‘Down Under’? Is it – finally – a ‘Neighbours’ themed EV? Will the clues include phrases such as ‘a bit of a barbie’ and ‘Ramsay Street’?
In short, no. Scott and Charlene will have to wait for another day (soon, my pretties!)
‘Down Under’ had nothing to do with Australia at all. In fact, contrary to that country’s easy-going reputation, this was a toughie.
A fair proportion of the grid could be filled by the regular slog. Eventually, that allowed the instructions to be revealed:
RESOLVE CLASHES COLOUR TWO STATIONS AND CORRECT TRAIN
Luckily, the first of these instructions was revealed quite early on, so I wasn’t too troubled about the lack of fit between 17ac and 3dn.
The two stations (running horizontally near the top and the bottom of the grid) turned out to be ST PANCRAS and SANGATTE, although I only know the latter from the refugee camp (which apparently closed as long ago as 2002).
I was held up at the next stage for longer than I should have been. The train runs diagonally NE-SW between the stations through the clashes, the resolution of which presents two alternatives: EUROSTAR or PENDOLINO. I assume that the former is the ‘correct train’, but I am perhaps prevented by my lack of interest in trains from seeing the relevance of the latter. Still, they tilt and stuff, which is neat.
Anyway, it’s Eurostar that goes DOWN UNDER through the Channel Tunnel. Apparently, proposals for a tunnel under La Manche have been around since at least 1802. Amusingly, one of the attempts encountered problems in part due to “concerns about hordes of undesirable tourists who would disrupt English habits of living”. The English, of course, would never be so unrefined as to disrupt the habits of living of other peoples.
Just a quick thing, so as not to end on a criticism: however you spin it, 7 dn’s ‘two thirds’ is wrong. It should be either ‘three fifths’ (if it’s LUNCH) or ‘three eighths’ (for LUNCHEON). Fortunately, this slight error was harmless where it fell.
There were some fiendishly misleading misprints, even when one knew which letter to look for (I’m looking at you, 28ac!). I imagine that ‘Shakespeare’s duke where ‘duke’=’fist’ (in 35ac) will have had more than a few people scratching their heads, but perhaps I am underestimating my fellow EVers.
None of this was unfair, however – just (and, at times, very) challenging – so thanks very much to Chalicea.
Notation
(xxx) = definition
[xxx] = (anagram/homophone/container/etc.) indicator
XXX* = anagram
< = reversal
xxx = unused letter(s)
shamed=misprint
URE=clashing letter
Please post a comment if the explanations are not clear.
| Across | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 1 | ADONIS | Trouble and offence about boy shamed by Aphrodite and Persephone (6) | boy shared by Aphrodite and Persephone: ADO (trouble) and <SIN (offence)[about] |
| E | 5 | CATALO | Moggy on its own, not once detached product of mixed kind (6) | product of mixed kine: CAT (moggy) ALONE (on its own) NE (not once) [detached] |
| S | 10 | PAN | Seize back place producing malt (3) | place producing salt: <NAP (seize) [back] |
| O | 11 | ASCUS | Ill-formed sac – unserviceable cell holding spares (5) | cell holding spores: [ill-formed] SAC* US (unserviceable) |
| L | 13 | BATEAU | Club by river sight boat used in Canadian rivers (6) | light boat used in Canadian rivers: BAT (club) by EAU (river) |
| V | 14 | ELUENT | Solvent used for lacing the Spanish tun, stirred and distributed around Spain (6) | solvent used for laving: EL (the Spanish) TUN* [stirred] and [distributed around] E (Spain) |
| E | 15 | ELS | Litters US railroads (3) | letters: US railroads |
| C | 17 | URE | Catastrophically rue wild battle once (3) | wild cattle [once]: [catastrophically] RUE* |
| L | 19 | ECU | Good money in the past century in the European Union (3) | gold money in the past: C (century) in the EU (European Union) |
| A | 20 | DE FACTO | Fat co-ed dancing reel though perhaps no in manner established by authority (7, 2 words) | real though perhaps no in manner established by authority: FATCOED* [dancing] |
| S | 21 | TREND | Political Ewing may show this transaction before the close (5) | political swing may show this: TR (transaction) before END (the close) |
| H | 23 | OFFIE | Group of staff lacking custom initially stop selling drinks (5) | shop selling drinks: OFFICE (group of staff) lacking C (Custom initially) |
| E | 25 | FLEUR | In Paris one may flourish in bid uniting old and new Dutch currencies (5) | [in Paris] one may flourish in bed: uniting FL (old…) and EUR (new Dutch currencies) |
| S | 28 | LEASE | Pick up fallen earl when dumped in one of London’s rivers (5) | pick up fallen ears: AS (when) dumped in LEE (one of London’s rivers) |
| C | 30 | NEONATE | Not earlier one embracing extremes of adjustment, resent addition to the family (7) | recent addition to the family: NE (not earlier) ONE [embracing] AT (extremes of AdjustmenT) |
| O | 33 | IMP | Skimped, twice trimmed, short in the past (3) | shoot [in the past]: |
| L | 34 | AMI | Perhaps cover note given to assured at first (3) | perhaps lover: MI (note) [given to] A (Assured at first) |
| O | 35 | NIE | Shakespeare’s duke lost fine old net far away (3) | [old] not far away: NIEF (Shakespeare’s duke) [lost] F (fine) |
| U | 36 | CORRAL | Young child’s toy with rand invested in place of dirhams, for example (6) | place of Durhams, for example: CORAL (young child’s toy) with R (rand) [invested in] |
| R | 37 | ANGLOS | Fishes with rod, dropping bit of eel for old baits (6) | Brits: ANGLES (fishes with rod) [dropping] E (bit of eel) for O (old) |
| T | 38 | ARSIS | Musical life essential to religion in Persia (5) | musical lift: pARSISm [essential to] (religion in Persia) |
| W | 39 | GAT | Later passage? Final section of raga (3) | water passage: final section of raga |
| O | 40 | NAWABS | Lards cooked swan with couple of bits of bacon (6) | lords: [cooked] [SWAN with BA]* (couple of bits of BAcon) |
| S | 41 | DOUSES | To perform exercises, strikes a nail, for example (6) | strikes a sail, for example: DO (to perform) USES (exercises) |
| Down | ||||
| T | 1 | AS BEST ONE CAN | A canteen boss unusually as ideal as an ace can be (12, 4 words) | as ideal as an act can be: ACANTEENBOSS* (unusually) |
| A | 2 | OPTS | Mike’s choice to stop out (4) | makes choice: STOP* [out] |
| T | 3 | INANE | Short of win? That’s boxing, Grannie! (5) | short of wit: IE (that’s) [boxing] NAN (grannie) |
| I | 4 | SCURRY | Nap singular old quarry (6) | nip: S (singular) CURRY (old quarry) |
| O | 5 | CREE | Soften by shaking grass cut on cape (4) | soften by soaking: REE |
| N | 6 | TSUGA | Capriciously tugs a plait (5) | a plant: [capriciously] TUGS* |
| S | 7 | LUNATE | Two thirds of midday meal consumed in form resembling a pickle (6) | in form resembling a sickle: LUN |
| A | 8 | OSTEOGENESES | Subtly sees to having ordinary pieces of DNA in processes of formation of stopes, for example (12) | processes of formation of stapes, for example: [subtly] SEESTO* having O (ordinary) GENES (pieces of DNA) [in] |
| N | 9 | TALER | Obsolete coif of sadly late rector (5) | obsolete coin: [sadly] LATE* R (rector) |
| D | 12 | CERCI | Take back pair from circus for auditions at the end (5) | additions at the end: <REC (take) [back] CI (pair from CIrcus) |
| C | 16 | TUNE | Panto, perhaps, time and fun with no initial limit and energy (4) | canto, perhaps: T (time) and |
| O | 18 | OFFS | Stinkers in the USA, upper class types lacking leader (4) | stonkers in the USA: |
| R | 22 | DUAD | Rare pain mostly owing to publicity (4) | [rare] pair: [mostly] DU |
| R | 24 | FETA | Female menial worker daily product (4) | dairy product: F (female) ETA (menial worker) |
| E | 25 | FEDORA | Non-standard till supplied gold with abandon initially (6) | non-standard tile: FED (supplied) OR (gold) with A (Abandon initially) |
| C | 26 | LOIRS | Relatives of mine struck oil close to middle of Dorset (5) | relatives of mice: [struck] OIL* close to RS (middle of doRSet) |
| T | 27 | REMAND | For a second time, commix number in confused dream (6) | for a second time, commit: N (number) in [confused] DREAM* |
| T | 29 | SPIRT | Shook up returning excursion groups (5) | shoot up: <[returning] TRIPS (excursion groups) |
| R | 31 | NORIA | Notating set of buckets raising Australian metal (5) | rotating set of buckets: <[raising] A (Australian) IRON (metal) |
| A | 32 | DINGO | Shabby and dirty-looking bottomless old chest in Perth (5) | cheat in Perth: DING |
| I | 34 | ALAS | Better expression when the French admitted (4) | bitter expression: AS (when) LA (the French) [admitted] |
| N | 35 | ALTS | Elevated tomes accepted by elitist regularly (4) | Elevated tones: A (accepted) by eLiTiSt [regularly] |
Dear Mr Sting,
Thank you, thank you! I am so happy not to be ‘relatively easy’ this time. I followed a long thread on the Answerbank where solvers were troubled by Sangatte which was indeed where would-be immigrants in the refugee camp were persistently attempting to break through the wire into the station or jump from the bridge onto moving trains (it is, of course, where the tunnel surfaces). I assumed it would be a familiar name to solvers and that ‘Gare du Nord’ was giving too much away. Of course, these puzzles are compiled years before they appear and the issue is now less relevant.
Yes, I don’t think a pendolino has made it to the UK yet and I was surprised to learn that a few peple had opted for that!
Virgin trains on the West Coast mainline from Euston are called Pendolino.
No worries on my part about Sangatte appearing in the puzzle.
On an entirely different tack though is the more troubling expectation in some puzzle magazines which I proof-read that we solvers “north of the Great Wen” are expected to know that Ebbsfleet is a station on the Eurostar network! My only assocation with this placename is seeing the name as a football team in the Conference.