[If you’re attending York S&B please see comments 32&33] - here
I found this rather tricky in places but got there in the end. There were a few ‘entry’ clues that could be written in quickly but the majority required some thought, particularly for the parsing.
I seem to have written ‘anagram of’ and ‘&lit’ quite a few times today, not that I mind because I enjoy working out anagrams, particularly the compound variety in 9ac and 7dn.
My only slight quibble with this puzzle is 1dn where there is a cryptic definition and unclear wordplay but the rest of it made up for this. I rather liked some of the cryptic definitions such as the one at 11ac.
Now to have a look at Redshank’s alter ego in today’s Guardian.
Across
9 With this girl welded energetically (9)
ACETYLENE – ‘energetically’ is an anagram (welded) of the answer + ‘girl’
10 It’s of limited value wiggling round middle of mouth (5)
UVULA – an anagram (wiggling) of VALU[e] (limited value) around [mo]U[th] (middle of mouth) – &lit
11 Number One’s back in swimming club? It’s a pride issue (4,3)
LION CUB – NO I (number one) reversed (back) in an anagram (swimming) of CLUB
12 What some isolated families do at home about sleeping? (7)
INBREED – IN (at home) RE (about) in BED (sleeping)
13 Second person’s share of carry-out (3)
YOU – hidden in (share of) ‘carrY-OUt’
14 Yes man in Ayr sadly not in a top group of celebs? (11)
NATIONALIST – an anagram (sadly) of NOT IN A plus A-LIST (top group of celebs)
17 McCartney left out old Stone (5)
STELA – STEL[l]A (McCartney left out)
18 Invention / that helps Rory (3)
LIE – double def. – the second cryptic with a reference to the golfer Rory McIlroy.
19 The way to block river with a smack? (5)
TASTY – ST (the way) in (to block) TAY (river)
21 MacArthur, say, months away at sea, rounds Cape (11)
YACHTSWOMAN – an anagram (at sea) of MONTHS AWAY around (rounds) C (Cape) – with the wordplay being an &lit description of Ellen MacArthur’s activities.
23 Even Muslims seen in minster here? (3)
ULM – [m]U[s]L[i]M (even Muslims seen) – the German city noted for having a church with the tallest steeple in the world (and also for being the birthplace of Albert Einstein).
25 Barbecue lamb rump and more nuts, wasting carbon (7)
BRAZIER – [lam]B (lamb rump) [c]RAZIER (more nuts, wasting carbon)
27 Con wins at fencing (7)
AGAINST – AT around (fencing) GAINS (wins)
28 Ready to drop / unrestricted visiting (3,2)
ALL IN – double def.
29 Flight operator got in touch (9)
ELOPEMENT – OP (operator) in ELEMENT (touch {small amount})
Down
1 Barnum & Bailey’s first and last autumn production (6)
BARLEY – BAR[num & bai]LEY (Barnum & Bailey’s first and last) – I assume this is the intended answer and parsing but there is no indication in the wordplay to use more than a single initial/final letter and the cryptic definition could refer to a lot of things.
2 Director quits bankrupt Leeds tour firm (8)
RESOLUTE – an anagram (bankrupt) of LEE[d]S TOUR
3 I study diplomacy, said to be vital in interview (3,7)
EYE CONTACT – a homophone (said) of I CON (study) TACT (diplomacy)
4 It transmits live north and south (4)
BEEB – BE EB (live north and south)
5 Inner membrane closed in another part of body (10)
PERITONEUM – TO (closed) in PERINEUM (another part of body)
6 Oz guy almost picked up check (4)
CURB – BRUC[e] (Oz guy almost) reversed (picked up)
7 Fruit machine’s played with these in fact (6)
HUMERI – ‘fruit machine’ is an anagram (played) of the answer plus ‘in fact’ – &lit
8 Bachelor and writer go thieving (8)
BANDITRY – B (bachelor) AND I (writer) TRY (go)
15 Rent up, New Yorker avoids capitals for job at home (10)
TELEWORKER – LET (rent) reversed (up) [n]EW [y]ORKER (New Yorker avoids capitals)
16 Made less time for news due at ground (10)
ATTENUATED – AT TEN (time for news) plus an anagram (ground) of DUE AT
17 Irishman recruits a boy randomly for plant (4,4)
SOYA BEAN – SEAN (Irishman) around (recruits) an anagram (randomly) of A BOY
20 Small rulers nicked as well as waste (8)
SQUANDER – S (small) QU ER (rulers) around (nicked) AND (as well as)
22 Bottomless caldera melted the young rock there (6)
CRADLE – an anagram (melted) of CALDER[a] (bottomless caldera)
24 Change amount cattle regularly cropped (6)
MUTATE – [a]M[o]U[n]T [c]A[t]T[l]E (amount cattle regularly cropped)
26 Trendy Poles bar experts from them (4)
INNS – IN (trendy) N S (poles) – a reference to the Inns of Court: “the buildings of four voluntary societies that have the exclusive right of calling to the English bar (Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Lincoln’s Inn and Gray’s Inn)” (to quote from Chambers seems rather appropriate!)
27 It’s at bomb’s core (4)
ATOM – AT [b]OM[b] (bomb’s core) – &lit
Thanks, Gaufrid, for the blog. I found this ‘rather tricky’, too, but, as usual, well worth the effort for the aha moments.
So many great clues but I must pick out the &lit YACHTSWOMAN, the construction and the use of the anagram indicator in ACETYLENE and the misdirection in CRADLE. I also liked the Yes man in Ayr, which [as intended, I’m sure, or why ‘Ayr’?] I initially tried to anagrammise. And the play on ‘bar’ and INNS in 26dn raised a smile.
I have no problem with 1dn: an equal number of letters taken from each word – and a brilliant surface!
Many thanks to Redshank for a most enjoyable puzzle.
I had a couple of “bung it in anyway” with this puzzle – 9ac for example. And 7dn defeated me totally – feel it’s a bit of stretch as an &lit.
But very enjoyable none the less. Thanks Redshank and Gaufrid for further clarity.
Still stumped by 7d- finished his Crucible but failed to notice the glaringly obvious compass points- sort of thing Monk does.
He’s on great form!)Monk and Crucible that is)
Hi copmus @3
“Still stumped by 7d …”
The humerus (plural HUMERI) is the bone in the upper arm and you would need to use this when playing an original one-armed bandit (fruit machine). Nowadays you just need to push a button which removes any exercise from the pastime.
Thanks Gaufrid, not easy at all and despite getting 7 I missed the compound anagram for 9. 1d took an age, not overly keen on the device as most other setters would mean just the B and the Y.
Thanks Redshank and Gaufrid
One from the backlog … and found it really tough – the last three of that particular week were all hard ones for me. Finally got it out with no ideas on the parsing for both compound anagrams at 7a and 9d. Needed your help to find PERINEUM and had to then track down the ‘closed’ meaning of TO.
Didn’t spot the INNS Court reference at 26d.
It’s a wonder there were no errors with all of the unparsed answers, but somehow they were all there!
Many lovely clues, but the ‘then topical’ Scottish referendum for independence at 14 would go close to be my cod.