| Comments on the clues |
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| 1. A newt swimming across lake ends in waterlogged grass in such? |
| 1. | Just the ending not quite natural. |
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| 2. Are teal, swans and ducks primarily swimming in these areas? |
| 1. | Slightly ambiguous surface (what does "primarily" refer to?) but deserves a merit | | 2. | Too complicated for me | | 3. | An S too many? |
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| 3. Area man-free, a newt and salamander ground |
| 1. | "-free" would be dubious even for a single word, and I don't think it works at all for two separate words |
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| 4. Area that's saturated with fancy dental surgeries, primarily |
| 1. | Good definition but very unlikely surface | | 2. | Los Angeles? I'm afraid I don't like clues using obvious indicators like 'primarily' | | 3. | Surface doesn’t make sense |
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| 5. Bawd (plus client) furiously abandoning foul public bogs (8) |
| 1. | "Bawd" makes for a rather odd surface | | 2. | I dislike long subtractive anagrams |
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| 6. Bog roll empty: schoolchild initially nervous about leaving turd – gross |
| 1. | Contrived wordplay (ew?) and the two parts of the clue separated by the colon bear little relation to each other | | 2. | If the bog roll is empty, it won't stop him/her from flushing away the turd…. | | 3. | Enjoyed it but not sure I would ever have solved it! | | 4. | Nice misleading def. Roll and empty used well. Great, playful surface. Too complex??? | | 5. | Not an appealing surface |
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| 7. Bogs? Lads went out here |
| 1. | What does the surface mean? | | 2. | Simple, tight surface. | | 3. | It might be better to rewrite this as a single sentence, something like "Bogs where lads went astray?" perhaps | | 4. | If "bogs" is the definition then what is "here" for? |
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| 8. Broad to Stokes and Paddy fields (8) |
| 1. | I had forgotten s = stokes (unit of kinetic viscosity) but it's in Chambers. I recognize cricketers Broad and Stokes, but not Paddy. | | 2. | Nice idea | | 3. | Nice idea, but clueing a plural as a charade of the singular and S is a little weak. | | 4. | To spoils the reading. And clueing WETLAND as such lacks cryptic element. |
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| 9. Del wants new pitch in Slough (8) |
| 1. | is 'new pitch' meant to be one anagram indicator or two? | | 2. | "New pitch" instead of just "new" isn't convincing |
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| 10. Digested stew and left to find a bog |
| 1. | Admirably concise, although it could just as easily be an anagram of "stew left" |
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| 11. Ecosystems, say, of watery enclosures, typically lavishing around nourishment; discovered so at the outset |
| 1. | Using initials with a word like this can result in an overlong clue | | 2. | 'Ecosystems, say' – too vague as a definition for me | | 3. | Acrostics need to sound completely natural. This one needs further work. | | 4. | Like many (most?) initial letter clues, the surface is rather unnatural | | 5. | Nice but a bit long. |
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| 12. Extremes of licentiousness lure conservative into the quagmire (8) |
| 1. | Not convinced by conservative = wet | | 2. | Conservatives could be dry….. | | 3. | Perhaps "conservative" should have a capital C, and A lures B does not mean A follows B (on the contrary, perhaps) |
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| 13. Fields flooded with external light, east and west stand upper tiers are now dark suddenly (8) |
| 1. | Not convinced by "external light" for LT, "stand" for reversal, and "upper tiers" for first letters. Trying too hard to be original? | | 2. | Not a smooth surface | | 3. | "upper tiers of", perhaps, but not just "upper tiers" |
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| 14. Goes round central Italy, skipping Venice area maybe |
| 1. | What is 'skipping' adding to this? Clue works better without it | | 2. | Not sure about "central Italy" for "tal", and Venice isn't in central Italy, of course, so "maybe" doesn't quite work | | 3. | Goes = wends is pushing it a bit. Not sure what 'skipping' achieves. | | 4. | Neatly done | | 5. | Would Venice qualify as wetlands ? |
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| 15. Here, maybe, are stilts wanted, as bell bottoms getting frayed |
| 1. | The surface doesn't make much sense. | | 2. | Ingenious if vague definition but it's all rather odd | | 3. | Nicely constructed but rather obscure | | 4. | I didn't know stilts referred to wading birds. Love this extra layer to the clue. |
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| 16. Home for dippers and left-leaning tories |
| 1. | Nice but would be fairer with a “?” | | 2. | "Home" needs to be "homes" I think, certainly for the second definition | | 3. | An example of where the instruction to give the source of a definition would be useful. The second is not in my Chambers. |
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| 17. In front of square, openers for England, Tavaré and Luckhurst, caught by Rod Marsh |
| 1. | Clue would have scored higher – but I am struggling with the idea of the wicketkeeper catching people in front of square… | | 2. | Nicely done but L & T’s test careers didn’t overlap! (Also, unlikely that both openers would be caught in front of square by the keeper) | | 3. | If "rod" = "wand" (I'm not convinced)and the cricketing references are authentic then this is fine |
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| 18. Jim Prior wins in Slough (8) |
| 1. | Apologies to the late Baron Prior, but this is very obscure | | 2. | Jim Prior? Who's he? Clues need to be accessible to people under 60! | | 3. | Obscure | | 4. | Super political reference to give a lovely surface to the clue. Quite niche though…? |
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| 19. Lads went crackers for broads in Norfolk |
| 1. | Definition by example, otherwise my favourite of the "lads went" clues, although "broads" (girls?) is a bit old-fashioned | | 2. | Nowadays use of broad in this context may be seen as not kosher. | | 3. | Cheeky but excellent. |
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| 20. Lads went off causing a slough (8) |
| 1. | Presumably the surface means something like "Lads went off causing progress to stop" but that's still a bit weak |
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| 21. Lads went wild – rush home |
| 1. | Inconsistent tenses, although perhaps that's just a matter of style. The definition is a nice kenning. | | 2. | Deceptive definition but unconvincing surface | | 3. | nice deceptive definition |
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| 22. Laws tend perhaps to stop dumping in swampy area. |
| 1. | Can't see what 'to stop dumping' contributes to the wordplay | | 2. | What does the surface mean? Are there more arrests for fly-tipping in boggy areas? | | 3. | Unfortunately that's not usually the case | | 4. | What is "stop dumping" there for? |
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| 23. Laws tend to be broken resulting in quagmires (8) |
| 1. | Wordplay works but the clue lacks sparkle | | 2. | Very similar to 24, and who associates lawlessness with quagmires? |
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| 24. Laws tend to get broken in areas where one might get bogged down (8) |
| 1. | Very similar to 23 although "areas where one might get bogged down" is slightly better than "quagmires" | | 2. | Wordplay and definition work but overall it's a bit pedestrian |
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| 25. Let out worthless London borough houses and flats |
| 1. | Nicely constructed wordplay | | 2. | Really like this but troubled by whether flats is a fair definition. Flats are examples of wetlands, hence “?” required? | | 3. | Almost |
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| 26. let's wander without hesitancy about The Fens, maybe |
| 1. | It's been said before that "er" can indicate hesitancy but it's not a synonym for it (see also 40) | | 2. | Nice, simple, tight clue. |
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| 27. Long sentence faces wanted criminal as result of breaking banks? |
| 1. | Clever misleading surface. not entirely convinced by 'long sentence faces' for L, S | | 2. | Cleverly disguised definition, but criminals don't "break" banks, although they make break into them | | 3. | Good definition, just a pity that 'breaking banks' doesn't sound quite right in the surface story |
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| 28. Marshes where Tony regularly was led astray (8) |
| 1. | This would be good if there was a famous Tony who was led astray….. | | 2. | Personal names are best avoided without a good reason such as a reference to a topical news story |
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| 29. Moors in west country appropriated for development |
| 1. | Wordplay should indicate land in anag. of west, but doesn't | | 2. | The partially indirect anagram fodder is not very elegant | | 3. | Good idea, could perhaps have left out the 'appropriated' |
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| 30. Nappy bags for the bogs perhaps |
| 1. | Wet = Nappy ?? | | 2. | Nappy = tipsy is a bit obscure, and I don't really see how tipsy = wet | | 3. | Excellent surface. Bags = lands is lovely. |
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| 31. Newts and large bats found here. |
| 1. | I’m surprised the clue-writer didn’t notice their anagram contains two N’s | | 2. | Rather vague definition, and the days of anagrinds like "bats" and "crazy" may be numbered | | 3. | Nice surface . Unfortunately fodder has an extra N | | 4. | There's an extra N in the fodder. |
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| 32. Old Rotarian moving south to Hackney? |
| 1. | Rotarian = helicopter? Helicopter = Westland? (Westland Aircraft Company) Very strained | | 2. | Old rotarian is very obscure for 'Westland' and 'Hackney' isn't a good definition | | 3. | Obscure |
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| 33. One year away from Walt Disney production in the Everglades? (8) |
| 1. | Good anagram find, but not keen on 'production' to indicate it | | 2. | Nice clue. But, rightly or wrongly, some people dislike nounal anagram indicators | | 3. | Unique us of Walt Disney.? is just enough to suggest def by example. |
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| 34. Partners arrive in tedious, empty marshes |
| 1. | Wordplay works well but the surface doesn't | | 2. | Bridge partners aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I think this is OK, although the surface is depressing | | 3. | Nice charade. |
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| 35. Places swamped with aliens, suffused with light |
| 1. | I like the disguised definition, misleading use of "light", and containment indicator "suffused with" | | 2. | Love the definition. Suffused with light doesn't quite do it for me. | | 3. | I don't think 'suffused with' works as aa containment indicator |
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| 36. Primarily watery ecosystem that lets aquatic nature develop sustainably |
| 1. | Acrostics need to sound completely natural. | | 2. | Best of the initial letter clues, I prefer it to the very similar 37 |
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| 37. Primarily watery ecosystems that let aquatics (nothing dry) survive (8) |
| 1. | Acrostics need to sound more natural. | | 2. | Rather strained, like many (most?) initial letter clues. I prefer the very similar 36 |
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| 38. Review Delta-Northwest's settlements for frequent flyers |
| 1. | Obscure reference, and the definition doesn't quite work | | 2. | Great definition. |
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| 39. Signs of authority permitted cycling within swamps |
| 1. | ?? Are Wands the signs of authority? Too obscure for me! | | 2. | "Signs of authority" doesn't quite ring true for "wands" |
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| 40. Slough provoked wanderlust without hesitation |
| 1. | "Ur" (more usually "er") is not a synonym for hesitation (see also 26) | | 2. | What does the surface mean? Someone found a bog which inspired him? | | 3. | Surface needs a little work |
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| 41. Slough Town leads after shot out of nothing |
| 1. | Good misleading surface | | 2. | Almost. But wouldn't Slough Town lead? (i.e. not leads) | | 3. | Great surface. Out of nothing isn't tight enough for removing the O for me. |
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| 42. Slough, unfit for human habitation? Let explosive sticks engulf it! |
| 1. | Clever ref to Betjeman | | 2. | I really enjoyed this clue and the reference! | | 3. | Good deception and witty reference | | 4. | I suppose bombs can be sticks and sticks can be wands, but it's too indirect |
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| 43. Slough's teeming with retail stores at the centre |
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| 44. Slough’s where her discarded tin-opener is found by the sides of Ladbrokes (8) |
| 1. | This surface doesn't make sense | | 2. | Very odd surface, with "sides" a confusing plural in this context | | 3. | A (single) discarded item could not be found by (both) sides of Ladbrokes. Only "side" would work in the surface. | | 4. | Slightly non-sensical surface |
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| 45. Soft lights for the bogs? |
| 1. | Since when does soft = wet? | | 2. | Nice image, succinct, ticks for the plural and the DBE question mark | | 3. | A bit too straightforward but "soft lights" is clever. | | 4. | Lovely surface. Nice use of lights |
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| 46. Soil and water forms with reduced air and oxygen (8) |
| 1. | Obscure defn. | | 2. | &lit works so well until 'air AND oxygen'. |
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| 47. Staves headless Celt off inside Slough (8) |
| 1. | But what does it mean? | | 2. | Off serves no use in clue other than to add to surface reading? |
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| 48. Suit trousers alien left in bog |
| 1. | Nice wordplay, but what's going on? |
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| 49. Swamp new lads with model components |
| 1. | "Components" does not work on its own as an anagram indicator ("new" and "model" are already spoken for) | | 2. | The surface doesn't make a convincing story |
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| 50. Swamps regenerated last weekend, after letting out a cry of horror. |
| 1. | Wordplay works but the surface doesn't | | 2. | Either this is a dangling participle or the swamps are surprisingly vocal | | 3. | Nice idea but swamps can't let out a cry of horror so slightly non-sensical surface? |
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| 51. Swamps where eco-warrior teams located and nurtured degraded streams initially |
| 1. | Acrostics need to sound more natural than this | | 2. | Rather unnatural surface – a common problem with initial letter clues | | 3. | No real need for 'warrior'? |
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| 52. Swampy spots son underground, in pieces, after work excavating tunnel starts |
| 1. | Lovely idea – but I don't like underground for under ground | | 2. | Nice definition | | 3. | Great definition, but "underground, in pieces" effectively asks solvers to rewrite the clue before solving it, which is unreasonable | | 4. | Ingenious and well-constructed | | 5. | Love the ref. 'In pieces' seems forced. |
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| 53. Terrain in West damaged ecosystem. |
| 1. | Nice wordplay, but the definition "ecosystem" could be more specific | | 2. | Wordplay works but the surface doesn't. How would terrain damage an ecosystem? | | 3. | Definition is unclear |
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| 54. The rain comes down in the Everglades, perhaps |
| 1. | I like comes down = lands, but 'the rain' = wet is pushing it a bit | | 2. | Simple and effective | | 3. | Wet is clued as wet with similar meaning | | 4. | Nice def for Lands |
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| 55. Towels and missing old pants in bogs |
| 1. | What does the surface mean? | | 2. | Nice surface. |
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| 56. Unobserved, search a cathedral as Cardinal points out bogs (8) |
| 1. | A bit too contrived, especially as you have to add the letter "E" and then subtract it again. | | 2. | Not a very convincing surface! | | 3. | I like it, but it's pretty unsolvable. | | 4. | A little too much subtraction going on for my liking makes it a little convoluted. Maybe personal preference on this one. Nice surface. |
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| 57. Unusual newts lad found in marshy ground |
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| 58. Urinate on ground, with son on bog (8) |
| 1. | Are you taking the p? | | 2. | Unique take on wet. Reads nicely. |
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| 59. Wasn’t delta possibly formed at these? |
| 1. | Wordplay really needs 'forms' or 'forming' | | 2. | I don't get this |
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| 60. W.C. Fields |
| 1. | Not the last time he will feature in a lavatory-related clue. Rather vague definition, and might be better with a question mark | | 2. | This doesn't work at all | | 3. | interesting wordplay – but where's the definition? | | 4. | lol | | 5. | I really like this but I just can't make it fully work!! Maybe I'm missing something. I guess it's just non-Ximenean? |
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| 61. We start to trudge on the fringes of lakes and maybe surrounding areas |
| 1. | It's a slight weakness that "the fringes of lakes" could be either "LS" or "L AND S" but otherwise fine | | 2. | WE is clued as such | | 3. | Seems to be missing a container indicator to place and in LS |
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| 62. Wee soils bogs |
| 1. | Trisyllabic clues are rare, not quite good enough for a place though | | 2. | Simple and straightforward. I like it. |
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| 63. What fairy godmothers wave around regularly deathly marshy areas |
| 1. | Fairy godmothers have no obvious connection with marshy areas | | 2. | Good idea but it needs more work for the surface to sound natural. | | 3. | The surface is quite nonsensical |
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| 64. Where one may find various newts with long and dark heads (8) |
| 1. | Perfectly good wordplay, and may well be true, although I wouldn't know |
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| 65. Wide deltas formed around northern swamps |
| 1. | Best of the deltas | | 2. | Just a bit boring |
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| 66. Windblast direction not going both ways around swamp |
| 1. | To be pedantic, a direction cannot "go" in any particular way – it IS a way |
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| 67. You and I stand awkwardly, while overwhelming stillness essentially swamps… (8) |
| 1. | Ingenious wordplay, but tails off in a desultory fashion | | 2. | 'Essentially' is one of those indicators to be avoided if possible |
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