CCCWC May 2019 competition results
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60 clues entered. 37 votes cast (34 competitors, 3 others).
MERCURY
Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 45 | Tom Borland | Pity about our defaced planet | MERCY (pity) about (O)UR; def. planet | 45 | 1 | 4 |
2 | 44 | Steve Randall | Pity about lack of love for our planet | MERCY around [o]UR | 37.5 | 0 | 4 |
3 | 42 | John Appleton | Number 1 for Mötley Crüe, playing extremely rowdy metal | M[otley] + CRUE* + R[owd]Y | 25.5 | 1 | 3 |
4 | 21 | Dhirendra Tripathi | God's blessing protects ancient city (7) | MERCY (blessing) around (protects) UR (ancient city). Definition: God (in Roman religion and mythology). | 24.5 | 1 | 3 |
5 | 26 | John Fidler | Heavy metal singer | Double definition, mercury the element + ref to singer Freddie Mercury | 23.5 | 1 | 1 |
6 | 57 | Daan Wesselink | This you see rising when it's sunny outside | Down clue. CU (you see, both text abbr., rev.) in MERRY (sunny) &lit. it's = it has. | 22 | 0 | 4 |
7 | 38 | John Tozer | Metallic element that’s sloshed around | Cu in merry, & lit.; sloshed = drunk | 21 | 0 | 2 |
8 | 9 | Jeffery Robinson | Copper taken in by cheerful courier | MER<CU>RY [Mercury is a courier service as well as a messenger god] | 20.5 | 0 | 1 |
9 | 1 | Satyen Nabar | An element of compassion embodies maturity essentially | MERCY around (-mat)UR(-ity) | 18 | 1 | 3 |
10 | 6 | Jane Fitzpatrick | Chaos may recur without a divine messenger | Chaos = anagram indicator, 'may recur' without 'a' = fodder, divine messenger = definition | 16 | 0 | 4 |
10 | 41 | Josie Barnes | Most excellent curry cooked for the one at table number 80 | m e curry* | 16 | 0 | 2 |
12 | 8 | Classic American car thief | Dbl def: Edsel Ford car developed in 1938; Hermes/Mercury, patron god of thieves and a thief himself | 14 | 0 | 1 | |
13 | 18 | God: "Heavens shalt protect the City of Abraham" | MERC(UR)Y | 12 | 2 | 1 | |
13 | 55 | Slightly drunk, pinches copper's revolver (7) | MERRY (slightly drunk) around (pinches) CU (copper), def = revolver | 12 | 1 | 2 | |
15 | 32 | I prepared curry for the Queen! (7) | ME (CURRY)*, def:the Queen (ref to Freddie Mercury) | 11 | 0 | 1 | |
16 | 28 | H.G. Wells initially revealed the elementary nature of barometers | Wells initially = HG, chemical symbol for Mercury = the elemental nature… | 10 | 0 | ||
16 | 34 | Messenger causing laughter hugging copper | mer-Cu-ry | 10 | 0 | 1 | |
18 | 12 | Cure my runs “Doctor Quicksilver” | *CURE+MY+R(runs); ref Thomas Dover MD aka “Doctor Quicksilver” | 9 | 0 | 1 | |
19 | 15 | Ferments recur in my small world (7) | RECUR* in MY | 8 | 1 | ||
19 | 39 | Middle Eastern curry powders could be extremely hot (7) | ME CURRY*, Def – Could be extremely hot | 8 | 2 | 2 | |
19 | 56 | Space missions initially suggested by Wells? | Hg is the chemical symbol for mercury. HG Wells was a science fiction writer, etc. America's first manned space missions were named Mercury. | 8 | 0 | 1 | |
22 | 22 | God’s grace embraces purity without pity | Container: mercy around p(ur)ity | 7.5 | 1 | 4 | |
22 | 33 | I'm boiling up curry, it's seen to rise as it gets hotter? | I'm = ME…CURRY (anag) | 7.5 | 2 | ||
22 | 50 | Queen's messenger (7) | Mercury: a Roman god depicted as the winged messenger and the singer with Queen (band). | 7.5 | 0 | ||
22 | 60 | Writer cooks curry for Freddie (7) | ME (writer) + anagram of CURRY with cooks as indicator for Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen | 7.5 | 0 | ||
26 | 2 | An element of "the Time Machine" initially described by Wells (7) | Mercury clock HG = Mercury | 7 | 1 | ||
26 | 4 | Brims of Homburg historically treated with this? (7) | Semi&lit Brims of Homburg = Hg (chemical symbol for Mercury) Manufacturing felt for hats (including Homburgs) involved treating animal fur with Mercury | 7 | 0 | ||
26 | 10 | Copper's entertained by Festive Freddie | MER(CU)RY | 7 | 0 | ||
26 | 53 | Ruth goes around old city for the Messenger God (7) | Ruth – mercy going around UR (old city) Messenger God is def | 7 | 0 | ||
30 | 7 | Cheerful when about 29 — or 80! | Cu in merry, ref atomic numbers of copper and mercury | 6.5 | 1 | 1 | |
30 | 58 | Toxic element obtained from Middle Eastern curry masala (7) | Definition: Toxic element. Anagram of (M E CURRY) with masala as indicator | 6.5 | 1 | ||
32 | 5 | Centre of Brighton disoriented messenger | centre of BRIGHTON = GH; GH disoriented = HG; HG = mercury (Mercury = messenger) | 6 | 1 | 3 | |
33 | 25 | Heavy metal god seen with Wings | Double definition: Element + Roman deity | 5.5 | 0 | ||
33 | 51 | Reasonably heavy metal coated with jolly heavy metal | mer(Cu)ry | 5.5 | 0 | 1 | |
35 | 49 | Queen's lead singer slightly tipsy, embracing copper | ref: Freddie Mercury; MERRY round CU | 5 | 1 | 1 | |
35 | 59 | What typifies the volatility that has gone up during the time of May (7) | DD, 1. What typifies volatility – quicksilver 2. mercury (temperature) rising in the month of May | 5 | 0 | 1 | |
37 | 3 | Blend half of meat with curry for good-King-Henry (7) | me(at) + curry anagram ; def good-King-Henry(mercury plant) | 3 | 0 | ||
37 | 40 | More than half-cut, entertained by cheery, sunny neighbour | CU in MER RY; Mercury is closest planet to Sun | 3 | 0 | ||
37 | 43 | Oddly recur in my temperature indicator (7) | direct=temperature indicator. ERCUR=recur (oddly=indicator), MY = my (in=indicator) | 3 | 0 | ||
40 | 37 | Metal somewhat hammered around transforms into another (7) | Metal -CU somewhat hammered (drunk) – MERRY another (metal) – definition | 2.5 | 0 | ||
41 | 14 | Envoy regulating commerce under Romans originally occupied by Jove! | Initial letters within My!, andlit. Ref. Roman god of commerce, messenger of Jupiter | 2 | 0 | 1 | |
41 | 48 | Queen’s lead envoy used to take the temperature | Triple definition: Queen’s lead (ref. Freddie)/ envoy = messenger/ used to take the temperature | 2 | 0 | ||
43 | 19 | God, in Burgundy, drink’s hot stuff. Resistance evaporates! | MER [ie, French for sea, aka drink]+ CURRY – R(esistance). Ref. the Roman god Mercury. | 1.5 | 0 | 1 | |
43 | 24 | He was a messenger for heavy metal | Two definitions | 1.5 | 0 | 1 | |
43 | 29 | Home Guard initially not belonging to this planet? | Home Guard initially is HG or the chemical element mercury which is not found in planet Mercury. | 1.5 | 0 | ||
43 | 31 | I object to copper riding in a luxury car with an unknown singer. | I (as object) = me + cu = copper in R(olls) R(oyce) + y (= unknown [maths])/def: (Freddie) Mercury – late singer of the group "Queen". | 1.5 | 0 | ||
47 | 17 | Freddie cooked curry-mee briefly | Freddie (Mercury) cooked = anag. of 'curry-me(e)' biefly | 1 | 0 | ||
47 | 20 | “God ordered rest days to be free from work!” –Mystery Crusader | Anagram (work) of MYSTERYCRUSADER minus (to be free from) RESTDAYS (ordered) | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
47 | 35 | Messenger, one from Queen and good-King-Henry | Triple def: a messenger / Freddie Mercury / the plant | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
47 | 46 | Planet quarter eclipsed, our spherical character being obscured | MERCY(quarter) outside UR(OUR-O, spherical character) | 1 | 0 | ||
47 | 54 | See heavenly body as unattached cutie trains by the sea in France (7) | unattached = remove TIE. MER next to CU(tie) RY | 1 | 0 | ||
52 | 11 | Cure almost accompanying REM performing ultimate heavy metal! | Anagram of REM + cur + y | 0.5 | 1 | ||
53 | 13 | Customary courier’s letters misdirected in atrocious mix-up with 'Hermes'? | CUSTOMARY COURIER (*letters misdirected) = ATROCIOUS + (MERCURY) (*mix-up). Hermes = Mercury = courier company. | 0 | 0 | ||
53 | 16 | Freddie and me have spicy curry! (7) | Freddie MERCURY = ME + (anagram of curry) | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
53 | 23 | H G Wells's 'Invisible Man' bearing a message | Double def: HG = chem symbol for mercury (def); Wells's Invisible = discard Wells; Man bearing a message = messenger (def) | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
53 | 27 | Hermes offered sound OHMS delivery service till 1991 (7) | Hermes = def.. and possible adjectival allusion to similarly named service … OHMS = ref. to ‘Queen’ plus sound delivery = vocal … 1991 = year of singer’s death | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
53 | 30 | I heard the Geordie double Nobel laureate lass discovered this element! | soundalike in accent | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
53 | 36 | Metal dog haunts heartless jolly. | Metal (DEF) dog (CUR) in heartless jolly (MERRY-R)) | 0 | 0 | ||
53 | 47 | Quacksalver with gradation of a product of cinnabar | 'Gradation [=ablaut] of a' changes quacksalver to quicksilver. Cinnabar is used as ore to produce mercury. Surface reading alludes to Paracelsus and his cure for syphilis. | 0 | 0 | ||
53 | 52 | Roman courier's English delivery of French sea salt? | French sea + salt = MER+CURE; Mercure/Mercury | 0 | 0 |