The Crossword Centre Clue-Writing Competition

CCCWC January competition voters’ comments
 
Clue no. 34: Rare colour

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A clue to PINK.
3 comments refer to this clue (from 2 competitors, 1 other)
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Here is the text

Comments on the clue
1.I would argue it is a double definition rather than cryptic, but nevertheless nicely succinct
2.Clue has the beauty of good surface as well as startling simplicity.
 
Comments on the competition
1.
To me this was a difficult one to judge given the number of definitions available for 'pink' and the large number of perfectly good clues submitted. I therefore let particularly good surface stories influence my selection for shortlisting purposes.

I liked the ingenuity of many of the hidden clue entries and was initially taken (and amused) by clue 20 but concluded that'tucking' in its context and positioning in the clue did not do enough to indicate a hidden answer. Clues 40 and 50 both had a good story to tell but 49, despite its length, appealed to me most and I gave it 4 points.

With only 4 letters to play with, there was a still quite a range of word play offerings. Of the anagrams, I liked clue 9 but was not convinced that 'will' by itself was acceptable as a link word.

Double (or more) definitions also featured strongly and I liked clue5 and clue 10- 4 definitions in 8 words is quite a feat.

Of the remaining clues, I liked 14 21 22 24 33 and 34. I concluded that clue 14 had the edge on 21 in the surface story but also liked the way 22 disguised Pink Floyd and Floyd Patterson in 5 words and 33 was nicely disguised in 6 words. Clue 34, at 2 words, was the shortest clue but perhaps could benefit from having a '?'. In the end, I gave 3 points each to clues 14 22 and 33 with the remaining 2 points to clue 21.

Finally, I did like clue 13 which is certainly topical, but could not find a justification for 'extreme' as a definition for 'pink'. I apologise now to this and any other entrant if, in judging these clues, I have overlooked a vital element.