Private Eye / Cyclops 557 – Etonian Lenin

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Cyclops is on a run of quite tough Eye crosswords lately.  This is another that took me a fair while to solve.

I had more than half the grid filled on the first pass, mainly from getting the 4 answers spanning more than one light, but the last half dozen or so took some effort:  The crossing pairs 7A and 2D, 6A and 8D, and 22A and 13D, also the definition at 16D

There are several clues here that have a final question mark.  I understand that this is to indicate ‘definition by example’ but in many cases I fail to see he need for it.

There are a few here where I haven’t fully parsed the wordplay to my satisfaction so please help.

eye_557

 

Across
7 ETONIAN Just as Cameron was, Mark’s upset by Eye leader (7)
E[ye], ANTONI* AInd: upset.
ANTONI coming from Mark Antony with his name spelt in the Roman fashion(!?) making this a particularly tricky clue.
8 MOBUTO Posturing dictator the common people forced out (6)
MOB (common people) OUT* AInd Forced.
I didn’t question it when I solved it, but when I got a link to Wiki for him I found his name spelt ending in U.  The answer requires O from the wordplay and the crossing answer (Downturn). Looks like an error.  Wiki for Mobutu Sese Seko
10 NEUROTIC Like Woody‘s elaborate precautions – “sap’s gone” (8)
(PRECAUTIONS – SAP)* AInd: elaborate.
The definition references that famous neurotic Woody Allen.
First answered clue. Really chuffed I spotted that wordplay immediately.
11 LIKING Endlessly pissed leader’s inclination (6)
LI[t] endlessly pissed KING (leader).
Took me ages to see LIT for Pissed.
15 ASHLEY MADISON Agency encouraging disloyalty, since getting shamed – “I only screwed around” (6,7)
AS (since) (SHAMED I ONLY)* AInd: screwed around.
The Ashley Madison story has it all: Infidelity, deceit, blackmail, whistleblowing, and most serious of all, insecure data management.
19 LENIN Far Left figure breaking Neil Kinnock’s heart (5)
(NEIL [kin]N[ock])* AInd: breaking
20/5 TALK TURKEY Twitter flop? Engage in meaningful discussion! (4,6)
TALK (twitter) TURKEY (flop).  and the Indian replied “Talk turkey to me.”
22 BRONCO Appearing cautious initially, entering street-wise mate – a rough ride? (6)
ON (appearing) C[autious] inside BRO (streetwise mate).
Not sure why the clue deserves a question mark – a bronco is certainly a rough ride
23 ENSHEATH Measures PM once to fit a condom? (8)
ENS (measures) HEATH (PM once).
Another clue where I fail to understand the need for a “?”
25 SIENNA Brown jaundiced: “Widdecombe’s back, full of energy!” (6)
ANN’S < around E[nergy] but where does the I come from?  So wordplay help needed here
Also, the definition might be “Brown jaundiced”, Sienna is a yellow-brown
26 EVOLVED Miliband, at heart very taken with transforming love is … transformed (7)
V[ery] LOVE* AInd: transforming all inside ED (Miliband)
Down
1 STREAK Dash across sports field with end of spear in rump? (6)
[spea]R in SEAK (rump).  If you’re expecting a link to a picture of the most famous streaker – who am I to disappoint:  Erica Roe, Twickenham 1982,
but before you click the link be warned, she is doing something that would never be allowed in a stadium these days: Smoking!
2 ENTRENCH Not much fun, Europeans ditching leader? Get stuck in! (8)
ENT (not much fun, Abbreviation from Entertainment) [f]RENCH (Europeans ditching leader)
Last answer.  I cannot think why this evaded me for so long.
3/13A LAST STRAW No successor for ex-Labour minister (one burden too many)? (4,5)
LAST (no successor) STRAW (ex-Labour minister)
4 FOLLOWED ON Maverick lone wolf overwhelming party – immediately succeeded (8,2)
(LONE WOLF)* AInd: Maverick, around DO (party)
6 DOWNTURN Admit being involved in “awful turd” Corbyn’s ultimate decline (8)
OWN (admit) inside TURD* AInd awful , then [corby]N
9 SCAREMONGER “Germany almost, almost scored – horrendous!” – usual alarmist Daily Mail? (11)
(GERMAN[y] SCORE[d])* AInd: Horrendous
13 SPELLBOUND Period certain – attention held completely (10)
SPELL (period) BOUND (certain)
15 AIRBRUSH Look right into Republican candidate and artfully remove him from the picture? (8)
AIR (look, appearance) R[ight] inside BUSH (Jeb in this case)
16 SET MEALS Old tax on wayward males that are put away regularly (3,5)
SET (old tax, what is it S… E… Tax?) MALES* AInd: wayward.
I do not know and cannot find what kind of “old tax” was called S.E.T.
18 YANKEE New Englander: jerk on drugs (6)
YANK (jerk) EE (drugs)
21/17 LITTER TRAY Sexual partner suppressing rude titter about right place for ‘pussy business’? (6,4)
LAY (sexual partner) around (suppressing) TITTER* AInd: rude, around (about) R[ight]
That wordplay took a bit of unravelling
24/14/12 SAVE YOUR SKIN US navy is embroiled with Korea – one’s going to look after number one (4,4,4)
(US NAVY IS KORE[a])* AInd: embroiled

New invention: Anti-gloating cream.
All you have to do is rub it in.

 

10 comments on “Private Eye / Cyclops 557 – Etonian Lenin”

  1. 16d. Old tax. I remember it well. Around 1972, the Labour government decided to tax setvice industries. So, our restaurant had to pay Selective Employment Tax. Very selective, rather unfair…..

  5. 5ac, Mobuto instead of Mobutu was a bad mistake on my part. I’ve asked the mag. to print an apology.

    Tony is right about 25ac (E in ANN IS rev.)- and ‘jaundiced’ is part of the def.

  6. Tony, you beat me to both the above; I concur.

    Also, instead of “SET meals”, for ages I had “HOT [Hotel Owners’ Tax] meals”, which made solving 15 trickier than it should have been.

  7. Thank you Tony for putting me out of my Etonian misery.
    I knew it couldn’t be correct but once I “saw” that E[ye], ANTONI* possibility I could see anything else.

    On the other hand I really should have seen the IS for ‘S in 25A.

    And of course hello to Cyclops – I’m sure many people solved 5A ending in U without questioning it. My aural memory has him pronounced like that.

  8. Thank you for the explanations Beermagnet and Tony. If it’s any consolation I also convinced myself it was Marc Antoni for 7 acc. I was blissfully unaware of the misspelt Mobutu as it was the last one in and was thankful for completing after the previous week’s failure.

  9. I can help you with 1A – mark (note) upset = eton, then eye leader = ian (Hyslop). Great little blog by the way.

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