Independent 8821 / Tyrus

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Tyrus is an occasional setter of weekday Independent puzzles.  I think he is seen more regularly on Saturdays.

 

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I took a while to solve this and didn’t always see the wordplay when I made the entries.  However, a blog concentrates the mind and I think I have parsed it all properly now.

There was a bit of a political theme today with individual politicians and individual policies getting a mention in entries and clues.    I can remember the Major years and GOVE and May are current politicians, but I wonder how many solvers remember Beatrice WEBB [part of the word play at 1 down]

The phrase CURTAIN LECTURES at 28 across was new to me, but the wordplay was clear enough.

I doubt if COBWEBBY at 1 down makes a frequent appearance in crosswords, but if you’re staring C_B_E_B_ in the face then I guess you haven’t much choice.   The late Beatrice WEBB didn’t make the word play any easier!

My favourite clues today were those for NOMINATIONS (3 down) and MINISTER (16 down) for their misdirection.

Across
No. Clue Wordplay Entry

1

 

Cockney’s suitably pure? (5,2,1,7)

 

WHISTLE AND FLUTE is Cockney rhyming slang for a suit, sometimes abbreviated simply to WHISTLE.  CLEAN AS A WHISTLE presumably then can  refer to a very clean suit

 

CLEAN AS A WHISTLE (pure  I don’t think I have explained this particularly well, but I think I’ve given a flavour of the correct parsing.)

 

10

 

Politician clocked leaving home (Conservative not Nationalist) (7,4)

 

Anagram of (clocked) LEAVING HOME excluding (not) N (nationalist) but replacing it (for) with C (Conservative)

MI C HAEL GOVE*

MICHAEL GOVE (Conservative politician, currently Chief Whip, but previously Secretary of State for Education)

 

11

 

She‘s well-endowed through not all there (5)

 

ELLEN (hidden word in [not all there] WELL-ENDOWED)

 

ELLEN (girl’s name; she)

 

12

 

Statement complete nonsense at the start, one’s gathered (9)

 

UTTER (complete) + (ACE [one] containing [gathered] N [first letter of {at the start} NONSENSE}])

UTTER A (N) CE

UTTERANCE (statement)

 

14

 

Support for writers when included in unconvincing government policy (4,2,6)

BACK (support) + TO (for) + (AS [when)] contained in [included in] BICS [ballpoint pens; writers])

BACK TO B (AS) ICS

BACK TO BASICS (Conservative Party [and consequently government] when John Major was Prime Minister.  Intended as a return to traditional values, it lost a lot of credibility when Conservative Ministers and MPs were shown to have been embroiled in events that lacked displays of such values)

 

18

 

Major initiative (again) in school 10 spelt out with force (5,7)

 

(Anagram of [out] IN SCHOOL and TEN [10 spelt]) + E (electromotive force)

CONES HOTLIN* E

CONES HOTLINE (The CONES HOTLINE was another less than successful initiative implemented by Prime Minister John Major in June 1992 to allow members of the public to enquire about roadworks and report areas where traffic cones had been deployed on a road for no apparent reason. The hotline was widely seen as being a waste of government resources, costing several thousand pounds per year to run. It was quietly disbanded in September 1995, having fielded a total of fewer than twenty thousand calls.  Still today we have miles of traffic cones lining our roads for no apparent reason.

23

 

Sister’s novel form of gas energy (5,4)

 

Anagram of (form of) GAS ENERGY

AGNES GREY*

AGNES GREY (debut novel of Anne Brontë, one of the Brontë sisters)

 

24

 

Are sons going outside? (5)

 

S (sons) contained in (outside) EXIT (departure; going)

EXI (S) T

EXIST (are)

 

25

 

Merc this lot ordered might be one (7,4)

 

Anagram of (ordered) MERC THIS LOT

STRETCH LIMO*

STRETCH  LIMO ( luxurious, custom-made limousine that has been lengthened to provide extra seating, etc which could well be constructed on a Mercedes (Merc) chassis)

 

27

 

Bond season – where’s M (3)

 

TIME (season) excluding (where is; where’s) M

 

TIE (bond)

 

28

 

Cleaner suit worn after terse words in private (7,8)

 

CURT (terse) + an anagram of (worn) CLEANER SUIT

CURT AIN LECTURES*

CURTAIN LECTURES  (reproofs given in private)

 
Down
No. Clue Wordplay Entry

1

 

Seemingly reluctant to admit old female socialist needing a clean-up (8)

 

COY (affectedly shy; seemingly reluctant) containing (to admit) (B WEBB [reference Beatrice WEBB, Baroness Passfield [1858 – 1942], socialist] )

CO (B WEBB) Y

COBWEBBY (covered in COBWEBs and needing a clean-up)

 

2

 

It’s handy in the kitchen but encourages vermin (3,5)

 

EGGS (encourage) + LICE (vermin)

 

EGG SLICE (a gadget useful [handy] in the kitchen)

 

3

 

Maybe François is describing state proposals (11)

 

NOM (French for name; François is a French name)+ (IS containing [describing] NATION [state])

NOM I (NATION) S

NOMINATIONS (proposals)

 

4

 

‘Die lowlife b——!’ – copper climbing in (7)

 

(CU [chemical symbol for copper] reversed [climbing]) contained in (in) (SCUM [lowlife] + B)

S (UC)<  CUM B

SUCCUMB (die)

 

5

 

Having succeeded, drinking a lot of green spirits (7)

 

(WITH [having] + S {succeeded]) containing (drinking) (RAW [green] excluding the last letter [a lot of] W)

W (RA) ITH S

WRAITHS (spectres; spirits)

 

6

 

Injury from falling over (3)

 

ILL (hidden word in [from] FALLING reversed [over])

ILL<

ILL (injury)

 

7

 

Difficult time to get sexy (6)

 

T (time) + HORNY (sexually aroused)

 

THORNY (difficult)

 

8

 

Equalised just before finish – gutted! (6)

 

EVEN (just) + (END [finish] excluding the middle letter [gutted] N)

 

EVENED (equalised)

 

13

 

Eat both – as a consequence cause trouble (4,3,4)

 

THE BOAT is an anagram (ROCK) of EAT BOTH.  Hence in cryptic crossword terms  EAT BOTH is a consequence of ROCK THE BOAT

 

ROCK THE BOAT (cause trouble)

 

15

 

Muscles are rubbish (3)

 

A (are) + BS (bullshit; rubbish)

 

ABS (muscles)

 

16

 

Could be May 1 in church (8)

 

I (one) contained in (in) MINSTER (church)

MIN (I) STER

MINISTER (at the time of writing this blog, Theresa MAY is a MINISTER ([Secretary of State for the Home Department] in the UK Government)

 

17

 

Order cows head (8)

 

NEAT (cows) + NESS (headland)

 

NEATNESS (order)

 

19

 

Get to hide the dirt (7)

 

EARN (acquire; get) containing (to hide) THE

EAR (THE) N

EARTHEN (made of earth or clay; dirt)

 

20

 

Why are Labour adopting Independent?  It’s mad (7)

 

Anagram of (labour) WHY ARE containing (adopting) I (independent)

HAYW (I) RE*

HAYWIRE (mad)

 

21

 

Wine and where it can be bought on account (6)

 

BARS (places where wine can be bought) + AC (account)

 

BARSAC (a sweet white wine)

 

22

 

He may prevent partner getting off with men … and touching up Poles! (6)

 

SN (South and North poles) + OR (other ranks) + (RE [concerning; touching] reversed [up])

SN OR ER<

SNORER (one who may keep his / her partner from sleeping [getting off])

 

26 / 9

 

Supporter heard talk about possible cup entrant (3,3)

 

TEA (sounds like [heard] TEE [supporter for a golf ball]) + (GAB [talk] reversed [about])

TEA BAG<

TEA BAG (an item that goes in a cup when making tea)

 

 

 

9 comments on “Independent 8821 / Tyrus”

  1. Beatrice Webb would not be remembered by many solvers but was a significant figure in labour/left history in Britain with a role in setting up the LSE. Was discredited however in the 1930s for writing a glowing account of Stalin’s Soviet Union just before the purges.

  3. I found this towards the easier end of Tyrus’s spectrum, but very enjoyable nonetheless. Like Duncan I needed most of the checkers before I got CURTAIN LECTURES, and after that MINISTER and SNORER were my last two in. I didn’t know Beatrice Webb and got COBWEBBY from definition and checkers, and I didn’t bother to parse CONES HOTLINE. My solve was helped immensely by getting 1ac as soon as I saw it.

  4. Thanks to Tyrus and blogger,

    I agree with Andy B@3, not quite as hard as some of Tyrus’ offerings but still a challenge. Missed out on 18 which I’d never heard of, though loved the story behind it. I suspect other hotlines set up in response to perceived public clamour (ie a few talkback hosts making a lot of noise) have probably met the same fate. Favourites were 4d and 26/9. I think I have seen COBWEBBY before, possibly at St. Elsewhere’s. Thanks to Duncan for explaining the parsing so clearly.

  5. Great blog and super puzzle. A typical Tyrus puzzle with beautiful clueing and great surfaces. Love the political ones but my favourite is 22.

  6. We thought this was an excellent puzle – some of the surfaces were a delight- 27ac, 25ac, 7d,15d and 17d to name just a few.

    There were a few we’d not come across before but we managed to sort them out from the parsing when we had a few checking letters.

    Thanks Tyrus and Duncan.

  8. Cor that took some breaking into, spent a while looking and getting none, a bit of hard brainwork and then thinking old politics got me there, the wordplay wasn’t that hard (bwebb excepted) but guessing the def and then breaking it down was beyond what I’d expect.

    Thanks Jim & Duncan – great stuff.

  9. Late comment from me – I only started this late last night. My experience echoed flashlings@8. Certainly not too easy! Many thanks to S & B.

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