Good stuff from Aardvark as usual.
Aardvark includes plenty of red-herrings in these clues. Definitions for words are chosen that could be misrepresented as anagram indicators, inclusion indicators etc. Most of the clues are not difficult, but it is hard to see the wood for the trees. Easy once you know the answer. Thanks Aardvark.
| Across | ||
| 1 | WATERLOO | Battle later set off in court (8) |
| anagram (set off) of LATER in WOO (court) | ||
| 6 | COBALT | Raw youngster entertains academic element (6) |
| COLT (raw youngster) contains BA (academic) | ||
| 9 | SPLEEN | Revolutionary records in French involving electronic organ (6) |
| LPS (records) reversed (revolutionary) and EN (in, French) containing (involving) E (electronic) – an organ of the body | ||
| 10 | ACANTHUS | Prickly plant is unable to flourish latterly in Australia (8) |
| CAN’T (is unable) with fourisH (latterly, last letter) in AUS (Australia) | ||
| 11 | ARAL | Gala rarely captivating around foreign waters (4) |
| found reversed (around) inside (captivated by) gaLA RArely – the Aral Sea | ||
| 12 | YUGOSLAVIA | Split appeared in this old country (10) |
| double/cryptic definition – Split is a town in Croatia, split from the former Yugoslavia | ||
| 14 | BRUSH OFF | Intellectual, not popular, accepting career rejection (5-3) |
| BOFFin (intellectual) missing IN (popular) containing RUSH (career) | ||
| 16 | AXLE | “Ten” given by the Parisian after ballerina’s final pivot (4) |
| X (ten) with (given by) LE (the, in Paris) following ballerinA (final letter of) | ||
| 18 | TAXI | Cheers football team vehicle (4) |
| TA (cheers) and XI (eleven, football team) | ||
| 19 | EMBOSSED | Given small space, managed using type of wallpaper? (8) |
| EM (small space, printing) then BOSSED (managed) | ||
| 21 | BING CROSBY | Bob’s crying upset his Hollywood partner? (4,6) |
| anagram (upset) of BOB’S CRYING | ||
| 22 | EDEN | English flower close to the office (4) |
| thE (closing letter of) and DEN (office) – the River Eden, something that flows in England | ||
| 24 | DEMENTIA | Aide moving outside intended to avoid a complaint (8) |
| anagram (moving) of AIDE contains (outside) MEaNT missing A | ||
| 26 | NEARBY | Appreciation shown by bishop in US state neighbouring (6) |
| EAR (appreciation) with B (bishop) in NY (New York, US state) | ||
| 27 | OSTLER | Best man perhaps comes through role having inebriated groom (6) |
| ST (saint, best man perhaps) inside (comes through) anagram (having inebriated) of ROLE | ||
| 28 | EYES DOWN | Media chief screening agreed particular order for contestants (4,4) |
| ED (editor, media chief) contains (screening) YES (agreed) then OWN (particular) – marks the start of a bingo game | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | AS PER | According to Edgar after vacation, a lethal snake’s encountered (2,3) |
| EdgaR (after vacation, emptied) following (having encountered) ASP (a lethal snake) | ||
| 3 | EVERLASTING | Dotty reveals metallic sound that doesn’t stop (11) |
| anagram (dotty) of REVEALS then TING (metallic sound) | ||
| 4 | LINDY HOP | Topless oblivious youth, unoccupied at work, displays dance (5,3) |
| bLIND (oblivious, topless) then YoutH (unoccupied) and OP (opus, work) – dance named for Charles Lindbergh’s flight across the Atlantic | ||
| 5 | ORANGE FREE STATE | Fruit with loose stone consumed in old African territory (6,4,5) |
| ORANGE (free) with FREE (loose) ST (stone) ATE (consumed) | ||
| 6 | CLAUSE | A few words nipper’s read aloud (6) |
| sounds like (read aloud) claw’s (nipper’s) | ||
| 7 | BIT | Gripped coin (3) |
| double definition | ||
| 8 | LAURIE LEE | Author that is taking shelter by meandering Ural (6,3) |
| IE (that is) with LEE (shelter) following (by) anagram (meandering) of URAL | ||
| 13 | ALAN SHEPARD | Nasa help to develop a way for this pioneer to explore (4,7) |
| anagram (to develop) of NASA HELP then A RD (road, way) – the first American in space. “to explore” seems a bit out of place to me, the clue still makes sense without it | ||
| 15 | READINESS | Facility’s head tracks study on island (9) |
| NESS (head) follows (tracks) READ (study) on I (island) | ||
| 17 | ABEYANCE | Expert checks runner perhaps over one year – suspension’s given (8) |
| ACE (expert) contains (checks) BEAN (runner bean perhaps) containing (over) Y (one year). |
||
| 20 | CRATER | Bowl from opening pair of cricketers maintaining speed (6) |
| CRicketers (opening pair of letters) contain (maintaining) RATE (speed) | ||
| 23 | ELBOW | The Andalusian’s seen bending part of body (5) |
| EL (the in Spanish, as seen in Adalusia) with BOW (bending) | ||
| 25 | EEL | Fish Beverly regularly rejected (3) |
| bEvErLy missing letters regularly | ||
*anagram
definitions are underlined
Thanks Aardvark and PeeDee.
17dn: I think this works if you read “one year” as being “one occurrence of the letter Y”. The word “one” is not necessary cryptically, but not wrong.
Pelham – yes that does work. I have deleted my comment.
Thanks Aardvark and PeeDee
An entertaining puzzle that took three sittings to finally knock off ! Made an error with EDEN – had gone with EXEC – the better known river EXE with C for close to generate the office of executive management – almost works.
Like his clever definitions that can be quite deviously disguised and some of the related surfaces such as the excellent ALAN SHEPARD.
Finished in the SE with EMBOSSED, ABEYANCE and NEARBY the last few in.