Financial Times 15116 by GURNEY

by

Straightforward, but very satisfying.

The two long anagrams in this puzzle are very simple, allowing the solver to get a whole raft of crossing letters into the grid, and making the rest of the puzzle easy enough to solve.

I like Gurney’s clues.  There are no extra words, and as I think I have seen commented elsewhere, his puzzles would be excellent for new solvers to learn the various tricks of cryptic crosswords.

 

Thanks, Gurney.

Across
1 DISTRICT
Region needs detective, rigorous (8)

D.I. (Detective Inspector) + STRICT
5 TARGET
Objective: make deserter return – understand? (6)

<=RAT + GET
10 RALLY
Recovery in market? Missing the point, really (5)

R(e)ALLY
11 ABOUT FACE
A fight at fancy café leading to reversal (5,4)

A + BOUT +*(cafe)
12 EPAULETTE
Ornamental wear of English saint, essentially better (9)

E + PAUL + (b)ETTE(r)
13 FIEND
Associate avoiding right enthusiast (5)

F(r)IEND
14 MAILER
US writer, one posting letters (6)

Double definition.  Norman Mailer, whose account of the Rumble in the Jungle is worth a read.
15 LEAKAGE
Unwelcome flow in field for example a king recalled (7)

LEA + <=E.G. A K
18 POETESS
Lineswoman? (7)

A woman who writes lines.
20 TELL ON
Inform about Swiss crossbow expert never coming back (4,2)

(William) TELL + <=NO
22 REBUT
Disprove objection after teaching of religion (5)

BUT after R.E.
24 OPERATIVE
Love new private eastern worker (9)

O + *(private) + E
25 TAIWANESE
Cheers current decreases applied to energy for islanders (9)

TA + I + WANES + E
26 EXACT
Index actually not fully correct (5)

Hidden in “indEX ACTually”
27 DAY-OLD
Oddly mistaken about article: “Born yesterday”? (3-3)

*(oddly) about A
28 PANTHEON
Long fellow as member of distinguished group (8)

PANT + HE + ON (as a member of, as in a committee, for example)
Down
1 DORSET
County firm upset staff at first (6)

<=ROD + SET
2 SULTANATE
Nationalist in elaborate salute in Brunei, say (9)

NAT in *(salute)
3 ROYAL ALBERT HALL
Rather loyal ball arranged here? (5,6,4)

*(rather loyal ball)*

Not the most heavily disguised anagram in the world.
4 CHAPTER
After church find more appropriate section of book (7)

Ch. + APTER
6 ACT OF PARLIAMENT
Legislation redrafted often – claim a part (3,2,10)
7 GRACE
Good contest for cricketing great (5)

G + RACE (referring to W. G .Grace)
8 TRENDIER
More fashionable guy making effort without limit (8)

TR(END)IER
9 DO WELL
Gathering, our group will prosper (2,4)

DO + WE’LL
16 ABOMINATE
Detest couple claiming home after sailor (old) (9)

AB + O + M(IN)ATE
17 SPIRITED
Following whisky, maybe, journalist full of energy (8)

SPIRIT + Ed.
19 SHOVEL
Tool in second ramshackle dwelling (6)

S + HOVEL
20 THERESA
Girl in that place with appeal (7)

THERE + S.A. (sex appeal)
21 NEWTON
Not used to northern scientist (6)

NEW TO + N
23 BRINY
Salty bacon (rasher) is nettling you initially (5)

Initial letters of Bacon Rasher Is Nettling You
*anagram

4 comments on “Financial Times 15116 by GURNEY”

  1. Thanks loonapick. I agree with all you said. And thanks Gurney for you usual excellence. The degree of enjoyment far outweighed the fact that the puzzle was not high on the difficulty scale. This is the sort of puzzle that could turn people on to crosswords. (And you can’t say that about everyone.)

  2. Thanks loonapick and Gurney.

    A good intro for newcomers to the solving craft with a good number of standard devices precisely used.

    All over very quickly.

    My only slight concern was 28. PANT for ‘long’ is a bit unusual. But by then all the other solutions were in and PANTHEON was the only feasible answer.

    Maybe that makes it especially clever?

  3. Thanks Gurney and loonapick

    Nice gentle puzzle that was done over three short stints across the day. My last one in was also PANTHEON … and had to track down that definition of PANT as well.

    Think that I have only ever read two of Norman Mailer’s books – the chilling, but brilliant “The Executioner’s Song” (a story of the US murderer, Gary Gilmour) and the very strange “Ancient Evenings” (based on the ancient Egyptian gods).

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