Nick: Fairly tough today, 8/10.
There is a lot going on in the clues, which I think collectively, shows most of the Azed style.
| Across | |||
| 1. | Stage laugh, reverse of demure, greeting start of knockabout (4) | ||
| YOCK | (COY<)+K(nockabout) | ||
| 4. | Disquiet with nomad registering measure of certain rays (8) | ||
| ANGSTROM | ANGST+ROM | ||
| 10. | What for him is oily is shoved into gearbox slots (9) | ||
| GARAGISTE | (RAG IS) in GATE | ||
| 12. | Grass field lass goes round, bordering river (6) | ||
| LEA-RIG | (GIRL<) around EA | ||
| 13. | Soak bit of aubergine in yoghurty dish (5) | ||
| RAITA | RAIT+A(ubergine) | ||
| 15. | Green lawn after treatment for yellow flower (any of several) (6) | ||
| GOWLAN | GO[green!]+(LAWN*) | ||
| 16. | The old take horse from trough in riding to ‘ounds (6) | ||
| UNCOLT | COL in [h]’UNT | ||
| 17. | Large many-seeded berry? Go on! (4) | ||
| PEPO | PEP[go]+O’ | ||
| 19. | The world of hoodlums, 4 supplemented with pike variously placed! (11) | ||
| GANGSTERDOM | GED[pike] placed variously on/in 4ac ANGSTROM | ||
| 20. | Not having much underfoot, unsteady legs slide on (11) | ||
| SINGLE-SOLED | (LEGS SLIDE ON)* | ||
| 24. | Cat has nothing to swallow in tip (4) | ||
| TOOM | O in TOM | ||
| 25. | It’s among beaches I list as novel one (6) | ||
| CHESIL | hidden: beaCHES I List | ||
| 27. | Comic creatures from USSR (FM broadcast (6) | ||
| SMURFS | (USSR FM)* | ||
| 29. | One shunned by society in past given haven by Connecticut (5) | ||
| CAGOT | AGO in CT | ||
| 30. | Dash in (old-style) philistine battle-cry? (6) | ||
| ENDART | pun on ‘END ART!’ as a philistine would perhaps shout | ||
| 31. | Editor immersed in cloud, poetically blessed (9) | ||
| BENEDIGHT | ED in BENIGHT | ||
| 32. | See Tarpeian rock for one at odds with Rome? (8) | ||
| PATARINE | (TARPEIAN)* | ||
| 33. | Punch without fifth ingredient, treat for those skiing off-piste? (4) | ||
| NEVE | NEVE(l) | ||
| Down | |||
| 1. | An ugly totty on street gave old-fashioned leer (8) | ||
| YGLAUNST | (AN UGLY*)+ST | ||
| 2. | Army chief hosts regiment hooley? (5) | ||
| CRAIC | RA in CIC | ||
| 3. | Ron Kray, not the first banged up in part of cell (6) | ||
| KARYON | ((r)ON KRAY)* | ||
| 4. | Stock-jobbing, contagious in part (4) | ||
| AGIO | hidden: contAGIOus | ||
| 5. | Things will appear strange and sanity lose its head when it’s dark? (11) | ||
| NIGHT-SEASON | (THINGS*)+(r)EASON | ||
| 6. | Took steps, somewhat diffuse by the sound of it (6) |
||
| STRODE | homophone: STROWED | ||
| 7. | Old disturbed with ire, annoyed (6) | ||
| ROILED | (OLD+IRE)* | ||
| 8. | Company got up to dance, lyric, with four pairs of feet (9) | ||
| OCTAPODIC | (CO<)+TAP+ODIC | ||
| 9. | Complaint from fellow with nothing inside (4) | ||
| MOAN | MAN around O | ||
| 11. | Board of a sort at fringes of Chester ground? The Durham one, anyway (11, 2 words) | ||
| SIGHT SCREEN | SIGN around (CHESTER*) and a sort of &LIT with reference to cricket personally, I think this is a bit contrived trying to make it a cricket related &lit |
||
| 14. | Good placement for Douglas in anatomy, with adult tumours (9) | ||
| ANGIOMATA | ((G+I.O.M.) in ANAT)+A | ||
| 18. | Abstaining in love affray – it involves breakage inevitably! (8) | ||
| OMELETTE | TT in (O+MELEE) | ||
| 21. | Former cipher, not hard but advanced – it takes some chewing over (6) | ||
| NOUGAT | NOUGHT with ‘A’ for ‘H’ | ||
| 22. | What’s used in clearing hazards, not wholly full of terrors? (6) | ||
| LOFTER | hidden: fulL OF TERrors – nice cryptic definition of a ‘chipping’ golf club | ||
| 23. | There’s little English in Romance language introduction (6) | ||
| LEAD-IN | E in LADIN | ||
| 26. | Metal-worker’s tool responsible for part of VW’s interior? (5) | ||
| SWAGE | indirect hidden: volkSWAGEn | ||
| 27. | Atlantic fish: head to tail it qualifies for prizes (4) | ||
| SCUP | pun: would become ‘CUPS’ if the ‘S’ is moved to the front | ||
| 28. | Almost submerged with waves (4) | ||
| UNDE | UNDE(r) | ||
| … | |||
Thanks for the blog, and thanks to Azed for the puzzle.
re 11 down
“Board of a sort at fringes of Chester ground?” would be an excellent &lit as it is.
Adding “The Durham one, anyway” seems to turn it into one of those clues where the crypic and definition parts overlap.
Azed may have done it because Durham is a County Championship side and Chester/Cheshire is not, and the reference to cricket becomes more obvious. However, there are obviously sightscreens on Chester grounds, so it was unnecessary.
Thanks all
I,too, thought this was on the tough side.
I found the top half, particularly the NW corner, especially hard.
Despite that my last in was ‘neve’.
The Durham ground is at Chester-le-Street (perhaps it’s obvious but nobody actually mentioned it at the time). That’s the joke in 11d. It’s a partial &lit. – all definition, but not all wordplay. I liked it.
Thomas99:
I didn’t know that, not being a cricket fan.
Now, re-reading the clue, yes it does work very well – but surely it is a very specialised clue that should appear in a ‘cricket fan mag’ and not a newspaper.
Where does it all stop with ‘ungeneral’ knowledge?
Nick