I found this easier than usual, but all the more enjoyable for it. Thank you Azed.
| Across | ||
| 1 | OLDFANGLED | Tattered Flodden flag, foot missing, as museum piece (10) |
| anagram (tattered) of fLODDEN FLAG missing F (foot) | ||
| 11 | PAROL | Time out from sentry-go, describing evidence verbally (5) |
| PAtROL (sentry-go, in instruction to patrol) missing T (time) | ||
| 12 | BEEFALO | Buzzer, one interrupting doss-house (not quiet), making you cross (7) |
| BEE (buzzer) then A (one) inside FLOp (doss-house) missing P (quiet) | ||
| 13 | PRAWLE | Fluellen’s dust-up: Welsh parlance shows this clan he’s upset (6) |
| WELSH PARLANCE shows anagram (upset) of PRAWLE (this) CLAN HE’S – Shakespearean term, Fluellen is a (Welsh) character in Henry V | ||
| 14 | NASCAR | Name former racing driver I missed in modern version of his sport (6) |
| N (name) then Alberto ASCARI (former racing driver) missing I | ||
| 16 | TONG | Secret society garment, coating number (4) |
| TOG (garment) containing (coating) N (number) | ||
| 17 | SHOTTE | Young pig is briefly getting warmed up, tail removed (6) |
| ‘S (is, briefly) with HOTTEr (warmed up, missing tail) | ||
| 18 | DE FIDE | In retirement, nourished with fish? That’s got to be believed (6, 2 words) |
| FED (nourished) reversed (in retirement) with IDE (fish) | ||
| 19 | SENESCENT | Ecstatic about unfolding scene getting on (9) |
| SENT (ecstatic) containing anagram (unfolding) of SCENE | ||
| 22 | PROPONENT | In jug, wretchedly poor, new inside – advocate required (9) |
| PENT (in jug, prison) contains anagram (wretchedly) of POOR N (new) | ||
| 26 | FLUGEL | Grand chap (not low) appearing in drag? The opposite (6) |
| LUG (drag) in FELlow (chap) missing LOW – grand piano | ||
| 28 | ENGAGE | Committed, even when having to keep silence (6) |
| ENE (even) containing GAG (silence) |
||
| 29 | LOAF | Cob nut? (4) |
| double definition | ||
| 31 | OBLATE | Religious devotee, twice deceased (6) |
| OB and LATE (deceased, twice) | ||
| 32 | ROMANY | Caravan-owner? Lots going on right-hand side (6) |
| MANY (lots) on RO (recto, on right hand side) | ||
| 33 | RAMJETS | Jack in steamrollers (only half working) for aero engines (7) |
| J (jack) in anagram (working) of STEAMRollers (half of) | ||
| 34 | AUGER | Earth burrows in a core of turf? This bores holes (5) |
| GE (germanium, a rare earth) in A with tURf (core of) better: Ge is Gaea, god of the Earth | ||
| 35 | SCREEN-TEST | Possible start of film career – secret’s blown about part in Hospital? (10) |
| anagram Blown) of SECRET’S containing ENT (part in hospital) | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | LARCHEN | Rare piny variety of chenar below lake (7) |
| anagram (variety) of CHENAR following L (lake) | ||
| 3 | DRALON | Acrylic fabric in drawer cut lengthwise (not good) (6) |
| 4 | FOWL | Female bird? Not necessarily (4) |
| F (female) OWL (bird) | ||
| 5 | ALLOTS | Is rationing so far limiting rising tax? (6) |
| AS (so far) containing TOLL (tax) reversed (rising) | ||
| 6 | GENS DE PEU | Low-income groups e.g. spend freely with Europe? (9, 3 words) |
| anagram (freely) of EG SPEND then EU (Europe) | ||
| 7 | LEAVEN | It’ll excite change in general and cause end of inaction (6) |
| LEAVE (cause) with inactioN (end of) | ||
| 8 | DACOIT | I do act criminally (6) |
| anagram (criminally) of I DO ACT | ||
| 9 | BLAND | Dull lecturer accepted by group (5) |
| L (lecturer) in BAND (group) | ||
| 10 | FORGETTERY | Odd bits of statue missing in counterfeit? That’s absent- mindedness (10) |
| sTaTuE (odd bits missing) in FORGERY (counterfeit) | ||
| 13 | PASSIFLORA | Flowering climber flaps so, air becoming agitated (10) |
| anagram (becoming agitated) of FLAPS SO AIR | ||
| 15 | DECOLLETE | Like art given licence in French article – quite revealing! (9) |
| DECO (like art, art deco) then LET (given licence) in LE (definite article, French) | ||
| 20 | ENGINES | English ensign at sea, more than one with tender behind? (7) |
| anagram (at sea) of E (English) and ENSIGN – steam engines | ||
| 21 | QUALMS | Relief following Queen’s feelings of sickliness (6) |
| ALMS (relief) following QU (queen) | ||
| 23 | REITER | One seen on cavalry horse – could be a hack, we hear? (6) |
| sounds like (we hear) writer (hack) | ||
| 24 | ON LOAN | Like part of trousseau, look, one that’s worn on top? (6, 2 words) |
| LO (look) AN (one) following (that has…on top) ON (worn). |
||
| 25 | EATAGE | A label stuck in middle of cheese: ‘It’s right to tuck in’ (6) |
| A TAG (label) in chEEse (middle of) | ||
| 27 | LOBAR | Easier high-jump challenge (women excluded) affecting anatomical part? (5) |
| LOw BAR (easier high-jump challenge) missing W (women) | ||
| 30 | SMUT | Cereal disease, part of fungus mutating (4) |
| found inside funguS MUTating | ||
definitions are underlined
I did wonder if 24dn is a reference to the old “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” The something borrowed would be on loan.
I think 28a is supposed to be ENGAGÉ.
I thought the best explanation for 2d was drawer=DR and lengthwise=ALONG with ‘cut’ presumably indicating that ‘drawer’ was abbreviated but only necessary for the surface reading. I thought the clue would have been better if ‘(not good)’ was removed and ‘cut’ indicated that ALONG should be cut short.
I agree with Dormouse about TROUSSEAU.
I also agree with Matthew about 28a (but I’ve forgotten how to include accents). For 3d, DR=DRAWER is in Chambers; I think it’s banking terminology, referring to chequers.
Sorry, that should be cheques.
Dormouse @1 – you are right. Under the entry Something Old in Wikipedia I find this:
The usual effect on the bride of the Evil Eye is to render her barren, and this is obviated by wearing “something borrowed”, which should properly be the undergarment of some woman who has been blessed with children: the clothes communicate fertility to the bride.
Definitely on the easy side for Azed, when it did eventually appear on the Guardian’s website. The number of question marks I have at the end, very few in this case, is usually a pretty good indicator of difficulty.
At 34a perhaps the Ge is referring to the Greek goddess of earth Ge (alternative spelling of Gaea).
Yes ernie, I think you have a better explanation for ge than I do.