Independent 8,416 / Phi

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Phi is occupying this week’s Friday slot, as is to be expected.

I found this one to be an easier-than-average Phi solve and made fairly swift progress through it. Bizarrely, 25 held me up for a good half-hour after I had completed the rest of the puzzle. I did not know the scientist at 21 but confirmed the answer that the wordplay had provided on Wikipedia. My clues of the day have to be 7 and 25 for their surfaces.

Scanning the completed grid for any Nina or theme, I noticed that the first row, i.e. across the top of the grid, spells out STOPPARD. When you look at the solutions entered, you realise that Phi is alluding to the Czech-born UK playwright Sir Tom Stoppard (1937-) and to some of his plays: Arcadia (1993) appears at 11; Travesties (1974) at 13D; Jumpers (1972) at 24A; and The Coast of Utopia (2002 trilogy) is suggested by 20. There could well be more references hidden away in the grid that I just haven’t spotted.

*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in double-definition clues

 

Across  
   
09 A-BOMB Weapon sailor’s used to hold crowd back

BOM (MOB=crowd; “back” indicates reversal) in AB (=sailor)
   
10 I PURITANI Opera’s joke about girl involved in couple?

[(RITA=girl) in PUN (=joke)] in I I (=couple, i.e. two, 2 x 1); I puritani (The Puritans) is an opera by Vincenzo Bellini, first performed in 1835
   
11 ARCADIA Accountant backed funding to secure right rural paradise

R (=right) in [ACA (=accountant, i.e. Associate Chartered Accountant) + DIA (AID=funding; “backed” indicates reversal)]
   
12 TEMPEST Furore sufficed to turn back nuisance

TEM (MET=sufficed, i.e. satisfied; “to turn back” indicates reversal) + PEST (=nuisance)
   
13 TINGE A little spirit in gelding, just a little

Hidden (“a little”) in “spiriT IN GElding”
   
14 ESSENTIAL Key German city Italy almost revitalised

ESSEN (=German city) + *(ITAL<y>); “almost” means last letter is dropped; “revitalised” is anagram indicator
   
15 APOSTLE One’s after the French follower

A (=one) + POST (=after) + LE (=the French, i.e. the French word for the)
   
17 ALADDIN A racket surrounding guy in panto

LAD (=guy) in [A + DIN (=racket)]
   
19 ETIQUETTE Quite upset by contents of letter? Here’s how to respond

*(QUITE) + <l>ETTE<r> (“contents of” means all but first and last letters); “upset” is anagram indicator
   
21 SAGAN Leader of Senate once more dismissing one US scientist

S<enate> (“leader of” means first letter only) + AGA<i>N (=once more; “dismissing one (=I)” means letter “i” is dropped); the reference is to US astrophysicist Carl Sagan (1934-96)
   
23 TANDOOR It has food cooked and brought in to soldiers

AND in [TO + OR (=soldiers, i.e. other ranks)]
   
24 JUMPERS Garments suitable for spring?

Cryptic definition: “spring” is to be read as jump, leap rather than as season, time of year
   
26 EMACIATED Reduction in particular happened, turning skinny

DETAI<l> (=particular, as in to give particulars of; “reduction in” means last letter dropped) + CAME (=happened); “turning” indicates (here) full reversal
   
27 LOIRE Story about love and about river – this one?

O (=love) + R (=river) in LIE (=story); “about” appears twice since the extra letters are slotted separately into “lie”
   
Down  
   
01 SAGA A gossip picked up story

A + GAS (=gossip); “picked up” indicates vertical reversal
   
02 TOUCAN Bird feeling deprived of tail (and actually without tail)

TOUC<h> (=feeling; “deprived of tail” means last letter dropped) + AN<d> (“without tail” means last letter dropped)
   
03 OBEDIENT Following bone diet (not looking good)

*(BONE DIET); “not looking good” is anagram indicator
   
04 PISA Italian city is accepting Father? Just the reverse

IS in PA (=father); “just the reverse”, i.e. Father accepting is
   
05 PUT TO SHAME Naked boy’s twin enshrining church’s ultimate disgrace

PUTTO (=naked boy, i.e. in Renaissance art) + [<churc>H (“ultimate” means last letter only) in SAME (=twin)]
   
06 AIRMAN Pilot a million into Middle East state

A + [M (=million)] in IRAN (=Middle East state)]
   
07 RAREFIED Runs are supplied when one comes in? Not in great quantity

R (=runs) + ARE + [I (=one) in FED (=supplied)]
   
08 DIRTY LINEN Broadcast trendily including fashionable personal problems

IN (=fashionable) in *(TRENDILY); “broadcast” is anagram indicator
   
13 TRAVESTIES They’re ridiculously unconvincing attempts to secure a waistcoat

[A + VEST (=waistcoats)] in TRIES (=attempts)
   
14 ELECTORATE Voters almost taken in about ecclesiastical

LECTOR (=ecclesiastic(al), i.e. clergyman in a minor order) in EATE<n> (=taken in, i.e. consumed; “almost” means last letter dropped)
   
16 ORIENTAL Zero hiring charge draws in one from China?

O (=zero) + [I (=one) in RENTAL (=hire charge)]
   
18 ASSEMBLY Religious gathering with skill stifling rising confusion

SSEM (MESS=confusion; “rising” indicates vertical reversal) in ABLY (=with skill)
   
20 UTOPIA Leading article about Independent supporting universal bliss

U (=universal) + [I (=independent) in [TOP (=leading) + A (=article)]]
   
22 GAELIC Fag keeping pasture up for some Celts

LEA (=pasture) in CIG (=fag); “up” indicates vertical reversal
   
24 JADE Opening stages of just another dreary event making you weary

J<ust> A<nother> D<reary> E<vent>; “opening stages” means first letters only
   
25 SHED Lose a little, trimming middle

SH<r>ED (=a little); “trimming middle” means middle letter dropped

8 comments on “Independent 8,416 / Phi”

  1. I agree that this toward the easier end of Phi’s spectrum.

    SHED was also my LOI, and the one before that was TINGE which I thought was pretty good for a hidden.

    I saw STOPPARD across the top but I don’t know any of his plays, although the cluing for the related answers was so precise I didn’t need to.

  2. Yes, not too tricky at all considering the themed material that’s included. I saw the possibility of STOPPARD towards the end, but I think by then I’d already got all the plays. Which is how it should work.

    PUT TO SHAME was my favourite today.

    Thanks to Phi and RR.

  4. We would agree that this was an easier Phi than usual. We were held up in NE quadrant for axwhile so missed seeing STOPPARD until very near the end. It did confirm TRAVESTIES though after spotting what we thought were all the plays.

    We thought the play was UTOPIA but we haven’t seen it so it was only a guess. Not having internet access for the solve we did wonder about DIRTY LINEN so thanks Conrad for confirming that.

    An enjoyable solve which brought back some really good memories. Tom Stoppard is one of our favourite playwrights!

    Thanks Phi for stirring up the memories and RR for the blog – we couldn’t parse ELECTORATE and it felt a bit too late last night to start searching through the dictionary!

  6. Didn’t we have a Stoppard themed crossword in the Indie not that long ago?

    Last few took me a while, and I had to do searches on 25 and 26, and even then couldn’t see why they were. In fact, quite a few I had trouble parsing today, so thanks for the explanations.

  7. Thanks both. A good puzzle. I failed on 25d – so often it’s the short ones that prove most difficult. Lots of clever wheezes: TOUCAN was one of my favourites.

  8. You did indeed have a Stoppard-themed puzzle a while ago – just after I submitted this, in fact – so this one has been waiting in the wings ever since. I slotted in the four plays symmetrically – Utopia was a lucky bonus (we did the full trilogy in a day when it was first done). Arcadia is a personal favourite. The GUEST in the grid I wasn’t aware of, which is perhaps as it should be.

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