An excellent puzzle from Nestor who I had the pleasure of meeting at Sloggers and Betters 5 in London last week. A bit easier than I expected – in particular I got some of the longer answers from the definitions. Solving time, 23 mins.
* = anagram < = reversed
ACROSS
1 CAVE AT (t) EMPT OR (other ranks i.e. not on commission). Got this straightaway from definition, literally ‘let the purchaser beware’ from Latin
9 TOOK SICK ‘not quite right in the mouth’ i.e. a near homophone of 10 which is TOXIC
10 T (OX)IC
12 OR IN O CO
13 A SHAN’T I
14 CHIL (D) L IKE IKE = President Eisenhower (1953-1961)
16 P (RAN) G
18 King MIDAS Greek mythology – everything he touched turned to gold, including his own daughter.
20 EDI (N BURG) H all reversed grub = tuck hide = leather Robin’s back = n (last letter)
22 ARMBAND (Bradman)* e.g. black armbands worn in mourning
25 TRIP OL(d) I
26 ALOUD “allowed”
27 MO (NOT) ONY logic circuit giving the opposite i.e. inverted
28 T (RIG ON) OME TRY
DOWN
2 Dan AYKROYD Unknown to this blogger, weak on films, so thanks Nestor for the straightforward clue (Hidden reversal)
3 EPITOMISE (emo pities)*
4 TIKKA Initial letters & lit
5 MAT C (H) UP mat = location for wrestling cup = trophy
6 T (EXA) N N (axe) T all < later books = New Testament. Definiition: from oil-producing state (adj)
7 ROCK IN (G) CH AIR
8 MODIFIED Mods from the 1960s, smart on scooters , in contrast to the Rockers
11 NONCOM BAT ANT
15 EXISTEN CE Definition = being (sixteen)* CE In the hexadecimal system (base 16), the letters A to F are used for the numbers 10 to 15.
So CE as a hexadecimal number = 16X12 + 14 = 206 as an ordinary decimal number. nmsindy’s familarity with figures, maths etc came in very useful here. Might mention in passing that in Listener series in the Times newspaper, 4 numerical puzzles appear each year, with the next being due this Saturday, 30 May.
17 AIRBORN E (iron bar)* e = third (letter) of steps
19 S (T AND T) O
21 B LISTER Three definitions
23 MAOR I (I roam)< Pa = Maori fort – I was familiar with that from ‘advanced’ puzzles
24 DU (MB) O Think ‘one with remedial education’ = doctor i.e. one who will cure i.e. remedy
Very good puzzle. Thanks for explaining Maori – I guesed it must be some other meaning of Pa, but didn’t know what.
Dan Ackroyd is actually Dan Aykroyd. I know him from films like the Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters, but hadn’t realized he was Canadian.
Thanks, NealH, spelling corrected, transcription error.
Cheers for the blog Niall. I’m glad somebody found this easy! I made a good start, but then ground to a halt and spent 15 mins chewing my pen. Eventually knocked off all bar about 5 clues, though annoyingly missed the AYKROYD hidden reversal and am still not sure I understand the hexadecimal thing now.
Excellent puzzle though, just what I’ve come to expect (and enjoy) of a Thursday.
I said it was ‘a bit easier than I expected (from Nestor)’ which is not quite the same as saying I found it easy…
Base 16? 16X12 + 14 = 206? Good job (for me anyway) the answer could be reasonably deduced from the definition! Cheers Nestor.
A good tough challenge – as you expect when you see this pseudonym. Led astray by “try less time” = RY as a possible ending for 1A, so had to get it from slowly arriving checkers – never easy for something in Latin! Helped at 3D by not knowing about “emo” as a type of music – on looking back post-solve, I briefly thought “Nestor using made-up words for anag fodder? Tut tut!”, and then decided to look it up. Like Mick, I didn’t bother with the hex sums. Nor understanding “inverting circuit” in 27, which is good just for using “invert” with no reversal involved.
Well said Peter – another worthy challenge from the tougher end of the Indy’s celeb panel. Quite a lot more to think about with these guys, and well worth the extra effort.