Guardian 26,006 – Rufus

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A very quick solve for me today, with Rufus’s characteristic abundance of double and cryptic definitions; and, as far as I can see, one completely non-cryptic definition.

 
 
 
 
 
Across
1. RELIEF MAP Cryptic definition, referring to the relief of Mafeking in 1900, during the second Boer War, which made a hero of Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Scout movement
6. ROWS Double definition (with two pronunciation, rhyming with cows and hoes respectively)
8. GIGANTIC GIG (horse-drawn carriage) + ANTIC (frolic)
9. LENTIL LENT (period of fasting)+ IL (Italian “the”)
10. TEASER Double definition
11. DENTISTS Cryptic definition
12. WRAP UP Double definition
15. MAINTAIN I think this is a triple definition, though the “claim” and “state” meanings are more or less the same
16. ENTRANCE AN in RECENT*
19. ENSUED SUE (go to law) in END
21. PREDATOR TEARDROP*
22. ADRIFT A + DRIFT (tenor, as in “get my drift?” and the “tenor” of a conversation)
24. TUNNEL With the best will in the world I can’t see this as anything but a straight definition – maybe there’s an intended reference to the London Underground
25. EMERITUS MERIT in reverse of SUE
26. ODES DOES*
27. ONSLAUGHT (LAUGHS NOT)*
Down
1. RAISE Double definition – “gather together” as in “raise an army”, and hike=increase
2. LEAPS UP (A SUPPLE)*
3. ENTER Double definition
4. MACADAM Cryptic definition
5. POLONAISE (SOLE PIANO)* The Polonaise is a dance of Polish origin; Chopin wrote a number of pieces of that name, of which probably the most well-known is the so-called “Military” Polonaise
6. RUN RIOT RUN (several appearances, as in a run of a play) + TRIO*
7. WAISTLINE (A WINE LIST)* – too much indulgence in which may lead to an enlarged waistline
13. RUNAROUND RUN (manage) + A ROUND (game of golf)
14. PUNCTILIO UNPOLITIC* – punctilio is ”a fine point of etiquette” or “precise observance of formalities”.
17. RODENTS SNORTED*
18. EARNERS [L]EARNERS. I’m not entirely sure about earner as a “good job” – Chambers gives “something (esp illegal or slightly shady) that brings a good income or profit”, so I suppose that just about covers it. It makes me think of Arthur Daley describing one of his schemes as “a nice little earner”.
20. SURFING Cryptic definition – surfers use boards at the seaside
22. ARENA N in AREA
23. FAULT Cryptic definition, the “serviceman” being a tennis player

15 comments on “Guardian 26,006 – Rufus”

  1. I liked 8a, 16a, 13d & 15a and my favourites were 22a ADRIFT & 11a DENTISTS.

    I couldn’t parse 23d.

    Thanks for the blog, Andrew. I parsed 15a as a triple definition, and for 24a I was also thinking of the London Underground. I was fine with EARNER = “a good job”.

  2. Had ‘shut up’ for 13a for a while, causing problems with SW corner, but then considered that using such a term would be out of character for our friend. Thanks to Rufus and Andrew.

  3. Despite 24ac being so uncryptic, I put in SUBWAY (I had the U checker). Only when 17D was so obviously an anagram and didn’t include a W did I see the error of my ways.

  4. Thanks, Andrew.

    I sometimes have to chew over Rufus’s dds and cds before light dawns, but this morning they all went in pretty smoothly. ADRIFT and WAISTLINE were my favourites today.

    I agree that 24ac is not one of Rufus’s finest, but other than that, a pleasing puzzle in the usual style. Thanks to Rufus.

  5. Thanks Andrew and Rufus
    I liked RELIEF MAP and DENTISTS. I “checked” TUNNEL as I thought it couldn’t possibly be that straightforward. Also I wasn’t altogether happy about MACADAM – wouldn’t the “pitch” be TAR-MACADAM (hence TARMAC), rather than just MACADAM?

  6. Thanks Andrew and Rufus

    Easier than usual on the whole but a few held me up briefly. I liked 1a, 22a, and 23d. Agree with Andrew re 24a.

  8. Thanks to Andrew for the blog.

    I also started with SHUT UP for 12a – until the anagram for 2d told me to think again.

    When I looked at 23d I started thinking about serviceman: armed forces are called services, a vicar conducts a church service… I only got the right service when I had F-U-T 🙁

  9. Count me as another who initially had SHUT UP at 12ac until it became obvious that the crossing clues needed a different answer, at which point I reconsidered it and got the correct WRAP UP. I agree with the TUNNEL comments.

  11. RCW@10
    Yes – “to cover (a road) with small broken stones, so as to form a smooth, hard surface; macadam – a macadamized road surface; material for macadamizing”

    No mention of tar or pitch. I assumed the “pitch” in the clue was referring to the tar – am I wrong in this?

  12. For 24a I wondered whether there was a reference to a ‘router’ with which one might – just about – dig a tunnel. Not very satisfactory, perhaps… Otherwise a welcome straight forward solve at the end of a hot day clearing out a house.

  13. Usual Rufus fare. No problems and only one non cryptic clue today.

    I fear that Muffin is also correct re tar and macadam. The macadam method was just layers of compacted stones, sometimes with water and stone dust to help bind it. However them there fast automobiles came along and the low pressure they caused between themselves and the road threw up all the dust and degraded the road surface. Solution? Pour tar on the top to bind the surface. Hence Tarmacadam. (I’m not sure pitch would work?)

    Very easy although I did enjoy 1a, 5d and 14d.

    Thanks to Andrew and Rufus

  14. Muffin & Brendan
    I might be out of my depth here, but the dictionary on my Mac defines MACADAM as “broken stone of even size used in successively compacted layers for surfacing roads and paths, and typically bound with tar or bitumen.” And as I discovered that the words ‘tar’ and ‘pitch’ are interchangeable, I was fine with both the clue and answer.

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