A very tough week, I thought. Plenty of nice long entries to work through though, which was pleasing.
I think I’ve managed to explain everything this week, though I can’t claim to have got far without some serious cheating!
*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | EPPING FOREST – (GREEN SPOT IF + [townshi]P)* and presumably &lit.. |
| 10 | COUNTERTENOR – COUNTER + TENOR. |
| 11 | CAUDILLO – C + (L repeated in AUDIO). |
| 13 | TIARA – RAIT< + A. |
| 14 | TOMBOC – TOM + COB<. |
| 15 | TOCHER – TOC H + ER, with “dot” meaning “dowry” in this case. |
| 18 | RHINOS – (HORNS I)*. |
| 19 | ALOO – ALOO[f]. |
| 20 | ROOF – [p]ROOF. |
| 22 | DEMONS – DEMONS[trates]. |
| 25 | CANTAB – CAN + TAB. |
| 26 | RAT RUN – R + A + TRUN[k]. |
| 28 | FRUSH – F + RUSH. |
| 29 | INTERSEX – I + N + TERSE + X. |
| 30 | SIDEREAL YEAR – SIDE + REAL + (as in Madrid) + [da]Y + ARE*. |
| 31 | TASSEL-GENTLE – (GANTLETS ELSE). I was convinced this was going to end in EAGLE! |
| Down | |
| 1 | ECOTERRORIST – (COT + ERROR + IS) in ET. |
| 2 | POTICHOMANIA – (I’M TOO + CHINA)*. |
| 3 | PUPATION – PATIO in PUN. |
| 4 | INTRON – INTRO + N. |
| 5 | GEAR – G + EAR. |
| 6 | FRUTEX – F + RUT + EX. |
| 7 | REIMS – E in RIMS. |
| 8 | SOLOMON’S SEAL – (LOOSENSE LOAMS)*. |
| 9 | TROCHOSPHERE – (CH in TROOPS*) + HERE. |
| 12 | DORSET – DOR + SET. |
| 16 | CONCUR – CON + CUR[e]. |
| 17 | GLOBULET – LOBULE in GT. |
| 21 | HANSEL – HANSE + L. |
| 23 | MARTYN – ARTY in MN. |
| 24 | GREES – R in GEES. |
| 27 | PEAG – A in PEG. |
I was out last Sunday and was having difficulty on Monday before going out again, struggling with the top right corner. I was reading a book on the train which had the word “caudillo” in the text, a word I don’t think I previously knew, and I suddenly realised it was the answer to 11ac.