There was a different crossword in the paper to that on-line – see blog for no. 6809 for details.
In a comment on that blog Eimi mentions that this is also a Virgilius puzzle, from before the Feb-2008 inception of the on-line offering, but I can’t find a posting here that fits it so here is one.
I didn’t get very far with this on first attempt and had to put it to one side when real life got in the way. So when I looked at this site to find out it had been a different puzzle in the paper, and it was gone midnight, I was forced to finish it off on my own.
I had taken a print so if anyone wants more clue reminders I have them.
There seem to be many Cryptic Defs. (CD) in this puzzle ranging from the very easy to head scratchers.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 7 | COMEDIENNE DIE inside MEN inside (ONCE)* |
| 9 | EMUS hidden sciencE MUSeum |
| 10 | PANDA CAR (A PC AND A [drive]R)* |
| 11 | BROACH B ROACH |
| 12 | LIBYAN hidden tripoLI BY A Native |
| 14 | HIGH JUMP CD |
| 15 | HORIZONTAL BAR DD Reference to this being an across clue thus horizontal |
| 18 | STUDIOUS STUD I.O.U.S |
| 20 | GURKHA “High born” referring to Nepal’s Himalayan heights |
| 22 | FAIRLY DD Last one I got Full clue: In accordance with justice? Quite! (6) |
| 23 | UNSOLVED CD I think – what do others When the answer to this clue’s discovered, it won’t be (8) |
| 25 | MENU MEN U |
| 26 | EXHAUST FAN DD |
| Down | |
| 1 | IONA I ON A |
| 2 | HEYDAY Possibly – I’m not sure this is right, or how to describe the clue: Say rhymes, like “Prime time”? (6) |
| 3 | PINCE-NEZ CD but for me, the literal definition was clearer than the cryptic other meaning especially given the letter count: Gripping spectacles (5-3) |
| 4 | BEDBUG CD |
| 5 | GENOA JIB (J[ack] A ONE)< inside GIB I had to look this up to check (not a sailor) |
| 6 | QUICK MARCH CD I liked this one: Music for the army or the fleet? (5,5) |
| 8 | NORTH AND SOUTH Novel by Mrs Gaskell. I suspect there may be a number of possibilities for this clue given the propensity for the book title style “something and something-opposite” e.g. War and Peace, Night and Day etc. (Can’t think of any other (5,3,5) though.) Full clue: Novel partnership of opposites (5,3,5) |
| 13 | IN HOT WATER DD I had begun to write in “In his bath” before I realised it didn’t fit and had to wait until I got a few significant crossing letters before the correct answer appeared: Disgraced, like the assassinated Marat (2,3,5) |
| 16 | RYDER CUP Not an equestrian event |
| 17 | AUGUSTUS AUGUST US |
| 19 | OXYGEN CD I liked this: Symbolically it may be nothing, but it’s vital to life (6) |
| 21 | RELATE R ELATE |
| 24 | EGAD Alternate letters in EnGlAnD |
16. This could also be Ryder Cup, a golf championship event.
I read an underlying bridge reference in NORTH AND SOUTH that distinguished it from the other opposites quoted further than by enumeration.
22A is 2 definitions not CD.
Thanks everybody I agree with you all.