Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of September 4
This Mudd was a bit more difficult for me than most, especially 16A (TIPTOP), 30A (EVENSONG), 3D (NARK) and 26D (ACER). My favourite clue is 15D (MOTIONLESS).
Thanks to the Crossword Who’s Who that I just heard about from this site, I learned that Mudd is the same setter who used to be Bats. I remember Bats and somehow recall him as being more amusing.
Across
1. BIKING – KIN (family) in BIG (great)
4. TAP WATER – anagram of PART WET A
10. LEVERET – LEVER (bar) + ET (film)
11. SLOE GIN – anagram of LEGIONS
12. PUNT – double definition
13. LONGFELLOW – cryptic definition
16. TIPTOP – POT (prize) + PIT (mine) all backwards
17. PERHAPS – PE (exercise) + anagram of SHARP
20. ACHIEVE – A (a) + [knif]E in CHIVE (onion’s relative)
21. CLOSET – LOSE (drop) in CT (court)
24. MAYONNAISE – MAYO (county) + anagram of INSANE
25. ECHO – hidden word
27. ISRAELI – LEARS (king’s) reversed in II (couple)
29. UNCTION – [f]UNCTION (party with leader ousted)
30. EVENSONG – VEN[i]SON (one out of meat) in EG (say)
31. BRANDY – B[ath] + RANDY (hot)
Down
1. BALDPATE – D[onkey] + PAT (bit of dung) in BALE (farmyard bundle)
2. KEVIN SPACEY – VIN (foreign drink) + SPACE (interval) in KEY (important)
3. NARK – double definition. I know the word “narc” but was unfamiliar with “nark” and had to look it up.
5. ASSIGNED – anagram of GA[u]DINESS
6. WOOKEY HOLE – WOO (court) + KEYHOLE (type of surgery). I imagine this clue would be tricky for someone who does not know the West Country. I got it quickly thanks to having visited Wookey Hole when I was a boy and living not far away.
7. TAG – double definition
8. RENEWS – RE (on the subject of) + NEWS (information)
9. STOOL – LOOTS (rifles) backwards
14. LIPOSUCTION – anagram of SO UNPOLITIC
15. MOTIONLESS – double/cryptic definition
18. AVIATION – A (a) + VIA (by way of) + T[ahit]I + ON (on)
19. ATTORNEY – [verdic]T + TORN (undecided) in YEA (affirmative) all backwards
22. UMPIRE – [j]UMP (start without introduction) + IRE (anger)
23. ISSUE – IS (one’s) + SUE (woman)
26. ACER – ACE (one) + [suga]R. I know Acer only as a brand name and had to look up this meaning (a genus of trees and shrubs having winged fruit).
28. RYE – double definition
Mudd is John Halpern, who sets for The Times, as Paul for The Guardian and as Punk for The Independent. There is a tab at the top of this page where you can find out quite a lot about the setters (although I don’t think it’s been updated all that recently: some seem to have dropped out and there are I know some new ones at least in the Indy (Raich, Nitsy, Quaiteaux, Alberich (or some other name that Alberich uses, I can’t remember), possibly some others)). But you very probably knew that already.
I thought this was the usual nice offering from Mudd, although I never like five-letter words where only two of them are checked; indeed I don’t like anything less than 50% checking.