Listener 4106 A Change of Clothing by Elgin

[Ruthrobin]

A step up in difficulty here. We've floundered our way to a complete grid with crime fighters, an item of clothing and a set of villains, though I am not sure which one is the appropriate one to highlight. This one has been the most difficult for us for some time.

[turast]

PDM? Penny Drops Moment I assume. Have finally cracked L4106. A brilliant puzzle, but I'm having trouble with my prize crossword OCD. Saturday I cut out of the Times, the "ordinary", the Jumbo and the Listener, out of the Guardian, the ordinary (I miss Bunthorne a lot), the Independent on Saturday "ordinary". Sunday Times Mephisto & Crossword, Observer Everyman & AZED (I am so crap at making up clues for the competition puzzle that I've only had VHC once - but it was the year 2000 puzzle) IoS ordinary puzzle, but I hate Quixote. I then try to solve all the "ordinaries" and I have a specific order in which I do them, and then the rest. If I have time before the next weekend, and I think I have a chance, I go for the Listener. I'm probably able to submit a completed listener 4 or 5 times a year if I'm lucky. Help! Anybody else got a strange crosswording ritual?

[contendo]

Turast - and what do you do in your spare time?

[tweaker]

turast,

at last someone else who is fond of Bunthorne! I myself am to young to remember his weekly Guardian cryptic's. In the book however, puzzle 58 is one of my favourite's. Was there not a lot of commotion when he first appeared and the difficulty level???
I read people were even thinking about buying other papers!

[turast]

Contendo. That's the problem. My OCD is really bad. My pencils are straight (i.e. parallel to the edge of the desk. When I take my son to Uni we always stop at the same little chef and eat an Olympic breakfast. This has to be eaten in a very specific order: sausages dipped in one of the eggs, bacon dipped in the other. Eggs then eaten with the saute potatoes. Toast then eaten with tomato on one slice and beans on the other. If I do not fulfill the "crosswords ritual" in the correct order, it makes me feel incredibly uncomfortable. That's why I hate Quixote (Don Manley), because sometimes I just do not "get" him, and when I do I dislike his clues & solutions. Oh yeah, and I teach French & German too. And I have 4 kids, now grown. By the way, woe betide anyone who touches, folds, bends or reads the papers before I do (Independent 1st, Times 2nd and Guardian last, IoS, ST, then Observer). Sometimes I go fishing. Or I read. Do not get me started on book "series" and having to read them in the correct chronological order. Will Dave Robicheaux ever die?

[dr b]

///Anybody else got a strange crosswording ritual? ///

Well, I sacrifice a chicken to the crosswording gods before starting any puzzle (or in the case of the Listener, a goat), but who doesn't? So no, I would say I don't have any *strange* rituals.

[Malcolmd]

I think it is safer to ask turast closed questions.

[turast]

I blush, suitably reproved. Sorry, I'm new to this kind of thing. Will stick to comments and questions about specific crosswords in future. Is PDM a Penny Drop Moment?

[Jogler]

Yes, Turast, pdm is indeed penny drop moment. Please don't confine your comments in the future as you have quite made my day.

[turast]

Tweaker. In my opinion Bunthorne was the best. Like translating from Tacitus when you were at school.

[Malcolmd]

Sorry Turast, I didn't mean to offend. I am now googling Dave Robicheaux to find out why he is immortal.

[turast]

Malcolmd. OCD again. James Lee Burke. Once I had read one, I had to read them all in order. Similarly Rebus, Morse, Wallander, Dr. Alex Comfort, Bosch, Harry Hole et al and especially Aubrey and Maturin, the most addictive books of all time.

[trux]

still in Asia, no BRB, not online, but plenty of wide-awake moments thanks to jetlag ... and in Hong Kong finally cracked it ... wonderful as each PDM was spaced about 24hours apart ... definite giggle out loud when last PDM arrived .... thanks to Elgin for keeping me busy for so long !