It was no surprise to discover Phi’s latest offering on what is Phi-day after all.
For me, this was a medium-difficulty Phi crossword which I worked my way through at a fairly even pace. At one point I wondered if the SW quadrant might hold me up, but once I remembered the word for nightmare at 17 and figured out the cryptic definition at 14D, the other solutions slotted into place.
There is no Nina today, since there are solutions all the way around the perimeter, but we do find among the solutions a Russian writer at 12 and an allusion to his best known work at 11 and 16. I haven’t spotted any more of a theme than that.
Overall, my favourite clues today are 13, for its surface, and 26, for making me smile amid all the recent talk of politicians and the promises they make. I wasn’t sure about “fleet” for “sail” at 9, but Chambers seems to confirm it.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | BERLIOZ | German city forgetting name of Australian composer
BERLI<n> (=German city; “forgetting name (=N)” means letter “n” is dropped) + OZ (=Australian); the reference is to French composer Hector Berlioz (1803-69) |
| 05 | AMASSES | Collects a million geese
A + M (=million) + ASSES (=geese, i.e. foolish people) |
| 09 | SNAIL MAIL | Fleet about to secure introduction of marine post
[NAIL (=to secure) + M<arine> (“introduction of” means first letter only)] in SAIL (=FLEET, i.e. to pass or float smoothly along) |
| 10 | SPOOR | S-sorry trail
S + POOR (=sorry, as in a sorry state of affairs) |
| 11 | MASTER | One trying teaching post with little hesitation
MAST (=post, as on ship) + ER (=little hesitation) |
| 12 | BULGAKOV | Russian writer, endless swell, swilling vodka, missing day
BULG<e> (=swell; “endless” means last letter dropped) + *(VO<d>KA); “missing day (=D)” means letter “d” is dropped from anagram, indicated by “swilling”; the reference is to Russian writer Mikhail Bulgakov (1891-1940), best known for The Master and Margarita (1967, published posthumously), alluded to in 11 and 16 |
| 14 | JUDAS | Not entirely right to apprehend father as a traitor
DA (=father, in dialect) in JUS<t> (=right; “not entirely” means last letter dropped) |
| 15 | REPAIRMAN | One corrects theatre’s song expert?
REP (=theatre, i.e. repertory) + AIR MAN (=song expert, cryptically) |
| 17 | INCUBUSES | Suffer cut applied to public transport – nightmares
INCU<r> (=suffer; “cut” means last letter dropped) + BUSES (=public transport) |
| 19 | ERROR | Queen’s love accepted by Kings – that’s a mistake
ER (=Queen) + [O (=love, i.e. zero score) in R R (=Kings, i.e. 2 x R=Rex)] |
| 20 | BEHEMOTH | H<orrible> (“head of” means first letter only) in [BEE + MOTH (=insects)] |
| 22 | PILATE | Roman official affected by religion recently
PI (=affected by religion, pious) + LATE (=recently); the reference is to Pontius Pilate, the fifth prefect of the province of Judaea, best known for presiding over the trial of Jesus |
| 25 | EXPEL | Banish? Be better to show change of heart
EX-C-EL (=be better than); “to show change of heart” means middle letter is replaced, here from “c” to “p” |
| 26 | MENDACITY | What mayoral candidate offers to do? One shouldn’t believe it
Cryptically, a mayoral candidate offers to “mend a (broken) city” if elected |
| 27 | KNOSSOS | Greek city recognises no women’s alarm-call
KNO<w>S (=recognises; “no women (=W)” means letter “w” is dropped) + SOS (=alarm call); the reference is to the ancient Greek city of Knossos, on Crete, now Heraklion |
| 28 | BY HEART | Be told to fill quantity of computer memory (mostly committed to memory)
HEAR (=be told) in BYT<e> (=computer memory; “mostly” means last letter dropped) |
| Down | ||
| 01 | BESOM | Sweeper to live thus before start of match
BE (=to live) + SO (=thus) + M<atch> (“start of” means first letter only) |
| 02 | RHAPSODIC | Hard to participate in pop music and disco dancing with ecstatic feeling
[H (=hard) in RAP (=pop music)] + *(DISCO); “dancing” is anagram indicator |
| 03 | ILLNESS | Complaint is about student getting school punishment I avoided
[L (=student, learner) + L<i>NES (=school punishment; “I avoided” means letter “i” is dropped)] in IS |
| 04 | ZEAL | Blaze always involved fire
Hidden (“involved”) in “blaZE ALways” |
| 05 | ALL-PURPOSE | Versatile naval officer drawn in by a couple of pounds prize money
PO (=naval officer, i.e. petty officer) in [A + L L (=couple of pounds, i.e. 2 x L=pound) + PURSE (=prize money, for boxing bout)] |
| 06 | ASSEGAI | One gets on with it, picking up spear
I (=one) + AGES (=gets on (in years)) + SA (=it, i.e. sex appeal); “picking up” indicates vertical reversal |
| 07 | SHOCK | Singular wine – something sensational?
S (=singular, in grammar)+ HOCK (=wine) |
| 08 | SCRIVENER | Tear finally shed in reinvention of screen writer
RIV<e> (=tear, as verb; “finally shed” means last letter dropped) in *(SCREEN); “reinvention of” is anagram indicator; scrivener is another word for a scribe, hence “writer” |
| 13 | IRISH TIMES | Girl with them is misrepresented in newspaper
IRIS (=girl, i.e. girl’s name) + *(THEM IS); “misrepresented” is anagram indicator |
| 14 | JAILBREAK | Event enabling you to live out of time?
Cryptic definition, where “(doing) time” refers to serving a prison sentence |
| 16 | MARGARITA | Cocktail to damage front of golden tiara badly
MAR (=to damage) + G<olden> (“front of” means first letter only) + *(TIARA); “badly” is anagram indicator |
| 18 | BUMBLES | Gets vaguely through wretched, sad period, losing heart
BUM (=wretched, despicable) + BL<u>ES (=sad period; “losing heart” means middle letter is dropped) |
| 19 | EPITAPH | Hot water supply set up – cheers accepted – comments after departure
TA (=cheers, thank you) in [EPIPH (H (=hot) + PIPE (=water supply)]; “set up” indicates vertical reversal; the “departure” of the definition is death, cf. dearly departed |
| 21 | HIPPO | Greeting parish priest with love in holy man’s residence
HI (=greeting) + PP (=parish priest) + O (=love, i.e. zero score); the reference is to early Christian theologian Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430) |
| 23 | EGYPT | European borders of Germany – point identifying country
E (=European) + G<erman>Y P<oin>T (“borders of” means first and last letters only) |
| 24 | SNUB | Fail to notice some bread rising
BUNS (=some bread); “rising” indicates vertical reversal |
Thanks RatkojaRiku & Phi
The Master and Margarita is a treat in store for those who don’t know it (and there was a splendid radio production starring Daniel Massey some years back). The KGB seized the book and said it couldn’t be published for 100 years, but the post Khrushchev thaw changed matters. Bulgakov was protected to some extent by having been Stalin’s favourite playwright.
I could go on, but matron is coming to see what I am up to…..
I thought this was a lovely puzzle, fairly challenging without being impossible. The SE corner caused me the most problems, partly because I was convinced 24 down would be a currency backwards and I’d pencilled in ram as the memory in 28 (although byte for quantity of memory is obviously a much more precise fit).
27AC RatkojaRiku – sorry to be picky but Knossos is not now Heraklion – it is situated in a suburb of present day Heraklion.
Great crossword – we loved Mend a City at 26Ac.
Thanks to setter and blogger
I loved MEND A CITY too – great clue. Medium-hard, with everything falling into place when it turned out that there isn’t a Russian writer called SURGAKOV (swell, SURG[E], come on …) Needless to say I missed the literary allusions: Conrad may have matron coming round between solves, but he and Phi clearly know more about Russian literature than I do.
Fine end to the Indy week. Thanks to RR and to the setter, and good weekend to all.
It was a funny mixture of very easy and very hard for me, but I got there in the end. How odd that both the Guardian & Independent crosswords today have clues involving “Rap + Disco”.
Thanks to both.
In Bulgakov’s book:
The Master is engaged in a novel set around the Crucifixion hence Judas and Pilate
The Devil’s retinue in Moscow includes a black cigar-smoking cat called Behemoth
The first victim of the diabolical pranks is a Russian rather inexplicably called Berlioz
I think a rereading may be coming on…
Here’s another one who ‘loved’ MEND/A/CITY (26ac).
And yes, limeni, well spotted the RAP & DISCO combination in both this puzzle and Paul’s.
And what a coincidence! What?
I know, I shouldn’t talk about it yet but I do (ps, I do not give anything away), but have a close look at the blog of last Saturday’s Klingsor puzzle that will appear here after midnight!
Thanks to RR and the ever reliable Phi (as a setter, of course 🙂 )
One of my favourite books. I got those clues but still took a while to complete.
I think ‘mend/a/city was in the guardian or indie quite recently in a slightly different form
An enjoyable solve. At one point we thought we may be heading for a pangram. We also wondered about SURGAKOV but all it brought up on a google search was a link to this blog……. It was deleted and we tried BULGAKOV instead. This led us to a link with 11ac and 16d. The other links were completely missed so thanks to Phi for dropping by.
Thanks RR for the blog and we look forward to another Phi perhaps when we are blogging next Friday/Phiday.
I re-read The Master and Margarita just a couple of years ago, and then saw both a stage version in London and a Russian TV version but it took me ages to get 12ac and longer to spot the themed answers. By then, I’d already guessed LEGATE for 22ac which messed up 19dn, but I did remember the cat’s name for 20ac. Definitely a fun book.
I did wonder if 28ac was an oblique reference to another Bulgakov story, A Dog’s Heart.