This puzzle features at 4 down my first ever Spoonerism clue . It’s a rare device in cryptics but far from unknown. Alan Connor in his crossword blog on the Guardian website does a quite thorough analysis here.

Crossword 797 solution

Because the only possible Spoonerism indicator is a reference to Spooner, it is a distinctly unsubtle device and thus unsatisfactory if used often.

Fresh Spoonerisms are also quite hard to devise although the original Dr Spooner’s students and colleagues at Oxford wrung a good lot out of the joke even as the poor man continued to work and attempted to retain the respect and serious attention of his students.

The story is told in the Guardian’s obituary from 1930. It seems that Dr Spooner never really told a student that he had “tasted a whole worm.” Nor did he really tell a groom that it is “kistomary to cuss the bride.”

Hard to devise as they may be, a friend of mine has developed quite a knack for Spoonerisms and has come up with some beauts. My favourite: Horace Rabbit for Robert Harris, the café and coffee brand.