CCCWC February 2023 competition results
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54 clues entered. 48 votes cast (42 competitors, 6 others).
DIMPLES
Another close-run contest this time round – just 1 and 1/2 points between first and second place. It's a long time since long-standing competitor Luciano Ward climbed to the top of the pile – 2015 in fact! – so hearty congratulations to him for keeping at it! A neat subtractive anagram with a very precise definition.
The unlucky person just behind in second place was Phil Stephenson, who instead employed a deceptive definition – well done to Phil.
Third place went to Ramki Krishnan – first podium since a win in 2019 – with a surface that also disguised the definition.
John Hood followed up his third place last month with another podium – also hiding the definition with a convincing surface reading. Consistent cluing John.
Vinod has become a regular on the podium and takes 5th spot with another convincing surface reading.
Well done to all – now let's deal with the pandemic…
| Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 33 | Luciano Ward | Misplayed shot always leaves dents on golf ball | MISPLAYED anag (‘shot’) minus AY ('always'); dents on golf ball = def (golf balls are covered in dimples) | 43.5 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | 51 | Phil Stephenson | Unsettled spell mostly following cloudy depressions | spel(l)* after dim | 42 | 2 | 1 |
| 3 | 4 | Ramki Krishnan | Attractive features of American coins having President Lincoln's face (7) | Def = attractive features, American coins = DIMES, President = P, Lincoln's face = L, having = containment indicator. Surface refers to the American penny which has Lincoln's face | 36 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | 26 | John Hood | Gloomy, disturbed sleep, short of energy – these are signs of depression | DIM (SLEEP -E)* | 35.5 | 1 | 3 |
| 5 | 34 | Vinod Raman | Model smiled with soft, attractive facial features | SMILED* (Model is the anagrind) with P; def: attractive facial features | 34 | 1 | |
| 6 | 37 | Nathan Townshend | MPs lied about cheeky recesses | MPs lied = fodder; about = anagrind; cheeky recesses = def | 29.5 | 3 | 2 |
| 7 | 42 | Amrita Majumdar | Penny smiled crookedly to show little clefts in cheeks (7) | P (Penny) + SMILED anagrammed | 25.5 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 | 29 | Barry Solomons | Idle MPs can create hollow impressions? | Idle MPs (anag) | 25 | 4 | 2 |
| 9 | 6 | SimonBlow | Badly misled about Penny's depressions | * misled containing P (penny) Depression = definition | 22.5 | 2 | 1 |
| 10 | 38 | Charlie Oakley | MPs lied about depressions one might have to face | MPSLIED*, about – anagrind, "depressions one might have to face" – definition | 22 | 1 | 1 |
| 11 | 12 | Convert misled about priest holes (7) | Instruction to anagram ('convert') MISLED about P ('priest', Chambers); definition is 'holes' | 21 | 1 | ||
| 12 | 32 | Maybe smiled softly with these (6) | Maybe = anagram indicator; SMILED + P (softly) = anagram fodder; Definition = &lit | 19.5 | 4 | ||
| 13 | 43 | Revealed in altered edges of deep smile | &lit. Anagram of D[ee]P + SMILE. Altered=anagrind | 18.5 | 1 | 2 | |
| 14 | 13 | Daughter scratching head of zits creates hollows in skin | D (daughter) + [p]IMPLES (zits) | 16.5 | 3 | 3 | |
| 15 | 41 | Pattern glimpsed while putting away golf balls? | Anagram of glimpsed minus G | 16 | 2 | 2 | |
| 16 | 44 | Scratching head in spots after onset of dermatitis leaves craters | Scratching head in spots = (p)IMPLES | onset of dermatitis = D | craters = definition | 14.5 | 2 | 2 | |
| 17 | 17 | DP with smile perhaps showing these? | (DP SMILE)*; perhaps= anag ind (DP is acronym for Display Picture) | 14 | 0 | 3 | |
| 17 | 54 | With member inserted, slide about in holes. | Anagram of SLIDE around MP (member) | 14 | 1 | 3 | |
| 19 | 2 | Another simple diagnosis basically for depressions (7) | (SIMPLE D)*. Another(anagrind). | 13 | 0 | 2 | |
| 19 | 9 | Cheeky beauties, under the influence, smiled quietly (7) | Cheeky beauties: Dimples; Under the influence: anagrind; Fodder: smiled+p | 13 | 3 | ||
| 21 | 11 | Comic smiled softly inside, showing these? | p in anag of smiled | 12.5 | 2 | 2 | |
| 22 | 8 | Cheeky attribute of the French sandwiches – terribly limp | cheeky attribute = def. (i.e. an attribute of cheeks). of the French = DES; sandwiches = container indicator; terribly limp = anag. *LIMP. | 12 | 0 | ||
| 23 | 3 | Are you happy for us to sink in the Boat Race? | Cryptic def (rhyming slang) | 11.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 24 | 10 | Cheeky features of Democrat MP caught up in imbroglio of lies (7) | def: Cheeky features. Wordplay: D + MP within *LIES | 11 | 4 | 1 | |
| 25 | 19 | Easy cycling with glimpse of Dales’ attractive features | SIMPLE cycling after D[ales]; def = attractive features | 9.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 26 | 39 | MPs lied, being corrupted? We're a bit depressed | anag. | 9 | 4 | 2 | |
| 27 | 53 | What you might see in a bubbly display picture smile? (7) | (DP+SMILE)* &lit. | 8 | 1 | ||
| 28 | 35 | Monkey that crashed sled covers dents with a grin | Definition: "dents with a grin" / Wordplay: [*SLED] ('crashed sled') contains ('covers') [IMP] ('monkey') | 7.5 | 0 | ||
| 29 | 1 | Amusement centres? (7) | Cryptic definition | 7 | 0 | 1 | |
| 30 | 45 | Short-lived depressions trouble simple Duke. | anagram of SIMPLE + D | 6.5 | 2 | ||
| 31 | 50 | They appear smiling and easy as son gives way to daughter | Easy as = simples; 's' replaced by 'd' | 6 | 1 | 2 | |
| 32 | 36 | MP's idle dithering is more than a bit of a cheek | MP's idle = anagram fodder; dithering = anagram indicator; is = linkword to def; more than a bit of a cheek = def (with implied plural). | 5.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 33 | 16 | Ditches cheeky quality | Double definition | 5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 33 | 48 | Swinger’s balls are covered with these steaming, limp ends of asparagus and cabbage (7) | Swinger’s balls are covered with these = definition (golf reference) / steaming = anagram indicator / LIMP = fodder / ends of asparagus and cabbage = SDE, more fodder | 5 | 0 | 2 | |
| 35 | 7 | Brits' own D-day change might make hills from these hollows. | The name D-day was used for Decimalisation day in 1971 when in Britain pence changed from d to p, so dimples might become pimples (according to Chambers) hills. | 4 | 1 | 2 | |
| 35 | 22 | Feeble-minded, half of people first start getting depressions (6) | "Feeble-minded" for DIM, "half of people" for PLE, "first start" for S | 4 | 0 | 1 | |
| 37 | 14 | Dents on the face? Means one's hiding 'the devil within'! (7) | Dents on the face = D, Means (IMPLIES) one's hiding (deletion of I) = IMPLIES – I = IMPLES.The whole clue is the defn. Semi & lit. // Ref. "A dimple on the chin, the devil within." – Pope Paul VI | 3.5 | 2 | 2 | |
| 37 | 21 | Extraordinary primary features of performer Douglas's smile | (P+D+SMILE)*. Anagrind is extraordinary. & Lit. Ref. actor Kirk Douglas's famously dimpled chin and cheeks | 3.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 37 | 47 | Stupid lower classes taking second class road! It's the pits! | Stupid = DIM; lower classes = PLEBS, minus B (second class road); definition = pits | 3.5 | 2 | 1 | |
| 40 | 49 | These were noticed when Carey Mulligan craftily smiled welcoming the first producer | These were noticed as definition. Carey Mulligan the actress with dimples. Anagrind (craftily) of SMILED with insertion (welcoming) the first letter (the first) of P[roducer] | 3 | 1 | 2 | |
| 40 | 52 | Vague afterthought about the French bubbles | DIM + PS around LE | 3 | 1 | ||
| 42 | 25 | Gaps found in the boat race in East London | Gaps = holes, boat race = face, East London = cockney indicator | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 42 | 27 | Hal Block led imps astray | Anagram; Mr. Block's nickname was "Dimples". | 2 | 0 | 1 | |
| 44 | 18 | Driving aids show spots primarily designated for parking | Satnavs perhaps; golf ball dimples aid driving; (p>D)IMPLES [spots = pimples] | 1.5 | 0 | 2 | |
| 44 | 28 | Having dropped article, Pa smiled awkwardly revealing marks of depression | Anagram of PA SMILED (anagrind awkwardly) minus article A | 1.5 | 0 | ||
| 46 | 20 | Ed limps, and you can see these when he smiles. | Anagram of "Ed limps" = dimples Dimple is a small hollow in cheek when one smiles. | 1 | 0 | 3 | |
| 46 | 23 | First of facial bumps turned into indentations | (p)imples to (d)imples | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| 46 | 24 | Frontal feature that embellishes beams ? (7) | Cryptic definition. Surface reading seems archeological . Beams is smiles in the cryptic reading | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 46 | 30 | Imps led astray – on the face of it, they're utterly dense | (IMPS LED)* & dense hom. | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 50 | 40 | Not oddly admit maps with the French cheeky features | (a)D(m)I(t)M(a)P(s) + LES | 0.5 | 0 | 3 | |
| 50 | 46 | Smiles depart as a result of these hollows running with tears. | DIMPLESTEARS anag of SMILESDEPART: THESE HOLLOWS as definition. | 0.5 | 2 | 2 | |
| 52 | 5 | Awkward display picture smiles | (DP smiles)*, &lit | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 52 | 15 | Detective Patterson, perhaps, arrests parliamentarian creating depressions | DI LES arrests MP | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 52 | 31 | Little diamonds exuding iridescence primarily suggests glass bubbles | D(diamonds) IMPL(i)ES(suggests); glass bubbles | 0 | 0 |