Financial Times 14,801 by AARDVARK

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A fine crossword from Aardvark.  Not a hard puzzle, but one that I would have finished much more quickly if there had not been so many obvious paths to the solution that turned into dead ends.  I’m sure he does it on purpose!  Thanks Aardvark.

completed grid
Across
1 SHAMPOO
Mum in the morning quietly rings cleaner (7)
SH (mum) AM (in the morning) P (quietly) O O (a ring, to of)
5 MECCANO
Centre for enthusiasts addicted to revolutionary toy (7)
MECCA (centre for enthusiasts) ON (addicted to) reversed (revolutionary)
9 LATHE
Detest being without old woodworking machine (5)
LoATHE (detest) missing O=old
10 LEMON SOLE
Charlie’s word of approval for fish dish (5,4)
LEMON’S (charlie, fool) OLE (word of approval)
11 COSMETICS
This writer on Greek island reportedly marks beauty ware (9)
ME (this writer) on (following) COS (Greek island) then TICS sounds like (reportedly) “ticks” (marks)
12 ICENI
Reserve recalled in ancient race (5)
ICE (reserve) then IN reversed (recalled)
13 AMISH
Devout sect wrongly tailed husband (5)
AMISs (wrongly) missing last letter (tailed) then H (husband)
15 TOAST RACK
Rolled oats course that’s on the breakfast table? (5,4)
OATS* anagram=rolled on TRACK (course)
18 BLOWTORCH
American paint remover’s a disappointment to worker’s latest companion (9)
BLOW (a disappointment) TO workeR (last letter of) CH (Companion of Honour) – I guess once upon a time the US used a blowtorch while the UK used a blowlamp.  I think that both are in common use in modern UK English.
19 FORTE
Loudly supporting peripheral characters in theatre (5)
FOR (supporting) with TheatrE (peripheral characters of) – Aardvark is disguising his intentions well here, the clue leads one to look for F (loudly) following (supporting) XXXX (a word meaning peripheral), definition ‘characters in theatre’
21 MALMO
Graduate with plum job, regularly missing European city (5)
MA (graduate) with pLuM jOb (regularly missing)
23 TICKED OFF
List of completed jobs might be thus torn into (6,3)
double definition – more misdirection, Aardvark makes the second definition look like a construction wordplay
25 AVALANCHE
Agonise when describing terrible naval deluge (9)
ACHE (agonise) containing (when describing, going around) NAVAL* anagram=terrible
26 VOTER
One elects to put in minister from the right (5)
TO put into REV (minister) all reversed (from the right, read backwards)
27 TEA COSY
Jasmine’s warmed by such coast swimming around end of the year (3,4)
COAST* anagram=swimming containing thE (end of) then Y (year)
28 RESTYLE
Change locks on animal enclosure (extremely loose) (7)
RE (regarding, on) STY (animal enclosure)  LoosE (extremes of) – locks = hair
Down
1 ST LUCIA
Secretly, Thai cult spread over island (2,5)
found inside (secreted in) thAI CULT Spread reversed (over) – more misdirection with ‘spread’ looking like an anagram indicator and ‘over’ looking like an inclusion
2 ALTISSIMO
Misuse of salt is, in my opinion, very high (9)
(SALT IS)* anagram=misuse of then IMO (in my opinion)
3 PIECE
Broadcasting quiet section (5)
sounds like (broadcast) “peace” (quiet)
4 OIL FILTER
Love the Italian trifle, slicing part for Austin? (3,6)
O (zero, love) IL (the, italian) TRIFLE* anagram=slicing – Austin was a vehicle manufacturer in the UK
5 MUMPS
Complaint upper-class politician put in document (5)
U (upper class) MP (politician) in MS (manuscript, document)
6 CONSIST OF
Involve Tory, relative and aristocrat, briefly (7,2)
CON (Conservative, Tory) SIS (sister, a relative) and TOFf (aristocrat, briefly)
7 AT ONE
In a state of harmony, make amends (2,3)
ATONE (to make amends)
8 OBELISK
Former pupil likes to edit column (7)
OB (old, boy) LIKES* anagram=to edit
14 HOT POTATO
Controversial issue animated King Edward perhaps (3,6)
HOT (animated) POTATO (King Edward, perhaps)
16 A THICK EAR
Academy individual’s occupied rebuilding the rack, a type of punishment (1,5,3)
A (academy) then I (one, an individual) inside (occupied) in an anagram of (rebuilding) THE RACK A
17 AIRWORTHY
Throw nuts into spacious environment for such birds? (9)
THROW* anagram=nuts inside (into…environment) AIRY (spacious) – bird is slang for an aircraft
18 BOMBAST
Crow around centre of Mumbai finding hot air (7)
BOAST (crow) containing muMBai (centre of)
20 ENFORCE
Apply gold to enrich run-down fence (7)
OR (gold) inside (to enrich) FENCE* anagram=run-down
22 LLAMA
Foreign transporter rejected precinct area (5)
MALL (precinct) reversed (rejected) then A (area)
23 TACKY
Shabby, like equestrian gear? (5)
double/cryptic definition – tack is riding equipment
24 EAVES
Tea left out, which might be on the house (5)
lEAVES (tea) missing L=left
*anagram
definitions are underlined

8 comments on “Financial Times 14,801 by AARDVARK”

  1. A very pleasurable grid from Aardvark. Thanks Pee Dee too for the blog.

    Ref 13ac, I have usually only come across ‘detailed’ as indicating removal of the last character. Does ‘tailed’ work the same way as well?

    I quite liked 23ac.

    Cheers
    TL

  3. Thanks Aardvark and PeeDee

    My first Aardvark as I needed something else after Chifonie. Very enjoyable too, I was suckered into following every misdirection until I realised my errors and rethought.

    Turbolegs @ 1: you can top and tail beans or blackcurrants etc – or at least we do in my family.

  5. I enjoyed this a lot, but would raise an eyebrow at the definition of TEA COSY, since it seems to contravene the laws of thermodynamics. “Kept warm” would have worked perfectly well, I’d have thought, and been actually feasible.

  7. I particularly liked 28a not only for the misdirection but also for the cryptic definition.

    Thanks to PeeDee and Aardvark

  8. Thanks Aardvark and PeeDee

    Not as hard as he can be, but still a lot to like with the deception and misdirection that was laid out in the clues. There was no better example than with my last in FORTE, which I could not parse and just prayed that the definition was ‘loudly’.

    Thought that both ST LUCIA and AVALANCHE were both very good.

    The backlog pile keeps shrinking … 🙂

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