Ah, Schadenfreude, probably my favourite Inquisitor compiler! I tend to find the clues seem very hard on first or second reading but on third or fourth (or fifth, etc.) reading, they start to reveal all.
We’re told that 12 clues have a misprint in the definition and two clues fail to generate one letter. These ext
ra letters, when located in the grid, form the starting points of two identical continuous lines. And these lines reveal the theme (both figuratively and literally.)
So, the preamble is reasonably simple for a change and it’s on to the clues.
The NW and NE corners came fairly quickly and I identified the extra C not generated in 31a. I then started snooping around and I could see CORPULENT forming clockwise from the C. Coupling that with the title I suddenly thought, “BINGO!,” this could be the top of an 8 and by now I had enough misprinted letters which could lead to “TWO FAT LADIES.” Sure enough, this turned out to be the theme. The SE corner then crumbled fairly easily but the SW took me quite a while.
So there we have it, the theme is TWO FAT LADIES, the continuous lines form two figures of eight. Two Fat Ladies is definitely a reference to the number 88 in Bingo, hence “House Calls,” (from an earlier non-PC era, where the number 88 may be said to resemble two fat ladies side by side, as in Bingo nicknames.) It might also be a reference to a BBC food programme, Two Fat Ladies, which I never saw, where two ladies make “House Calls.”
The misprints came from: 1: shoPT, 28: DWeep, 29: mUOnster, 37: LFeathers, 46: gRAin, 2: WTill, 8: VLast, 9: leEAk, 21: finisheRD, 27: SItem, 38: deAEr, 43: PSick. And the “not generated” letters came from: 23: O (at square d6) and 31: C (j8.) Going, initially, clockwise from d6, we find CORPULENT CHATTERLEY and from j8, OVERWEIGHT BOUNTIFUL. CORPULENT and OVERWEIGHT, which both mean FAT and CHATTERLEY and BOUNTIFUL, who are both literary LADIES.
I was a little concerned that 5 and 22 were not indicated as (†two words) have I missed something?
| Across | ||||
| No. | Extra/Missing | Entry | Definition | Wordplay |
| 1 | T | DIT | Stop (Shop) |
D(epartment)+IT (the other: sexual intercourse) |
| 5 | BOAT DECKS | Most liners have one of these | OAT+D(iameter) inside BECKS (bows) |
|
| 14 | AUBREY | British antiquary and author |
A+E(astern)+RUBY (anag: cut) | |
| 15 | ULANOVA | Ballerina | U (you:homonym: reportedly)+L(eft)+A+NOVA (star) |
|
| 16 | CICERO | A measure of type | I (one)+C(ocaine)+E(cstasy) inside CRO[p] (supply) |
|
| 17 | GLIB | Smooth-talking | G(erman)+LIB[eral] (politician) | |
| 19 | ENAMEL | Paint | EN (nurse)+A+MEL (honey) | |
| 20 | UTTER | (Double definition) | (Double definition) | |
| 22 | RING PULL | Tab | RING (suggestion)+PULL (hold back) |
|
| 23 | O | THROES | Spasms | R(ecipe) inside THE+S[ciatic]. The O is not clued. |
| 25 | AYRE | Old song | AY (always)+RE (on) | |
| 28 | W | GREAVE | Weep (Deep) |
E(arth) inside GRAVE (pit) |
| 29 | O | GORGON | Monster (Munster) |
G(ood)+OR (men)+GO (leave)+N(orthern) |
| 30 | TEND | Take care of | T(ense)+END (finish) | |
| 31 | C | OOCYTE | Egg cell | O(ld)+O (duck)+YET (anag: creating) |
| 32 | BEWRAYED | Revealed | WEARY (anag: vagrant) inside BED | |
| 34 | TACET | Silent | T(he)+ACE (outstanding)+T(enor) | |
| 37 | F | BRAILS | Feathers (Leathers) |
B(ritish)+RAIL (bird)+(ha)S |
| 39 | HOYA | Growth in Australia | HOY (stop)+A(ctive) | |
| 41 | OUTTOP | Excel | OU (African man)+T’ (the (northern))+TOP (chief) |
|
| 42 | EVACUEE | Someone moved to a place of safety |
A+CUE (letter Q) inside EVE (girl) |
|
| 44 | NERITA | Some molluscs including snails | TER[r]AIN (not R(ight)) (anag: rocky) |
|
| 45 | EARNESTLY | With determination | NEST (anag: profligate) inside EARLY (prematurely) |
|
| 46 | A | ERN | Gain (Grin) for John (Milton) |
rathER Naughty (hidden: somewhat) |
| Down | ||||
| No. | Extra | Entry | Definition | Wordplay |
| 2 | T | IT’LL | It (In) will |
TI (note) (reversed: over)+LL (lines) |
| 3 | TRAIT | Trick | I (one) inside TRAT (restaurant Italian: Luigi’s) |
|
| 4 | NAN | Relative | NA (not available)+N(oon) | |
| 6 | OBVERSE | Heads | O(f)+BV (Besloten Vennootschap: Limited Company (Dutch))+SEE+R(esistance) (anag: changing) |
|
| 7 | ARABIAN DESERT | Part of Egypt | I couldn’t really see the wordplay here. I wasn’t too happy with “deserted” being in a clue for desert, either. |
|
| 8 | L | DYING | Last (Vast) |
Y(ard) inside DING (ring) |
| 9 | A | ESCAPE | Leak (Leek) |
PEAS+C[elery] (head of celery)+[sh]E[ep] (sheep’s heart) |
| 10 | CHEMURGY | Applied science | CHEMOSURGERY (anag: could make)-ROSE |
|
| 11 | KORE | Statue | O(f)+K(ing) (reversed: put up)+RE ([Royal] Engineers) |
|
| 12 | SWOLLEN | Extended | [manua]L (end of)+LO (look) inside NEWS (all reversed: up) |
|
| 13 | FUGU | Fish | FUG (hot stifling atmosphere)+U[nsettle] (beginning) |
|
| 18 | BREVE | Brief | BREVE[l] (military commission) (cut short) |
|
| 21 | D | THRU | Finished (Finisher) |
HURT (anag: badly) |
| 24 | REDWATER | Disorder | RED (clear up (Scottish))+WATER (saliva) |
|
| 26 | ROOTS | Family origins | STOOR (stubborn) (reversed: about) |
|
| 27 | I | NOTE | Item (Stem) |
NO (definitely not)+T[h]E (hollow) |
| 28 | GIBBOSE | Like Quasimodo | BO’S (man’s) inside GIBE (taunt) | |
| 29 | GO-DEVIL | Pipe cleaner | LIVE (lead)+DOG (hook) (reversed: retracted) |
|
| 30 | TRITON | Nucleus | TR(anspose)+INTO (anag: fluid) | |
| 33 | ALONE | Single | ON inside ALE (porter) | |
| 35 | COUPÉ | Salute | COUP (masterstroke)+E(astern) | |
| 36 | TAEL | Chinese capital (money) | E(astern) inside LAT (reversed: erected) |
|
| 38 | E | RUSA | Deer (Dear) |
US (me) inside RA (God) |
| 40 | YEAR | A group of students | YEA (vote)+R(epublican) | |
| 43 | S | CAT | Sick (Pick) |
CA (about)+T (160: medieval Roman numeral) |
I got the figurative bit i.e. the pictures of the two eights, but failed on the proper location of the eights. Thanks for pointing out corpulent Chatterley and overweight Bountiful. I thougbt I was probably missing something, but didn’t have time to follow it through properly.
7d is an anagram of (forming) (A [area] + A + D [deserted] + BARREN SITE)so I don’t think the ‘deserted’ is relating to the ‘desert’.
Yes, 5 and 22 should have been indicated as two wwords – sorry. My only excuse is that I didn’t even notice the anomaly when originally solving the puzzle!
Nice puzzle from Schadenfreude. I had no trouble with solving Arabian Desert, but the reference I looked up placed it in Saudi rather than in Egypt! I spent some time looking for Clarissa Dixon Wright and Jennifer Paterson, but the fat ladies were rather more literary. I’m sure that the “House” call in Bingo (which used to be called “Housey Housey”) was the right reading of the title.
I suffered with the clue for IT’LL. It took a long time to realise that it was a two word definition!
Almost a trademark of Schadenfreude is CAT = vomit = SICK, and there it is again in the last clue.
With all bar two clues solved (1a and 2d), I looked for the two 8’s: CORPULENT CHATTERLEY came first, then OVERWEIGHT BOUNTIFUL. The last of these gave me IT’LL (I’ll echo Hihoba’s comment), and that led to DIT … with another common Schadenfreudian (?) usage: THE OTHER = sexual activity = IT in the first clue.
Agree with Hihoba that the ARABIAN DESERT is not part of Egypt; and also with Ken about 5a & 22a. Also, not that comfortable with HOY = stop (at 39a). But let’s not be churlish – a nice one from the setter.
Thanks kenmac.
I eventually completed this one on my third attempt.Ran out of time on Saturday with the NW and SE corners incomplete and not getting the phrase from the misprints.One meaning of BRAIL is a piece of leather to tie a hawk’s wing so I was not looking for a misprint there – very devious I thought!
I didn’t notice the anomaly at 5 and 22,probably because 5 was one of the first clues solved and I was so pleased to get a start and 22 I thought could possibly be hyphenated.
Only managed to solve 1 and 2 after spotting the two eights.Very tough clues I thought.
All in all,a very satisfying solve.
Oh bloody hell, foiled again! I too realised it must be two fat ladies and like HiHoba searched in vain for Clarissa and Jennifer. Thanks Kenmac for the blog making everything crystal clear (Yeah?)
According to the Oxford Dictionary of the World, the Arabian Desert is indeed in Egypt – goodness knows why!