Monday Prize Crossword/Dec 12
This was a very good Crux , one that took a lot more time to solve than usual.
Please keep in mind that I will not be able to respond to any comments before the end of year. MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone!
| Across | ||
| 1 | LOOPHOLES | Escapes (legally!) using gaps in wall |
| Double definition | ||
| 6 | NOISE | Kind of pollution one gets in respiratory tract |
| I inside NOSE (respiratory tract) | ||
| 9 | MARAT | Scholar, turncoat and murdered radical |
| MA (scholar) + RAT (turncoat) | ||
| Jean Paul MARAT was a French revolutionary leader (born in Switzerland) who was a leader in overthrowing the Girondists and was stabbed to death in his bath by Charlotte Corday (1743-1793). Those were the days, my friend …… | ||
| 10 | BACK WHEEL | A farthing on Victorian transport? |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| The Victorian transport is, of course, a penny farthing. The BACK WHEEL being the farthing which is smaller than a penny. See our friend Wikipedia: penny farthing | ||
| 11 | TOWN HOUSES | MPs’ second homes, perhaps |
| Cryptic definition (as far as I can see) | ||
| If there is an MP called TOWNHOUSE, this is a good clue. Is there one? Otherwise the s’ attached to MP seems odd to me. Perhaps I am missing something? | ||
| 12 | PEER | Lord Peter sacrificed what, ultimately? |
| PE[t]ER – [wha]T being sacrificed (ie deleted) | ||
| 14 | ADMIRES | Misread, tragically, what a lover does |
| (MISREAD)* | ||
| 15 | SALTIRE | Old sailor, one about to get cross |
| SALT (old sailor) + I (one) + RE (about) | ||
| 17 | TINFOIL | Rolled metal, useless for fencing |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 19 | BLAZERS | Fire risks in evidence at Henley regatta? |
| Double definition | ||
| 20 | RAIL | Bird that was once British |
| A RAIL is a bird and we had once British RAIL | ||
| 22 | HOBBY HORSE | A morris-dancer’s obsession |
| Double definition (in the &Lit category) | ||
| 25 | ORDERLIES | Junior soldiers in command – don’t believe them! |
| ORDER (command) + LIES (don’t believe them!) | ||
| 26 | USAGE | University guru finds employment |
| U (University) + SAGE (guru) | ||
| 27 | NEARS | Lone arsonist gets closer inside |
| Hidden solution: [lo]NE ARS[onist] | ||
| 28 | ENTREATED | Nurse, in dire need, organised petition |
| TREAT (nurse) inside (NEED)* | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | LIMIT | It goes under short leg, say, for a boundary |
| IT placed under LIM[b] (‘leg, say’ cut short) | ||
| 2 | OARSWOMEN | They rarely row with the opposite sex |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| Initially I had here ‘Gentle/men’ which I thought would be perfectly all right as a cryptic definition. | ||
| 3 | HIT THE ROOF | See red, if her tooth should come out |
| (IF HER TOOTH)* | ||
| 4 | LABOURS | A party’s slaves |
| LABOUR (a party) ‘S | ||
| 5 | SECRETS | The mysteries of religious teaching in schools |
| RE (religious teaching) inside SECTS (schools) | ||
| 6 | NEWS | Four points given for intelligence |
| All four compass points: N E W S | ||
| 7 | IRENE | Anger conceals extremes of emotion for her |
| IRE (anger) around E[motio]N | ||
| 8 | ENLARGERS | They blow up king and generals in a revolution |
| (R (king) + GENERALS)* | ||
| Splendid clue, with a definition that suits the surface brilliantly. | ||
| 13 | BLEAK HOUSE | Book depressing accommodation |
| BLEAK (depressing) + HOUSE (accommodation) | ||
| Here I went wrong, entering ‘Black House’ (book by Stephen King), making life quite hard at 19ac. | ||
| 14 | AFTERNOON | The PM for a No Ten revolution |
| (FOR A NO TEN)* | ||
| Very nice clue! | ||
| 16 | INEBRIANT | Whisky, for example, from NE Britain |
| (NE BRITAIN)* | ||
| 18 | LEONINE | Like a cat pedigree, including one variety |
| LINE (pedigree) around (ONE)* | ||
| 19 | BABYSIT | Mind what you do when parents are out |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 21 | INDIA | Popular support up country |
| IN + DIA (reversal of AID (support)) | ||
| 23 | EMEND | Englishmen take note, get rid of faults |
| E (English) MEN + D (note) | ||
| Englishmen has to be split into English/Men | ||
| 24 | IRIS | A goddess of Erin? Not quite |
| A goddess (IRIS) that is almost IRISH (of Erin) | ||