Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of January 9
I needed a bit of dictionary and Google help to finish this puzzle. And I did not get 20D. I especially like 23A and 15D.
Across
1. VERBALLY – BALL (party) in VERY (really)
5. SCAMPI – SCAM (fiddle) + PI (good, as in pious)
10. PARLOUR – PAR (what’s expected) + LOUR (appear angry)
11. NUMERAL – NUM (miners, as in their union) + ARE backwards + L (50)
12. UTTER – [n]UTTER (idiot, from 22D)
13. EDUCATION – anagram of CAUTIONED
14. UP ONES SLEEVE – double definition
18. THOMAS EDISON – anagram of HE ADMITS SOON
21. BADMINTON – BAD (poor) + MINT (perfect) + ON (cricket side)
23. ARISE – I (one) in ARSE (bottom)
24. OPINION – O (nothing) + PINION (restrict)
25. BRIDGET – BRIDGE (card game) + [defea]T
26. NINETY – IN (in) + ET (film) in NY (state)
27. SEWERAGE – EWER (vessel) in SAGE (wise)
Down
1. VAPOUR – VA (state, Virginia) + POUR (flow)
2. RARITY – RIT (musical term, short for ritardando) in RAY (bit of sunshine). I had to look up “rit”.
3. APROCRYPHA – anagram of PAPACY OR [churc]H
4. LARGE INTESTINE – anagram of RETAINING STEEL
6. COMMA – double/cryptic definition. I saw a very similar clue for COMMA not long ago.
7. MARTINET – TEN (number) + I (one) + TRAM (car) all backwards
8. ISLANDER – I (upright character) + SLANDER (offence). I like “upright character”.
9. UNQUESTIONABLE – double/cryptic definition
15. LOOKALIKE – LOO (can) + KALI (terrifying goddess) + KE[ep]
16. STUBBORN – STUB (end) + BORN (delivered)
17. ROAD SIGN – anagram of DRAGON IS
19. VIAGRA – VIA (going through) + GRA[…] (elderly relative shortly)
20. ?E?T?E – “on the boil” makes me think KETTLE. But what have kettles got to do with Ely? Ely cathedral is one of my favourites but that does not help either. (See comments below.)
22. IDIOT – IDI (dictator) + OT (religious texts)
Hi Pete,
Ely is a “see” (the seat within a bishop’s diocese where his cathedral is located).
That word is placed on “the”, hence “seethe” (boil).
Good Mudd crossword.
And fun to see that you fell for these typical Halpern clues like 23ac (with a bottom)
and 15d (with a loo) …
There was one more, the hilarious 4d! [splendid anagram]
Ah, I “see”. Thanks, Sil.
Thanks, Pete.
I got all except 15d – I’d never have got CAN = Loo and I’ve never heard of KALI.
I really liked the cha;;enge of the other clues. though.
Hi Richard, Thanks for your comments.
15d was clever. Took me a while to get CAN = loo. KALI was a giveaway though for me. Once you have seen a picture of Kali with her necklace of skulls, you are unlikely to forget her!
I found this puzzle rather fun, a few lol (laugh ot loud – moments, if thats what lol means?
Thanks for the blog as usual Sir.
I agree with Sil van den Hoek, liked 4dn, quite amusing I thought. For me this was one of
the top end Mudd crosswords.
14ac was brilliant, I think ‘ones arm kept’ was an indicator to tell you that ‘ones’ literary needed to be kept in the finished solution – for ‘up ones sleeve’.
Good stuff here, a great puzzle to solve.