U/ndergo R/oasting…KEY = vital…stones/jewels. | 8.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 20 | 37 | Your trek rocks! (or not) in Eurasian land | (YoUr TREK)* | 7 | 0 | ||
| 21 | 23 | Silly nuts stripped and flipped over by river on island | silly (n) = def (turkey = fool); nuts stripped = UT; TU flipped = TU; river = R; island = KEY; nuts = stones (testes) | 6 | 1 | 1 | |
| 22 | 7 | Bird's randy days return with a lot of weight gained | TUR+KEY (with a lot of weight = key) weight = stones | 5 | 2 | ||
| 22 | 12 | Fool cobbles together flipping humdrum clue | RUT</KEY; cobbles = stones | 5 | 1 | ||
| 24 | 18 | Hollow entry Kurt cobbles into a flop | Anagram of E(ntr)Y and KURT, flop = definition; cobbles = stones | 4.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 25 | 27 | This bird across estuary rocks in a storm. | Anag (in a storm) TURKEYACROSS <-> ESTUARYROCKS. ROCKS -> STONES | 4 | 0 | 1 | |
| 25 | 36 | With busts covered, "Ruby's Kutest Revue" audibly a flop | anagrind = review (revue audibly), fodder = RUYKTE (Ruby's Kutest – busts), def flop = TURKEY, extra def rubies (Ruby's audibly) = STONES | 4 | 0 | 1 | |
| 27 | 17 | Holiday group has right to substitute island with another in ME territory | TUI with r for I + key; group = (Rolling) Stones | 3 | 0 | 2 | |
| 27 | 20 | Present course UK and EU leader try rocks | *UK+E+TRY ind by rocks(falters); present course=(Christmas) turkey | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| 27 | 21 | Security risk as crisis rocks Middle Eastern state. | Rocks *security risk = crisis + Turkey (Rocks = stones). | 3 | 1 | 3 | |
| 27 | 33 | Weights announced in song when this is on the menu with vegetables, nips off home maybe (6) | Weights = stones: Weights announced = waits: vegetables nips off = TUR(nips): home = KEY. | 3 | 0 | ||
| 31 | 1 | A balls-up! Van's to be found here, dimwit! | Balls = testicles = stones (slang – ref Chambers). Balls-up + Turkey = a failure; Van = a town (and a lake)in eastern Turkey; a turkey = a fool or inept person. | 2 | 0 | ||
| 31 | 15 | Georgia's neighbour can guard an unspecified number of stolen jewels (6) | Georgia's neighbour = definition , can guard = turnkey (prison guard) an unspecified number of stolen = remove 'n' + jewels = stones | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| 31 | 16 | Good cobbles trimmed right in southeastern European republic | G + (c)OBBLE(s) + R = GOBBLER, double definition TURKEY bird and country, COBBLES = STONES | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| 31 | 25 | The country is cold by St Stephen’s Day | St (stones weight); 2 meanings; i.e. cold turkey, St Stephen’s Day = 26 Dec | 2 | 1 | 2 | |
| 35 | 2 | A completed brick construction project ready to go but without the n'th key | Turnkey building project less the letter n. brick = stones, key = letter of alphabet and link to turnkey, | 0 | 0 | ||
| 35 | 6 | Bird leads to riches kept under the rocks near empty hollow (6) | Def: BIRD; Def of Stones = ROCKS which is also anagram indicator ; Anagram of {R(-iches)K(-ept)U(-nder)T(-he)}*+ E(-mpt)Y Leads to is the acrostic indicator and hollow the indicator for deleting middle letters of Empty. Surface could be a sequence from a fairy tale | 0 | 1 | ||
| 35 | 13 | Fool. You are, they say, bound by two weights. | You are (UR), two weights T(ton) and KEY(drug slang for a kilo). With "weights" being STONES. | 0 | 0 |