Jigjag, thanks - and that's a pretty reasonable clue, better than some we get! This goes only for England, of course , the parts where Offa sounds like Offer.
Yes I noticed that and it did occur to me that Malone set todays. If not, the "casual" use must be common though I had not heard it until Malone mentioned it last week.
Thanks, Grunger and Jigjag. I hadn't even looked at today's puzzle, so am glad you mentioned it. I definitely didn't set it - I wish I was smart enough for that to be a possibility!