CCCWC August competition voters’ comments

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A clue to CURIOSITY.
64 comments were received for this competition (from 10 competitors, 1 other)
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Comments on the competition
1.
The two favourite approaches seem to be the dead cat expression (18 being my favourite example) and the handily vague "unusual thing" definition, with wordplay forming your pick of any number of surprising statements (46 and 58 my favourites). Where clues have taken a different approach, I've tried to award their originality. While the word "curio" has arguably taken on a bit of a life of it's own, it is pretty much a shortened version of "curiosity" so not really suitable imho for use as an element in a clue for that word.
2.
I, like so many, chose the cat killer route; and almost as popular were the Mars rover clues (the name of which certainly passed me by). For points, I was, therefore, attracted to those clues which took less travelled paths and particularly liked 24, 27 and 37 for that reason.

Comments on the clues

3. Bygone cities sharing river border and square city walls (9)

1.	Clever wordplay but I’m struggling to see bygone as a definition (adjective v noun)

8. City tours: you and me taking in city, wondering what’s what

1.	I like this except for the repetition of 'city'
2.	My favourite of the city-in-a-city clues

9. Collector's item is brought back with 50% duty and interest (9)

1.	Like 57, having "curio" as part of the wordplay is disappointing

10. Constant yen, is it our instinct to probe?

1.	I think 'instinct' can mean 'moved' or 'animated' in an emotional/inner sense but not in a literal/physical one
2.	A genuinely original anagrind!
3.	Sounds unnatural

11. Conversation piece I blended with reduced-salt soy and citrus sauce

1.	Strange choice of definition for a culinary (wacky recipe) surface

13. Copper visits city hellhole, taking one in for questioning

1.	hellhole for STY feels a slight stretch and 'visits' padding a bit cheeky, but I love "Copper … taking one in for questioning"
2.	Nice clue, although hellhole = sty is a bit of a stretch

14. Criminal duty solicitor's told about stolen antique

1.	Smooth as silk! Slightly stretched definition maybe but nonetheless my favourite
2.	A most clever construction & good surface, points from me.
3.	Not my favourite type of clue but this is very well worked

15. Curry heartily passed around 10 Downing Street, I gathered, would be a novelty (9)

1.	I like a good "Downing St" clue but separate 'around' container indication feels messy and surface is a bit odd (forced Starmer reference?)

16. Did you kill Kitty, Rover?

1.	merit for being best of the violent Rovers

17. Dog I knitted is toy Snoopy character

1.	The definition feels a slight stretch but I like it
2.	An amusing surface, points here & not Peanuts!
3.	Brilliant! A standout winner, surely.

18. Dog is playing with toy I kept hidden (it might endanger my other pet)

1.	My favourite dead cat

23. Garfields nemesis: Rover perhaps.

1.	Good idea but should it read 'Garfield's'?
2.	The lack of an apostrophe will cause apoplexy in this group …
3.	full stop at end is unusual. If meant to signal DBE 'perhaps' is redundant/confusing as Curiosity is example of rover not vice versa

26. Interest in our city is misplaced

1.	Straightforward, neat & accurate. Points here.
2.	I like the eeyorish sentiment

27. Interest in Sicily tour sadly lessened by onset of lockdown

1.	Good clue with added interest over others with the same def
2.	"lessened by (L)" feels a bit awkward to me
3.	Good clue. Sadly, still topical – points here.

28. Intrigue about iOS's login handler

1.	I'm no Luddite but have never heard of 'Curity'

29. Is Batty with City, United or one of the Rovers?

1.	Clever soccer reference.
2.	Nicely constructed, if a bit out of date! Or is he a manager now?

31. Is it your cat's principal undoing?

1.	Very much like my clue. I think we may end up with similar scores. Best of luck… and of course points from me.
2.	Very good
3.	A very neat example of an & lit. Just purrfect!

32. Is our criminal in urban area a cat killer?

1.	Best cat killer

33. Is our newly made deposit in the metropolis sure to generate interest?

1.	Another word than 'deposit' would have supported the surface story better.

34. Is your cat disemboweled? Sadly, I must be arrested!

1.	straying too far from the saying to be a convincing all-in-one
2.	Best of the felicide clues.

35. Is your cat's head bursting with it innately?

1.	Neat, strong & lit. Points here. A podium position surely.
2.	straying too far from the saying to be &lit?

37. "Knick-knack" and dog given one bone – it's the end for Paddy

1.	Tidy. Will this 'come rolling home'? You've got a good chance with this one. Points from me.
2.	Very clever.
3.	nice idea

41. Perhaps it is your constant nosiness!

1.	Nice suggestion of a story in the background

45. Questioning odd characters in country house after port is sent the wrong way

1.	This made me laugh. When visiting our posh friends' house I have been that odd character ignorant of port-passing etiquette
2.	A fun surface image with rather tricky wordplay

46. Rarity of port in American urban stores

1.	I can believe that one might struggle to buy port in certain US cities – love the wordplay and mildly misleading definition

47. Rover: cat's killer?

1.	Best of the "Rover" clues.

49. Rover metro parked outside capital in America

1.	Rio isn't the capital?

52. Rover's posh French evening back in the smoke.

1.	Apologies if I am missing something, but the surface makes no sense to me

55. Toy dog is one strange thing found in “Ye Olde … Shoppe”

1.	Allow me to be the 94th person to point out that indirect anagram fodder is not the done thing

56. Unusual South American city, surrounded by country to the North, all literally within city walls!

1.	Unusual is an adjective though

57. Unusual thing is half an oddity after many unusual things (9)

1.	Scientist's place of work, formally speaking, is a scientist's place of work (10)
2.	But curios is short for curiosity. Makes the wordplay a bit dull

58. Wanton promiscuity abandoned by errant PM – this is remarkable!

1.	PM are in the correct order. The "errant" is superfluous and only there for the surface
2.	Still topical. Points here.
3.	lol
4.	'Errant' appears to be redundant, otherwise it would have been a super clue.
5.	Good anagram find and amusing surface

60. Why is our city decaying? (9)

1.	Is "why" the definition? Or the whole clue a DBE?
2.	I don't know.

61. Wish it killed the cat!

1.	I don't understand how "wish" works as a definition, sorry

63. Wonder why IOU's are torn up within city limits.

1.	"city limits" is nice but are=R as part of anagram fodder isn't fair, and why "why"?