Monday Prize Crossword / Oct 19, 2015
Since giving up his Everyman job (in the Observer) Falcon has become a Monday regular in the FT, although appearing less frequently than Dante or Crux, say.
Yes, this puzzle was easy but immaculately clued.
If you’re familiar with Falcon and you like what he does, you cannot be disappointed with this crossword.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | CRESSIDA |
Trojan prince’s daughter, sad, cries out (8)
(SAD + CRIES)* [* = out] I am not sure whether Cressida’s father, Calchas, was a prince [more a priestly person] but what I do know is that Cressida was a fine prog-rock band in the early 70s. They made only two albums (‘Cressida’ & ‘Munich’) and a couple of weeks ago I was very happy to get hold of these two on cd. |
| 6 | DREARY |
Dull day last year (6)
D (day) + REAR (last) + Y (year) How a simple clue can be a great one. |
| 9 | RANCID |
Bad storm passing across North Carolina (6)
RAID (storm) around NC (North Carolina) |
| 10 | LAME DUCK |
Unsuccessful person? Take notice about me splitting fortune! (4,4)
{AD (notice) around ME} inside LUCK (fortune) |
| 11 | THEN |
Article, new at that time (4)
THE (article) + N (new) |
| 12 | COVER POINT |
Man in the field must have peak on cap (5,5)
COVER (cap) + POINT (peak) The definition is about a fielder in cricket. Not my cup of tea, so I had to check it. |
| 14 | BLIGHTER |
Beggar beginning to barge barge (8)
B[arge] + LIGHTER (barge) |
| 16 | DRIP |
Leak runs into sink (4)
R (runs) inside DIP (sink) |
| 18 | ANTE |
Stake partly guaranteed (4)
Hidden solution, indicated by ‘partly’: [guar]ANTE[ed] |
| 19 | HEAVY-SET |
Villain on stage having a large build (5-3)
HEAVY (villain) + SET (stage) |
| 21 | LOBSTER POT |
Variety of bottles placed round mouth of river Po to form a trap (7,3)
(BOTTLES)* around {R[iver] + PO} First thing I thought of here was ‘melting pot’ but I was wrong. Strictly speaking ‘river’ doesn’t need ‘mouth of’, however the surface does. |
| 22 | NAFF |
Vulgar loud supporter returned (4)
Reversal, indicated by ‘returned’, of: F (loud) + FAN (supporter) |
| 24 | IN CAMERA |
Developing Cinerama kept secret (2,6)
(CINERAMA)* [* = developing] |
| 26 | COUNTY |
Consider close to Surrey and Berkshire, say (6)
COUNT (consider) + [surre]Y |
| 27 | CRINGE |
Sound of mobile going off in church may make one squirm (6)
RING (sound of mobile) inside CE (church) |
| 28 | ELEPHANT |
One never forgets the penal settlement? (8)
(THE PENAL)* [* = settlement] Elephants never forget. |
| Down | ||
| 2 | REACH |
Come to an open stretch of water (5)
Double definition |
| 3 | SECOND-GUESS |
Anticipate being back before visitors, losing little time (6-5)
SECOND (back) + GUES[t]S (the deleted letter being ‘little time’) |
| 4 | INDICATE |
Point out charge involving a drug (8)
{INDICT (charge) around A} + E (drug) |
| 5 | ALL OVER THE PLACE |
Everywhere in disarray (3,4,3,5)
Double definition |
| 6 | DEMURE |
Reserved object, English (6)
DEMUR (object) + E (English) |
| 7 | END |
Destroy close (3)
Double definition |
| 8 | RECONDITE |
New doctrine, eastern, abstruse (9)
(DOCTRINE)* + E (eastern) [* =new] |
| 13 | ODDLY ENOUGH |
By implication, huge? No, curious though it may seem (5,6)
Reverse anagram, indicated by ‘by implication’, of HUGE NO |
| 15 | LANDOWNER |
Left article – depressing experience for laird, perhaps (9)
L (left) + AN (article) + DOWNER (depressing experience) |
| 17 | PASTICHE |
Finished one revolutionary work of art that mixes styles (8)
PAST (finished) + I (one) + CHE (revolutionary) |
| 20 | SERENE |
Tranquil piece of music a duke brought out (6)
SERENADE (piece of music) minus A D (duke) |
| 23 | FIT IN |
Female and I can go together (3,2)
F (female) + I + TIN (can) |
| 25 | ANN |
Girl in Arabian Nights (3)
Hidden solution, indicated by ‘in’: [arabi]AN N[ights] |
Don’t understand 26a! I did put county in, but had no idea why. Count I understand but why y? I think I thought that Surrey and Berkshire were both counties hence the ? Mark. Thanks.
Thanks Falcon and Sil
One of Falcon’s easiest puzzles that I can remember doing with answers flowing continuously until the finish with PASTICHE and SERENE the last two in. No standouts or issues – just a cleanly clued crossword at the straightforward end of the FT scale.
Karen, the Y comes from the close (last letter) of SurreY and the definition by example is Berkshire.
Thanks Sil and Falcon.
Good clean puzzle this with not too much to say.
I did think DREARY was excellent.
In 21, I read ‘mouth of river’ as simply meaning R – the letter at the ‘mouth’ of the word.
Thanks Bruce@aus see it now. All helps towards my learning how to do cryptics.