Apologies for a rather brief blog today.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | DEVILS ADVOCATE: DEVIATE around anagram of CALVADOS (without an ‘A’) |
| 9 | UKRAINIAN: UK RAIN + IAN |
| 10 | PROMO: PRO + MO |
| 13 | DIASTOLE: AID (reversed) + STOLE (liturgical garment) |
| 14 | CAVEAT: AVE in CAT |
| 19,12 | CABERNET SAUVIGNON: anagram of SOT CRAVING BEAUNE + N (drop of Niersteiner) |
| 22 | UPPERMOST: PERM in anagram of POUTS |
| 25 | CALVE: L in CAVE |
| 26 | BASTINADO: T (turnip top) in BASIN + ADO |
| 27 | O TEMPORA O MORES: anagram of ROOM ROOM (double room) A STEEP. A quotation from Cicero’s First Speech against Catiline. It means ‘Oh what a time! Oh what customs!’ |
| Down | |
| 1 | DOUBLE DECLUTCH: DOUBLE DUTCH around CE (backwards) + L |
| 2 | VERBENA: VERA around BEN |
| 3 | LEICESTER: ICE in LESTER |
| 4 | ACID SALT: anagram of CAST LAID |
| 6 | CAPRI: half CAPRIcious |
| 8 | GOING TO THE DOGS: &Lit |
| 15 | AVERROISM: AVER + IS in ROM. Reference is to the 12C philosopher Ibn Rushd |
| 16 | FANTASIA: U in CAPLET. Reference to Romeo and Juliet |
| 18 | CAPULET: A DIG in PARM(a) (Italian city lacking a) |
| 20 | NOT FAIR: IR (one river) + AFTON (Scottish river) all reversed |
| 21 | BOOBOO: BOO BOO (repeatedly voice disapproval) |
| 24 | RHEUM: HE (explosives) in RUM |
27 across. And there was I thinking it was the Latin for ‘O Times, O Daily Mirror’. 🙂
explanation for 18 down is at 16 down. Explanation at 18 down doesn’t seem to be in this puzzle.
Surely 18 down is U in CAPLET.? Not sure where the ‘paradigm’ came from. Another puzzle?
16D Fan finds T(ime) in Asia. Probably the easiest of the clues today!
17A C ICER O
24A RETI(R)E
5D VENU O S
7D TROUNCE (anag counter – very clever!)
11A liege? LIE is fine but EG for European?
Apologies – 5D is VEN O US, of course.
Mort – 11ac is EG (= “say”) in LIE, and “European” is part of the definition.
16d was the last I got, Shirley! Maybe because I mispelt 27 as TEMPORE
Not a difficult puzzle but very enjoyable. Ukrainian was particularly neat.