An enjoyable start to a Sunday morning. Thank you Poins.
I made life hard for myself by entering a couple of wrong answers at first. In both cases I remember thinking that the clue was a little weak as I wrote in my incorrect answer. I really should know better by now.
| Across | ||
| 1 | GROSS | Excessively bulky when including everything (5) |
| double definition. My mistaken first attempt was FATAL: FAT (bulky) AL (all, including everything) | ||
| 4 | PIKE-PERCH | Fish with a rod and something once used by soldiers at the front (9) |
| PERCH (a rod) following (with…at the front) PIKE (something once used by soldiers) – my first attempt was PIKE STAFF (fish + rod) | ||
| 9 | MEDIATE | Consider giving up a bit of territory to bring about agreement (7) |
| MEDItATE (consider) missing Territory(first letter, a bit of) | ||
| 10 | FORLORN | Neglected in spite of Newton embracing traditional learning endlessly (7) |
| FOR (in spite of) N (newton) contains LORe (traditional learning, endlessly) | ||
| 11 | AT THE SAME TIME | Abandoned team-mates tie without Henry nevertheless (2,3,4,4) |
| anagram (abandoned) of TEAM-MATES TIE containing (without) H (henry) | ||
| 14 | LIDO | Cover over swimming pool (4) |
| LID (cover) and O (over) | ||
| 15 | EMPIRICAL | Based on experience of English politician in charge during rail reorganisation (9) |
| E (English) MP (politician) then IC (in charge) inside anagram (reorganisation) of RAIL | ||
| 18 | CONTRALTO | What Kathleen Ferrier was right about after working in California before (9) |
| RT (right) reversed (about) following (after) ON (working) in CAL (California) then TO (before) | ||
| 19 | OMAN | Country fellow in pursuit of love (4) |
| MAN (fellow) following (in pursuit of) O (love, zero tennis score) | ||
| 21 | DISPASSIONATE | Dicky posits an idea about opening of summer fair (13) |
| anagram (dicky) of POSITS AN IDEA containing Summer (opening letter of) | ||
| 24 | ARRAIGN | Complain about foreigners essentially occupying a Scottish island (7) |
| foreIGners (essentially, middle letters of) inside ARRAN (Scottish island) | ||
| 26 | INSPECT | Look into the start of professionalism in cricket for example (7) |
| Professionalism (starting letter of) in INSECT (cricket for example) | ||
| 27 | HANGERS-ON | Remain doubtful about arresting the Queen’s sycophantic followers (7-2) |
| HANG ON (remain doubtful about?) contains ER’S (The Queen’s) | ||
| 28 | PUT UP | Increase offer (3,2) |
| double definition | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | GAME | Plucky in sport of any kind (4) |
| double definition | ||
| 2 | ODDS AND ENDS | Eccentric novelist destroys miscellaneous articles (4,3,4) |
| ODD (eccentric) George SAND (novellist) with ENDS (destroys) | ||
| 3 | SCANTY | Revealing to find heartless spy full of sanctimonious talk (6) |
| SpY (heartless) contains (full of) CANT (sanctimonious talk) | ||
| 4 | PIECEMEAL | Example of a man finally moving up bit by bit (9) |
| PIECE (example) MALE (of a man) with final letter moved up the word | ||
| 5 | KAFKA | Writer from France possessed by spirits (5) |
| F (France) inside (possessed by) KA KA (spirit, twice) | ||
| 6 | PARTERRE | Leave before taking in rector’s formal garden (8) |
| PART (leave) then ERE (before) containing R (rector) | ||
| 7 | RHO | Girl ignoring lawyer’s letter (3) |
| RHOda (girl’s name, meaning rose) missing DA (lawyer) | ||
| 8 | HINTERLAND | Departs with ninth earl to ramble in remote area (10) |
| anagram (to ramble) of D (departs) with NINTH EARL | ||
| 12 | INCOMPETENT | Foolishly in contempt over the introduction of evidence when not legally qualified (11) |
| anagram (foolishly) of IN CONTEMPT containing (over) Evidence (introduction of, first letter) | ||
| 13 | BLACK DEATH | Help to frame first of lectures on the end of disease (5,5) |
| BACK (help) contains (to frame) Lectures (first letter of) on DEATH (the end of) | ||
| 16 | PROMOTION | In favour of poet’s publicity campaign (9) |
| PRO (in favour of) and Andrew MOTION (poet) | ||
| 17 | TREATISE | Discuss the earliest of explorations around Iceland in a written composition (8) |
| TREAT (discuss) Explorations (first, earliest letter of) contains (around) I (Iceland) | ||
| 20 | PASS UP | Let go by Bottom after pressure to get out of bed (4,2) |
| ASS (bottom) following P (pressure) with (to get) UP (out of bed) | ||
| 22 | SINES | Popular in the London area at society functions (5) |
| IN (popular) in SE (London area) with S (society – mathematical functions | ||
| 23 | STOP | Desist from temper tantrum right away (4) |
| STrOP (temper tantrum) missing R (right) | ||
| 25 | RUN | Manage to find a ladder (3) |
| double definition – ladder in a pair of tights for example | ||
definitions are underlined
I write these posts to help people get started with cryptic crosswords. If there is something here you do not understand ask a question; there are probably others wondering the same thing.
Perfect sunny Sunday morning fare. I was also misdirected with PIKESTAFF, the obvious answer to 4A ( see what I did there?), so made life harder than usual. I didn’t get all the parsings, so thanks for the explanations PD, especially 4D. Not quite sure about HINTERLAND= remote area, unless it refers to the UK being in Europe’s hinterland.
However, that’s nitpicking, not to say defying the will of the people.
Many thanks to Poins and PeeDee.
There was one I couldn’t get, but of course having deleted the puzzle I can’t remember which one. Age and having to pass my time these days in a home for the bewildered are my excuses.
Favourites today were CONTRALTO, because Kathleen Ferrier had a voice of great beauty; and FORLORN, because it reminded me of England’s greatest ever scientist.
Thanks to PD for the blog and to our Shakespearean setter.
Good Sunday puzzle. Another who confidently wrote in PIKESTAFF. Never heard of a PIKEPERCH; if it’s not a fish it must be what one leans one’s PIKESTAFF on during a lull.
17D Iceland is IS in this clue.
Thanks to Poins and PeeDee
Very nice @3 gwep. I also bunged in ‘pikestaff’, which made a pretty straightforward and enjoyable puzzle not so straightforward until I twigged I’d bungled. No particular fave today so I’ll just thanks to Poins for a nice puzz and to PD for the blog.
… and another who confidently wrote in PIKESTAFF, but I suspected something was wrong when 6dn just had to be PARTERRE. I might quibble that it should be hyphenated as (4-5) according to Chambers but I see that Collins has it without the hyphen. And in 10a I didn’t immediately think of ‘for’ as ‘in spite of’ although I can see it now, as in “I know the dangers but for all that I’m still going to…”
But an enjoyable gentle solve for a Sunday. Thanks, Poins and PeeDee.