Financial Times 14,517 by Dogberry

Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of January 11, 2014

This puzzle also threw up some challenges for me. I especially had trouble with 4 across and some clues in the center section. My top clues as 1D (VALIDATE) and 8D (GALOSH). And I am left with a concern about 18D.

ACROSS
1 Soft money in Sofia reflected on screen (6)
VELVET – LEV (money in Sofia) backwards + VET (screen)
4 Turkey’s accompaniment – overturned bottle bottling nasty smell (8)
STUFFING – NIFF (nasty smell) in GUTS (bottle) all backwards. ‘Bottle’ is used here in the sense of courage. I figured early on that the answer would most likely be STUFFING, partly because I decided that ‘nasty smell’ must clue FUST which is an anagram of the first four letters. But I just could not make full sense of it until a friend tipped me off that ‘nasty smell’ actually clues NIFF, a word I do not remember ever coming across.
9 Foster co-operation with tall tale about sloths (6)
LIAISE – AIS (sloths) in LIE (tall tale). An ai is a kind of sloth that likes doing crossword puzzles.
10 Capital curtailed lass’s song (8)
MADRIGAL – MADRI[d] (capital curtailed) + GAL (lass)
12 24 hours off dawn? (8)
DAYBREAK – DAY (24 hours) + BREAK (off)
13 Worries about second stroke (6)
CARESS – CARES (worries) + S (second)
15 Cut head off wood (4)
TEAK – [s]TEAK (cut head off)
16 Woodcutter, perhaps, in good spirits (7)
CHIPPER – double definition
20 Run after introduction to barrel organ (7)
BLADDER – B[arrel] + LADDER (run)
21 Deputy’s bad habit (4)
VICE – double definition
25 One nation incorporating Sweden and Sumatra, say (6)
ISLAND – I (one) + S (Sweden) + LAND (nation)
26 Major road put down, securing thousands for old farm worker (8)
MILKMAID – MI (major road) + KM (thousands) in LAID (put down)
28 Misguidedly select it for ball (8)
TESTICLE – anagram of SELECT IT
29 Antipathetic to a bit of Scripture (6)
AVERSE – A (a) + VERSE (bit of Scripture)
30 Dying to drop one missile (8)
PERSHING – PER[i]SHING (dying to drop one)
31 Small 25 reported in hole (6)
EYELET – homophone (“islet”)

DOWN
1 Confirm correctness of Delia, a TV cook (8)
VALIDATE – anagram of DELIA A TV
2 East Anglia’s foremost player exchanged in 2012, say (4,4)
LEAP YEAR – anagram of E[ast] A[nglia] PLAYER
3 Guarantee nurse dissipated energy (6)
ENSURE – anagram of NURSE + E (energy)
5 Elevated ingredient of gin (4)
TRAP – PART (ingredient) backwards
6 Parting of the ways, when turning in two directions, abandoned (8)
FORSAKEN – AS (when) backwards in FORK (parting of the ways) + EN (two directions)
7 Artist’s endless entrance (6)
INGRES – INGRES[s] (endless entrance)
8 Expression of surprise about a left shoe (6)
GALOSH – A (a) + L (left) together in GOSH (expression of surprise)
11 Ray maybe getting silly hat encrypted? (7)
CATHODE – anagram of HAT in CODE (encrypted?)
14 Pub sign put up outside, one with a girl in play (7)
OPHELIA – PH (pub, i.e. public house) in LEO (sign) reversed) + I (one) + A (a)
17 Wheedle, being rather tasteless? (8)
BLANDISH – double/cryptic definition
18 Discard a large body of water with two ears (8)
BINAURAL – BIN (discard) + A (a) + URAL (large body of water??). How is URAL a large body of water? Or do I have this wrong. In addition to the well known mountain range, there is a Ural River. I suppose it makes sense to call a river of size a large body of water but I generally think of such a description being applied to a lake or a sea.
19 Passenger’s support heartlessly shattered – shattered! (8)
HEADREST – anagram of SHAT[t]ERED
22 Tread carefully, exchanging Spain for Portugal? Splendid! (3-3)
TIP-TOP – TIP-TOE (tread carefully) with E (Spain, i.e. España) changed to P (Portugal)
23 “Terminator” is nearer the mark (6)
CLOSER – double definition
24 I see 5 captured by media company’s servant (6)
SKIVVY – I (I) + V (see, i.e. vide) + V (five) all together in SKY (media company)
27 Scheme to get board reduced (4)
PLAN – PLAN[k] (board reduced)