Comments on Crossword Unclued: Does the clue make you happy?

This article saved 23D in my latest puzzle: Lavis...

2009-11-17T00:53:02.482+05:30

This article saved 23D in my latest puzzle:

Lavish masquerades left out Hindu god (5)

The previous clue leveraged the middle three letters of the answer.

To add to that: Even with a possibly negative word...

2009-11-04T21:10:59.612+05:30

To add to that: Even with a possibly negative word, a smart setter can divert attention away from its negativity by exploiting something quirky about it. There was such a clue for the word TERRORIST by Mudd in FT not so long ago, I wish I remembered the clue!

I wasn't talking of off-colour humour or double en...

2009-11-04T21:06:16.565+05:30

I wasn't talking of off-colour humour or double entendre, which can be amusing to many even if they don't find place in the regular papers. What is acceptable or not in a "family paper" is debatable, and another topic altogether.

In fact, on that scale of impropriety, The Hindu is far more staid than the UK papers like FT or Guardian; I've found only Gridman making occasional forays into suspect territory.

About serious illnesses, however, there can hardly be two ways of thinking.

Specification sheets for US synonymic crosswords s...

2009-11-04T19:29:30.104+05:30

Specification sheets for US synonymic crosswords say that the grids must not have words/phrases relating to diseases, bodily functions and so on.
Perhaps UK crossword editors too will want their setters to avoid these terms but I, as a long-standing solver of British crosswords, can say that they are not too squeamish. And I am not thinking of Private Eye crossword!
I agree TERMINAL CANCER or TERMINAL ILLNESS is likely to cause some distress to solvers, especially if someone dear to them was in this unfortunate situation.
In any case, long phrases such as these do not go into a grid at any early stage. So, if the composer has a certain sensitivity, they may well be given a wide berth.