The Times - UK (2022-06-11)

54 saturday review Saturday June 11 2022 | the times

MindGames The Times Crossword, Latin Crossword, Saturday Quiz and

Suko are in the back of the main paper

Codeword No 4612

Every letter in this crossword-style grid has been substituted for a number from
1 to 26. Each letter of the alphabet appears at least once. Use the letters already
provided to work out further letters. Enter letters in the main grid and the
smaller reference grid. Proper nouns are excluded. Yesterday’s solution on page 52

Stuck on Codeword? To receive four random clues call 0901 293 6262 or text
TIMECODE to 64343. Calls cost £1 plus your telephone company’s network access
charge. Texts cost £1 plus your standard network charge. For the full solution call
0905 757 0142. Calls cost £1 per minute plus your telephone company’s network access
charge. SP: Spoke, 0333 202 3390 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5.30pm).

times2 Crossword No 8928

Across

1 Reflected in silence (5)

4 Easily bendable (6)

8 Give a name to (8)

9 Mountain goat (4)

10 Anger (3)

11 Turned to bone (8)

14 Centre (6)

16 Fix on a foundation (6)

18 Board game (8)

20 Zodiac sign (3)

21 Luxurious car (4)

22 In the open air (8)

23 Avaricious (6)

24 Not bright or clear (5)

Down

1 Strong male pride (8)

2 Yield up (9)

3 Plunder, rob (7)

5 Disembarkation (7)

6 Excuse (5)

7 Rough woollen cloth (5)

12 Made the same (9)

13 System of belief (8)

15 Country (7)

17 Raised platform (7)

18 Near to death (5)

19 Battery terminal (5)

Solution to Crossword 8927

T2 CROSSWORD No 8928

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9

10 11 12

13

14 15 16 17

18 19 20

21 22

23 24

MAGGOT SPAR

O E O X A I

FORKLIFT BRAN

F G D O U F S

EYE PARENTAGE

N L D E I

DURHAM EXETER

H T O P E

COOPERATE OHM

A M D K C C O

TUBE CHITCHAT

C U A E R E

HUSH SMUDGE

Need help with today’s puzzle? Call 0905 757 0143 to check the answers.
Calls cost £1 per minute plus your telephone company’s network access charge.
SP: Spoke, 0333 202 3390 (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm).

Bridge Andrew Robson

We began the penultimate set

of eight boards in the Schapiro

Spring Foursomes lagging

behind Hinden by 54 imps. We

needed to pick up two or three

hefty swings to have a chance

to overturn the deficit.

After the ten-minute auc-

tion, West paused a while to

decide what to lead. I prayed

for a club. A low club hit the

deck — yippee. I won the ace

and paused whether to return

a spade or a club. It had to be

right to return a club — if

declarer had held a small sin-

gleton spade and king-low of

clubs, he would surely have bid

Roman Key Card Blackwood

over 4♦ rather than his more

contorted approach. And with

♠AQxxx and ♣J10xx,

wouldn’t West have kicked off

with the ace of spades? Even if

he did lead choose a club,

wouldn’t he lead the jack?

Cashing the first two clubs

felt good. My partner apolo-

gised for taking a while to lead.

“It was always a club,” he said.

“I was deciding only which

one — I thought the king

could have been clearer.” Nice.

I hoped our teammates

would safely stop in Four. There

was bad news and good news.

The bad news: they bid Six. The

good news: the opponents didn’t

lead a club. However, that was

our only pick-up and we con-

ceded the match 59 imps down

with one set to play. Bravo the

Hinden quintet.

[email protected]

♠ Q 10 8 6 4

♥ -

♦ J 10 5 2

♣ K J 6 2

♠ A

♥ K Q J 10 9 8 4

♦ A 6 4

♣ 10 3

♠ K 9

♥ A 5 2

♦ K Q 9 7 3

♣ 9 8 7

♠ J 7 5 3 2

♥ 7 6 3

♦ 8

♣ A Q 5 4

S

E

N

W

Dealer North Both Vul

S(Forrester) W(Allfrey) N(Osborne) E(AR)

1 ♦(1) Pass

1 ♥ 1 ♠(2) 2 ♥ 4 ♦(3)

Pass(4) 4 ♠ Pass Pass

4NT(5) Pass 5♦ Pass

5 ♥(6) 5♠(7) Pass(8) Pass

5NT(9) Pass 6♥ end

(1) Playing Strong Notrump.

(2) Skimpy but crucial overcall by

Alexander Allfrey, loving the void.

West passed at the other table, giv-

ing N-S a free run.

(3) Splinter raise to 4♠, showing a

singleton (void) in diamonds. This I

bid (as opposed to simple raise to

4 ♠) not with slam in mind, but to

help partner judge the Five-level.

(4) Master tactician Tony Forrester

slows the bidding down. The other

alternative would be a 4♠ control

bid, looking for a heart slam. The

downside of this bid-what-you’ve-got

approach is it telegraphs a club lead.

(5) This was not Blackwood (unlike a

4NT bid the round before). It was ask-

ing partner to pick a red suit.

(6) However, when he removes 5♦ to

5 ♥, he is making a heart slam try.

(7) Very well judged, knowing there

is at most one red-suit loser.

(8) Should North, Graham Osborne,

double this with the poor-looking

king of spades and lack of club con-

trol? On the other hand, his dia-

monds look very offensive.

(9) Realising 5♠ is going to be verrry

cheap (it is only one down), the odds

needed to make 6♥ change. I think

5 NT (rather than 6♥) was bid merely

to sow doubt in the opponents’ minds

as to his hand-type.

Mindset by 700 Literary Quiz

1. Divide into threes: The Times Literary Desk
   ADIOS ANGLE AWAKE BABY BOY CIAO CONTINUING
   CUP FAREWELL FRUIT HORSESHOE LIP RABBIT RUDOLPH
   TWIXT UNDER UNFINISHED VAMPIRE


2. The Nootropian railway system has 700 stations connected
   in a circle so that sometimes travellers have to call at
   350 stations. New high-speed services are proposed by the
   government that directly link stations 25 places apart, reducing
   the number of stations that have to be visited. The opposition
   argues that stations 28 apart should be linked instead.
   Which proposal leads to the fewest visits in the worst case?


3. Which bird completes the sequence? MIRE-????-TILA-SOFA

Answers on page 53

Mwa.. ha. .ha.. ha!

*evil laugh*

Who created the following

villains?

1 Rupert of Hentzau

2 Mrs Danvers

3 Hannibal Lecter

4 Nurse Ratched

Answers on page 53

The Listener Crossword No 4715 Singles Only by Twin

Senders of the first three

correct entries drawn will

receive Brewer’s Dictionary

of Phrase and Fable or may

choose from a selection of

other books (see below).

Send your entry with

contact details completed

to: Listener Crossword

4715 , 63 Green Lane, St

Albans, Hertfordshire AL3

6HE, to arrive by June 23.

Name ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Address .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Postcode .............................................................................. Phone/email ..........................................................................................................................

Clues are given in alphabetical order of their answers, which must be entered where they fit, with

several cells containing two letters. Read row by row, the letter pairs give an instruction that affects

just over half of the cells. In every clue the wordplay leads to the answer with an extra letter that is not

entered in the grid; in order of grid entries, these letters spell out what must replace the contents of

most of the remaining cells, and a second instruction. Letters that have no such replacement say what

solvers must do after extending the second instruction to them. The Chambers Dictionary (2016) is the

primary reference.

Clues

Irish honey bee expelled from forest city

following decree (7)

Dead hot: aircon circulates as needed (5, two

words)

Rolling index I’d read out to support a lecturer

(7)

Mum over French bread, exceedingly stale (5)

Ante/stake: Parisian china plates (4)

What makes pollen brown — the queen? (6)

One of four rowing, maybe about wine gum’s

key ingredient (6)

God, in legend, holding part of church tower

up (6)

More down clues trimmed in member’s regular

selection (5)

This, in theory, is a multi-dimensional surface

hydride (5)

He acts oddly, entering cheese covered gallery (9)

Eg, two-decker fishing boat (3)

He won’t attend stupid hospital lessons (9)

Pass hare from Inverness Firth, say (5)

“Nearly free” cost somehow locks votes in (6)

Rural buildings, besides silver shelters (5)

Latin with God; Pope embracing Lord (3)

To Victorian goon, no one for smut? Poor

goon! (6)

24 hours not in work, and finally out for right

to roam (6)

Taken by storm, two of Romans tilt, according

to Scott (5)

Snag arising, having shift in run (6)

Violently argued with someone certifiable? (8)

Drug needles — new ones found in siege (9)

Scat note is overwhelming work (5, two words)

New driver, 70, wearing nettle yarn (5)

One from Thurso stops controlling tiger,

perhaps (8)

Mannheim’s no good horse? So it sounds (5)

Duff tin can’s opening under flurry of choppers

(7)

Mongrel made to eat masses of fluids between

tissues (8)

Milky white egg, even after pickling at first (4)

Florid gold vests; war paint; white cap; lastly,

recoiling firearm? (9)

Inverted jack in a box moved steadily (9)

Engineers issue correct guide (9)

Trans men playing tag (7)

Flying Mark Lester with special forces back on

stage (7)

Elegant shop’s wrapping station topped with

rebounding bow (8)

South Burmese title with bit about axe (5)

Cut short since errors broadcast with notched

antennae (9)

Jamaican beats gully predator? (3)

Fin went down gradually, dropping a spot of

roe? (5)

Fit head of household’s skipping accidents

recalled (5)

Addis Ababa’s grass on way for analysis (4)

If in Hawaii, host dances (3)

Put Cube Numbers etc back with Basic Digits (4)

What’s covered by barter, a deal? (5)

Split in back muscle after spinning, requiring

three trainers? (8)

Fly supporter to take in adaptation of Tess (6)

Make one substitute upset inside the Emirates (7)

Drug running with virus nut lacking morals (8)

Prize options and more at

listenercrossword.com

More information about

Chambers books can be

found at chambers.co.uk

Listener 4712 solution on

page 52