CCCWC February 2013 competition results
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53 clues entered. 51 votes cast (41 competitors, 10 others).
SPIDERMAN
In a straight fight between a building worker and a superhero my money would always be on the latter – but no, not so this time!
Our superhero had to settle for 3rd and 4th whilst watching Margaret clinch top spot with a simple but well constructed anagram. And the simple, but again appositely devised anagram, also takes 2nd – well done Don.
Spider-man, in the form of Richard, grabs 3rd with one of the very few clues that gave us a break from anagrams – clever approach!
Our reigning annual champ Mike returns to the podium with his slant on the anagram possibilities, and finally Tim takes 5th place with the cheekiest of clues!
Congratulations to all and many thanks for an enjoyable set of clues!
| Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Margaret Irvine | Collapse of pier damns construction expert (9) | pier damns* | 60 | 4 | 3 |
| 2 | 19 | Don Manley | Mind a spire being awkward? Not I! | anag. less i & lit., possibility of steeplejack definition justified generally by other dictionaries and specifically by OED | 53.5 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | 40 | Richard Saunders | Superhero needs rest on Friday,perhaps | rest = SPIDER (snooker), Friday perhaps = MAN | 50.5 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | 15 | Mike Baker | I'm a nerd transformed after getting special power (6-3) | IM A NERD anag. after S P; & Lit. (Peter Parker was a science-whizz) | 47.5 | 0 | 4 |
| 5 | 8 | Tim Moorey | Daring builder's bum starts to protrude above ragged denims | anag incl p a r bum = wrong,false | 45 | 2 | 3 |
| 6 | 29 | Max Woghiren | P.S. I'm a nerd in disguise! | anag, &lit | 37 | 1 | 3 |
| 7 | 42 | Denis Borris | Superhero shot mad sniper (9) | Direct=superhero. mad sniper = anagram (shot = indicator) | 30 | 4 | 4 |
| 8 | 20 | John Hood | Missing top of roof, reprimands shoddy construction worker | REPRIMANDS – R(oof) * | 28 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | 17 | Dave Tilley | Mad sniper running riot? Send for him! | Anagram of mad sniper &lit | 25.5 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | 46 | John Tozer | This cut of stud's mixed in Findus meat products? I'll stick to Walls! | comp. anag.; ref. horsemeat scandal, superhero's ability | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| 10 | 47 | Paul Coulter | Turn over… dream about masked avenger | SPI(DERMA)N dream* | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| 12 | 35 | "Sperm and I, Incorporated" – erection specialist (9) | sperm and I*/erection specialist < def. | 20 | 3 | 3 | |
| 13 | 16 | Leading Superhero, and I'm Parker, regularly, in disguise (6-3) | S[uperhero] + (AND IM P[a]R[k]E[r])*; &lit. | 17 | 0 | 2 | |
| 14 | 31 | Sniper mad to work on tall building? It's his job! (9) | Definition (Chambers) – building worker on tall building; 'to work on' doubles as indicator for *sniper mad. Surface consistent with fact that snipers often use tall buildings for their superior vantage point. | 14.5 | 1 | 3 | |
| 15 | 34 | Special treatment for Amerind construction worker | SP = special + *AMERIND; def. construction worker | 14 | 0 | ||
| 16 | 51 | Who's repaired spire and surrounding masonry’s façade? | SPIREAND* surrounding M(asonry); (Chambers online has spiderman as someone who works on steeples, etc.; not sure about Chambers 12th Ed.) | 13 | 2 | 1 | |
| 17 | 13 | Fantastically special nerd am I | Anag. "sp. nerd am I" & lit.. According to Wikipedia, Spider-Man, when out of costume, is Peter Parker, a "science-whiz" teenager "taunted by his peers". | 12 | 3 | 2 | |
| 17 | 23 | One can craftily mend a spire that's lost its tip | semi&lit (MENDASPIR[E])* ind by craftily, def spiderman=steeplejack | 12 | 2 | 3 | |
| 19 | 7 | Damn lunatic involved with spire's reconstruction? | DAMN anag. mixed with SPIRE anag. & lit.; Chambers def. | 11.5 | 1 | 3 | |
| 20 | 27 | Pi's damn nervous over, er, 'Richard Parker issue'(9) | PISDAMN* containing ER. Richard Parker's the tiger in 'Life of Pi' and also the name of father of Peter Parker. | 9 | 1 | 3 | |
| 21 | 41 | Superhero races back to save the day (and the Queen Mum) | NIPS< around D + ER + MA | 8.5 | 3 | 1 | |
| 22 | 5 | Building worker on abandoned spire? Damn! | Bulding worker = spiderman Abandoned = anagram indicator | 8 | 2 | 3 | |
| 22 | 53 | Young superhero sprained muscles at first transforming | SPRAINEDM* | 8 | 1 | 2 | |
| 24 | 26 | Parker transformed free parking in dreams (6-3) | (pindreams)* & ref: Peter Parker alias Spider-man | 7.5 | 2 | ||
| 24 | 44 | Tall building worker clocked 'er 'usband, they say. | Def/spied 'er man. | 7.5 | 3 | ||
| 26 | 24 | Other side of Parker pen is mad Radiohead design (6-3) | Def = Other side of Parker. Anag of PEN IS MAD + R | 6.5 | 0 | 4 | |
| 26 | 32 | Somehow prides himself in high-risk taking | *PRIDES+MAN(himself) | 6.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 26 | 33 | South pier hosts 500 in front of island comic | S + (PI+D+ER) + MAN; def: comic | 6.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 26 | 50 | Webcaster | &lit | 6.5 | 0 | 4 | |
| 30 | 1 | Accommodating rector recalls name and baptises building worker | NAME DIPS (rev) round R | 6 | 1 | 2 | |
| 30 | 39 | Superhero again sinks back. Wow! | REDIPS (rev.) + MAN (exclamation of surprise) | 6 | 1 | ||
| 32 | 30 | Skin's used in a doctor's practice, so who grafts with steel? | DERMA (skin) in SPIN (a doctor's practice). Graft = work | 5 | 0 | ||
| 32 | 45 | The Super Parker gets inside parking before King, Queen or Knight. | Definition – Super(hero) (Peter) Parker. P in SIDE + R (King) + MAN (chess piece). | 5 | 0 | 3 | |
| 34 | 37 | Steeplejack swims around with cockney girl's bloke | Swims = dips (around); 'er man | 4.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 35 | 48 | Was Robert The Bruce: Superhero #1 dream SNP broadcast? (9) | 2x def. (apocryphal tale of Bruce & spider; comic character) / anag. of "1(I) DREAM SNP" | 4 | 1 | 3 | |
| 35 | 49 | Web hero | cryptic def. | 4 | 1 | 1 | |
| 37 | 25 | Pan led mortal hero | SPIDER+MAN | 3.5 | 0 | 1 | |
| 37 | 28 | "P.S. I'm a nerd. Amazing!" – Peter Parker | anag+def. (Peter was a high school science whiz and after being bitten became known as "Amazing Spider-Man") | 3.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 39 | 12 | Employee who's constructively framed for his boss's daylight robbery project? | CD | 3 | 0 | 1 | |
| 39 | 21 | NY swinger is busy fellow getting jollies | SPIDER-MAN. 's, PI + RM in dean. Get one's jollies = find pleasure (Oxford Dictionary of English). Chambers Slang Dictionary is more explicit | 3 | 0 | 2 | |
| 41 | 9 | Did Robert the Bruce inspire this modern hero? | Bruce and the spider | 2.5 | 2 | 3 | |
| 41 | 22 | One building up favorable bias stopping armed revolution | One building up (definition),favorable bias (SPIN),stopping indicating containment and armed revolution (anagram of ARMED giving DERMA => SPI [DERMA] N | 2.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 41 | 36 | Stanley created valet's heroic role, for Pete's sake! | Stan Lee created Parker's heroic role-Spiderman | 2.5 | 0 | 3 | |
| 44 | 38 | Super hero spins his web to fight crime like a mad sniper… | Super hero with web = definition; Ana= mad+sniper | 1.5 | 0 | 2 | |
| 45 | 4 | Bob the Builder with one stroke morphs into a superhero and rips me apart | spiderman( a builder) becomes spider-man (and rips me)* Hedging my bets here. | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 45 | 18 | Man of steel not popular stealing identity of chap scaling skyscrapers | Man of steel: SUPERMAN. Not popular: – U, Stealing identity: + ID: S(-u)P(+ID)ERMAN | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 47 | 11 | Empire State Building, e.g., I built with ends of tinplate – unlikely! | compound anag: e.g., SPIDERMAN built + te | 0.5 | 1 | 2 | |
| 47 | 43 | Superhero's special power made right sin (6-3) | Superhero = definition; special = anagram indicator; power = p; right = r; (p + r + made + sin)* = spider-man. | 0.5 | 0 | 2 | |
| 49 | 2 | Arachne's hero is caught in her web | In Greek mythology, Arachne was changed into a spider. On 23rd February 2013, Sarah Hayes – known in Crosswordland as Arachne – married her partner Nick. Congratulations from CCCWC. | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 49 | 3 | Arachne's husband is an amazing character | SPIDER+MAN, ref. to the setter. | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 49 | 10 | Doing this to capture armed suspect was natural for this comic crime-fighter. | SPI(derma)N…….spin..web / armed (anag) | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 49 | 14 | High flier soaks up principles of Mach and Newton without hesitation | def. = SPID (dips backwards) + MAN (first letters)…(outside) ER (hesitation) | 0 | 2 | 1 | |
| 49 | 52 | Wrist spinner cum web designer? | Cryptic definition | 0 | 0 | 1 |