Everyman 3302
Posted by Arthur on January 17th, 2010
I rather enjoyed this one. No particularly obscure words and a couple of nice cryptic definitions as part of more precise clues which raised smiles. Also generally the surfaces seemed to read better than they have done in a few previous weeks.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | TYPE - dd |
| 3 | PINCUSHION - CHOPINUSIN*. Nice misdirection with ‘small pad’ seeming to reference a bedsit |
| 10 | EARHOLE – E + A + ROLE around H. Nice cd too |
| 11 | THEATRE – THE + A + T(osh) + RE |
| 12 | PANATELLA - PA around {AN + TELL around A} |
| 13 | KRILL – KILL around (lobste)R |
| 14 | ALPHABET SOUP - “ALF” + ABETS + OUP [= Oxford University Press] |
| 18 | ADDER’S TONGUE – GROUNDSEATED* |
| 21 | ALICE - cd |
| 22 | PINOT NOIR – INNPOORIT* |
| 24 | CONCERN – dd |
| 25 | BARMAID – BARM(y) + AID. Again another nice cd |
| 26 | TALK TURKEY – TURKEY after TALK |
| 27 | STYE – STY + (lan)E. And another good cd |
| Down | |
| 1 | THESPIAN – HES in PAINT* |
| 2 | PARSNIPS – PAR + SNIPS |
| 4 | IDEAL - I + DEAL |
| 5 | CUTLASSES - LUCASSETS* |
| 6 | SPEAK OUT OF TURN - OFT in U-TURN after PEAK in SO |
| 7 | IN TRIM – IN + TRIM |
| 8 | NEEDLE – dd |
| 9 | PORTLAND CEMENT – MODERNPLANTETC* &lit |
| 15 | EYE-OPENER – EYE + OPENER. To correctly parse this clue, ‘wonder’ has to be read as a noun as in ‘seven wonders of the world’ |
| 16 | IGNORANT – RANTING* around O |
| 17 | BEGRUDGE – BEG + RUDGE ref Barnaby Rudge |
| 19 | SHANDY – M + ASCOT |
| 20 | SIGNAL - dd |
| 23 | NOBLE - NOB + LE |
Common crossword abbreviations this week:
East = E
one = I
Somalia = SO
love = O
maiden = M
January 17th, 2010 at 12:14 am
Thanks for the blog, Arthur.
I think, 25ac and 27ac aren’t cd’s, just nice charades.
Very friendly crossword, nothing too demanding.
The only one I still don’t understand is 21ac (ALICE).
January 17th, 2010 at 1:01 am
Hi Sil van den Hoek.
Perhaps I didn’t explain myself very well. When I referred to cryptic definitions on 25ac and 27ac, I didn’t mean the whole clue, rather that the part of the clue that defines the answer (not the charade bit) is itself a cryptic definition of the word rather than a straight one. The cds I am talking about are – 25ac Local girl is a cd for a barmaid as she is a girl who works in a ‘local’, not a girl from the local area; 27ac a stye is not an eyesore in the sense that it is something that looks ugly, but an actual sore on your eye.
21ac is a reference to an Alice band which is a type of hairband that is made of a horseshoe of plastic that grips to your head. Apparently this name derives from Through the Looking Glass, as the pictures depict Alice wearing this sort of hairband.
January 17th, 2010 at 1:09 am
I enjoyed this crossword as well – nothing too challenging, but some nicely crafted clues.
@ Sil – an alice band is a type of hairband, like a hard plastic inverted U shaped thing to hold hair back off the forehead, if you get what I mean. As far as I know it’s a specifically British term, and I’m guessing from your name you’re not British, so the confusion is understandable.
January 17th, 2010 at 1:10 am
Ha – beaten to it by Arthur! Should have refreshed the page before commenting…
January 17th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Thanks Arthur & Sam.
I was probably too fixated on the answer possibly being linked to, um, Alice Cooper (of all persons).
Just this morning, I remembered Alice to have seen before as a ‘hair band’, and one quick look in Chambers was enough.
Should have known – even so, thanks for the explanations
And Arthur, you’re absolutely right about your cd’s!