Times cryptic chess clue

[AlanLlewellyn]

are theyre draughts nuts?

[Gordon Morse]

I'm not related to Jeremy but a customs officer at San Francisco Airport did ask, tongue in cheek, whether I was related to Inspector Morse. It was a pleasant surprise to find some evidence of humour in an American customs officer after the rudeness which I and probably most people have encountered from the customs people in New York.

I'm not claiming to be well-travelled because I'm not by many people's standards!

[Paul Habershon]

I'm not related to Jeremy but a customs officer at San Francisco Airport did ask, tongue in cheek, whether I was related to Inspector Morse. It was a pleasant surprise to find some evidence of humour in an American customs officer after the rudeness which I and probably most people have encountered from the customs people in New York.

I'm not claiming to be well-travelled because I'm not by many people's standards!

I think there is some connection with Inspector Morse and crossword clues, or was it Dexter, the writer?

Anyway, today's Times 6 down:
Where men go sweeping (6-3-5)

Solution: ACROSS-THE-BOARD (definition 'sweeping')

'Men' is often used to mean chess men in cryptic clues.

[Kevin Thurlow]

"I think there is some connection with Inspector Morse and crossword clues, or was it Dexter, the writer?"

Colin Dexter was a big fan of the Ximenes crossword in the Observer and named his characters after regular of the prize. You had to complete the crossword, then provide a clue for (say) 9 Across. As CJ Morse won repeatedly, he became the hero of the books.

[Paul Habershon]

Relaying a Guardian clue (20 September) quoted in a thread on the Crossword Help Forum:

After mistake on circuit, pressure for F1 starter (6)

I think it has to be a down clue to be sound. Knowledge of chess notation needed as well as an old-fashioned four-letter word for 'mistake'.

[Mike Alderson]

Bishop

"My bishop move was a bad bish"

[John Clarke]

That's a pretty clever "surface" (cryptic crossworders' term for a clue whose superficial reading suggests the answer is in a completely different category from the actual one).

A sentence about a chess game that includes that old-fashioned word referred to above: "You've made a bish and put yourself in check." (Jennings Follows A Clue, Chapter 1)

[MJMcCready]

After reading this thread, I am glad I have never taken up cryptic crosswords.

[Matt Mackenzie]

Cryptic crosswords - for those who think chess isn't enough of a waste of time

[Reg Clucas]

Bishop

"My bishop move was a bad bish"

Of course 'bish' can simply mean bishop, as in the famous game Holly v Queeg - "Horsey to King's Bish three".

[Paul Habershon]

People on the Crossword Help Forum are posting cryptic chess clues now. From a recent Guardian (which I don't buy):

Defeat of king's son nurtured by partner (9, 4)

S - - - - - - - D M - - -

Quite specialist for a general cryptic, but the phrase is in Collins and Chambers dictionaries so fair game, I suppose.

Someone wondered why it had to be by a knight (as mentioned in the dictionary). For the casual player I can see why a back rank mate might also be thought to be in this category.

[Joey Stewart]

I can see the solution but the clue is utter gibberish, couldn't even imagine what warped imagination decided that led to the word smothered.

[David Williams]

I can see the solution but the clue is utter gibberish, couldn't even imagine what warped imagination decided that led to the word smothered.

son = s. nurtured = mothered.

[Roger de Coverly]

son = s. nurtured = mothered.

and partner = mate

Cryptic crosswords are a game with its own baffling rule set. The forum relies on Paul H and others for explanations.

That was an easy one for the forum if rewritten as chess terminology, two words, one (9 letters) starts with s and ends with d. The other (4 letters) starts with m.

[Paul Habershon]

I can see the solution but the clue is utter gibberish, couldn't even imagine what warped imagination decided that led to the word smothered.

Yes, Joey, cryptic clues are gibberish and uninteresting for many people, though I suspect even more people are turned off by chess.

However, there is nearly always a basic definition somewhere in the clue. This definition is all you get in a 'quick' and ostensibly easier crossword. In the example above 'smothered mate' is defined by 'defeat of the king'. The rest of the clue uses linguistic devices to give further hints and I agree that getting used to those can be a formidable hurdle, but in theory they make the clue easier than a 'quick' one. S for son is acceptable because it is used in genealogy. 'Mothered' = 'nurtured' and 'partner'='mate' are straightforward definitions in themselves.