This week – straight clues, 5 unclued entries and elements from a quotation around the circumference. Sounds quite easy for an EV?
And so it proved to be. Relatively simple clues (for an EV) with even the more obscure words well sign-posted.
Then for the unclued entries 4 down and 28 down gave the author THOMAS CARLYLE. and 1down, 5 down, 10 down – THREE GREAT ELEMENTS referring to a quotation from Thomas Carlyle in the Oxford dictionary of Quotations.
“The three great elements of modern civilization, gunpowder, printing, and the Protestant religion”
And what did the circumference yield then – GUNPOWDER, PRINTING, PROTESTANT RELIGION and MODERN CIVILISATION.
Simple as that. Thanks to Owzat for a nice neat puzzle. A nice one for any one considering trying these advanced cryptics for the first time.
I wonder what he would say they were if he were writing today. Perhaps a song by Abba?
Key:
Rev – Reverse
DD Double definition
* Anagram
ACROSS
11 Hols I fancy near hot biblical city (6)
(hols + I + h)* = SHILOH
12 Regrets expressed for jumpers (4)
Homonym (Rues – regrets) = ROOS
14 Women aid a cub (5)
W (women) + help (aid) = WHELP
15 I clear part of the eye (4)
I + rid (clear) = IRID
16 Disheartened Midlands soccer team in misfortune (4)
Wolves (midlands football team) – middle = WOES
17 Broadcaster in jug after commotion one’s forgotten (7)
Stir (commotion) – I (one) + ewer (jug) = STREWER
18 Sheila’s mad about piece on one protozoan (10)
(Sheila)* about man (piece) + i (one) = LEISHMANIA
21 Vintage car down under not starting (5)
Holden (australian make of car) – h = OLDEN
22 Fox TV’s latest: heartless 9/11 recalled (5)
V (tv’s latest) + rev (ne (heartess nine) + xi (11)) = VIXEN
23 Heaved tumultuously from ecstasy drugs after partying (6)
(e + drugs)* = SURGED
24 Granted money from Estonia (4)
DD = SENT
27 Beast often depicted in Worcester porcelain (3)
Hidden trice in wORCester and pORCelain
28 Homer’s body of writing half forgotten (3)
Corpus (Body of writing) – pus= COR
29 Could be titters in pieces such as these (7)
(titters)* = STRETTI
31 Description of War — that’s deplorable and anonymous (7)
Crime (deplorable) + an (anonymous) = CRIMEAN
32 Seaman’s muscles (3)
DD = ABS
33 A quiet wood (3)
A + sh (quiet) = ASH
35 Daughter, passed over by mum’s boy in retreat, shows agreement (4)
D in rev (son) = NODS
37 Fine enthralling bible books can be arousing (6)
Eric (fine) around ot (old testament) = EROTIC
40 Rock musician’s carefully planned undercover operation (5)
DD = STING
41 Ridge shown by cartographer (5)
Hidden cartogRAPHEr = RAPHE
46 Paper cart reversed around street for boss of goods area (10, hyphenated)
Rev (Dray – cart + ream (paper)) around st (street) = YARDMASTER
47 Golfer behind sand, and hidden in hollow, drives off (7)
Dip (hollow) around s (sand) + Els (golfer as in Ernie) = DISPELS
48 Cheese crackers put around after last of entree (4)
Rev ((Mad – crackers) + e) = EDAM
49 Enthusiastic about Italy? Suspect not (4)
I (Italy) + (not)* = INTO
50 Nothing for piano in pop Western (5)
Pater (pop) replace p with o = OATER
51 See a change price to fall slightly (4)
(see a)* = EASE
52 Plane’s engine jam somehow tackled by engineers on time (6)
(jam + re)* + t (time) = RAMJET
DOWN
2 Veteran, note seen in Lord’s ground (7)
(lords)* around te (note) = OLDSTER
3 Found one wench from no place earlier (8)
(one wench)* = NOWHENCE
6 Searching for what is wrong in eggy drink (6)
Sin (wrong) in nog (eggy drink) = NOSING
7 Mineral water’s first to be drunk over in Perth (4)
Ore (mineral) around w (water’s first) = OWRE
8 Reported red mark from cane, an instrument of torture once (5)
Homonym (Weal – red mark) = WHEEL
9 What’s done about whiskey. Made a little watery (5)
Deed (what’s done) about w (whiskey – phonetic) = DEWED
13 Figures going around about Russian religious teacher (7)
Stats (figures) about re (about) = STARETS
19 Flipping schedule managed about right for reporter (8)
Rev (Rota – schedule _ ran (managed) about r (right)) = NARRATOR
20 Curve with a cross I do fancy (5)
A + x (cross) + (ido)* = AXOID
25 Call up about hospital rules of behaviour (5)
Rev(cite – call) about h (hospital) = ETHIC
26 Slav in crumpled raincoat (8)
(raincoat) = CROATIAN
30 Fellow from Jamaica in battered catamaran’s about to get lost (8)
(catamaran – c (about))* = RASTAMAN
34 Hush! Many eastern countries holding mass with choral odes (7)
St (hush) + asia (eastern countries) about m (mass) = STASIMA
36 NATO central command’s plan (5)
DD = SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe)
38 Stomach’s upset alas after starters of oyster and mushroom (6)
O + m (starts of oysters and mushrooms) + (alas)* = OMASAL
39 Firm market gives Will’sagreement (6)
Co (firm) + mart (market) = COMART
42 Sauce is nuisance on ring (5)
Pest (nuisance) + o = PESTO
43 Stranger in ramble taking day off (5)
Dodder (ramble) – d (day) = ODDER
44 Charges around Thailand for holidays (5)
Fees (charges) about t (Thailand) = FETES (Holidays)
45 Composer who’s second grade therefore cut (4)
B (second grade) + ergo (therefore) – o (cut) = BERG
Yes it was easy for an EV – I should know – despite over 40 years of crossword solving, I am relatively new to the world of EV and this is only the second one I ever finished! I did enjoy it though, thank you Owzat and to twencelas tool.
Very nice puzzle I thought. Instead of rather unexciting clues and a long and tiresome fiddle to get the theme, as is the case with certain barred cryptics, we had extremely good clues and a straighforward accessible theme.
My only criticism was that he was called Ozwat in the paper.
Wil – I agree with your sentiments entirely, sometimes the war of attrition to get to the theme is a little tiresome. The great selling point, to me, of this type of crossword is the ingenuity of the setter to hide things in the completed grid. I ask myself many times, why do many setters insist we trawl through obscure words in Chambers to get there.
Sue – I would persevere with these, you can never tell the difficulty before you start, but if you get about a dozen clues solved, chances are you’re going to get there in the end.
Thanks for the encouragement – I did look at today’s but….. !!