| Comments on the clues |
|---|
| 1. A funny drink which may be taken for a laugh from a flask. |
| 1. | Surface reading contrived? | | 2. | Too many redundant words |
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| 2. A left-footer's asking to be fouled, Spooner says. |
| 1. | Nice idea but Spoonerism a bit clunky? |
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| 3. Bad to consume ecstasy after starting mephedrone! It can knock one out |
| 1. | Not sure bad is good synonym for icky |
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| 4. Bottle of booze? That's mine! Tip coke inside occasionally – and ecstasy too! |
| 1. | Too many breaks in surface makes it somewhat laboured |
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| 5. Bugging device acquires crucial dope |
| 1. | Mic = bugging device a bit of a leap | | 2. | Concise surface but "device acquiring dope" doesn't convey much | | 3. | Very neat |
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| 6. Button behind sound receiver unit (6) |
| 1. | I couldn't find any evidence for the def. | | 2. | Neat but definition too obscure | | 3. | "Unit" feels a bit vague as a definition for a specialist piece of knowledge (not in Chambers, for example). Neat construction though! |
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| 7. California's corny, comic Keystone Cops! |
| 1. | Nice use of Cops wirh differentiation in surface and cryptic readings. One of 3 such clues though |
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| 8. Comic Keystone cops – the stuff that's taken for satire? |
| 1. | Definition is not quite right for me | | 2. | One of 3 using Keystone cops. But definition doesn't seem to cut |
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| 9. Comic Keystone Cops: animated film image |
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| 10. Confounded mice you killed originally or just one of them |
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| 11. Corny American YMCA-like hit, NOT gangsta |
| 1. | Different and worth points! | | 2. | Surface doesn't mean much | | 3. | You've done well to get the US indicator in too – nice and fair to the solver. |
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| 12. Diamonds include king in my trick |
| 1. | Neat. | | 2. | Pretty decent idea but surface doesn't convey same effect as King of Diamonds | | 3. | Very tidy clue. |
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| 15. Dynamic keyboard displays character on screen |
| 1. | Best of the 'hidden' clues | | 2. | Nice |
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| 16. Ergonomic keyboard with a virtual mouse (6) |
| 1. | Nice idea, but 'with' isn't enough of a hidden indicator | | 2. | Undecided whether 'with' is a good indicator of a hidden word. Worth a point while I ponder! | | 3. | With as containment indicator is too weak |
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| 17. Finn-ish mouse! |
| 1. | Sorry, I don't get that! | | 2. | Clever one. Like it |
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| 18. For starters, May implied Corbyn was essentially sleep-inducing? |
| 1. | Key is essential not essentially and 'was' is superfluous | | 2. | Too straightforward |
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| 20. Icky me! Animated mouse. |
| 1. | The two phrases do not really go together. | | 2. | Surface is weak |
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| 21. I'm the extreme Kentucky cowboy leading broken wild Aussie bull. |
| 1. | Can't see where the 'e' comes from and 'leading' not good indicator of c(owboy) | | 2. | Extreme Kentucky doesn't work . Not clear on how to get E from THE unless extreme is doing double duty | | 3. | Best of the bull clues. |
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| 23. Insultingly, Roman Catholic might include chanted Kyrie eleison: yes, initially. |
| 1. | Surface is laboured | | 2. | Initially = y(es) |
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| 24. Irish potato drink (6) |
| 1. | A different definition. Though haven't really tasted a potato drink! |
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| 25. It's part of the cosmic keystone; if taken, deflation could ensue. |
| 1. | Surface reading a bit improbable | | 2. | Too many redundant words for a hidden word clue |
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| 26. It's taken in jest! |
| 1. | This needs a second def. to make a decent clue. | | 2. | Too obscure | | 3. | Too cryptic – could mean several things | | 4. | Impossible to solve. |
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| 27. JAGGER EXTREMELY EXTREMELY YOUNG? BULL! (6) |
| 1. | Please avoid capitalising your clue. | | 2. | Doubling extremely a bit cumbersome | | 3. | Why is the clue in capitals. Jagger is a giveaway |
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| 28. Josh takes this knockout punch |
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| 29. King among rodents – Disney's ultimate character (6) |
| 1. | 29 30 and 31 very good, equal points – don't often see virtually identical clues. | | 2. | Nice . But exact same clue is repeated by one other | | 3. | Both this and 30 have to earn points :) |
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| 30. King among rodents – Disney’s ultimate character? |
| 1. | Ice – but exact same clue is repeated by another. Why the question mark? | | 2. | Both this and 29 have to earn points :) |
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| 31. King among rodents, the ultimate in Disney |
| 1. | Third clue using Similar wordplay . Intended as &lit ? |
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| 32. 'Knocker-over' — that's often associated with Finn (this person's pounding wicket putting sides off) |
| 1. | Sorry. Surface doesn't cut | | 2. | Nice idea but far too contrived for me |
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| 33. Manchester's intelligentsia craves leadership. Enter Rooney? |
| 1. | I can't parse this at all – even with the explanation. |
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| 34. Master in charge has essential flask of alcohol |
| 1. | Weak surface | | 2. | Straightforward but doesn't mean a lot |
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| 35. Master in charge of island has a barbarous bullock from Ballarat. |
| 1. | "Of" and "has" don't work in the cryptic reading | | 2. | Well done for working the AUS indicator in there too. | | 3. | Abbreviation IC = in charge, not in charge of |
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| 37. Might this be taken as the source of mirth, not very pleasant, involving butt of joke? |
| 1. | Pretty decent construction |
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| 38. Mourinho initially nasty about resolution of Wayne Rooney, among others |
| 1. | Nice clue except resolution doesn't mean end. Using end instead would have got points from me |
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| 39. Mouse in cartoons keeps entertaining young faces |
| 1. | Pretty decent | | 2. | Nice try, but can you entertain a face?! | | 3. | Clue as a whole is a statement about Mickey not a def. of Mickey |
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| 41. Polyrhythmic keyboardist portrays a wild, young bull. |
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| 42. Sheila's tyke in a bad way, her well has run out |
| 1. | I don't understand the definition |
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| 43. Something that might be taken from speaker of note? |
| 1. | Nice surface but a mic isn't a speaker. | | 2. | Not sure speaker and mic are same though OED lists speaker as a synonym |
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| 45. Tailless mice with keys leave south for Disneyland fave |
| 1. | What does the surface reading mean? | | 2. | Half the answer is in the clue, which is not a hidden word clue. |
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| 46. The thing taken to make fun, by little animals running wild through Kentucky. |
| 1. | Mice is not anagrammed – running wild is redundant |
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