A very enjoyable puzzle from Provis. Some entertaining surface readings and just the right amount of head-scratching for a Monday morning, I thought.
| Across | ||
| 1 | DRAWBACK | Support by lottery possibly a disadvantage (8) |
| BACK (support) next to (by) DRAW (lottery possibly) | ||
| 5 | APPALS | Shocks hit dad, retrospectively (6) |
| A reversal (retrospectively) of SLAP (hit) and PA (dad) | ||
| 9 | PERFORMS | Theatrical company comes back and arranges plays (8) |
| A reversal (comes back) of REP (theatrical company) and (and) FORMS (arranges) | ||
| 10 | BATTLE | Talked oddly after hit in fight (6) |
| TLE (talked oddly, i.e. letters 1, 3 and 5 of talked) following (after) BAT (hit) | ||
| 12 | STING | Piercing pain from cyst in groin (5) |
| An hidden hidden in cyST IN Groin. Ouch | ||
| 13 | INELEGANT | Alien gent surprisingly lacking in refinement (9) |
| An anagram (surprisingly) of ALIEN GENT | ||
| 14 | COSMOPOLITAN | Sophisticated women’s magazine (12) |
| A double definition. Sophisticated = COSMOPOLITAN. Women’s magazine = COSMOPOLITAN | ||
| 18 | INEXPERIENCE | Lack of practical knowledge starts off international nuclear event (12) |
| IN (the first letters ‘starts off’ of international and nuclear) and EXPERIENCE (event) | ||
| 21 | THREATENS | Jeopardises the rents with a review (9) |
| An anagram (review) of THE RENTS plus (with) A | ||
| 23 | ENTER | Come into business with 50% reduction (5) |
| ENTERPRISE (business) minus PRISE (with 50% reduction) | ||
| 24 | NOBODY | Unlikely outcome to bumping off an unimportant person (6) |
| If someone is murdered, there is usually a body. There is in Agatha Christie anyway | ||
| 25 | RESOURCE | Soldiers have gone off with church fund (8) |
| RE (soldiers) plus (have) SOUR (gone off) plus (with) CE (church) | ||
| 26 | ERECTS | Sets up son after Queen’s shocking treatment (6) |
| S (son) following (after) ER (Queen) plus (‘s = has) ECT (shocking treatment) | ||
| 27 | AS I SEE IT | In my view, it’s possibly easiest to include setter (2,1,3,2) |
| An anagram (possibly) of EASIEST containing (to include) I (setter) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | DEPOSE | Remove extremely disreputable model (6) |
| DE (the first and last letters ‘extremely’ of disreputable) POSE (model) | ||
| 2 | AFRAID | Scared to help without brother in Italy (6) |
| AID (help) containing (without) FRA (brother, i.e. monk, in Italy) | ||
| 3 | BOOK GROUP | Reserve school for a literary gathering (4,5) |
| BOOK (reserve) GROUP (school) | ||
| 4 | COMMIT MURDER | Kill retired Grand National winner pursuant to promise (6,6) |
| A reversal (retired) of RED RUM (Grand National winner) following (pusuant to) COMMIT (promise). Bit of an odd one, in that there is no dictionary entry for ‘commit murder’ | ||
| 6 | PEACE | Reportedly part of ending to the war (5) |
| A homophone (reportedly) of PIECE (part) | ||
| 7 | ATTRACTS | About time unusual star act catches the eye (8) |
| An anagram (unusual) of STAR ACT containing (about) T (time) | ||
| 8 | SWEATING | Perspiring from consuming gutted sow earlier (8) |
| EATING (consuming) after (earlier) SW (sow with central letter removed ‘gutted’) | ||
| 11 | HELPLESSNESS | Absence of power to assist the French ship reach headland (12) |
| HELP (to assist) LE (the French) SS (ship) next to (reach) NESS (headland) | ||
| 15 | LECHEROUS | In cryptic clues, hero is lustful (9) |
| An anagram (cryptic) of CLUES HERO | ||
| 16 | DISTANCE | Reserve detective takes position (8) |
| DI (detective) next to (takes) STANCE (position) | ||
| 17 | BEARABLE | Animal on island to the north can be tolerated (8) |
| BEAR (animal) above (on) a reversal (to the north) of ELBA (island) | ||
| 19 | STARVE | Some superstar vegans go very hungry (6) |
| An answer hidden in (some) superSTAR VEgans | ||
| 20 | ARREST | Take a b-break (6) |
| A (a) RREST. Break = Rest so B-break = R-rest | ||
| 22 | AUDIT | Examine car before end of MOT (5) |
| AUDI (car) in front of (before) T (last letter ‘end of’ MOT) | ||
Thank you nms and thank you Provis for a puzzle with a few tricky parts but complimented by easier ones too. Plus one hoary old chestnut (I’m looking at you, AUDIT).
My favourite was NOBODY.
Thanks Provis and nms
Thank you Provis and newmarketsausage.
A perfect Quiptic with no interference by Abel Magwitch today, apart from certain whiffs in some clues from the galley ships.
COMMIT MURDER appears in British legal terminology, but I cannot find a reference suitable to post since the term is hidden way down in the articles – here is a Canadian reference from the Canadian Encyclopedia, second paragraph.
My favourite also was NOBODY!
ThankS Provis and newmarketsausage.
Nice balance of clues, largely suitable for a Quiptic.
Cookie @3, see here.
Robi @4, thanks, I saw that, and several other online dictionaries also gave the definition, but I wanted a reference from a British government, or legal, publication to post (there were many, but one had to read down several pages to find “commit murder”).
Excellent Quiptic – thanks Provis.
We’re not regular solvers of the Quiptic but we’re glad we dropped in today. There was a good range of clue types and nothing too obscure – just right for a solve during dinner this evening.
Thanks newmarketsausage.
A good Quiptic with many very nice clues. Thanks, Provis and nms.
“Commit murder” is not a rare phrase in India. It is in popular use. During the British Raj, from the legal dictionaries it must have passed into everyday usage, with the locals showing off their knowledge of the foreign language. People with little education might use phrases such as ‘modus operandi’.
This was fun…a good diversion for a slow Tuesday morning.
Red Rum as a reversal of “murder” is of course well known to anyone who has seen The Shining.
“Commit murder” is a common phrase pretty much everywhere, I should think.
On ‘commit murder’. I know it’s a common phrase. So is ‘blue car’. But you won’t find a dictionary entry for that either 🙂