Solving Time: 20 mins (although aone explanation baffles me)
Gosh, it seems such a long time that I’ve been here, after stays in and out of hospital. I was dreading getting a real stinker today as my solving has been a bit awry recently but I was pleasantly surprised to see that today’s Guardian was by the ever dependable Pasquale.
While under the care of the NHS my solving times drifted somewhat but it was nice to do this one in just on 20 minutes.
No real quibbles with any of the clues, apart from the very last down clue, although one or two did hold me up as I went off in another direction, for me, the mark of a good puzzle.
ACROSS (* = ANAGRAM R = REVERSAL)
9 RAW SIENNA ANNE IS WAR (R) – I kept thinking of Sienna Miller for some reason, then the penny dropped!
10 TUNER Cryptic definition.
11 ELM TREE Nice clue – ELSTREE with M for S (“male not special”)
12 HEAD OFF Ref: Lewis Carroll – “Off with his head”
13 WHIN Effect= WIN with H for Horse (in the drug sense) inside.
14 ANGEL FALLS Thanks to Mr McKenna – “Fallen angels become devils”
16 OARLESS LOSES* around AR
17 CORELLI CELLIST minus ST with OR inside
19 PARCEL POST A lovely anagram to complement the clue.
22 MOAN O in MAN
24 CLANGER C + (Justin) LANGER – not at the World Cup – but it makes no difference – they are still likely to waltz off with the title!
25 CORDIAL COR! (Expression of surprise!) + DIAL (face)
26 EXIST EST (abbr. for established) around XI (eleven = team)
27 DONATIONS NATIONS following DO
DOWN
1 GREEN WOODPECKER Actress Joan Greenwood (Larry O’Luvvier’s wife) + PECKER. Glad it wasn’t Private Eye, I shudder to think what the clue might have read.
2 SWAMPIER Seen on Countdown last week (I am recording an appearance on the show next week!) SWAM + PIER
3 FIBRE B = Black surrounded by FIRE
4 INTERNES This held me up a little – hadn’t seen it spelt this way – Chambers gives it as N American. Homophone clue “IN TURNS”
5 DAPHNE END (R) around APH – A P HERBERT of “Misleading Cases” fame. There’s a lovely case about crosswords. If you haven’t seen it, feel free to mail me, it’s a hoot.
6 STRATFORD Hmmm…. Slight quibble isn’t “Theatrical place” STRATFORD ON AVON? Anyway I’m being petty. DARTS (River’s) (R) around FORT*
7 IN FOAL Very amusing – a HACK is a horse and a journalist – nice misleading surface reading of this clue.
8 PROFESSIONALISM – IS PRIM ALOOFNESS*
15 SERENGETI Lovely “& Lit clue” The SERENGETI could be described as a “Wild Green Site” and it’s an anagram of Green Site!
17 COSECANT COSE + CANT
18 LEOMINOR LEOMINSTER with O for SET*
20 ROADIE I ADORE*
21 PARADE PARA (Soldier) + DE (Half DEAD)
23 BROTH BROTHER minus ER – This confused me as, of course, Esau sold his birthright for the “mess of pottage” (soup /broth). Does the question mark mean that this surface is a little dodgy?
All in all, a pleasant solve over breakfast. Thanks to Pasquale!
5A: clue was “Outside front of radio, this could be something rotating”. More than a CD – also a cleverly worded set of instructions on how to get TU(R)NER, so another &lit. Equally baffled by the apparent OT role swap in 23D.
Avon? I assumed 6 down was referring to the Theatre Royal in Stratford, east London!
The Church Times editor apologises for swapping brothers! The fact that I ‘checked’ the clue several times …