As usual from Dac. I think this was on the easy side — I didn’t time myself but had no problems and by my standards sailed through it. Which isn’t to denigrate it: it’s well up to the level we have come to expect from this setter.
Definitions underlined and in SaddleBrown today. As usual I had to make amendments so 15ac and 22dn aren’t quite the right colour.
| Across | ||
| 1 | GIGGLE | Laugh showing endless pleasure at end of concert (6) |
| gig gle{e} — some may object that a concert is not really a gig, more a series of gigs, but in a wide sense perhaps it is | ||
| 4 | FLAMBÉED | Nosh includes meat cooked very hot? (8) |
| f(lamb)eed | ||
| 9 | ÉTOILE | Parisian landmark where Europeans accept work (6) |
| E (toil) E | ||
| 10/12 | SWIM WITH THE FISHES | Pop off to join school activities? (4,4,3,6) |
| If you are joining school activities you are perhaps joining a school of fishes — I didn’t know the expression but this seemed likely | ||
| 13 | NEAT | Welsh town needing hospital orderly (4) |
| Neat{h} — needing in the sense lacking, going without | ||
| 15 | OUT TO LUNCH | Not at home, eating crackers? (3,2,5) |
| If you are not at home, eating, you are possibly out to lunch | ||
| 18 | PICK | Choose film with shock ending (4) |
| pic {shoc}k — extreme Zoilists would say that it should be ‘shock’s ending’, but practically everyone seems relaxed about this, and rightly so I think: they can mean the same thing | ||
| 20 | SERB | European composer Bach eclipses (4) |
| Hidden in compoSER Bach | ||
| 21 | CHAMPAGNES | Celebratory drinks winner’s taken with woman (10) |
| champ Agnes | ||
| 23 | EDDA | Poetry collection doing the rounds in summer mostly (4) |
| (adde{r})rev. — a summer is someone who sums or adds | ||
| 24/27 | ALEXANDER THE GREAT | Here get extra land developed to accommodate a military commander (9,3,5) |
| a in (here get extra land)* | ||
| 28 | PULL-UP | Bit of exercise, going forwards and backwards (4-2) |
| The ‘going forwards and backwards’ refers to the fact that it’s a palindrome | ||
| 29 | BUSINESS | One head backing transport company (8) |
| (1 ness) with bus at the front | ||
| 30 | STONER | No rest, sadly, for drug addict (6) |
| (No rest)* — in my innocence I didn’t really know this word, but it’s likely enough from ‘stoned’ | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | GUEST HOUSE | Estimated almost five hundred, presumably, can be accommodated in B and B? (5,5) |
| thou{sand} — ie half a thousand or five hundred — in guesse{d} | ||
| 2 | GROVE | Crawl, losing footing in wood (5) |
| grove{l} | ||
| 3 | LOLLIPOP | Money you say father needed for kiddie’s treat? (8) |
| “lolly” pop | ||
| 5 | LEWES | Fifty sheep in English market town (5) |
| L ewes | ||
| 6 | MOMENT | Importance of sign in middle of mountain (6) |
| m(omen)t. | ||
| 7 | EPILATION | Great delight, accepting very good beauty treatment? (9) |
| e(pi)lation — epilation is the removal of hairs and this may be part of a beauty treatment | ||
| 8 | DOHS | Notes in overtures to Donizetti operas harmoniously sung (4) |
| D{onizetti} o{peras} h{armoniously} s{ung} | ||
| 11 | THOUGH | Idea’s incomplete, however (6) |
| though{t} | ||
| 14 | SKYSCRAPER | In Scottish island get rid of right modern building? (10) |
| Sky(scrap)e r | ||
| 16 | TIREDNESS | Shattered president’s heading off, showing fatigue (9) |
| ({p}resident’s)* | ||
| 17 | CAMPER | South of river traveller reversed vehicle (6) |
| Cam (rep)rev. | ||
| 19 | PARAQUAT | Highly-poisonous compound, portion with water put in (8) |
| par(aqua)t | ||
| 22 | BARREN | Unproductive noble, according to reports (6) |
| “baron” | ||
| 24 | ADAMS | Publicity about American president (5) |
| ad(Am)s — the fact that he was an American president is neither here nor there; the relevant fact is that he was a president | ||
| 25 | DYLAN | Lady excited northern singer (5) |
| (Lady)* n | ||
| 26 | STAB | Try various tablets in reduced quantity (4) |
| Hidden in variouS TABlets | ||
*anagram
15A I think refers to the slang expression “out to lunch” meaning, variously, off with the fairies, of your head, crackers etc.
Agree with assessment of puzzle, not difficult but enjoyable.
Thanks to Dac and John.
For 10,12. I thought the usual version was sleeps with the fishes. As did Luca Brasi in The Godfather.
Not sure about stoner as drug addict. Yes they smoke marijuana and are viewed as time-wasters, maybe, but not necessarily addicts.
Thanks for the blog.
Thought we might have been getting a pangram when K, Q and X turned up – but no, just a straightforward crossword and very enjoyable, too.
Only a minor quibble about 14dn: Skyscrapers are not necessarily modern buildings – the term was first used in the late 19th century for buildings with over 10 storeys although in modern usage 40 storeys is the usual qualification. The Empire State Building dates from 1931.
Thanks, Dac and John
Thanks, both. Usual good stuff from Dac – you run out of things to say, don’t you?
Coincidence corner: today’s (recycled) puzzle in the i is also by Dac, and 6dn is
Eating a picnic at midday? One sandwich short, perhaps (3,2,5)
Once again an enjoyable solve from Dac – perhaps the most consistent of all the Indy setters.
Thanks K’s D for the extra clue – it raised a smile.
Thanks to both S & B.
Yes. It’s Dac. Like Rufus you know what you’re getting. Without the dubious cryptic and double defs. The indy’s star setter for me. Enjoyed that.
Tried to put CREMATED in 4 seeing meat* in that and my usual very hot cooking… ?
I had trouble with the fishes but was rewarded with the usual Dacian smile once they rose to (from) the surface! Lovely crozzie. Thanks.