As usual, a well-constructed puzzle from Dac this week.
We found it somewhat easier than average, which was something of a relief as we’re only just back from a week in the States.
| Across | ||
| 1 | Eliminates strikes, ousting leader (5) | |
| WIPES | ||
| 4 | Vessel capsizes: guerrilla (Communist) killed (9) | |
| BUTCHERED | TUB (vessel) reversed or ‘capsized’ + CHE (Guevara – guerrilla) + RED (Communist) | |
| 9 | Weedy boyfriend loses head? Wrong, surprisingly (9) | |
| OVERGROWN | ||
| 10 | No American recalled member of ancient civilisation (5) | |
| MAYAN | NAY (no) AM (American) all reversed or ‘recalled’ | |
| 11 | Absent-minded son races through coral reef (6) | |
| SCATTY | S (son) + TT (races) in or ‘through’ CAY (coral reef) | |
| 12 | Female has trouble fitting into this French fabric (8) | |
| CHENILLE | HEN (female) ILL (trouble) ‘fitting’ in CE (French for ‘this’) | |
| 14 | Free, as roof slates are (2,3,5) | |
| ON THE HOUSE | Roof slates would be found ‘ON THE HOUSE’ | |
| 16 | Innocent creature hit soundly (4) | |
| LAMB | Sounds like LAM (hit) | |
| 19 | German fellow backed Britain? Right (4) | |
| KURT | UK (Britain) reversed or ‘backed’ RT (right) | |
| 20 | One gallery housing other things new from Rome or Venice? (10) | |
| ITALIANATE | I (one) TATE (gallery) round or ‘housing’ ALIA (other things) N (new) | |
| 22 | Faction detains scoundrel engaged in revolutionary activity (8) | |
| WHEELING | WING (faction) round or ‘detaining’ HEEL (scoundrel) | |
| 23 | Count Conservative results – no end of surprise towards the end! (6) | |
| CENSUS | C (Conservative) ENSU |
|
| 26 | Consumed seconds of lean bacon before mid-morning (5) | |
| EATEN | Second letters of lEan bAcon + TEN (mid-morning) | |
| 27 | Pledge to preserve ancient period of prosperity (6,3) | |
| GOLDEN AGE | GAGE (pledge – a new one for us) round or ‘preserving’ OLDEN (ancient) | |
| 28 | Rejects blue variety acts for starters (5,4) | |
| TURNS DOWN | DOWN (blue) with TURNS (variety acts) in front or ‘for starters’ | |
| 29 | Who’s adversary, extremely drunk, consumes beer? (5) | |
| DALEK | DK (first and last letters, or ‘extremes’ of ‘drunk’) round or ‘consuming’ ALE (beer) | |
| Down | ||
| 1 | First of dinners two cooks prepared for music festival (9) | |
| WOODSTOCK | An anagram of D (first letter of ‘dinners’) and TWO COOKS – anagrind is ‘prepared’ | |
| 2 | Religious painting specifically saved by school’s fund-raisers (5) | |
| PIETA | IE (that is, or ‘specifically’) in or ‘saved by’ PTA (Parent-Teacher Association – school’s fund-raisers) | |
| 3 | These GIs arranged to visit places of interest (8) | |
| SIGHTSEE | An anagram of THESE GIS – anagrind is ‘arranged’ | |
| 4 | Thus take name of offending footballer – reserve? (4) | |
| BOOK | Double definition | |
| 5 | Music maker compiled new hit list (3,7) | |
| TIN WHISTLE | An anagram of NEW HIT LIST – anagrind is ‘complied’ | |
| 6 | Kind fellow in the shade (6) | |
| HUMANE | MAN (fellow) in HUE (shade) | |
| 7 | Type of apple served at Buckingham Palace garden party? (5,4) | |
| ROYAL GALA | A Buckingham Palace garden party might be described as a ROYAL GALA | |
| 8 | Old poet departs, climbing mountain (5) | |
| DANTE | D (departs) + ETNA (mountain) reversed or ‘climbing’ | |
| 13 | Monday 10 October – at last, I’ll cross that country (10) | |
| MONTENEGRO | MON (Monday) TEN (10) + R (last letter of ‘October’) in or being ‘crossed’ by EGO (I) | |
| 15 | Somewhat modest start here, possibly (5-4) | |
| THREE-STAR | An anagram of START HERE – anagrind is ‘possibly’ | |
| 17 | Complains meal has neck end and rump? (9) | |
| BEEFSTEAK | BEEFS (complains) TEA (meal) + K (last letter or ‘end’ of ‘neck’) | |
| 18 | Source of oil deep-sea divers found beneath river (8) | |
| RAPESEED | An anagram of DEEP–SEA (anagrind is ‘divers’) after or ‘under’ in a down clue R (river) | |
| 21 | Parking strips for transport (6) | |
| PLANES | P (parking) LANES (strips) | |
| 22 | Forcibly take wife on holiday (5) | |
| WREST | W (wife) REST (holiday) | |
| 24 | Pious type takes entire seat in church (5) | |
| STALL | ST (saint – pious type) ALL (entire) | |
| 25 | Family locked up in penal colony (4) | |
| CLAN | Hidden and reversed (‘backed up’) in peNAL Colony | |
Some great clues here; difficult to nominate a CoD, but I think it has to be RAPESEED for its surface and the use of ‘divers’ as the anagrind. Chambers has ‘divers (archaic and literary), adj various, assorted……’. Think ‘divers diseases’ in the King James Bible.
Thanks, Dac and B&J
Thanks, both.
You probably found it easier because there are two of you and only one of me. I won’t say it was hard; Dac doesn’t do hard, only elegant. But the last few took me a while.
Bless me Father, for I have sinned. I said a bad word when I realised that ‘divers’ was the anagrind. DANTE was my favourite, but OVERGROWN wasn’t bad either.
Well done, Dac, as always.
Nice puzzle. Favourite clue 20a. Thanks to both.
Gage only really survives now in mortgage (literally dead pledge). This was full of excellent clues – I thought 29 was also worthy of mention, with the cunning use of who and a surface that had nothing to with the answer.
I’ve come across “gage” in Shakespeare: a glove that a man would throw on the ground to challenge another man to a duel. In effect, pledging his life.