Listener No 4620 Six-Pack By Hedge-Sparrow

[NickorWan]

I had just finished, and thoroughly enjoyed, a Hedge-sparrow puzzle in Magpie and found myself treated to another directly. This one looked daunting from the preamble, but it didn’t turn out to be too difficult. I absolutely loved it and begrudged having to put it aside to dine!

One of my favourite gridfills for a while.

Excellent, thanks, Hedge-sparrow.

[sunny-dave]

One of my favourite setters and an excellent example of his work.

I also had an enforced dinner-break, but actually had a couple of light-bulb moments during my meal (probably the excellent wine loosening up the relevant neurons).

Thoroughly enjoyable and very pleasing that everything fitted together so neatly.

Thanks Hedge-sparrow

[Hagen]

One of those puzzles that looked like a non-starter to begin with but gathered momentum as answers went in. I still found it hard, though was grateful that the final highlighting didn't require any grid-staring.
All in all a fine piece of work; thanks to the Sparrow.

[Scorpius]

Like Hagen, I also found it hard until I realized what was going on with some of the entries. Then later, when I spotted the thematic word, things speeded up still more.

[midgler]

Lovely puzzle. Unless the editors are ahead of me (as is probably the case!), there is a serendipitous connection between the theme of this puzzle and that of last week’s.

[emcee]

Excellent puzzle. Can't add to what has already been said.

Thanks, Hedge-sparrow.

[contendo]

I prefer crosswords where the main challenge is to figure out the clues rather than, as in this instance, to interpret an impenetrable preamble. I seem to have filled most of the grid without really understanding what is going on.

[sunny-dave]

Well spotted, midgler - I too wondered whether it was conspiracy or chance ...

[perseverer]

I had most of the grid filled without figuring out what was going on, then spotting the thematic word developing in the grid clarified things for me, but I still had some problems with my last few clues from set 3, although as always, looking back at them now, they seem quite straightforward. Anyone out there possess all the dictionaries quoted?

[Hagen]

I have Chambers, but not the Oxfords or Collins (which is available in an online version, though I don't know if it's the full Monty)

[Scorpius]

Re Contendo's comment, surely the attraction of puzzles such as this is that one can manage to work one's way through the puzzle without understanding what on earth's going on, and then all becomes clear when something emerges in the grid.

[NickorWan]

I agree with Scorpius. I really enjoyed working out how to fill the grid, and late in the fill getting the pdm of why.

[contendo]

Yes, Scorpius, I take your point, but once you've had the pdm you look at it in a different light. When you're struggling you find yourself cursing at the obscurity of the preamble. Got there in the end.

[Graejen]

Thumbs up from us. Enjoyed it all the way through - though we did pick up on the theme very quickly (unusually for us!)

[Philoctetes]

Some good cluing, well hidden letters, and a very difficult construction, with a crystal-clear ending. What more could we ask for? Funnily enough, I surmised the right topic from the preamble (despite my violent aversion to the general area of life) but it helped not a lot. I do think, though, that so many dictionaries could have been avoided.

[WessexGirl]

I managed to find the non-Chambers answers from the wordplay, plus a quick Google to confirm. Just noticed we do actually own an Oxford D of E, but it hasn’t been opened since I got the Chambers online version.
Thanks Hedge-Sparrow for an ingenious and enjoyable puzzle.