A rare, if ever, Tuesday spot for Dante, which I suppose is necessitated by having to place Gaff’s puzzle in yesterday’s spot (for obvious reasons). Much has been said about Dante’s style, a style heavy on cds/dds/anagrams and which isn’t for everyone. However, no complaints from me, and thanks to Dante. Definitions are underlined in the clues. [[The pictures at the bottom have unidentified links to the puzzle. Please enclose any comments on them in double brackets. Thank you.]]
Across
1 Sane or crazy to argue? (6)
REASON : Anagram of(crazy) SANE OR.
4 Nobody we know (8)
STRANGER : Cryptic defn. I hope I’ve got this right, and that there’s nothing more to it.
10 Out-of-date colour scheme (9)
APARTHEID : Cryptic defn: Once, the racial discrimination system in South Africa.
11 Silas shows fibre when in trouble (5)
SISAL : Anagram of(when in trouble) SILAS.
12 A course for non-drivers? (4)
PATH : Cryptic defn: A route for non-vehicular traffic, and not a golf course where golfers don’t use their drivers off the tee.
13 Killing game (5,5)
BLOOD SPORT : Cryptic defn.
15 Mean to declare a woman’s secret (7)
AVERAGE : AVER(to declare;to assert) AGE(what a woman would like to keep secret).
Answer: An arithmetic mean.
16 She and men get involved – become engaged (6)
ENMESH : Anagram of(get involved) [SHE plus(and) MEN].
19 Frequent chaperon (6)
ATTEND : Double defn: 1st: To be at; and 2nd: To escort;to attend to.
21 Discover one has made a call pointlessly (4,3)
FIND OUT : Cryptic defn: You’re said to have made a pointless visit;call when the one you’re visiting is out.
23 The chief constable’s ultimate deterrent (3,2,5)
USE OF FORCE : Cryptic defn: When all else fails, the chief constable may send in the police force.
25 Study occupied by a college head (4)
DEAN : DEN(a study;a room to retreat to) containing(occupied by) A.
27 I am having an attempt to catch a butterfly, for example (5)
IMAGO : I’M(contraction of “I am”) plus(having) GO(an attempt at) containing(to catch) A.
Answer: An sexually mature insect after metamorphosis, like a butterfly.
28 Soap, then water – what next? (9)
GODLINESS : Cryptic defn: Reference to the proverb: “Cleanliness is next to godliness”.
Answer: In the proverb’s sentence construction, what is placed after;what next? “cleanliness”.
29 Get lost in proverb (8)
HESITATE : Cryptic defn: Reference to another proverb: “He who hesitates is lost”.
30 Exclude crafty frequenter of pubs (6)
BARFLY : BAR(to exclude;to keep out) + FLY(crafty;mentally sharp).
Answer: Slang for a person frequenting bars.
Down
1 Come again? (8)
REAPPEAR : Cryptic defn.
2 Possibly meant to secure some accommodation (9)
APARTMENT : Anagram of(Possibly) MEANT containing(to secure) PART(some;a portion of).
3 Reluctant to lose student showing promise (4)
OATH : “loath”(reluctant;disinclined) minus(to lose) “l”(as on the plate of a student driver).
Answer: A formal declaration to fulfil a pledge.
5 Swimmer who may develop into a jumper (7)
TADPOLE : Cryptic defn: A swimming tadpole will develop into a jumping frog, unless in the meantime it’s eaten by a fish.
6 Men’s assets as a basis for taxation (10)
ASSESSMENT : Anagram of(as a basis) MEN’S ASSETS.
7 Puff oxygen for exhilaration (5)
GUSTO : GUST(a puff, say, of air;a wind) + O(chemical symbol for the element oxygen).
8 Render an account (6)
RELATE : Cryptic defn: To give an account of a past event or story, and not to make up and present a bill.
9 Gentleman I’ll see out (6)
LESLIE : Anagram of(out) I’LL SEE.
14 Sea comes over the prom in harbour area (10)
WATERFRONT : WATER(the sea) placed above(over, in a down clue) FRONT(the prom;promenade along the water at a resort).
Defn: … regardless whether there’s a promenade or not.
17 High on drug, a female cannot hear (5-4)
STONE-DEAF : STONED(like “high”, intoxicated by drugs or alcohol) placed above(on, in a down clue) + E(slang for the drug Ecstasy) + A +F(abbrev. for “female”).
18 Is supportive, but fails to intervene (6,2)
STANDS BY : Double defn: 1st: Is loyal to; and 2nd: Remains as an onlooker.
20 Doctor should prescribe no water (7)
DROUGHT : DR(abbrev. for “doctor”) + OUGHT(should, as in “you ought to do this”).
21 Commercial set in new cafe may give false impression (6)
FACADE : AD(short for “advertisement”;a commercial) contained in(set in) anagram of(new) CAFE.
22 Push in if it’s out? Correct (6)
PUNISH : Anagram of(if it’s out) PUSH IN.
Defn: To correct behaviour through punishment, as in “correctional facilities”.
24 A large number caught in sex orgy – in the papers (5)
EXAMS : [A + M(Roman numeral for 1000, or abbrev. for “million”, a large number in either case) ] contained in(caught in) anagram of(orgy;a wild gathering) SEX. An amusing surface of a newspaper headline.
Defn: Sets of examination questions, each of which is to be answered in one session.
26 Mail goes astray in Peru (4)
LIMA : Anagram of(goes astray) MAIL.
Answer: Capital city of Peru.
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[[Faye Dunaway was in BARFLY, and Bebe Neuwirth was apparently in a film called TADPOLE.]]
Thanks, scchua. I enjoyed today’s a little less than usual — perhaps a cd or two too many. On the other hand Apartheid was very neat. Thanks, Dante.
“A rare, if ever, Tuesday spot for Dante, which I suppose is necessitated by having to place Gaff’s puzzle in yesterday’s spot (for obvious reasons).” I usually do (or rather attempt) the Monday FT but I was completely baffled by the rubric “Ds down today” and didn’t start it. Not at all obvious to me I’m afraid but I’ll be enlightened next Thursday when Sil does his blog.
Well, bamberger, I can understand your feelings.
Only tonight a dear friend of mine unravelled Gaff’s theme to me.
I won’t say anything about it here as I am not allowed to, but yes, without her I would probably have had some major problems next week.
As to this puzzle, I particularly liked 9d and 24d (even if I am not a great fan anymore of sexual references).