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Noted quickie, followed by small talk, then bed - it gets you nowhere! (7,7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

holding pattern

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'you nowhere' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

'noted quickie followed by small talk then bed it' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'by' could be 'at' and 'at' is located in the answer.
'it' could be 't' (abbreviation. e.g. in 'tis) and 't' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'gets' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Another definition for holding pattern that I've seen is " aeroplanes, stacks of them".)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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