Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of July 9, 2016
I found this to be another fine and fairly easy puzzle from Mudd. My clue of the week is 18d (ALBATROSS) which I read as an &lit. I also like 29a (MACARONI CHEESE) even though the dish in question is, in my experience, usually called macaroni and cheese.
| Across | ||
| 1 | FAIRY GODMOTHER | Guardian: modify rag that’s wacky and alternative (5,9) |
| Anagram of MODIFY RAG + OTHER (alternative) | ||
| 10 | ROUND | Drinks order, stout (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 11 | GREATCOAT | Garment down a hundred in old money (9) |
| EAT (down) + C (a hundred) in GROAT (old money) | ||
| 12 | FAIRISH | Quite reasonable to see underwater swimmer holding breath, perhaps? (7) |
| AIR (breath) in FISH (underwater swimmer) | ||
| 13 | SMETANA | Composer came across two articles on Shostakovich’s Fourth (7) |
| [sho]S[takovich] + MET (came across) + AN A (two articles) | ||
| 14 | BLISS | Composer in heaven (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 16 | REITERATE | Repeat disturbance in Eritrea with tired and emotional leaders (9) |
| Anagram of ERITREA + T[ired] E[motional] | ||
| 19 | BAMBOOZLE | Puzzle – back half of which sticks on the front (9) |
| BAMBOO (sticks) + [puz]ZLE | ||
| 20 | DEBUT | Different exits both opening, all the same for entrance (5) |
| D[ifferent] E[xits] + BUT (all the same) | ||
| 22 | RECITAL | Jerk knocked over in proper performance (7) |
| TIC (jerk) backwards in REAL (proper) | ||
| 25 | ARBITER | Judge, tooth on bar, heading off (7) |
| [b]AR + BITER (tooth) | ||
| 27 | DESICCANT | One note held by singer is drier (9) |
| I (one) + C (note) together in DESCANT (singer) | ||
| 28 | AROSE | A beautiful thing happened (5) |
| A (a) + ROSE (beautiful thing) | ||
| 29 | MACARONI CHEESE | American chose quirky English dish (8,6) |
| Anagram of AMERICAN CHOSE + E (English) | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | ALUMINIUM | Element in both metal and alloy? (9) |
| AL, the chemical symbol for aluminium, appears in both METAL and ALLOY | ||
| 3 | RADII | Bones: two supporting study lacking evidence initially (5) |
| R[e]AD (study lacking E) + II (two) | ||
| 4 | GIGAHERTZ | Show earth spinning an unspecified amount, as a measure of frequency (9) |
| GIG (show) + anagram of EARTH + Z (an unspecified amount) | ||
| 5 | DRESS | Treat, seeing university freed from constraint (5) |
| D[u]RESS (U freed from constraint) | ||
| 6 | ON THE MEND | Not surprisingly, margin bound to be improving (2,3,4) |
| Anagram of NOT + HEM (margin) + END (bound) | ||
| 7 | HOO-HA | Commotion I see, I’m surprised after uprising? (3-2) |
| AH (I see) + OOH (I’m surprised) all backwards | ||
| 8 | RAT RACE | Daily struggle a bit beneath idler, ultimately? (3,4) |
| [idle]R + A (a) + TRACE (bit) | ||
| 9 | PREFAB | Every second bit in purse’s gone on wonderful small building (6) |
| P[u]R[s]E + FAB (wonderful) | ||
| 15 | SPORTS CAR | Racer left mark after skidding at the start (6,3) |
| S[kidding] + PORT (left) + SCAR (mark) | ||
| 17 | INELASTIC | Plasticine less soft, possibly without resilience (9) |
| Anagram of [p]LASTICINE | ||
| 18 | ALBATROSS | Flier attributed to rime, primarily – a misfortune to carry it? (9) |
| BAT (flier) + R[ime] together in A LOSS (a misfortune) | ||
| 19 | BOREDOM | Glowing report’s outstanding monotony (7) |
| RED (glowing) in BOOM (report) | ||
| 21 | TURKEY | A lemon one gobbles (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 23 | COSEC | Function held up by finances occasionally (5) |
| Reverse hidden word. ‘Cosec’ is an abbreviation for cosecant. | ||
| 24 | LEARN | Pick up tragic character, ending in traction (5) |
| LEAR (tragic character) + [tractio]N | ||
| 26 | BRACE | Secure couple (5) |
| Double definition | ||
Thanks Pete and Mudd.
Another enjoyable if not too taxing offering from Mudd.
I thought that DRESS was very clever too.
3rd outing for SMETANA in as many weeks between the Guardian and FT.
Pete, I think 18d should be parsed a little differently from the way you have it: BAT (flier) + R[ime] together in A (a) + LOSS (misfortune).
Small difference and maybe doesn’t matter. Thanks for another great review.
Hi Bob, Yes, that’s a better way to put it. I have edited the explanation accordingly. Thanks.
Also found this Mudd enjoyable and (relatively) not hard (by my poor standards.)
Pete, in my experience the dish at 29ac is macaroni cheese (no and), similar to cauliflower cheese, an equivalent dish with of course cauliflower substituted for macaroni. Can the “and” be an American usage?
Malcolm, Cauliflower cheese was one of my favourite dishes as a boy. Some googling tends to confirm your notion that “macaroni AND cheese” is the American name for the dish while in England, where it apparently originated, it is known as “macaroni cheese”. I am surprised to learn that I am more used to the American version of the name!
Thanks Mudd and Pete
A year on and did this one in a couple of short sessions and a longer one to finish off.
Actually had more problems getting a few of the clues parsed properly than actually getting the answer – in fact, I missed the clever trick with ALUMINIUM thinking that it had something to do with the other old name for aluminium, ALUMIUM (without the IN). Also took a while to see BAMBOO-ZLE and D E BUT (conned into thinking the B was opening of both for a while and looking for a meaning of UT for ‘all the same’). HOOHA was another I had to think about before seeing the OOH and the AH.
MACARONI CHEESE was how we always used to know the dish – it’s been a long time since I’ve had it now !
BLISS was the last one in.