Math is the setter this Wednesday, occupying the slot predominantly filled by Dac.
There is a clear film theme to the across entries with some further allusions to films and film actors in the clues.
Knowledge of the film scene is definitely not one of my strengths, so I’ll leave it people who comment to identify all the references. However I did realise that the films had a ghostly feel to them, in terms of their titles if not their content. I’ve a suspicion that many of the film clues are descriptive of some part of the film itself, but as I haven’t seen the films I’m not sure.
There was also a nod to the geographers with AFGHANISTAN, PAKISTAN, Lancashire and Bury all getting a mention
I solved this fairly steadily.
I think all the entries were words or phrases I have come across before. ALKALISED and GIGANTISM were perhaps the most obscure but both were clued as fairly obvious anagrams.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
| 1 | See 9 | ||
|
5
|
Victor is in dreadful poor condition (7)
|
(V [Victor is the International Radio Communication Codeword for the letter V] + IS) contained in (in) an anagram of (dreadful) POOR PRO (V IS) O* |
PROVISO (condition)
|
| 9 / 1 | Funny film‘s got her heaving bosom in first of shots (12) |
I’m struggling a bit with one of Ss in the this entry but I think it’s built from: (BUST [bosom] contained in [in] an anagram of (heaving) ‘S GOT HER where the ‘S is the possessive in FILM’S) + S (first letter of [first of] SHOTS) GHOST (BUST) ER* S |
GHOSTBUSTERS (comedy film) |
|
10
|
Like salad could be made more basic! (9)
|
Anagram of (could be) LIKE SALAD ALKALISED*
|
ALKALISED (Made more basic. An ALKALI is a chemical base that is soluble in water. All ALKALIs are bases, but not all bases are ALKALIs)
|
|
11
|
One goes in to have meal with Sally on vacation to relax (4,2,4)
|
(I [one] contained in [goes in to] TAKE TEA [have meal]) + SY (letters remaining in SALLY when the central letters are removed [on vacation]) TAKE (I) TE A SY |
TAKE IT EASY (relax)
|
|
12
|
Girl has old 5d coin that’s the same on both sides (4)
|
ANNA (girls name) that is palindromic (the same on both sides) ANNA |
ANNA (former coin of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, one sixteenth of a rupee – possibly worth about 5d?) that is a palindrome (the same on both sides) double definition
|
|
14
|
Country coat is brown (11)
|
AFGHAN (coat made of sheepskin) + IS + TAN (tawny brown colour) AFGHAN IS TAN |
AFGHANISTAN (country)
|
|
18
|
Cast let priest go in scary movie (11)
|
Anagram of (cast) LET PRIEST GO POLTERGEIST* |
POLTERGEIST (scary movie)
|
|
21
|
Keep everything back inside fence with it (4)
|
ÉPÉE (hidden word [inside] reversed [back] in KEEP EVERYTHING) ÉPÉE< |
ÉPÉE (a sharp-pointed, narrow-bladed sword without a cutting edge, used for duelling and, with a button on the point, for fencing)
|
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22
|
Bury has Lancashire’s foremost musical show cut short by uninvited guest (10)
|
INTER (bury) + L (first letter of [foremost] LANCASHIRE) + OPERA (musical show) excluding the last letter (cut short) A INTER LOPER |
INTERLOPER (intruder; uninvited guest)
|
|
25
|
Move over as pet dies unfortunately (4,5)
|
Anagram of (unfortunately) AS PET DIES STEP ASIDE* |
STEP ASIDE (move over)
|
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26
|
Broadcast first class action comedy film (5)
|
AI (A one; first class) + RED (2010 action comedy film) AI RED |
AIRED (broadcast)
|
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27
|
Solo pilot’s first to go in front. Cruise in jet (7)
|
P (first letter of [first] PILOT) + HAN (reference HAN Solo, character in Star Wars) + TOM (reference actor TOM Cruise [born 1962]) P HAN TOM |
PHANTOM (name given to a couple of McDonnell Douglas jet fighters)
|
|
28
|
Good man pulls muscle in soldier spy movie (7)
|
(ST [saint; good man] containing [pulls … in]) PEC [pectoral muscle]) + RE (Royal Engineer; soldier) S (PEC) T RE |
SPECTRE (2015 James Bond film)
|
| Down | |||
|
1
|
John has to put up key capital (6)
|
BOG (toilet; loo) + TO reversed (put up; down clue) + A (musical key) BOG OT< A |
BOGOTA (capital city of Columbia)
|
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2
|
Spies have No 2 meeting head of KGB on board ship (6)
|
(POO [faeces; No 2] + K [first letter of [head of] KGB]) contained in (aboard) SS (steamship) S (POO K) S |
SPOOKS (spies)
|
|
3
|
Removing last of clothes, tried sex act in new positions, then disentangled (10)
|
Anagram of (in new position) TRIED SEX ACT excluding (removing) S (final letter of [last of] CLOTHES) EXTRICATED* |
EXTRICATED (disentangled)
|
|
4
|
Colour screen (5) |
SHADE (colour) SHADE |
SHADE (screen) double definition
|
|
5
|
A sink tap I ordered for a neighbour of No 14 (9)
|
Anagram of (ordered) A SINK TAP I PAKISTANI* |
PAKISTANI (native of PAKISTAN, a country that shares a border with AFGHANISTAN [14 across])
|
|
6
|
Starting late, boy eats up fillet of lemon sole (4)
|
BOY excluding the first letter (starting late) B containing (eats) the letters remaining in LEMON when the middle letters are removed [filleted]) O (NL<) Y |
ONLY (sole)
|
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7
|
Foolishness only takes a second to turn into madness (8)
|
INANITY (foolishness) containing (takes) S (second) IN (S) ANITY |
INSANITY (madness)
|
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8
|
Ex-husband meets relative in former stamping ground (3,5)
|
OLD (ex) + H (husband) + AUNT (relative) OLD H AUNT |
OLD HAUNT (former stamping ground)
|
|
13
|
Girl nonetheless consumed 19 for example (10)
|
DI (girl’s name) + STILL (nonetheless) + ATE (consumed) DI STILL ATE |
DISTILLATE (SPIRIT [19 down] is an example of a DISTILLATE)
|
| 15 | I’m staging reconstruction to generate excessive growth (9) |
Anagram of (reconstruction) I’M STAGING GIGANTISM* |
GIGANTISM (excessive overgrowth) |
|
16
|
Goes faster with drug and drink (6,2)
|
SPEED (example of an amphetamine; synthetic potentially habit-forming drug) + SUP (drink) SPEED S UP |
SPEEDS UP (goes faster)
|
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17
|
A broken love needing time’s soothing balm (4,4)
|
A + an anagram of (broken) LOVE + ERA (period of time) A LOE V* ERA |
ALOE VERA (variety of an ALOE plant or especially, the juice of its leaves [thought to have healing and other qualities] used in cosmetics. Soothing balm.
|
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19
|
Liquor, a bit of rum I poured into gob (6)
|
(R [first letter of {a bit of} RUM + I) contained in (poured into) SPIT (gob) SPI (R I) T |
SPIRIT (liquor)
|
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20
|
Fellow on top of hill gets cooler (6)
|
F (fellow) + RIDGE (long narrow top or crest of a hill) F RIDGE |
FRIDGE (refrigerator; cooler)
|
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23
|
Leader of 7 getting drastically demoted, quits …
|
SEVEN (7) with the first letter S moving to the bottom (getting drastically demoted) to form EVENS, this down entry EVENS |
EVENS (quits)
|
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24
|
… bank and is just not able (4)
|
CAN’T (is unable to) CANT |
CANT (inclination from the vertical; bank) double definition
|
I have no trouble with your parsing for 9/1. I also had the same parsing for 12a, but feel there must be more to it. Maybe not?
Thanks Duncan
Hovis is right, there is more to 12ac. The solution to 5d is PAKISTANI and an ANNA used to be part the currency in Pakistan, as well as India, as you indicated, so one of the definitions is ‘old Pakistani coin’.
I liked the ghostly theme, including in clues such as 8d, that’s not a ghost theme. I knew ‘alkalinised’ but not the alternative ‘ALKALISED’. Otherwise nothing too obscure. Favourite was the misleading ‘5d’ in the clue for ANNA, a word that in the numismatic sense has been getting a bit of a cryptic crossword work out lately.
Thanks to Math and Duncan
Very enjoyable easier-end puzzle and a continuation of several movie-themed Indy grids. Lots of fun clues here with my fave being 10a so thanks to Math for the puzzle and to DS for the blog.
Thanks, Duncan.
I did manage this, but going into grumpy old man mode: Monday Indy puzzle, themed; Tuesday Indy puzzle, themed; Wednesday Indy puzzle, themed … As I’ve said in grumpy mode before, I don’t really need a themed puzzle every day, because if you don’t get it, you (or I) can’t finish it. Once a week, maybe? And I know, you don’t have to understand the theme to solve the crossword.
I thought SPOOKS was very good and also enjoyed PHANTOM
Thank you to Math also.
To give you a little background on the theme(s), I started the puzzle almost a year ago with the intention that the clues would have a bit of a movie theme and the answers would have a bit of a ghost theme (and, in the spirit of a proper ghost theme, the clues would not hint at the spectral subject matter).
This was supposed to coincide with the Ghostbusters reboot last year which would bring the two themes together in a topical crossover.
Unfortunately, due to delays in getting the puzzle finished and the fact that Serpent beat me to the punch with a better ghost themed crossword, Eimi wisely decided to postpone publication. However, he felt that there has now been sufficient time for you to have recovered from Serpent’s spookiness and, as there didn’t seem to be any point holding out for a Ghostbusters sequel to make it topical again, I agreed.
Sadly it means that the “scary movie” theme is now a bit passé (although I believe some people still haven’t calmed down yet about the film’s apparently most terrifying feature: women being funny).
Thanks to Duncan for the excellent blog and Gaufrid for the spot on clarification for 12a and apologies for anyone offended by the scatological references when doing number 1 and number 2 and the sexual reference in 3 going down!
Math@6, scatology could have been the theme, with EPEE and SPEEDS UP on top of the others. Enjoyed it, thanks to S&B
I really enjoyed this. Quite a quick solve, but the film-y theme was right up my street. Loved 2 and 3 down.
Many thanks to Math for another great puzzle and Duncan for the blog