It seems that Quixote is now doing the Wednesday crossword on the days (the last Wednesdays of the month) that Dac isn’t doing it, and there is no noticeable diminution of quality. Everything here is very clear and efficient and as with Dac I expect few to have much to say.
Across
1 Take off motorway cones, ones not needed at end of motorway (5)
MIMIC
(M1 c{ones}) after M1
4 One Scot returned only in undergarment (8)
CAMISOLE
(1 Mac)rev. sole
8 Drinks served with English herb (7)
GINSENG
gins Eng.
9 Tell member of the family, but not one very little (6)
RELATE
relat{1 v{ery}}e
11 Agitated preacher, blaster to fall back on ultimate effective resource (6,3,6)
SCRAPE THE BARREL
(preacher blaster)*
12 Rewritten article is sensible (9)
REALISTIC
(article is)*
14 Little dog outside home being regarded as attractive (3-2)
PIN-UP
p(in)up — being is a noun: a being that is regarded as attractive
15 Madam? She may be one in library (5)
TITLE
17 Images of Icarus, male cut short when flying (9)
SIMULACRA
(Icarus mal{e})*
19 Restoration of status quo has let tribesmen wander freely (2-13)
RE-ESTABLISHMENT
(has let tribesmen)*
22 Tricky situation in fight that’s ending in tie (6)
SCRAPE
scrap {ti}e
23 One small creature in waters was disappearing alongside another (7)
TERMITE
{wa}ter{s} mite
24 Once again regarded as vindicated (8)
REDEEMED
re-deemed
25 Is backing provided by Jack’s instrument unusual for pop group? (5)
SITAR
(Is)rev. tar
Down
1 Wise men with eminence holding right position in legal system (12)
MAGISTRATURE
Magi st(r)ature
2 Island from which whale is seen after a short time (7)
MINORCA
min. orca
3 Perhaps a team without expensive players somewhere in London (9)
CHEAPSIDE
If a team doesn’t have expensive players it is a cheap side
4 Thinks cottage is in need of renovation (9)
COGITATES
(cottage is)*
5 In summer geese join forces (5)
MERGE
Hidden in sumMER GEese
6 A lass looking awkward in dance (5)
SALSA
(A lass)*
7 Roman church site’s no longer managed (7)
LATERAN
late ran — the Chambers entry for Lateran is ‘relating to the church of St. John Lateran at Rome; the Pope’s cathedral church, on the site of the splendid palace or basilica of Plautius Lateranus (executed 66AD)’ — try this
10 Ground here with pleasant plant (9-3)
ELEPHANTS-EAR
(here pleasant)*
13 Bound to be put away (9)
COMMITTED
I think this is 2 defs, but I can’t find all that much support for the second one: OK one of the senses of commit is ‘to pledge’, and that takes care of the ‘Bound’, but ‘put away’? — oh yes, it’s commit as in send to prison, something that Chambers doesn’t for some reason give but is in the COD
14 Fish and vegetable washed down by lager (9)
PILCHARDS
Pil(chard)s — with ‘washed down’ as the containment indicator apparently, which I can’t quite understand
16 Last bit of breakfast cereal — nasty sticky stuff (7)
TREACLE
{breakfas}t (cereal)*
18 I am upset in part of body — I may have the answer? (7)
CHEMIST
(I’m)rev. in chest — some sort of &lit.-type
20 Guy drinks from what we hear (5)
TEASE
“teas”
21 Shaft of light across river reveals fish (5)
BREAM
b(r)eam
*anagram
My only quibble with this one was the fact that SCRAPE appears twice in the Across clues.
Thanks, John. Agree with you – a pleasing crossword in the usual Quixote style which was welcome after a few harder ones recently.
LATERAN a bit of an unusual word, but that’s Quixote’s style to put one or two in. I just took TITLE at 15ac to refer to the fact that ‘Madam’, like ‘Miss’ or ‘Mister’ is a TITLE.
I liked 3dn for its football reference. Unusual with this setter, but thank you to him too.
For 15a ‘SHE’is a book by Rider Haggard which would be in the library.
Thanks Andrew. Blog amended.
So 15a is a triple definition? Nice one! Thanks to S & B.
Was going to agree with @2Kathryn’s Dad about TITLE, but perhaps @3Andrew is right; does make it rather neater.
1D MAGISTRATURE – does anybody say that these days rather than magistracy?
25D SITAR – unusual for pop group, true, but played by the late Brian Jones of the Rolling Stone, most noticeably on Paint It, Black.
Thanks to Quixote and John.
Thanks for all feedback, I have dropped to once a month because The Independent is a poor payer compared with other papers. The fee has increased very little since 1987 and the puzzle gets dished out to the I newspaper without extra payment. By the way, do but the new edition of my Chambers Crossword Manual for further thoughts about the newspapers!
I’m not sure that I want you to air payment level disputes on this blog, Quixote. You’ve no doubt got the editor’s e-mail address. But I hope that you do feel able to continue to set puzzles here for the remuneration offered, because I generally enjoy them. If not, then there are plenty of other up and coming setters who will no doubt fill the slots for us. And yes, I know we can get them for nothing, which I for one appreciate. But that’s business.
Thank you again for setting today’s puzzle for us.
KD, I am simply giving an explanation of why I now only appear in the last-Wednesday slot, since it seems to get commented on each time I now appear. When someone who has set puzzles for a paper once per week for over 20 years (in IoSand the Indy) gradually drops to one a month, a few of you might be interested to know the reason. I have aired my opinions more freely in my book, and mentioned there that all the crossword editors, such as the stalwart Mike Hutchinson, do what they can (which, in the nature of things, isn’t much alas!). The labourer is worthy of his hire (sorry, being biblical again) and I am as keen that new up-and-coming labourers you speak of should also get treated properly. The poor payment by the Indy has already been responsible for the loss of top-class setters such as Virgilius and Merlin. Quixote has been going for 27 years now, and I want Quixote to continue, of course. I am glad , sir, that I still give you a modicum of enjoyment and your kind appreciation provides at least some motivation for me to continue.
I don’t comment often, but I had noticed how rare Quixote’s crosswords had become, so am happy to see an explanation; I’ve been rather disappointed in general with the Indy crosswords lately (apart of course from Dac and Phi) which is one reason why I’m changing my subscription
Where better to air the disputes of a setter than on this blog, KD? If nothing else it goes to show that we poor sods aren’t in it for the bags of money that don’t get thrown our way! Think of that next time you’re all sharpening your pitchforks ready to slay the next tricky puzzle (which is, FYI, in the Independent today!). For people like Quixote who are fortunate enough to have other outlets for publication, their relocation to other papers should raise the issues that will come to face the cruciverbati in the future – how far can you push the setters? to what extent does financial limitation result in the diminishment of puzzles? etc. etc.
I have no answers (and no gripes – I consider the chance to publish in the Indy as one of my luckiest breaks thus far) but I feel as though such questions should at least be raised and where better than here where the great and the good of crossword-land find themselves. In that sense, I feel as though Quixote wasn’t airing his personal grievances, but was giving explanation for his reduction which raises a broader question to the crossword community.
Just my two cents.
Well said, Quixote and Rorschach.
Personally, I find your views interesting and relevant. And surely our forum is a fitting place to make them?
Man cannot live by bread alone – but it sure helps!
For what it’s worth (very little I’m afraid) there’s an abundance of genuine good vibes flowing from this solver and aimed in your direction…..!
Criticism of Quixote surprising and mean-spirited.
A very good all round crossword, more please from this compiler, I also liked the earlier comments , let’s have more of the interactive bantering.