This morning saw my latest Tuesday tussle with Radian.
This particular puzzle had a more obvious theme than some previous ones, in that many of the clues referred explicitly to languages. As such, I made fairly steady progress through it until I ground to a halt in the SE corner. I was eventually left with 14, where I could break the clue down into its constituent parts but could not come up with the name of the language, much to my chagrin. I resorted to searching Chambers to find this last answer, which actually uses an alternative spelling of the people/language concerned that I did not know and would not have found unaided.
My favourite clues today are 27, for its smooth surface, and 24, for overall construction. In fact, I enjoyed all four of the longer entries, with 1D certainly raising a smile. 23 was unfamiliar to me, although having read the Wikipedia entry, it probably shouldn’t have been – thanks for plugging a gap in my general knowedge, Radian!
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in double-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | DISAMBIGUATING | For clarification, a big gun admits I was wrong
*(A BIG GUN ADMITS I); “was wrong” is anagram indicator |
| 09 | WHIP-ROUND | Which church wants money to retain rare collection?
WHI<ch> (“church (=CH) wants” mean letters “ch” are dropped) + [R (=rare) in POUND (=money)] |
| 10 | MACAO | Chairman welcomes accountant in former colony
CA (=accountant, i.e. Chartered Accountant) in MAO (=Chairman, i.e. of China) |
| 11 | INUIT | One lot of teachers tackles international language
I (=international) in [I (=one) + NUT (=lot of teachers, i.e. National Union of Teachers)] |
| 12 | IDEALISED | Papers noticed missing head placed on pedestal
ID (=papers, i.e. identification) + <r>EALISED (=noticed; “missing head” means first letter dropped) |
| 13 | TESTATOR | He’s willing to start novel about Spain
E (=Spain, i.e. in IVR) in *(TO START); “novel” is anagram indicator; “he’s willing” is to be read as “he’s leaving a will” |
| 14 | NAVAHO | Old capital mostly backed language
O (=old) + HAVAN<a> (=capital, i.e. of Cuba; “mostly” means last letter dropped); “backed” indicates reversal |
| 17 | ERRAND | President ignoring Romney’s mission
<mitt>ERRAND (=President, i.e. of France); “ignoring Romney (=Mitt, i.e. US politician)” means letters “mitt” are dropped |
| 19 | OVERHEAR | Catch fast runner in part of cricket match
RHEA (=fast runner, i.e. bird) in OVER (=part of cricket match) |
| 22 | OFF THE AIR | Finished broadcasting for a thief undergoing rehab
*(FOR A THIEF); “undergoing rehab” is anagram indicator |
| 24 | KYOTO | Eastern city took off with inflow of local currency
Y (=local currency, i.e. the Japanese yen) in *(TOOK); “off” is anagram indicator |
| 25 | TATAR | A brief word of thanks in Turkey’s Turkic language
[A + TA (=brief word of thanks)] in TR (=Turkey, i.e. in IVR) |
| 26 | IMITATING | Current coupling involves sex for reproduction
IT (=sex, as it to do it) in [I (=current, i.e. in physics) + MATING (=coupling)] |
| 27 | BREATHING SPACE | Respite pair enjoys each night abroad without children
[EA (=each) + *(NIGHT) + SP (=without children, i.e. sine prole)] in BRACE (=pair); “abroad” is anagram indicator |
| Down | ||
| 01 | DOWN IN THE MOUTH | What you might get eating duck in the doldrums?
A person eating duck could end up with down (=feathers) in his mouth! |
| 02 | SLIP-UPS | Small schoolchildren brought up mistakes
S (=small) + PUPILS (=schoolchildren); “brought up” indicates vertical reversal |
| 03 | MARK TWAIN | Old couple spot leading writer
MARK (=spot, i.e. stain) + TWAIN (=old couple, i.e. an archaic word for two) |
| 04 | IN UNISON | Skinhead infiltrates stylish marriage as one
S<kin-head> (“head” means first letter only in [IN (=stylish) + UNION (=marriage)] |
| 05 | UNDIES | Model is nude without them?
*(IS NUDE); “model” is anagram indicator |
| 06 | TAMIL | Group of climatologists picked up language
Reversed (“picked up”) and hidden (“group of”) in “cLIMATologists” |
| 07 | NICOSIA | New firms occupy 11, a divided city
N (=new) + [COs (=firms, i.e. companies) in II (=11, converted to 2 x letter I)] + A |
| 08 | HOLD YOUR TONGUE | What someone should say to orotund guy barking in corner?
*(OROTUND GUY) in HOLE (=corner, i.e. difficult situation); “barking”, i.e. mad, is anagram indicator |
| 15 | AFRIKAANS | Language articles in Frankish damned hard going
A A (=articles, i.e. 2 x indefinite article) in *(FRANKIS<h>); “hard (=H) going” means letter “h” is dropped; “damned” is anagram indicator |
| 16 | AVERSION | Hate terrifying rise in river
*(RISE) in AVON (=river); “terrifying” is anagram indicator |
| 18 | REFUTER | He contradicts judge’s true version
REF (=judge, i.e. referee) + *(TRUE); “version” is anagram indicator |
| 20 | EROTICA | Heather hides books such as Fifty Shades of Grey
OT (=books, i.e. Old Testament) in ERICA (=heather, i.e. genus) |
| 21 | DANISH | Language style adopted in rising
NI (=IN; “rising” indicates vertical reversal)in DASH (=style) |
| 23 | HORSA | Heroic Anglo-Saxon author satirised clothes
Hidden (“clothes”) in “autHOR SAtirised”; Hengist and Horsa were Anglo-Saxon warriors who conquered the first territories of Britain in the 5th century |
Thanks, RR. I often struggle with Radian, but perhaps he was being gentle with us here, because it was only the last four or five that really involved a bit of pencil-chewing. I too liked the four long clues around the outside, with DOWN IN THE MOUTH raising a smile.
Nice languages theme, although like you I needed outside assistance to get NAVAHO – the crossing letters weren’t super-helpful.
If I may have a small niggle, TOKYO is an equally valid answer to 24ac.
Thanks to Radian for this one.
Thanks for the blog, RR.
It’s a good day today: Radian here and Orlando in the Guardian, both dishing up what they do so well, in the way of great constructions and surfaces, with lots of smiles on the way.
I especially liked 17, and 27ac and 8 and 20 dn and, although I’ve seen 1dn before, this was a particularly good clue.
I had a ‘doh’ moment at 19ac, having spent a second or two looking for an anagram indicator for HARE. 🙁
I was lucky enough to remember [at least the names of] Hengist and Horsa from primary school.
Many thanks to Radian for an enjoyable fun puzzle.
Hengist and Horsa were the names of two RAF gliders in WWII. Very apt.
I enjoyed this puzzle and figured out most of the parsing which is a change for me with Radian! Thanks to setter and blogger. I’m a bit sad there were no blogs for the two previous puzzles, though.
Which two puzzles do you mean, Heather?
Enjoyable puzzle, but you can count me as another who needed aids to get 14ac. I would always spell it “Navajo” and the alternative didn’t occur to me.
NAVAHO with an H turned up in a Saturday prize puzzle a few months ago.
Eileen, I always enjoy the glimpses into your education. They often tally with my memories (tiny village primary school with just two classrooms, all the infants accommodated in one, all the juniors in the other; then excellent state all-girls grammar school), and I think we must be of similar age. We too were taught about Hengist and Horsa, and even, to my husband’s incredulity, learned the name of Alexander the Great’s horse.
Now I’m in danger of lapsing into John Major-style nostalgia, and have probably sent everyone else to sleep.
Heather McKay and Kathryn’s Dad, I assume Heather is referring to yesterday’s 8549 by Rorschach, that was blogged as 8459. Trying to bring up the blog for 8549 thus drew a blank. This has happened occasionally in the past and when the correct puzzle number does not bring up the blog that it should, I enter “independent” + “fifteensquared” plus the date of the crossword – this is how I discovered yesterday’s after wondering where it had got to (perhaps one could go to the archive as well, but it would be better if there were not a transposition of numbers in the first place).
Hi Polly @7
I’m sure you can’t be quite so ancient as I am but thanks for that: it certainly strikes a chord.
I am constantly astonished at the nuggets of knowledge that I gained at primary school, many of which I never encountered again. [I didn’t hear of Bucephalus until the first year of secondary school, though.] Like so many of my contemporaries, I’m also amazed at how much more readily I recall these things than the name of the person I was talking to last week – but I realise that this is a feature of the ageing process. 🙁
I blogged Rorschach’s puzzle yesterday and it was my fat fingers that transposed the digits. Now corrected. Apologies.
I don’t usually get to tackle the Independent puzzle on the day of publication, but today was an exception and an enjoyable challenge.
I think that Eileen is developing a personal fan club, and well deserved too.
Another who wondered if the clue to Kyoto was fair, without crossing letters the more famous Tokyo was almost a write in.
generally quite easy for the Indy except for Navaho which i resorted to aids.
thanks RR and Radian.
No fans of Sellar and Yeatman here, then: “Memorable among the Saxon warriors were Hengist and his wife (?or horse), Horsa.”
Yeah, I had to do a search to get 14ac, too.
Thanks RR and R. Excellent work. Not sure I should really admit this, but it might make someone else smile, as I did – my initial entry for 1d was DOWN IN THE DUMPS. Thought it was a bit risque – and luckily saw the error of my ways before too long.
Thanks gwep! I didn’t think to track them that way. I got them out but was curious re some of the parsing.