Sat at the cricket between innings and whilst a light drizzle prevents play the perfect time to do a crossword. Klingsor comes in to bowl …..
Some quite interesting clues for Klingsor too – a few googlies, leg breaks and the odd quicker one!
1ac was an interesting Spoonerism
13ac was very neat
15ac had a lovely surface reading
16ac Nice twist
1dn a little tricky with two non-immediate meanings required
3dn Amusing and so simple when you see it
11dn probably my pick of the bunch
Many thanks Klingsor for providing some entertainment while the cricket was delayed. It provided more amusement then some of the spectators who didn’t seem to regard Chester le street as a suitable venue for English cricket! Which quite frankly, given the ground’s idyllic setting and facilities had me speechless. Was it just that it was too far from London I wonder?
Key;
* Anagram
Rev. reverse
Underline – definition
ACROSS
1 Spooner’s worthless nonsense makes a return (8)
Bum cack (worthless nonsense) spoonerism = COMEBACK
5 Uncle Sam’s after short pot plant (6)
Us (Uncle Sam) after crock – k (short pot) = CROCUS
9 Nasty sort from East End’s a devious type (3)
Heel (Nasty sort) – H (Cockney’s can’t say it) = EEL
10 Holidaymaker, one in hotel room with yen to get frisky? (11)
(H + one + room + yen)* = HONEYMOONER
12 Weird artist associated with opera in China (10)
Ra (artist) + Norma (opera) in Pal (China as in mate) = PARANORMAL
13 Sapient, principally with advancing years? (4)
S (Sapient primarily) + age (with advancing years) = SAGE
15 What arouses pity and love in more than one way (6)
O (love) in Paths (more than one way) = PATHOS
16 Has-been’s confession creates insurmountable difficulty (7)
I’m Passé (Has been’s confession) = IMPASSE
18 Indian city of prosperity these days (7)
Luck (prosperity) + now (these days) = LUCKNOW
20 Nothing nerdy about that one (6)
(o + nerdy)* = YONDER
23 Set about providing nanny? (4)
Go at (set about) = GOAT
24 Unimportant partner stops one mile west of Yemen’s capital (10)
I m (one mile) before (west of when entered in the grid) mate(partner) + rial (Yemen’s ‘money’) = IMMATERIAL
26 Bitter article by convict about acknowledgement of debt to society (11)
A (article) + crim (convict) + on (about) + iou (acknowledgement of debt) + s (society)= ACRIMONIOUS
27 Ashes are held in this part of Melbourne (3)
Hidden MelboURNe = URN
28 Sustained note held by singer interminably (6)
Ut (note) in Tenor (singer) – r = TENUTO
29 Extremely pitiless attention seeker accepts awards (8)
St (attention) {as in Psst) around Tonies (awards) = STONIEST
Down
1 Keen to hold Jimmy up? That’s sinister (6)
Cry (keen) around Rev. Pee (jimmy) = CREEPY
2 Sickness attributed originally to bad air (7)
Mal (sickness) + A (attributed originally + (air)* = MALARIA
3 It’s late, so suppress a yawn? (10)
Behind hand (‘how to’ suppress a yawn) = BEHINDHAND
4 It is over with state representative in America (13)
Congress(It as in sex) + w (with) + Oman (state) = CONGRESS WOMAN
6 Phoned to send for grub (4)
Homonym Route (to send) = ROOT
7 Is very stupid person able to seek electoral support? (7)
Can (is able to) + v (very) + ass (stupid person) = CANVASS
8 Enchanter trapping monster in dry river (8)
Orc (monster) in sere (dry) + r (river) = SORCERER
11 Regularly suggesting clue for “eye array”?
eye array = year in (eray)* = YEAR IN YEAR OUT
14 When you can knock off does maybe pose one a second problem (4, 6)
(pose one + a + s)* = OPEN SEASON {not sure where the second n comes from) – Does being Deer
17 Outrageous patriotic harangue? (8)
Flag (patriotic) + rant(harangue) = FLAGRANT
19 Leaves with expression of amusement or vexation (7)
Cha (leaves0 + grin (expression of amusement) = CHAGRIN
21 Fancy recipe, you said should appeal to him (7)
(u + recipe)* = EPICURE
22 Spy keeping close to Freddie Mercury? (6)
Plant (spy) around e (close to Freddie) = PLANET
25 Porno finally goes belly up (4)
S (finally goes) + rev. Tum (belly) = SMUT
Yesterday I said, at another place, that some setters are better than others.
Here’s another example – a superb crossword.
Thanks, twenceslas [which almost sounds as Czech as Klingsor himself – Neil, you’re not blogging your own puzzles, I hope?].
I think you forgot the final S (for ‘society’) in 26ac.
I also think that 24ac should be seen as MATE inside (‘stops’) {I M + RIAL}.
There is nothing going ‘after’ here.
That said, I am not sure whether I like ‘west of’ in this clue.
The surface needs it, the cryptic reading doesn’t.
Sil Thanks for the missing s. I think the west off puts the I’m before mate so have altered that too. Had my Easts and Wests muddled up
I don’t recall coming across “st” as a variation of “psst” before, but STONIEST was the obvious answer and went in with a shrug. As far as the rest of the puzzle is concerned I enjoyed it even though I completed it a lot more quickly than I usually finish a Klingsor puzzle. I just seem to have been on the right wavelength this morning.
He’s good isn’t he?
Sil, I actually rather like ‘west of’ in 24a. It accurately positions I’M in relation to RIAL – not strictly necessary as the insertion indicator is already there, but it’s logically sound.
Well, I am not going to argue with someone who himself belongs to that category ‘some setters are better than others’ too.
So yes, anax, I do agree with you now about 24ac.
I mean, I really do agree.
Also about your first line (although that doesn’t come as a surprise, surely).
Agreed Neil/klingsor is top notch and this was a grand puzzle, yet to try today’s tyrus, fun for tomorrow. 🙂
Hear, hear. Lovely puzzle
Another fine oeuvre from Klingsor/Alberich, whose puzzles are IMHO invariably a real treat on so many fronts: air-tight, inventive, fresh and relatively compact/minimalistic clueing; interesting vocab; entertaining and often witty surfaces; rarely does an answer require guesswork then reverse-engineering from the clue; never a Nina-forced obscure word in sight 😉 . “Bravo, starý fazole!”.