Independent 7426 by Dac

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I found this very much on the easy side, with quite a few clues solved on first run through, solving time 16 mins.     Excellent as always.

* = anagram

1 VIPERS    ER re = about (reversed) in VIPS

4 NORMALLY   NO (number)   M (1000) from Roman numerals in RALLY (public meeting)

10 DANDIFIED     Beau Brummell (leader in fashion from Regency period so ‘like BB = ‘dandified’)   Desperate DAN, character from Dandy comic.   DIFIED = “defied”  verbally challenged.

11 CRAWL     Hidden reversal  in  awfuL WAR Crimes

12 ORCHESTRATION     OR (men)  RATION (helping)   carrying CHEST (large box)

14 ABADDON      The Devil (from Book of Revelation)  A BAD DON  (an incompetent teacher)

16 ARIADNE     From Greek mythology, daughter of King Minos    ARIA (song)  DNE = end (climax)  reversed

17 THEORBO    An obsolete instrument, like a lute    OR (gold) on THE  Bassist (first letter)  O (old)

19 HOT SHOE   Guessed this from the anagram fodder (shoot he)* and enumeration, confirming after that it is indeed an item of equipment used in photography

21 POSTE RESTANTE     Service whereby you can collect post at a Post Office   N (new) in POSTER (notice) E (European) STATE (country)

24 PAULA    PAUL  “pall”  pall = covers outspoken   A (article)

25 SLIMEBALL     S (Society)   BALL (gathering)  containing LIME(y) – Brit briefly

26 SEDATIVE    herD in SEATING (stalls)

27 WARDER    WAR (clash)  DER (red reversed)

DOWN

1  VIDEO NASTY    (G)IDEON (judge from Old Testament) in (SAY TV)*

2 PANACEA    PAN (strongly criticise) ACE (one) A        Had some thought it might be container and contents, but think it’s a charade as shown.

3 RAISE    (b)RAISE

5 OLDHAM ATHLETIC      Wonder if this is the setter’s favourite club.    OLD  HAM (former player ie actor of questionable talent)  HeLpEd regularly (alternate letters) in ATTIC (Greek).     Founder members of the Premier League in 1992, but now playing in England’s third tier (known as League One)

6  MACHINIST     MAC (rainwear)  (in this)*

7 LEARNED    N (name) in (dealer)*

8 YE (you) LP (record)

9 LISTEN TO REASON    (in an Oslo street)*

13 CEREBELLAR     I found this the trickiest    RE (engineers)  BE (are) in CELLAR (room underground)

15 DARMSTADT     ARMS (weapons) in D (Germany)  TAD (little) T (town)

18 EXPOUND   EX (former wife)  POUND (money)

20 HANSARD     Record of Parliamentary debate   ANS (answer) in HARD (difficult)

22 THETA    The TA

23 APES   (t)APES

16 comments on “Independent 7426 by Dac”

  1. Thanks, nms – as you say, enjoyable and well-clued but on the easy side; that said, I filled the top half pretty quickly but was slowed down by some in the bottom half. POSTE RESTANTE was clever; also liked DANDIFIED.

    I’m sure we’ve had OLDHAM ATHLETIC a couple of times in the past few months, either here or in the Grauniad puzzle. Maybe the letter order is helpful, or perhaps some setters are closet Latics fans.

    Having an interest in photography, I knew HOT SHOE – for those interested, it’s the small bracket on the top of the camera into which you slide a flashgun, or no doubt in this digital age other techie equipment.

  2. Thank you nmsindy and DAC. Although I stumbled at times, as you say, this was not very tough.
    But I needed your explanations for several answers.
    I got CEREBELLAR from assuming CELLAR, and then the rest fitted in. I’m not sure I like the def of ‘brainy’ though.
    THEORBO caused some problems. Rather an obscure word I thought.
    I went from HOT HOSE (different type of photography) to HOT SHOE – it’s where you slide in the flash gun isn’t it?
    PANACEA – why ‘introducing a’?
    I had to battle my way through to DARMSTADT.

  3. Hi Myrvin

    PANACEA is PAN (criticise) ACE (one) introducing (ie coming before) A.

    THEORBO is one of those words I know from cryptics but can never seem to remember, and I still have to go the wordplay every time to work out what it is.

  6. Hi Simon

    Seem to have volunteered for the job of chief explainer today, but because so many contributors were so helpful to me when I started coming here, I am happy to help.

    OR = other ranks: a military term which is very frequently used by setters to mean ‘men’, in the sense of foot soldiers, I suppose.

  7. Keep it up KD. It’s pure gold. Sometimes the bloggers forget that some of us don’t know these things.

  8. Hear, hear. I started solving cryptic crosswords at university, having some friends who knew ‘the rules’. At first it seemed that they were talking a different language, but after a while I started suggesting solutions and was delighted to find that they were often right. In a short time KD has evolved from a newbie asking the questions to one who can provide a lot of the answers. I still think that the best way to learn to solve puzzles is to do them with friends and I’d like to think, the odd spat aside, that that is akin to what fifteensquared provides.

  9. Yes, Eimi re 8, it’s like a different language. I started solving a wee bit earlier – in teens (Daily Telegraph) and I’ll never forget the thrill when after many, many, attempts, I picked up the paper the following day and saw that every answer was what I had put in the grid, tho I’d no idea whatsoever of the full explanations in many cases. Not sure if there were any ‘how to solve’ books in those days.

  10. Big up K’s D!! And a good crossword from Dac. There were some obscure words in this one, but I don’t think the clueing was ever less than fair.

  11. Slightly ‘umbled by your comments, thank you, but eimi and nms are right – we all start with a blank sheet of paper and get there eventually after lots of practice and help from fellow solvers.

    Which is where 225 has been a big help to me – I lurked initially for a good while, wondering how anyone could possibly solve that in 19 minutes, or whatever. But then I eventually worked up the courage to ask (for me) some dumb questions, and realised that there are a lot of other improving solvers out there – on which note, don’t be shy about de-lurking. The blog will be more or less comprehensive depending on the blogger’s personal commitments, of course; but there will always be someone who will explain any solution that you don’t understand.

    Even me, today. But since it’s Indy Thursday tomorrow, I’ll no doubt be back in ‘what’s all that about’ mode …

  12. Didn’t help having completely drunk bloke shouting all the time I tried to do this. Top half fell apart and just gave up on 15dn, got the crossing letters, fitted arms in but was none the wiser. Still have no clue what the answer refers to. Talking of Thursday, next Thursday Gaufrid has me down to blog it, my first one, so Eimi please don’t give me too fiendish a puzzle, pretty please, with a cherry on top if necessary.

  13. Thanks nms.
    The usual high quality puzzle from Dac.
    Even if the answer is unfamiliar,you can usually work it out from the wordplay,e.g. DARMSTADT – which I didn’t know.HOT SHOE was another unfamiliar term to me and consequently could only be solved once check letters were in place.
    Favourite clues 10 and 14 across and 1 down.
    Not sure if the theorbo is really obsolete,with so many period instrument orchestras these days it is enjoying a bit of a renaissance,even so far as having it’s own “superstar”.
    http://www.theorbo.com/Biography/Biography.htm

  14. Sorry, flashling, but the die is cast and you’re not getting an easy one. Not a very, very difficult one either, but getting the Thursday slot was always likely to be in at the deep end.

  15. Gaufrid advises me I can’t read, doesn’t help with crosswords I know, so I get Tuesday. So I hope a gentler start before a Thursday…

  16. Obviously, I don’t know, but, based on patterns, the odds that a Virgilius puzzle would appear on Tuesday would be v short.

    Maybe you could practise with next Sunday’s Telegraph cryptic in the meantime – this is by the same setter, I’m pretty sure.

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