“Are we blogging the Prize crossword this week?’
“Yes”
“Who’s setting this week?”
…….sound effect of pages being turned in the paper……
“Anax!”
“OMG”
Actually it turned out to be not quite as daunting as we had imagined although it took us a little while to sort out the theme, which at first we thought was TV soaps. We wondered at first why Anax chose ‘X’ as the stand-in for the thematic entries. Thankfully, with a little help from a friend we discovered that everything linked to 17ac. She was not only in Last of the Summer Wine but also appeared in the other soaps sitcom (thanks Dormouse) within the puzzle. Can’t believe we didn’t notice it!
Thanks Anax – Hopefully see you in Cambridge next year.
| Across | ||
| 1 | Short bloke rented holiday home | |
| CHALET | CHA |
|
| 5 | Chemist’s real product showing where old stuff goes? | |
| BOOT SALE | BOOTS (chemist) + ALE (a ‘real’ product’ as in real ale) | |
| 9 | X: X, area in the sticks | |
| CROSSROADS | CROSS (X) + A (area) inside RODS (sticks) | |
| 10 | Heading off for fancy do | |
| RAVE | ||
| 11 | X: Love of punishment? Initially love hurts one of us | |
| OPEN ALL HOURS | O (love) PENAL (of punishment) + L H (first letters in Love Hurts or ‘initially’) + OURS (one of us) | |
| 13 | Bony material in artificial surface stones | |
| MANTLE ROCK | ANTLER (bony material) inside or ‘in’ MOCK (artificial) | |
| 13 | Tucks into great sausage sandwiches | |
| EATS | Hidden in the clue grEAT Sausage or ‘sandwiched’ | |
| 16 | See 3 | |
| 17 | That Sky broadcast with a fine, fine lady in X | |
| KATHY STAFF | Anagram of THAT SKY with A + FF (fine fine) anagrind is ‘broadcast’. We guessed at the name of the actress who played Nora Batty in Lat of the Summer Wine | |
| 19 | What kept you Toto? | |
| ABOUT TIME TOO | A play on the fact that TOO is around or ‘about’ T (time) | |
| 22 | The best sound you’ll hear | |
| PLUM | Sounds like PLUMB (sound) | |
| 23/35 | X: Nothing on my land (cryptic setter) | |
| CORONATION STREET | O (nothing) after COR (my) + NATION (land) + an anagram of SETTER or ‘cryptic’ | |
| 24 | X: Name for criminal trials | |
| NO FRILLS | N (name) + an anagram of FOR (anagrind is ‘criminal’) + ILLS (trials) | |
| 25 | See 23 | |
| Down | ||
| 2 | Sad monarch with cabin as shelter | |
| HURT | R (monarch) inside or ‘sheltered by’ HUT (cabin) | |
| 3/16 | X: He lusts after me – now I’m confused | |
| LAST OF THE SUMMER WINE | An anagram of HE LUSTS AFTER ME NOW I’M (anagrind is ‘confused’) | |
| 4 | As some ships are back in port, actor’s in hell | |
| THREE DECK | T last letter or ‘back’ in porT + REED (actor as in Oliver Reed) in HECK (hell) | |
| 5 | Underwear flap with notch in front? | |
| BRAVADO | BRA (underwear) + ADO (flap) after V (notch) | |
| 6 | It flies from river to lake | |
| OUSEL | OUSE (river) + L (lake) | |
| 7 | Governor of Fiji shortly before terrorists hit | |
| SIR ROBERT FOSTER | An anagram of BEFOR |
|
| 8 | Too hard to follow 50 short words? | |
| LOVERS TIFF | OVER STIFF (too hard) after L (fifty) | |
| 12 | 2 out of 10 call love ‘peace between battles’ | |
| PAX IN BELLO | PAIN (hurt as in 2 down) outside X (ten) + BELL (call) + O (love) | |
| 14 | Bases legend on 25 individuals | |
| KEYSTONES | KEY (legend) on ST (25ac) + ONES (individuals) | |
| 18 | British paper bags creating individual sounds | |
| TIMBRES | BR (British) inside or ‘bagged by’ TIMES (paper) | |
| 20 | Obsolete coin used as part of phonetic alphabet | |
| TICAL | Hidden within the clue phoneTIC ALphabet | |
| 21 | The clasps good for bondage | |
| YOKE | YE (the) around or ‘clasping’ OK (good) | |
I started this on a train journey into London last week, but only got about half done. I’d a vague idea of the name in 7dn, but had never heard of him and had to look him up when I got home, by which time I had about half of it done.55
I dredged up the name at 17ac from my memory when I got home and that led to me getting the X connection. I’d never heard of 24ac. Technically, surely they are not all soaps, 11ac and 3dn are sitcoms.
Some fiendishly clever cluing, after several goes at it gave up on 24A – obscure to say the least, a one-season effort from 1988. However, should have got 12D, which may have led to a successful guess at 24A.
Thanks to Anax (let’s have more) and Bertandjoyce.
Thanks to setter and bloggers,
Somehow managed to complete this without knowing all of the programmes referred to and never having even heard of the actress in 17a or the diplomat in 7d. Still some excellent clues – 13a, 19a (my COD), 4d, 5d, 8d, 12d and 21d were just a few examples – and the fact that someone not very familiar with UK TV could get this out is (I think anyway) a tribute to the setter’s skill.
After such a mentally exhausting battle, I think I’ve deserved a bit of American trash TV. Dukes of Hazzard anyone?
Is there anybody there…? Sorry to be so late posting this, but I was interested to find that the puzzle was published on the sixth anniversary of Kathy Staff’s death – presumably as a tribute on Anax’s part.
This was great fun to do, with some superb constructions. Thanks Anax.
Kathy Staff was a fine, if undersung, actress – and what a pair of pins!