A more UK-centric Cyclops this time round – the odd Trump/Clinton reference in the clues, but a host of old favourites in May, Boris, Gove, Nicola Sturgeon, the Speaker and the ‘shadow cabinet leader’ show their faces in the clues as well…
The surface reading of 11A sums up the state of post-election America quite succinctly – ironic that it is a clue for TOLERANCE! In fact 19D is pretty apposite as well – ‘Feeling about American power: nervous uncertainty (8)’ = SUSPENSE!
I enjoyed the ‘ORDERING VOLVOS’ anagram for REVOLVING DOORS (ref. a certain G Osbourne recently picking up a day a week gig at some merchant bank or bean counter for more than most people earn for working 5 or more days a week for several years…) And, while we are being a bit right-on and Ben Elton-ish, there is a subtle dig at multinationals and their taxpaying habits at 17D.
A bit of smut as well, with ‘right-handed erotic manipulation’ at 1D, and the admission that ‘I’M PERV’ at 2D!
Favourite clue for me was 11A. All in all a fairly ‘even par’ Cyclops – a relatively gentle solve with some fun and topical references along the way…
One slight quibble (or missed subtlety) in 8A with ‘laid off’ looking like an indicator for ‘sick’, whereas to ‘lay off’ usually has cessation of employment – or footballing – connotations?
| Across | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clue No | Solution | Clue | Definition (with occasional embellishments) / Logic/parsing |
|
| 8A | HOMESICK | Unhappy being on unfamiliar ground, House gets laid off (8) | Unhappy being on unfamiliar ground / HOME (house) + SICK (laid off?…laid low, more like?) |
|
| 9A | INDOOR | Not out to present unlikely ‘noir’ setting for party (6) | not out(side) / IN_OR (anag, i.e. unlikely, of NOIR) around (providing setting for) DO (party) |
|
| 10A | THEME | Old-fashioned one swallowed May’s main recurrent idea (5) | recurrent idea / THE_E (old-fashioned, you, or one) around M (first, or main, letter of May) |
|
| 11A | TOLERANCE | Not elected, Clinton era over – ultimately, grace is not Trump’s forte (9) | not Trump’s forte / TOLERANC (anag, i.e. over, of CL( |
|
| 13A | REVOLVING | & 14ac. Ordering Volvos to be scrapped, by which exiting government members gain immediate employment? (9) | (metaphor for the method) by which exiting government ministers gain immediate employment (usually with companies who gained from their decision while in power…) / anag, i.e. to be scrapped, of ORDERING VOLVOS |
|
| 14A | DOORS | see 13ac. (5) | see 13A / see 13A |
|
| 16A | CROFTS | Plots to construct fort in Conservative South? (6) | plots (of land) / C_S (Conservative & South) around ROFT (anag, i.e. construct, of FORT) |
|
| 18A | FRILLS | Cockney excitements – mere affectation (6) | mere affectation / homophone – a Cockney might pronounce TH as F, so THRILLS (excitements) might become FRILLS. |
|
| 22A | ESSEX | Queen’s favourite drugs congress (5) | (allegedly!) Queen (Elizabeth I)’s favourite (Robert Devereaux, Earl of Essex) / ES (e – ecstasy tablet, or drug, pluralised) + SEX (congress) |
|
| 23A | ASPARAGUS | A southern state taking on dicey Sugar’s plant (9) | plant / A + S (southern) + PA (Pennsylvania, US state) + RAGUS (anag, i.e. dicey, of SUGAR) |
|
| 25A | SARCASTIC | Scornful Russia’s sneaky, non-U act against Clinton’s lead (9) | scornful / SARCASTI (anag, i.e. sneaky, of R( |
|
| 27A | BATHE | Club man, a soak (5) | soak / BAT (club) + HE (man) |
|
| 28A | TICKER | Bloodsucker? The Speaker finally shows heart (6) | heart / TICK (bloodsucker) + ER (last letters of thE and speakeR) |
|
| 29A | GRIEVOUS | Deplorable Gove is involved with utterly ruthless leaders (8) | deplorable / anag, i.e. involved, of GOVE IS + UR (leading letters of Utterly and Ruthless) |
|
| Down | ||||
| Clue No | Solution | Clue | Definition (with occasional embellishments) / Logic/parsing |
|
| 1D | RHETORIC | Right hand erotic manipulation: it’s often longwinded (8) | it’s often long-winded / anag, i.e. manipulated, of RH (right-hand) + EROTIC |
|
| 2D | IMPERVIOUS | One’s deviant with debts untouched (10) | untouched / I’M PERV (one’s deviant!) + IOUS (debts, promises) |
|
| 3D | AS WELL | Too “America’s first” to be expansive? (2,4) | too / A (first letter of America) + SWELL (to be expansive) |
|
| 4D | SCOTTIE | Dog Nicola Sturgeon, perhaps, with “fix!” (7) | dog / SCOT (Nicola Sturgeon, perhaps) + TIE (fix) |
|
| 5D | INTRUDER | Having gained power, Trump initially even more coarse – interloper! (8) | interloper / IN (having gained power) + T (initial letter of Trump) + RUDER (even more coarse) |
|
| 6D | BORN | & 26dn. Donald Trump was reportedly carried by Fatty (4) | Donald Trump was… / BORN (homophone, i.e. reportedly, of ‘borne’, carried by) + RICH (fatty) |
|
| 7D | GREENS | Some party members are vegetables (6) | double defn / some (political) party members could be GREENS; and vegetables can be GREENS |
|
| 12D | LEGS | see 20dn. (4) | see 20D / see 20D |
|
| 15D | OBLIGATION | Big tool in a cast is a liability (10) | liability / anag, i.e. cast, of BIG TOOL IN A |
|
| 17D | TAXPAYER | Many a multinational is reluctantly making X-ray tape (8) | many a multinational is, reluctantly / anag, i.e. making, of X-RAY TAPE |
|
| 19D | SUSPENSE | Feeling about American power: nervous uncertainty (8) | uncertainty / S_ENSE (feeling) around US (American) + P (power) |
|
| 20D | LAST | & 12dn. Endure members on which collapse is imminent (4) | on which collapse is imminent / LAST (endure) + LEGS (members) |
|
| 21D | SPECTRE | Shadow cabinet leader beset by Peter’s outburst (7) | shadow / SPE_TRE (anag, i.e. outburst, of PETER’S) around (besetting) C (leading letter of Cabinet) |
|
| 22D | ERSATZ | Simulated raised pimple one leaves on one side of grotty arse (6) | simulated / ERSA (anag, i.e. grotty, of ARSE) + TZ (Z- |
|
| 24D | ROBBER | ‘Backing Boris’ is going live – right fraud (6) | fraud / ROB (BOR- |
|
| 26D | RICH | see 6dn. (4) | see 6D / see 6D |
|
thanks mc_rapper67 – I managed to scrape the solutions but there were a couple I couldn’t quite parse at the time 11a and 5d but your explanations are crystal clear.
Do also agree 8a seems a bit of a stretch re laid off but still enjoyable crossword
Do you think it’s arguable for 8a that it’s just ‘off’->’sick’, and that “is laid” is part of the specification: HOME is put in place, (then) SICK?
lemming – I like the creative thinking
a mischievous alternative might be that Cyclops is having a lot of luck in the bedroom department and therefore…
House = Ho
Gets Laid = me
Off = sick