Clues by Guinevere and Grid by Komorník
Theme: Cox’s Orange Pippin apple
Winner: Jim Pennington of Carlisle
Review of the October Extra 2025 3D crossword
Essentially, what we have here is a Theme and Variations puzzle — a traditional cryptic format which I feel has fallen out of fashion, although I am not sure why, because T&Vs can be very satisfying, just as this one proved to be. This puzzle is made more challenging because there are no indications as to which coloured ‘string of tinted cells’ relates to which part of the three-word theme and, of course, as an ‘extra,’ no Hints and Tips feature. We are given a list of eight definitions in the preamble to unravel and four of the definitions are unclued — so we have to rely on their alphabetical position to be able to identify their place in the grid.
Solving the majority of the clues proved to be straightforward, despite a larger number than usual of relatively obscure words (ZHANG, STEINMETZ, YEALM, MOBLOG, PLOUTER, CONIL, IROKO). The clueing throughout was sound and there was a good range of cryptic devices; I am a particular fan of brevity in clues, so I especially liked “A hoax portrait” for ICON, “Band love drummer” for RINGO, “Stole pancake, almost got time” for CREPT and “Working current, working bulb” for ONION. I also smiled at the TAKER/cater Spoonerism.
Despite my having entered many of the solutions in the grid, the theme remained elusive. A trawl through Google births in October 1825, and then the whole of 1825, to try to identify the bicentenarian (4,6,6) proved fruitless (sorry!). Eventually, I had to rely on the hint that the subject was a native of 26ac, C-L-B-O-K and there were few alternatives to COLNBROOK. This is, we are told by Google (other search engines are available), the place where, in 1825 (aha!), Richard Cox, a retired brewer, first grafted the Cox’s Orange Pippin apple in his orchard — a big penny drop moment that explains the blossoming tree that forms the backdrop to the grid.
From there, the variations for each word gradually emerged: COX’S (CREWS, BAZAR and BRIAN); ORANGE (DUTCH HOUSE COLOUR and TRIUMPHAL ARCH); PIPPIN (CAROLINGIAN FATHER, HOTTY and P. TOOK). I would be fascinated to know whether any of our solvers was able to justify all the links without further recourse to the internet. Who knew, for example, that there is a place in Bangladesh called Cox’s Bazar, or that Pippin Took is a hobbit (‘short literary character’) in Lord of the Rings, or that Pippin III was the first king in the Frankish Carolingian dynasty and father of Charlemagne, who was in turn father to Pippin the Hunchback? All fascinating stuff that adds a further layer of interest to the puzzle.
This is the first appearance by Guinevere in the 3D Calendar series and we wish her well in her burgeoning career as a setter. Here, she is supported by an intriguing grid from our old friend and colleague, Komorník, who is a regular contributor, so, as solvers, we have benefited from a good blend of youth and experience. Thank you, both, for a very enjoyable puzzle.
KM
Grid solution
Background image
The backdrop to this month’s puzzle is an apple orchard in spring (CC0 1.0 licence).
Clues and explanations
Thematic solutions are indicated with an asterisk.
| Day | Solution | Clue | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ACID HOUSE* | 17ba Music for first class detective’s place? (4,5) | Music. A CID HOUSE See DUTCH |
| 2 | ASHEN | 14aw Grey bent naked after whip strikes 50 (5) | Grey. (l)ASH (b)EN(t) |
| 3 | BAZAR* | 12d Unclued (5) | Cox’s Bazar – Bangladeshi port |
| 4 | BOHOS | 28up Commonly, Boris’s hot for a bit of jazzy arty types? (5) | arty types? BOjOS with H for J |
| 5 | BOLO | 12ba A kind of punch with a distinctive smell tastes of lime and ouzo (4) | A kind of punch. BO L O |
| 6 | BRIAN* | 12to Unclued (5) | Brian Cox – actor or physicist |
| 7 | COLNBROOK | 26ac Unclued (9) | Where the Cox’s Orange Pippin apple was first grafted |
| 8 | CONIL | 4aw Andalusian town’s 21’s drunk dash of Laphroaig (5) | Andalusian town. ICON* L |
| 9 | CREPT | 26up Stole pancake, almost got time (5) | Stole. CREP(e) T |
| 10 | CREST | 9to Lucre stash includes crown (5) | crown. Hidden in luCRE STash |
| 11 | CREWS* | 9d Prison officer cycles around gangs (5) | gangs. SCREW with S moving to end With STEER = to cox a boat |
| 12 | DISCOLOUR* | 31ac Tarnish and traumatise Doric soul (9) | Tarnish. (DORIC SOUL)* Defines orange |
| 13 | DOSED | 8d Provided drugs – dirty opiates (smack), ecstasy and dexamphetamine uppers (5) | Provided drugs. Initial letters of Dirty Opiates Smack Ecstasy Dexamphetamine |
| 14 | DRIVE | 15aw Jump in, right inside – and spin! (5) | spin. R in DIVE |
| 15 | DUCAL | 31to Timeless old coin early sign of life of a nobleman (5) | of a nobleman. DUCA(t) L |
| 16 | DUTCH* | 8to Unclued (5) | With HOUSE = Orange |
| 17 | GODFATHER* | 16ba Sponsor return of setter, say – solid, infinite champion (9) | Sponsor. DOG< FAT HER(o) With CAROLINGIAN (9ac-5,11to-3,6ac-3,7to) = PIPPIN |
| 18 | HAUTE | 13aw Macron’s high, can’t stand, squashes head of UNESCO (5) | Macron’s high. U in HATE |
| 19 | HI-HAT | 21up Metal instrument – removing skin, this dissected heart evenly (2-3) | Metal instrument. (t)HI(s) HeArT |
| 20 | HOTTY* | 1ac Hay – that’s too much for a means of heating beds (5) | OTT replacing A in HAY A highly attractive individual (slang) = PIPPIN |
| 21 | ICON | 3ac A hoax portrait (4) | portrait. I CON |
| 22 | IGNESCENT | 7ba Nice gents excitedly getting a spark when being hit on! (9) | getting a spark when being hit on! (NICE GENTS)* |
| 23 | INDIC | 23up Asian music genre comes to an abrupt end with halfhearted record (5) | Asian. INDIe + reCord |
| 24 | IROKO | 23aw African teak can be found making a comeback in Bangkok or Istanbul (5) | African teak. Hidden reversed in BangOK OR Istanbul |
| 25 | KHAKI | 30up King, central character of The King and I, introduces a way to hide body (5) | way to hide body. A in (K (t)H(e) K I) |
| 26 | LARCH* | 20up Tree planted in irregular churchyard (5) | Tree. Hidden in irreguLAR CHurchyard See TRIUMPHAL |
| 27 | LIE TO | 11d Take extra time in toilet, erupting into severe wind… Stop! (3,2) | into severe wind… Stop! TOILE(t)* |
| 28 | MOBLOG | 22aw,33up-2 Own goal after Salah cleared ball – it’s a record (caught on phone) (6) | a record (caught on phone). MO (Salah) B(al)L OG |
| 29 | ONION | 29up Working current, working bulb (5) | bulb. ON I ON |
| 30 | PLOUTER | 25aw-2,27up,5aw-2 Yob taken on by a potter in Scotland (7) | potter in Scotland. LOUT in PER |
| 31 | RACED | 10ba Competed against Rufus’ first 1D (5) | Competed against. R ACE D |
| 32 | RINGO | 10d Band love drummer (5) | drummer. RING O |
| 33 | RUSTY | 10to Vigorous and healthy before changing hands – becoming old and neglected (5) | old and neglected. LUSTY with R for L |
| 34 | STEER* | 18to Elder receives support guide (5) | guide.TEE in SR see CREWS |
| 35 | STEINMETZ | 18ac Chef Rick encountered unknown electrical engineer (9) | electrical engineer. (Rick) STEIN MET Z |
| 36 | SYLPH | 32to Spirit of the air silently disheartened, lingers initially, quietly beginning to hope (5) | Spirit of the air. S(ilentl)Y L P H |
| 37 | TAKER | 24aw Provide food for Spooner’s kidnapper (5) | kidnapper. Spoonerism of cater |
| 38 | TIGON | 24up Can crack on stuffing unusual big cat (5) | unusual big cat. GO in TIN |
| 39 | TRIUMPHAL* | 24ba Court case surrounding central character in procuring speed is successful (9) | successful. (proc)U(ring) + MPH in TRIAL With LARCH makes TRIUMPHAL ARCH, of which there is an example in Orange, Vaucluse, France |
| 40 | YEALM | 2d Vote in favour of liberal introduction to Margaret Thatcher’s bundle (5) | Thatcher’s bundle. YEA L M |
| 41 | ZHANG | 19to On the outskirts of Zurich, a no-good Chinese archer (5) | Chinese archer. Z(uric)H A NG Common Chinese surname meaning “Archer” |
| Required | COX’S ORANGE PIPPIN | The bicentenarian (4,6,6) |
Solvers’ comments
A tasty treat! I had no idea of the theme until I’d solved all the clues. PTOOK worried me for a while until I realised it was P. Took. [NI]
I was on the wrong track to start with, thinking the bicentennial was a person – I wasted a lot of time looking at 1825 birthdays. Once I widened my net however, helped by the clues in the tinted cells – especially ‘orange’ – I found the right answer. Thanks to Guinevere and Komornik for a fun puzzle. [RS]
Having found the bicentenarian, it took me some time to work out the unclued answers and all the connections. A nice fairly gentle puzzle with a few words new to me. [MJ]
I enjoyed the many quite tricky clues and the fact that the theme never became obvious. It was only while puzzling over my last entry (the unclued COLNBROOK) that the theme was revealed. I know Colnbrook and wondered how that could possibly be the basis of a bicentenary theme with connections (cryptic or otherwise) to CAROLINGIAN, DUTCH, etc. I was pleased that the Wikipedia article on Colnbrook helped me to unlock this mystery. The depth to which the thematic material went through the grid was most impressive. [AB]
Tough puzzle! Several clues unparsed, and I needed OneLook to get the bicentenarian. [NY]
We solved the straightforward clues in one sitting and now think we have most of the deviously themed Easter eggs. [J&JH]
Intriguing puzzle. Theme unexpected (was looking for historical figure!). Enjoyable and challenging solve. [JP]
An ignescent, triumphal, arch too perhaps, autumnal bonus. As we unpeeled the clues like an onion, more thematic detail emerged leaving us in awe of the wizard of Schenectady and the wiles of Guinevere and Komorník. [DR]
Really good, some hard clues that I’d never heard of and making all the thematic connections took a while! [MD]
Wow – some tough clues x [RE]
Well a slow and steady solve. Struggled to get the theme as I thought it was a person, then I got that the orange cells meant Orange so ….. A lovely and enjoyable crossword so thanks to Guinevere and Komornik. [GW]
A toughie but fun. Took a while to understand the instructions, but it all fell into place when I saw ‘orange’ then ‘cox’ as link words. Thanks to all. [JC]
Some good clueing, a few smiles, and a good work-out. Plus a couple of new words, of course. Wrestled for ages trying to identify the bicentenarian, and then my better had a lightbulb moment! Thank you Guinevere and Komornik. [CW]
Well, I think I have solved the crossword so have come on to the submission page and find that I don’t seem to have to prove that I have understood any of the other bits so will submit and see what happens. Having got the intersecting letters of 26A, I guessed various plausible place names and one of them struck lucky. But whether I get a ‘well done’ or not, I’m not sure that I can be bothered to work out all the ‘sets of shaded cells’ or ‘strings of tinted cells’ (are those the same thing or not?), since I don’t seem to be required to. Sorry if this is disappointing to anyone. I am intrigued by the blue cells on level 2, which presumably have some significance. A nice idea, but hopelessly convoluted in the endplay! [EF]
Great fun! Enjoyed puzzling out the theme. [JG]
Marvellously contrived, especially with all the coloured extras. Some of which I’ve yet to fully comprehend 😁 [SB]
Overall a quick and enjoyable solve!! I *particularly* enjoyed the elegantly simplicity of some of the clues (e.g., 14, 21, 29, 32, 37) 😍 My only quibble was with the lengthy bit of the description listing what all the strings of tinted cells refer to… I got very distracted trying to figure out which was which and found (just personally) that it somewhat detracted from the rest of the puzzle. Always grateful for an extra monthly puzzle — thanks, Guinevere & Komornik! [MS]
Another hard one for an Australian [KD]
Not sure I understood all of the tinted cell references, particularly the five blues on the second layer, but it was an interesting puzzle to solve. [MH]
Crisp and juicy. [TH]
Quite the most obscure theme ever – but it did stretch the imagination! [SF]
Lovely puzzle, fun and tricky. Took a while for the penny and then the apple to drop. Thanks. [JT]
Got very held up with the coloured hints but got there in the end. [PD]
Fun! Right time of year for this one too! [JS]
Another great and inventive puzzle. It took a while to solve the last few remaining clues but it helped when I finally got (almost) to grips with the sets of shaded cells. For the rest, I’ll have to wait for the published solution! [SB]
Really enjoyable puzzle – it was challenging and helpful to sort out all the references in the preamble. I suspected that the theme wasn’t a person but it took ages for the penny to drop. Thanks Guinevere and Komornik – a great extra! [BS]
Once Colnbook was possible a look up gave the COP answer! Both Brian’s and crews for Coxs, the arch and colour for orange LoR character for Pippin, which once looked up gave Charlemagne musical link. Still to sort out others!! Great puzzle. [DM]
A lot of the way through it seemed impenetrable. Links to the theme helped it along. [JC]
Still not sure about day 3… [RS]
Well, I am quite relieved… COX’S BAZAR, HOTTY and CAROLINGIAN FATHER are pretty good candidates for being a step too far, so the number of people who worked it all out is quite gratifying, and a tribute to our solvers. No disrespect at all to those who didn’t like the long instructions, or the complicated after-solve: it’s all a matter of personal preference. I hope we strike a good balance.
Thank you to all who commented.
What I would like to do is give great credit to Guinevere for her superb clues. She is a very inventive and ingenious setter, as will testify those who know her work in the Guardian (as Dice), the Independent and elsewhere (as Guinevere and Kybos); and very fair also, for those who like the “rules” to be followed scrupulously.
A special word of thanks to DR for the Wizard of Schenectady – as well as for splitting up TRIUMPHAL and ARCH :). I will look at the YouTube biography of CP Steinmetz which came up when I entered the name in one of those many search engines.
Cox’s Orange Pippin is a delicious apple, both sharp and sweet. There are many parts of the UK where it doesn’t do well, however. Here in NW Norfolk I have a tree called Spartan, which I recommend for flavour, hardiness and productivity.