A challenging crossword from Serpent today. The wordplay in one clue completely defeats me.
There is a clear theme in today’s puzzle with the clue to the middle row clue (WAITING FOR GODOT) hinting at some words hidden in the unchecked letters. Rows 1 and 15 show VLADIMIR and ESTRAGON the two main characters in Samuel Beckett’s play. The letters in these two characters helped me with some of the down clues.
The wordplay that defeats me is in 10 across – UNCLE. I can see some of the letters of CRUEL [heartless] in UNCLE,, but that’s a far as I get and I suspect I am barking up the wrong tree anyway. I can’t find any assassin’s name or synonym of assassin that shares letters in UNCLE. No doubt some kind soul will show me the way.
There was some good misdirection in the clues today. I liked the clue for WARHORSE (16 down) which focused on electrical issues. There was also an electrical allusion in the clue for GOSSAMER (18 down)
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
9
|
Pine for one looking sickly all the time (9)
|
EVER (all the time) + GREEN (looking sickly)
|
EVERGREEN (a pine tree is an example of an EVERGREEN tree)
|
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10
|
Heartless assassin fails to finish off corrupt pawnbroker (5)
|
I cannot fathom out the wordplay here. I’m sure someone will tell me how easy it is.
|
UNCLE (slang for pawnbroker)
|
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11
|
Cross that is protecting singer (5)
|
IE (id est; that is) containing (protecting) RAT (singer; reference The RAT Pack comprising singers Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Junior and others). I think the original RAT Pack predates these three singers and included others at different times. I (RAT) E |
IRATE (cross)
|
|
12
|
Expert following all but the climax of Union Fair (9)
|
EQUITY (actor’s trade union) excluding the final letter (all but the climax) Y + ABLE (expert)
|
EQUITABLE (fair)
|
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13
|
Comprehensive coverage of fresh issue still to be included in overdue… (7)
|
YET (still) contained in (included in) LATE (overdue) LA (YET) TE |
LAYETTE (baby’s complete set of clothing; comprehensive coverage of fresh issue)
|
|
15
|
… review of U-turn about training (7)
|
Anagram of (review) U-TURN + RE (about) NURTU* + RE |
NURTURE (training)
|
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16
|
Attendant’s role neglected to perform parts in play featuring extreme rows (7,3,5)
|
WAITING (attendant’s role) + (DO [perform] contained in [parts in] FORGOT [neglected]) WAITING FOR GO (DO) T |
WAITING FOR GODOT (play by Samuel Becket with the two leading characters, VLADIMIR and ESTRAGON being indicated in the unchecked letters in the outer or extreme rows [1 and 15] of the grid)
|
|
19
|
Picks up again on the amount one owes backers (7)
|
RE (on) + SUM (amount) + ES (final letters of [backers] each of ONE and OWES)
|
RESUMES (picks up again)
|
| 20 |
One may be driven to limits of endurance by flipping buzzer going non-stop! (4,3)
|
BUS (a BUS may be driven) + (BY reversed [flipping]) + EE (outer letters of [limits of] ENDURANCE) BUS Y B< EE |
BUSY BEE (a BEE [buzzer] that going non-stop [BUSY])
|
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23
|
Accidentally caught balls with great force straddling horse’s back (9)
|
OVER (6 balls in cricket) + (HARD [with great force] containing [straddling] E [last letter of [back] HORSE) OVER H (E) ARD |
OVERHEARD (HEARD [caught] unintentionally)
|
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24
|
Noise made by my body (5)
|
CORPS (sounds like [noise made by] COR [gosh!; my!])
|
CORPS (organised body [of people])
|
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25
|
Nick something from Santa’s sack! (5)
|
Anagram of (sack) SANTA SATAN* |
SATAN (Nick and SATAN are both terms for The Devil)
|
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26
|
Hogarth’s work perhaps shows English dancing in a field? (9)
|
ENG (English) + RAVING (mass gathering of young people dancing to loud music under bright flashing lights; often held in the open-air; perhaps dancing in a field)
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ENGRAVING (reference William Hogarth [1697 – 1764], English painter and engraver)
|
| Down | |||
|
1
|
Mercenary kidnaps the first person that may be pardoned (6)
|
VENAL (open to bribery; mercenary) containing (kidnaps) I (first person) VEN (I) AL |
VENIAL (pardonable)
|
|
2
|
Like wearing delicate gift (6)
|
E.G. (for example) contained in (wearing) LACY (delicate) L (EG) ACY |
LEGACY (bequest; gift)
|
|
3
|
Absent-minded leader isn’t considered fit (4)
|
VAGUE (absent-minded) excluding (isn’t considered) the first letter (leader) V
|
AGUE (shivering fit)
|
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4
|
Remove obstruction blocking river (6)
|
LET (obstruction) contained in (blocking) DEE (name of one of a number of rivers in the United Kingdom) DE (LET) E |
DELETE (remove)
|
|
5
|
Corrupt union’s demise involved suggestion of impropriety (8)
|
END (demise) contained in (involved) an anagram of (corrupt) UNION INNU (END) O* |
INNUENDO (suggestion of impropriety)
|
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6
|
Agent causing intense suffering with dirt and gossip about celebrity (7,3)
|
(MUD [dirt] + GAS [gossip]) containing (about) STAR (celebrity) MU (STAR) D GAS |
MUSTARD GAS (vapour from a poisonous blistering liquid, (CH2ClCH2)2S, obtained from ethylene and sulphur chloride; agent [natural force acting on matter]causing intense suffering)
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7
|
Heading for French resort, starting late and delayed by adverse weather (8)
|
NICE (French resort) excluding the first letter (starting late) N + BOUND (on the way to; heading for)
|
ICEBOUND (immobilised by ICE; delayed by adverse weather)
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8
|
With the greatest respect, our ever enthusiastic hosts … (8)
|
REVERENT (hidden word in [hosts] OUR EVER ENTHUSIASTIC)
|
REVERENT (with the greatest respect)
|
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14
|
… haven’t lost heart after I stopped controversial politician celebrating victory (10) |
(I contained in [stopped] TRUMP (reference Donald TRUMP, Republican nominee for the forthcoming US Presidential election, considered by many to be a controversial politician) + HANT (HAVEN’T excluding [lost] the central letters [heart] VE) TR (I) UMP HANT |
TRIUMPHANT (celebrating victory)
|
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16
|
Engineer has row about right end of cable for charger (8)
|
(Anagram of [engineer] HAS ROW containing [about] R ([right]) + E (last letter of [right end of] CABLE) WA (R) HORS* E |
WARHORSE (a charger in this context is defined as WARHORSE)
|
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17
|
Scrutinises power to open independent national schools (8)
|
P (power) contained in (to open) (I [independent] + N [national] + SECTS [schools of opinion]) I N S (P) ECTS |
INSPECTS (scrutinises)
|
|
18
|
Try identical fitting in terminals of similar light (8)
|
GO (try) + (SAME [identical] contained in [fitting in] SR [first and last letter of [terminals of] SIMILAR) GO S (SAME) R |
GOSSAMER (light)
|
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20
|
Alcohol vendor requires age and date of birth retrospectively (6)
|
(AGE + DOB [date of birth]) all reversed (retrospectively) (BOD EGA)< |
BODEGA (wine shop; alcohol vendor)
|
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21
|
Save city’s Spanish quarter (6)
|
BAR (except; save) + RIO (city in Brazil)
|
BARRIO (Spanish-speaking, usually poor, community or district)
|
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22
|
Opponents’ house colours (6)
|
EN (East and North; opponents in the game of bridge) + SIGN (reference sign of the zodiac; astrological house)
|
ENSIGN (flag distinguishing a nation or regiment; colours)
|
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24
|
Leader to call tabloid newspaper’s bluff (4)
|
C (first letter of [leader to] CALL) + RAG (tabloid newspaper)
|
CRAG (a bluff is a high steep bank)
|
After a long stare I think 10a in UNCLEAN minus A(ssassi)N
@duncanshiell
Re 10a
If in this puzzle, AN leaves UNCLEAN to fetch UNCLE, in Independent 9156 by Tees (Feb 18), also blogged by you, UNCLE and AN combine to fetch UNCLEAN.
Jolly Swagman @1 and Rishi @ 2
Jolly Swagman: Thanks – UNCLEAN (corrupt) excluding (fails to finish) AN (ASSASSIN without all the central letters [heartless]) makes eminent sense.
Rishi: As I get older, I’m afraid I often struggle to remember what I did last week, let alone what I wrote in a blog six months ago!
Excellent puzzle with some great clue surfaces as one’s come to expect from Serpent.
Quite tough at first but spotting the theme about halfway through did make it easier.
Another great blocked puzzle by Serpent, but I couldn’t unpick UNCLE for the life of me.
Thanks to Duncan and Swaggie for the blog and the explanation. Tricky parse, that.
I saw V L A D across the top straight away and thought we were in for one of those cheesy setter tribute gigs……(only joking Jason/Jim)
I only noticed Vladimir and Estragon a fair while after completing the grid. Great symmetry.Also very neat VEN(I)AL ploy.
Very enjoyable.
And thanks Swaggers etc for unpicking UNCLE (if it starts with U and is 5 letters it has to be that but nice to see how it came to be)
I’m annoyed not to have spotted V & E at the top and bottom, since I used precisely the same gimmick a couple of years ago.
And count me in as another who completely failed to spot how UNCLE came about.
Very enjoyable puzzle.
This one, you might say, grew on me. Couldn’t make much of it at first then BODEGA and BARRIO gave me a start in the SE corner and A G O N in the bottom unches suggested a nina. Then WAITING FOR GODOT occurred to me almost out of the blue and the nina was obvious whereupon the rest of the puzzle was a doddle. But I couldn’t parse UNCLE either.
Thanks, Serpent and Duncan.
Thanks Serpent & duncanshiell.
Enjoyable but tricky puzzle. I always think of climax meaning the top. I see Collins gives both top and end as synonyms!
I, of course, missed the theme. Although I’ve seen the play many years ago, I didn’t recall the main characters. I particularly liked the LAYETTE clue.
I read RAT in 11 as someone who rats by “singing” to the authorities. I couldn’t parse UNCLE either, so many thanks to Serpent and to duncanshiell.
UNCLE requires ‘outside-the-box’ thinking which you do not often see, that’s why it is hard.
A RAT of course can be a ‘singer’ because he or she is a traitor. I didn’t really like that idea, but the Rat Pack thing put forward here is too obscure.
It was good having the theme and Nina which also helped me with a few down clues, including LEGACY, my last in. I remember this as the theme of another puzzle in the past, presumably the one Alchemi refers to above. I agree with tyke @11’s parsing of 11. Especially liked OVERHEARD and GOSSAMER.
Thanks to Serpent and Duncan.
Thanks, Duncan, for the excellent blog, and to everyone who has taken the time to comment on the puzzle.
JollySwagman nailed the parsing for UNCLEAN and tyke was right about ‘singer’ simply being an informer or RAT.
This one defeated me. Got about a third of it.