Not what I would call an outstanding puzzle though there are some excellent surface readings in the clues
I did the wrong thing by solving this crossword a week ago soon after the mag arrived, and now I come to blog it, I find I have to struggle to remember much about how I solved it. I do remember solving it in adverse conditions, crushed in my seat on a commuter train, using the solving experience to transport me away from the cattle-truck-like conditions. Must have worked.
| Across | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TWITCHY | Uptight plonker, Conservative and extremely horny (7) TWIT (plonker) C[onservative] H[orn]Y. First clue read and answered. |
| 5 | NIT-PICK | Clegg packed with sex and power? Challenge that in some detail! (3-4) IT (sex) P[ower] inside NICK (Cleggy) |
| 9 | IDEA | With Nigel finally going, perfect conceit! (4) IDEA[l] L from final letter of Nigel taken from IDEAL (perfect) |
| 10 | IN DISGUISE | Paper covering for poor US GIs taking care not to be identified (2,8) (US GIS)* AInd: poor, in INDIE |
| 12 | PRESIDENCY | 11’s ultimate regular club engagement? How awful if he were to get it! (10) P RESIDENCY P from final letter on Trump (ref answer to 11D), RESIDENCY (regular club engagement) |
| 13 | HEM | Border control centre withdrawn from “those people” (3) [t]HEM T from centre on conTrol removed from THEM |
| 14/28 | JEKYLL AND HYDE | Aspects of a literary body minded to be contrary (6,3,4) I suppose this is a Double Def. but surely both defs arise from the same source |
| 15 | EFFORT | Swear alternative Tory leader is Labour (6) EFF (swear) OR (alternative) T[ory] |
| 18 | CONDOM | Johnny‘s party act: getting married (6) CON (party) DO (act) M[arried] |
| 20 | TICKET | Token party nominees (6) Double Def. |
| 23/4 | BAD HAIR DAY | When things just get worse and worse – 24/7 in 11’s case? (3,4,3) A Double Def. If you hadn’t got 11d by the time you were solving this one, then surely you would |
| 25 | NEUTRALITY | Latrine duty’s crap – take day off for detachment (10) (LATRINE DUTY – D[ay])* AInd: crap. |
| 26 | COTTAGE PIE | Have sex at your convenience with Patty (steamy dish)? (7,3) COTTAGE (sex at convenience) PIE (patty) |
| 27 | NINE | Extreme left-winger’s back, ousting Labour’s top figure (4) [l]ENIN< |
| 29 | UTRECHT | City’s unscrupulous head walked on air (7) Last one in. Naturally, it’s a homophone: U-TRECHT “You trekked” |
| Down | ||
| 2 | WADERS | Protection for members in deep water (6) Single Def as a CD? |
| 3 | TRANSCEND | Rise above rants about Corbyn’s prime goal (9) (RANTS)* AInd: about, C[orbyn] END (goal) |
| 6 | IN STYLE | Location of pig ritual performance ends with a flourish (2,5) IN STY (where to find a pig) [ritua]L [performanc]E |
| 7 | POUCH | Penis tip that hurt, following posing? (5) P[enis] OUCH (that hurt!) |
| 8 | CASHMERE | Material offered by Conservative, burnt-out stuff, nothing more (8) C[onservative] ASH (burnt out stuff) MERE (nnothing more) |
| 11 | DONALD TRUMP | Ridiculously powerful businessman, syndicate boss, a hollow loud-mouthed fake (6,5) DON (syndicate boss) A L[oud-mouthe]D TRUMP (fake). I noticed 11 referenced in other clues and solved this early on from the apt definition and accurate wordplay (with apt surface). The idea of President Trump is the stuff of nightmares |
| 16 | FREELANCE | Independent hack‘s spare prick (9) FREE (spare) LANCE (prick) |
| 17 | DOUBLOON | After a drink, almost nothing on – which was worth something in olden times (8) DOUBL[e] (adrink, almost) O (nothing) ON |
| 19 | MANAGED | Was the boss bloke “Silver Balls”? (7) MAN (bloke) AG (Silver) ED (Ed Balls) |
| 21 | CORRECT | I say, Rebekah’s leader screwed up, etc – do some editing! (7) COR (“I say!” – in the Sid James manner) R[ebekah] (ETC)* AInd: screwed up |
| 22 | STENCH | Sex with fish gives off odour (6) S[ex] TENCH (tench) |
| 24 | DUTCH | Go with it and split tongue (5) Reference to “Going Dutch” when for instance a restaurant bill is split equally |
Advent calendar: First day. What did I find? Baked beans
Yep. The kids ate all the chocolate.
I couldn’t parse 11d at the time and I can’t see how trump = fake . How does that work, please?
I take it that it’s as in the more usual “trump(ed-) up”, derived from, according to OED online:
“trump,v,5c. To get up or devise in an unscrupulous way; to forge, fabricate, invent.”
I saw the ‘go dutch’ link but also thought of ‘double dutch’ making it a sort of double definition. But of course, the solution above is the correct one. But I also saw Utrecht not as ‘you trekked’ but as U (the start of unscrupulous) followed by a phonetic walked alternative. Otherwise unscrupulous and head are pretty well superfluous.