Solving time: 11:58
The clueing in this puzzle was more ‘down the line’ than normal for Araucaria, I thought. Nothing too obscure either, although a couple where the wordplay helped me out.
3dn and 19/20dn have the same definition (‘in a state’) but there were no cross-clue references in this – all the more surprising, as DOODAH (20dn) is the main bit of the chorus to CAMPTOWN RACES (16dn/9ac), which you’d think was deliberate on the setter’s part.
Music (1ac): Jupiter from Gustav Holst’s suite The Planets.
* = anagram, “X” = sounds like ‘X’.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | JUPITER; “JEW PITTA” |
| 5 | SIDECAR (double definition) |
| 10 | FOREST + ALL |
| 11 | HUM + ANGUINE + A + PIG – I didn’t know ‘anguine’ (meaning ‘of a snake’) or ‘pig’ (= ‘a segment of an orange’). |
| 14 | AIR (= ‘melody’) + TIGHT (= ‘one over the eight’) |
| 17 | STEELMAN; (MALTESE + N[ame])* – this took a bit of fathoming after stopping the clock. It turns out that Corus is one of the world’s largest steel producers. |
| 21 | PRINCIPAL FOCUS; (FOR PUCCINI’S PAL)* – sadly I had to write the letters out to spot this; I’d probably have got it instantly during my GCSEs. |
| 23 | LA(C + RIM)OS + O – a musical term. |
| 24 | DE(S)POT |
| 25 | SUSTAIN (double definition) |
| 26 | ASHTRAY – “ASTRAY” said with a slur. Another I didn’t get when solving. |
| Down | |
|---|---|
| 1 | JERK[in] |
| 2 | PICK UP + THE PIECES |
| 3 | TIS + WAS – my last entry, having tried to justify ‘Tasman’ for a while. |
| 4 | RE + FUG + E |
| 5 | SARDINIA; (AND AIR IS)* |
| 6 | DIS + KETT[l]E |
| 7 | CHAMP + AGNES + UPPER – nicely split up. |
| 8 | REL*G*T**N; ELEG[y] in RATION – this is a sore subject at the moment so no comments on this clue please (unless Leicester ensure safety by beating Sheffield Wednesday this afternoon – not likely, I fear). |
| 12 | PER SE + POLIS – I wasn’t familiar with Marlowe’s Tamburlaine or his destination, but the wordplay got me there. |
| 15 | OLD CHINA (double wordplay) – this is a bit naughty as there’s no proper definition. The phrase ‘old china’ can mean a mate, but not a former mate. |
| 16/9 | CAMPTOWN RACES; CAMP + (C TO ANSWER)* – ‘Plantation song’ because this was originally published in Stephen Foster’s Plantation Melodies. |
| 19/20 | ALL OF A DOODAH; (FOOD)* around ADO, all in ALLAH |
15 I took “former” to indicate that the phrase “old china” is a bit dated, so it is a proper def. No one now says “Wotcher, me old china” – do they?
I tend to agree with rightback’s disapproval of 15d. Apart from that, there doesn’t seem to be a lot to say about this one, as the lack of comments perhaps indicates: an oddly subdued one for Araucaria, especially as a prize puzzle.