When you notice that a puzzle has been set by Donk, you know you have a treat in store, both as a solver and as a blogger. Today’s puzzle was no exception.
This was one of those puzzles where a first perusal of the clues generated only a handful of answers, not one of which gave me a clue as to the nature of the theme at 2 8.
I was beginning to think that I would have no chance of finishing the puzzle (or of blogging it) when I realised that 22A, partly an anagram, could be Texas hold ’em, whereupon other games sprang to mind, such as baccarat and blackjack. After that, it was full speed ahead. 25A and 27 were new to me, but they could be worked out from the wordplay and easily checked. 25A and 25D held me up at the end, as did 24, where I struggled to identify a possible definition and solution, even with all three crossing letters in place.
My favourite clues today were 13D, because it made me smile at a time when we’re all turning our thoughts to Christmas shopping, and 19, for its deceptive wordplay. I accept that the lavatorial references in 19 and 25A, or the sexual allusion at 16, may not be to everyone’s taste, but if used in moderation, why not?
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in double-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 09 | USAGE | States period for employment
US (=States, i.e. America) + AGE (=period) |
| 10 | EMILE ZOLA | One who wrote back to middle distance runner
<middl>E (“back to” means last letter only) + MILE (=distance) + ZOLA (=runner, i.e. South African Zola Budd); the reference is to 19th century French writer Emile Zola |
| 11 | SWISS ROLL | Sweet West Indian in smalls, with wind
WI (=West Indian) in S S S (=small, i.e. 3 x S = small) + ROLL (=wind, as a verb) |
| 12 | CALVE | Changing tap, split in two to create seal
C for H-ALVE (=split in two); “changing tap” means H (=hot) is replaced by C (=cold) |
| 13 | SLOT MACHINE | 2 8 in motel, cash converted
*(IN MOTEL CASH); “converted” is anagram indicator; a slot machine can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
| 14/1 | TISSUES | Catchers, when suffering from cold temperature, needing deliveries
T (=temperature) + ISSUES (=deliveries) |
| 16 | CABINET | I can’t be screwed in cupboard
*(I CAN’T BE); “screwed” is anagram indicator |
| 19 | EXCRETA | Amendment to create housing by motion
X (=by, as in 6m by 3m) in *(CREATE); “amendment” is anagram indicator; the definition is “motion”, as in to pass a motion |
| 21 | SIC | Feeble when cut so
SIC<k> (=feeble); “when cut” means last letter dropped |
| 22 | TEXAS HOLD ‘EM | 2 8 experienced in the exams involved
OLD (=experienced) in *(THE EXAMS); “involved” is anagram indicator; Texas hold ’em, a variety of poker, can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
| 25 | CRAPS | 2 8 // 19
Double definition: craps is a gambling game in which a player roll two dice, hence casino game (entry at 2 8) AND craps are excreta!! |
| 26 | BLACKJACK | 2 8 champion hugs Miss Japan
[LACK (=miss) + J (=Japan, i.e. IVR)] in BACK (=champion, as a verb); blackjack can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
| 28 | PLANETOID | Out-of-this-world body, funny and polite
*(AND POLITE); “funny” is anagram indicator |
| 29 | NYLON | Material recalled Latino lynch mobs
Reversed (“recalled”) and hidden (“mobs”) in “LatiNO LYNch” |
| Down | ||
| 02 | CASINO | Place for better pitched contracts – in over one’s head
CAS<t> (=pitched; “contracts” means last letter is dropped) + IN+ O<ne> (“head” means first letter only) |
| 03 | WELSHMAN | With heart to melt, quiet old lady’s new bloke from Cardiff?
W (=with) + <m>EL<t> (“heart to” means all but first and last letters) + SH (=quiet) + MA (=old lady) + N (=new) |
| 04 | HEROIC | Epic woman’s voice, lacking ends of range
HER (=woman’s) + <v>OIC<e> (“lacking ends of range” means first and last letters are dropped) |
| 05 | HILLSIDE | One’s inclined to have problems piercing skin
ILLS (=problems) in HIDE (=skin) |
| 06 | RESCUE | Deliver items needed for pot? One’s not all there
RES<t> + CUE (=items needed for pot, e.g. in snooker); “one’s not all there” means last letter of one of items is dropped |
| 07 | ROULETTE | Investment of grant into best electronic 2 8
[LET in ROUT (=best, as a verb)] + E (=electronic); roulette can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
| 08 | GAME | Match // up for it
Double definition |
| 13 | SOCKS | Disappointment at Xmas // buffets
Double definition: people are disappointed when given socks as a Xmas present; buffets are socks, hits, strikes |
| 15 | SWARM | Struggle to get into S&M crowd
WAR (=struggle) in S + M |
| 17 | BACCARAT | It opens bank account, a rogue 2 8
B<ank> (“it opens” means first letter only) + ACC (=account) + A + RAT(=rogue); baccarat can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
| 18 | TEXTBOOK | Perfect streak, evenly injecting nasty Botox
*(BOTOX) in <s>T<r>E<a>K (“evenly injecting” means even letters only are used) |
| 20 | CLOCKING | Getting ready to fire nurses left striking
L (=left) in COCKING (=getting ready to fire) |
| 22 | TASTER | Sample from tribute, nothing omitted by queen
T<o>AST (=tribute; “nothing (=O) omitted” means letter “o” is dropped) + ER (=queen) |
| 23 | SHANDY | Bob’s available for drink
S (=bob, i.e. shilling) + HANDY (=available) |
| 24 | DOABLE | Didn’t make it to hospital – without one, anger’s possible
DOA (=didn’t make it to hospital, i.e. dead on arrival) + B<i>LE (=anger; “without one (=I)” means letter “i” is dropped) |
| 25 | COPY | Borrow it from city for work
OP (=work) replaces IT in C-IT-Y |
| 27 | KENO | 2 8, some chicken out
Hidden (“some”) in “chicKEN Out”; keno, similar to bingo, can be a casino game (=entry at 2 8) |
Thanks for the blog in general and for parsing 10 in particular, as I’d completely forgotten anything I ever knew about Zola Budd. And thanks, of course, to Donk, for a crossword whose relatively quick solving time belies my enjoyable puzzlement.
Thanks for the blog, RR.
Unlike you, I hadn’t heard of TEXAS HOLD ‘EM – SLOT MACHINE was my way in to an initially impenetrable-looking theme and then there were lots of ‘ahas’ as it steadily unravelled.
I have to admit to sniggers at 16ac, recalling the joke comparing Cecil Parkinson to flat-pack furniture – shades of Boris Becker, too. 😉
Many thanks for the fun, Donk!
Loved 25a/19. Just my level of humour! Thanks to RR for the blog and to Donk for a fun puzzle which took exactly the amount of time I had available to do it in. Perfect!
Witty, clever clueing, loads of fun; took a while, but rewarding. Let’s have more of Donk to whom thanks, also to RatkojaRiku.
Another great puzzle from Donk. I thoroughly enjoyed and loved the humour and natty surfaces that we’ve come to expect from him. Thanks mate and thanks RR for a great blog.
An excellent puzzle, although I entered RESCUE and DOABLE from their definitions so thanks for the parsing RR.
SLOT MACHINE was my way into the themed clues, and RESCUE was my LOI.
I enjoyed this one, but perhaps not as much as previous Donk puzzles. The theme left me a bit cold (but listen, themes on obscure 18th century novelists leave me cold as well …) Some tricky wordplay, so thanks for the explanations. EXCRETA is indeed amusing.
‘At a time when we’re all turning our thoughts to Christmas shopping’, RR? No, no, no, no, no … Because I’m a grumpy and tight-fisted old man, Christmas shopping is an oxymoron.
Thanks to S&B.
Well that’s a relief. I feared that the Indy was discontinuing its crossword, because when I sneaked a look in the newsagent’s shop this morning to see who was the setter, there was no cryptic crossword. Does anybody know what happened?
@wil it’s there alright in my dead tree version where it normally is. Cor found this hard work indeed, gave up with 2 8 unresolved. Bad day at the grid for me.Thanks RR and Donk.
I did not understand DOABLE till explained here (esp the DOA part). I think it was once known as B I D (‘brought in dead’) which gave rise to the quip “No B E D for B I D”.
Nearly gave up with this one when I saw it was themed (doing impenetrable themed puzzles at the end of the day when you’ve just come in from work is a step too far for me). But then I got Texas Hold Em, which got me going on the theme quite nicely. LOIs were 6 (which I should have understood after all the hours wasted watching snooker, but didn’t) and 4, which was just a lot simpler than I expected. An excellent puzzle all round, I thought.
Super puzzle, as always from Donk
Wow, that was hard. Took ages to get into this and finally got the theme after a couple of hours (by way of 13ac) and it took me another couple of hours to get 6dn and 12ac. And then I see I’d guessed SUCKS at 13dn, without quite seeing why, except that when something sucks, it’s a disappointment. Mind you, 19ac was my first in, whilst performing my morning ablutions, so it was rather easy.
Our first themed answer was 27d – we’d never heard of it so checked in the dictionary which helped us unravel the theme. As always, fun clues to be had. We loved 13d, 19, 25ac and 14/1. We must live a sheltered life as the innuendo in 16ac passed us by.
Thanks Donk for the fun and RR for the blog – we almost needed you to parse 24d but it came to us at the last moment before coming here.
Eileen – you may have to tell us the joke sometime soon!
Very good. Particularly liked the Xmas disappointment.
Just a quick note to say many thanks to RR for the blog, and to everyone else for the great comments! Hope to see lots of you on Saturday.
All the best,
Donk