An enjoyable, and relatively easier challenge than usual from WANDERER. I had to google a bit to check my parsing (on 2 clues) – learnt a couple of new things along the way.
FF: 8 DD: 8
| Across | ||
| 1 | AUSTIN HEALEY | Rugby player in Texan city with former chancellor of the exchequer (6,6) |
| AUSTIN (texan city) HEALEY (former chancellor of the exchequer) | ||
| 10, 23 | THE WILD ROVER | Twelve horrid characters messed up a popular song (3,4,5) |
| TWELVE HORRID* | ||
| 11 | COTERIE | Citroen manoeuvred, with just one change of direction, in a circle exclusively (7) |
| CITROEn* with N (north) replaced by E (east), change of direction | ||
| 12 | OFCOM | Body that regulates on family content over media, primarily (5) |
| starting characters of “..On Family Content Over Media..” | ||
| 13 | CAMSHAFT | Get a handle on computer-aided manufacturing for car part (8) |
| CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) SHAFT (handle) | ||
| 15 | PARCHMENTS | Old manuscripts from Chile, by the one writing in undies (10) |
| [ RCH (chile, republic de chile, car plates) ME (one writing) ] in PANTS (undies) | ||
| 16 | MERE | No more than some Renaults have it (4) |
| hidden in “…soME REnaults..” | ||
| 18 | EARL | Rear light not right? Outside Britain, they make it count (4) |
| rEAR Light (without character of RIGHT) – a rank of nobility, also known as COUNT outside Britain. | ||
| 20 | AMEN CORNER | Group of people in one car out by river (4,6) |
| [MEN (people) in ONE CAR*] R (river) | ||
| 22 | INSTRUCT | Tell vehicle has been tailed during this month (8) |
| TRUCk (vehicle, tailed) in INST (this month) | ||
| 24 | IVIES | One to contest tip from social climbers (5) |
| I (one) VIE (contest) S (tip of Social) | ||
| 26 | ARRIVAL | Appearance of a competitor, say (7) |
| sounds like A RIVAL (competitor) | ||
| 27 | RHIZOME | Underground part of plant Mercedes-Benz vacated has endless heroin supply (7) |
| MZ (Mercedes-benZ vacated, i.e. no inner characters) HEROIn* (endless) | ||
| 28 | MORRIS DANCER | Sleep with old Arts & Crafts man first, perhaps one involved in folk movement (6,6) |
| MORRIS (old arts & crafts man, william morris) DANCER (sleep, wayne) | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | USED CAR | Sort of salesman running crusade (4-3) |
| CRUSADE* | ||
| 3 | TRIUMPHS | Wins with his trump playing (8) |
| HIS TRUMP* | ||
| 4 | NODE | Knob crashed one pick-up! (4) |
| hidden, reversed in “..crashED ONe..” | ||
| 5 | ENCHANTING | Lovely intonation in engine, mostly reconditioned (10) |
| CHANT (intonation) in ENGINe* (mostly, reconditioned-anagrind) | ||
| 6, 17 | LOTUS POSITION | Sitting cross-legged in this car, is in pain initially – too awkward (5,8) |
| LOTUS (car) [ IS IN P (Pain, initially) TOO]* | ||
| 7 | YARDAGE | Going uphill, say, a horse-drawn cart’s distance covered? (7) |
| E.G (say) A DRAY (horse-drawn cart), all reversed (going uphill) | ||
| 8 | ATMOSPHERICAL | Having a particular aura, a motel with hip cars shown off (13) |
| A MOTEL HIP CARS* | ||
| 9 | BEETLE CRUSHER | One that provides compression for old car with engine at back and large boot? (6-7) |
| CRUSHER (one that provides compression) after BEETLE (old car with engine at back) – clever! | ||
| 14 | VERMICELLI | Part of the Roman Diet of Worms, in Italy (10) |
| cryptic clue, the literal meaning of vermicelli is “little worms” in Italian. | ||
| 17 | See 6 | |
| 19 | ROSTRUM | Posh car going round ring road, with Greek character turning up speakers here? (7) |
| [RR (posh car, rolls royce) around {O (ring) ST (road, street)} ] MU (greek character = MU, reversed) | ||
| 21 | NOISOME | Chart-topper, a bit offensive and possibly harmful (7) |
| NOI (No.1 – chart topper) SOME (a bit) | ||
| 23 | See 10 | |
| 25 | GRID | Part of this crossword where cars are found, for a start (4) |
| cryptic clue, in formula 1 racing, cars start from the ‘starting grid’ | ||
*anagram
Thanks Turbolegs – an enjoyable solve; agree seemed slightly easier than usual from WANDERER. Something of a car theme today in several clues and answers.
Much to like. My only problem was with the parsing of “dancer” in 28a – had forgotten all about Wayne Sleep! Thank you very much for the reminder, Turbolegs.
Thank you for the enjoyment, Wanderer.
I found this puzzle actually a tad harder than Wanderer’s usual output.
Perhaps, I wasn’t close enough to the theme.
Good crossword, nevertheless.
AUSTIN-HEALEY (1ac) is also a car manufacturer.
And in the last row we have, surely deliberately, MORRIS.
Thanks Turbolegs, and Wanderer!
Thanks Wanderer and Turbolegs
The usual good quality fare from this setter that I had to wait until early this morning to finish off MORRIS DANCER – a tough final clue for me having not heard of either the Art & Crafts man nor the ballet dancer. Needed the blog to see the final parsing of EARL – quite clever – and although I noticed the occasional car in the solutions, didn’t twig to the full on car theme.
Had to use quite a bit of reference material to help identify the rugby union player and ex chancellor of exchequer in 1a, the Irish song, the area of the church for the AMEN folk and the government regulator at 12a.
A mixed week of the straightforward and testing puzzles from the FT.