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I tackled this one on the train home from the Derby Sloggers and Betters.
For some reason I fell asleep. I was roused by a hearty chant from the carriage-load of football fans which sounded like “He’s got long hair and he does the crossword”. I was about to berate them for their lack of rhyming scheme but they moved on to chant about another long suffering non-footballing member of the carriage. I ascertained they were Orient fans, so their lack of poetic facility was forgivable – they lost 1-0 so were probably feeling ill.
When I finally got around to doing this one I had sobered up. I must’ve done because I noted that I got all but 7 on the first pass. That’s not a record – it was a very long first pass – when I solve an answer I try to solve anything crossing even if I have attempted it earlier, thus it can be a long time before I get to the last unvisited clue. After a bit of R & R the last few fell without putting up too much resistance. Which is as it should be: I’m still smarting from an abysmal performance in the 50 Years Quiz from a couple of issues back – I only got 41/50 – I really shouldn’t ‘ve bothered sending it in. I was hoping for a runners up mug – they’re far to pricey to actually buy.
| Across | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1/15 | IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST | Pubic hair in settee removed with lint (not A1) – cynical excuse for tabloid exposé? (2,3,6,8) (PUBIC HAIR IN SETTEE + LINT – AI)* AInd: removed. Convoluted wordplay – solved from the def. and crossing letters, and only sorted out that anagram for the blog. |
| 9 | ACT UP | Bill wants lay to turn over and misbehave (3,2) AC (Bill) TUP (lay) Not sure why the lay has to turn over as the Def. is surely just misbehave |
| 10 | PORTFOLIO | Minister might not have this drink of oil, being pissed (9) PORT (drink) (OF OIL)* AInd: being pissed. Def. is a reference to a Minister Without Portfolio, one who is in the cabinet but without a department |
| 11 | WHIZZ KIDS | Brattish high fliers wish to get screwed holding snoring Josh (5,4) ZZ (snoring) KID (josh) inside (WISH)* AInd: screwed |
| 12 | OWN UP | Acknowledge Gordon, without Blair, extremely happy! (3,2) [br]OWN (Gordon without B[lai]R – blair extremely) UP (happy) Def: acknowledge |
| 13 | GRUMPY | Dwarf bloke with middle dropped over arse (6) RUMP (arse) inside G[u]Y |
| 18 | UNDERARM | Sort of stroke beneath member (8) UNDER (beneath) ARM (member) |
| 19 | ASIDES | President’s assistants suppressing small luvvy’s whispers? (6) S[mall] inside AIDES (president’s assistants) Def: luvvy’s whispers. Like Andrew Collins on Richard Herring’s show {Aside: No it isn’t} |
| 24 | ALL THE WAY | One Labour leader getting disgustingly wealthy as far as is possible (3,3,3) A (one) L[abour] (WEALTHY)* AInd: disgustingly |
| 26 | SPIT IT OUT | Admit unhesitatingly it’s how to show distaste after a blow job (4,2,3) Double Def. |
| 27/22 | GREEN PARTY | It has one member at Westminster (resentful member, unknown)(5,5) GREEN (resentful – envy) PART (member) Y (unknown) |
| 28 | EJECTOR SEAT | In the Common Market, Jack “not finished” Conservative arse’s way of expelling high fliers (7,4) J[ack] inside EEC TOR[y] (“not finished” Conservative) SEAT (arse) |
| Down | ||
| 1 | INTRIGUED | Curious git, splattered with urine on date (9) (GIT URINE)* AInd: splattered, D[ate] |
| 2 | TOPAZ | Blair’s left-wing members hit back – a real gem! (5) ZAP is |
| 3 | ESPRIT | Rep’s buggered by sex’s dynamic quality (6) (REPS)* AInd: buggered, IT (sex) |
| 4 | UPRISING | Getting an erection? Revolting activity! (8) Double Def. Though this is a deceptive clue to find in the Eye crossword as solvers here will be expecting erection to indicate a reversal |
| 5 | LEFTOVERS | Food not touched, amphibian interrupts shaggers? (9) EFT (amphibian) inside LOVERS (shaggers) |
| 6 | COLON | Almost the last repository for our shit currency (5) Double Def. one of them the currency of Costa Rica and El Salvador |
| 7 | EARWIG | Snoop’s organ has unnatural hair (6) EAR (organ) WIG (unnatural hair) First answered after failing to get 1A etc. on the first attempt (I always initially attempt solutions that will deliver lots of crossing first letters) |
| 8 | POL POT | One who dictated “After head swing your chopper up”? (3,3) TOP (head) LOP (swing your chopper) all reversed |
| 14 | PARTY LINE | Do row, as cowed MPs stand by (5,4) PARTY (Do) LINE (Line) |
| 16 | ENDOWMENT | A donor’s thing: a large penis? (9) Double Def. with no mention of insurance. Last entered. |
| 17 | FREAK OUT | Inject energy into grossly fat UK or lose it (5,3) E[nergy] in (FAT UK OR)* AInd: grossly. Def. lose it. I was going put in a link to a Frank Zappa track except I can’t find anything decent so here’s “Le Freak” with its catchy “Freak out” chorus |
| 18 | UPPISH | Pretentious United player initially knocked back drink hard (6) U[nited] P[layer] SIP< (drink knocked back) H[ard] |
| 20 | SPYING | Doing a peeping Tom in grass round outskirts of Putney (6) P[utne]Y inside SING (grass) |
| 21 | ULSTER | Slut rubbished Brenda’s provincial place (6) (SLUT)* AInd: rubbished, ER (Brenda) |
| 23 | RAISE | Arse cracks split by one cause an erection (5) I inside (ARSE)* AInd: cracks |
| 25 | HAGUE | Hot, unfocussed, very lacking cabinet member (5) H[ot] [v]AGUE |
There's a new teenage doll on the market for Xmas. You wind it up and it resents you for it
2D – shouldn’t ‘hot’ read ‘hit’?
Blair’s left-wing members are TO because his first name’s TOny.
Thanks. Typo fixed. And as for TOny, I am sure I have seen that workplay before but didn’t remember this time.
9A – I think it means “lay” as in “put”.
Re: 17. Do you mean to say that there’s no decent Frank Zappa footage on Youtube? Or that there’s no decent Zappa music? In the first case I am not sure you’ve looked hard enough, if the second, then you are a complete philistine.
Lay = to have sex. To tup is to have sex.
Nick, I think Willber G has it at Comment 3: The clue is using “Lay” in the sense of “Put” because we must reverse it (turn over. Myself, I couldn’t see beyond Lay=Sex=Tup .
Steven, YouTube has some decent Zappa music but all the examples I could find were to a background of still images – not particularly illuminating. I am, and have always been, a Zappa fan. Back in ’71 I was in the front row of the Finsbury Park Rainbow when he was pushed off stage into the orchestra pit.