An “efficient” puzzle from Magwitch this Friday. Served as a good warm-up for the rest of the day to follow. 🙂 Thanks Maggie – for the usual.
FF: 7 DD: 7
| Across | ||
| 1 | RUDENESS |
Regrets accepting retreat with singular lack of civility (8)
[ RUES (regrets) accepting DEN (retreat) ] S (singular) |
| 5 | ISLAND |
One small country such as Great Britain (6)
I (one) S (small) LAND (country) |
| 9 | IMMATURE |
Young mum irate after being sacked (8)
Anagram of MUM IRATE |
| 10 | SPOILS |
Falls backwards going round old ruins (6)
SLIPS (falls) reversed around O (old) |
| 12 | IBSEN |
“Ghosts” he wrote “I believed simply errant nonsense at first” (5)
Starting characters of “..I Believed Simply Errant Nonsense..” |
| 13 | FRAGRANCE |
Cologne newspaper carried the story of disembowelled corpse on Friday (9)
[ RAG (newspaper) RAN (carried the story) CE (CorpsE, disembowelled) ] after F (friday) |
| 14 | CURTSY |
Bob’s dog gets testy regularly (6)
CUR (dog) TST (TeStY, regularly) |
| 16 | TETANUS |
Offensive acting by student group leads to complaint (7)
TET (offensive, the Tet Offensive was a prominent campaign in the Vietnam war) A (acting) NUS (student group – National Union of Students) |
| 19 | UMBRAGE |
Shaking bum with fury causes offence (7)
Anagram of BUM followed by RAGE (fury) |
| 21 | SEDUCE |
Headless naked figures around the church offer temptation (6)
[ nUDES (naked figure, headless) reversed ] CE (church) |
| 23 | MAELSTROM |
Mom alerts doctor to confused state (9)
Anagram of MOM ALERTS |
| 25 | HASTE |
Hurry to get back in upsets a horserider (5)
Hidden, reversed in “..upsETS A Horserider” |
| 26 | UNEVEN |
Sawn off weapon’s still irregular (6)
gUN (weapon, sawn off = lacking first character) EVEN (still) |
| 27 | STALWART |
Strong growth following last reorganisation (8)
WART (growth) following anagram of LAST |
| 28 | TRYSTS |
Go by the streets either way for secret rendezvous (6)
TRY (go) STS (streets, either way = palindromic) |
| 29 | EMPLOYER |
Master scheme is adopted in less than half of emergencies (8)
PLOY (scheme) in EMER (less than half, EMERgencies) |
| Down | ||
| 1 | REIN IN |
Implicated in failure in income control (4,2)
Hidden in “..failuRE IN INcome..” |
| 2 | DAMP SQUIB |
Disappointing show discourages objections when second half is abandoned (4,5)
Charade of DAMPS (discourages) QUIBbles (objections, second half abandoned) |
| 3 | NOTON |
Refusal to nurse at the outset is unacceptable (3,2)
NO (refusal) TO N (Nurse, at the outset = first character) |
| 4 | SCRUFFY |
Dishevelled politician left cider for a couple of fellows (7)
SCRUMPY (cider) with MP (politician) replaced by FF ( a couple of fellows) |
| 6 | SEPARATED |
Without reason extremely dear parents sadly broke up (9)
Anagram of DEAr PAREnTS (without RN – ReasoN extremely) |
| 7 | ALIEN |
A right to property overseas (5)
A LIEN (right to property) |
| 8 | DISPERSE |
Detectives essentially go off in different directions (8)
DIS (detectives) PER SE (essentially) |
| 11 | PACT |
Agreement is loaded we hear (4)
Sounds liked PACKED (loaded) |
| 15 | TRANSIENT |
Temporary interns at work (9)
Anagram of INTERNS AT |
| 17 | NECESSARY |
Unavoidable tax from the past collected in forthcoming year (9)
[CESS (tax from the past) in NEAR (forthcoming)] Y (year) |
| 18 | SURMOUNT |
Overcome on French climb (8)
SUR (on, French) MOUNT (climb) |
| 20 | EARN |
Gain attention by yawning halfway through (4)
EAR (attention) N (yawNing, halfway through) |
| 21 | SYMPTOM |
Sign of measles first appears after spot spread across my back (7)
[ SPOT spread across YM (MY, back) ] M (first letter of Measles) |
| 22 | DEBTOR |
He is liable to get dressed up without a shirt (6)
ROBED (dressed) reversed (up) around T (~shirt) |
| 24 | ENEMY |
Directions reached me by word of mouth from the opposing camp (5)
ENE (directions, East North East) MY (me, word of mouth = sounds like) |
| 25 | HALAL |
Slaughter half cut gangster (5)
HALf (cut, without the last character) AL (gangster, Capone) |
Thanks, Turbolegs and Magwitch.
I liked the crossword. I thought the clue for the second part of 16A could have been better, especially given the following clue.
But then, I’m immature!
I should have said I liked the crossword and the blog. Thanks again.
An enjoyable, straightforward-ish puzzle thank you Magwitch.
I hadn’t heard of the Tet offensive until I had to blog a puzzle with it in the other week but that helped no end today.
Thanks to Turbolegs too.
Thanks Magwitch and Turbolegs
Think that you describe it perfectly in your opening comments – ‘efficient’ ! Nothing to really excite, though sometimes you need a puzzle like this sprinkled amongst the others.
Lazily had 22d as a play on ‘losing one’s shirt’, so good to see the proper parsing of it. Interesting thought process of David on 16a.
Last few in were FRAGRANCE, SEPARATED and SPOILS
Efficient, nothing to really excite about, straightfoward-ish? – well, maybe.
In a blog of a Magwitch not so long ago, someone even mentioned the word ‘old fashioned’.
Magwitch has rightly become a household name (as has her alter ego in the Guardian Quiptic, Provis).
Clueing is tight, not un-adventurous and there are no signs of iffiness anymore that, in my opinion, spoilt her early FT puzzles [unspecified letter selections, e.g.].
Surfaces are generally good, although references to today’s news, sport and music & art are virtually absent.
This is faultless, quality clueing.
I am afraid the DEBTOR was my not-last-one-in, being thrown by the ‘a’ in front of ‘shirt’.
So, having ?E?T?R, I thought I would get ?EAT?R.
Alas.
Thanks Turbolegs & Magwitch.
Thanks Turbolegs and Magwitch.
I agree that ‘efficient’ is a good descriptor. But used with respect. Good clean clues, no question about what the answers should be, and some fine surfaces – no Quibbles!
So thanks.