Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

Once I'd corrected 27a I thought the "broadcast version" was really quite clever and amusing.

Thanks to Everyman. Only recently started these, getting more comfortable with the puzzles. For the first time, noticed the rhyming pair! FOI 3. LOI 2, which is odd as I've many times solved versions of the clue! Co-COD 26 and 18, both of which greatly impressed. Still unsure of my answer to 12, though.

It's also a great movie 😉

After seeing 1a, 19a and 27a I did wonder if there might be a theme but .... no 😢

12a was my LOI. Is it normal to see Cockney rhyming slang without an indicator?

HI Geeker,

"Plates of meat" is Cockney rhyming slang which, I'm guessing, is not that well known your side of the pond!

Thanks, all! My guess was correct; noticed the rhyme and thought it plausible for that reason, but the "cockney rhyming slang" light bulb didn't switch on. That's a feature of British cryptics I've been slow to pick up.

Hi Rainman,

If memory serves, I think there used to be - maybe something like "in the Queen Vic", but I think it's so well known now that it's rarely, if ever, indicated.

I do wonder how Geeker, and others in America, view these type of clues.

I'm aware that it's a possibility, but I still get caught out by it. I guess in this case, adding an indicator would have spoiled the surface, and it does seem obvious once you see it.

I've come to enjoy the Cockney rhyming slang clues, but there's a definite learning curve and for a long time I was utterly clueless about them. I consider them part of the "puzzle solving toolkit" one has to build up. Occasionally I fail to finish grids because of unfamiliar examples, but that's part of the game, doesn't "bother" me any more than clues based on unknown/exotic GK references.

Thanks Geeker, that's a very good synopsis and a great way of viewing them:-)

Thanks Rainman, I totally agree - I'll forgive many things in service of a good surface:-)