Dac has contributed another of his regular Wednesday puzzles today.
Overall, I found this towards the easy end of the Dac spectrum, but no less enjoyable for that. The clue that took me longest to solve was actually 2, since I had convinced myself that the answer had to be “repeat”, and I was trying hard to make the wordplay fit – only at the end did I realise that another solution was required that fitted the wordplay properly and the definition equally well!
I didn’t know the expression at 24, although it could be satisfactorily worked out from the wordplay. I am not totally sure of my parsing of 17 and my interpretation of “rifle-man”, and would be interested to hear what others made of it.
My favourite clues today were 8, for maintaining the postal theme through wordplay and definition alike; 18, for smoothness of surface; and 20, for making me smile when the penny dropped.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | HARD CASH | Tough guy’s brief: finding hot money
HARD CAS<e> (=tough guy; “brief” means last letter dropped) + H (=hot, as on tap) |
| 05 | TIPTOP | Perfect advice to parliamentary leader
TIP (=advice) + TO + P<arliamentary> (“leader” means first letter only) |
| 09 | SUPERIOR | Better drink served to queen, having put away port
SUP (=drink) + [RIO (=port, in Brazil) in ER (=queen)] |
| 10 | MAQUIS | Underground fighter runs from nobleman
MA<r>QUIS (=nobleman); “runs (=R, in cricket) from” means letter “r” is dropped; a maquis was a member of the French guerrilla resistance forces during WW2 |
| 12 | LEAVE | Holiday the French have, being short of capital
LE (=the French, i.e. the French word for the) + <h>AVE (“being short of capital” means first letter dropped) |
| 13 | EGOMANIAC | Self-important type, say, Middle Easterner about to suffer setback
E.G. (=say, for example) + OMANI (=Middle Easterner) + AC (CA=circa; “to suffer setback” indicates reversal) |
| 14 | DISAPPOINTED | Not pleased daughter has got the job?
D (=daughter) + IS APPOINTED (=has got the job) |
| 18 | SWISS COTTAGE | Largely fashionable writer taking time in part of London
SWIS<h> (=fashionable; “largely” means last letter is dropped) + SCOTT (=writer, i.e. Sir Walter Scott) + AGE (=time) |
| 21 | HALLMARKS | Distinguishing features of booty Communist mentioned
Homophone (“mentioned”) of “haul (=booty) + Marx (=Communist)” |
| 23 | NURSE | Regularly inquires re NHS worker
<i>N<q>U<i>R<e>S <r>E; “regularly” means alternative letters only are used |
| 24 | DOG-END | Create what’s central to agenda? It’s a bit of a fag
DO (=create) + <a>GEND<a> (“what’s central to” means all but first and last letters are used); a dog-end is a cigarette butt |
| 25 | TARRAGON | Arrogant, rearranging plant
*(ARROGANT); “rearranging” is anagram indicator |
| 26 | LURING | Tempting girl ultimately with posh item of jewellery
<gir>L (“ultimately” means last letter only) + U (=posh) + RING (=item of jewellery) |
| 27 | RECLINER | Comfy seat on front on cruise ship
RE (=on, i.e. regarding) + C<ruise> (“front of” means first letter only) + LINER (=ship) |
| Down | ||
| 01 | HASSLE | Trouble as ship gets stuck in sound
SS (=ship) in HALE (=sound, healthy) |
| 02 | REPLAY | Theatre company takes on amateur show again
REP (=theatre company) + LAY (=amateur, of e.g. preacher) |
| 03 | CARVERIES | Restaurants having terrible bar service as chief of baristas is absent
*(<b>AR SERVICE); “chief of baristas (=B, i.e. first letter only)” means letter “b” is dropped from anagram, indicated by “terrible” |
| 04 | STONEMASONRY | Yarn about one man’s unusual craft
*(ONE MAN’S) in STORY (=yarn, tale); “unusual” is anagram indicator |
| 06 | IVANA | Russian woman stuck in minivan apparently
Hidden (“stuck”) in “minIVAN Apparently” |
| 07 | TOURISTY | One visits Loire destination, extremely tacky and popular with sightseers
[I (=one) in TOURS (=Loire destination, i.e. French city)] + T<ack>Y (“extremely” means first and last letters only) |
| 08 | POSTCODE | It’s on address label after ‘cash on delivery’, near bottom of package
POST- (=after) + C.O.D. (=cash on delivery) + <packag>E (“bottom of” means last letter only) |
| 11 | FOR PETE’S SAKE | Goodness gracious! Soil-like deposit’s reportedly found in desert
Homophone (“reportedly”) of “peat’s (=soil-like deposit’s)” in FORSAKE (=desert, abandon) |
| 15 | IN GENERAL | By and large, Frenchman’s upset, cuddled by popular girl
ENER (RENÉ=Frenchman, i.e. a man’s name in France; “upset” [indicates vertical reversal) in [IN (=popular) + GAL (=girl)] |
| 16 | ASPHODEL | Deal with shop ordering plant
*(DEAL + SHOP); “ordering” is anagram indicator |
| 17 | PILLAGER | Maybe rifleman curled lip, given alcoholic drink
PIL (PIL; “curled” indicates vertical reversal) + LAGER (=alcoholic drink); cryptically, a “rifleman” or a man rifling through someone’s property is a pillager, ransacker |
| 19 | OREGON | I’ll follow men over North American state
OR (=men, i.e. Other Ranks) + EGO (=I) + N (=North) |
| 20 | LEANER | Thinner person who’s not upstanding
Cryptically, a person who’s not upstanding, i.e. not standing up straight, could be described as a “leaner” against something |
| 22 | MANON | Opera overshadowed by Norma? No, never
Hidden (“overshadowed by”) in “NorMA? NO, Never”; the reference is to the opera by Vincenzo Bellini, first performed in 1831 |
I found this hard for a Dac – different strokes as they say. Had to cheat on 18a: I didn’t know Swiss Cottage was a part of London and was working with SW1 for this to no avail. Also cheated on 11d but answer clear with hindsight. Some fairly obscure words I thought, such as: maquis, manon and asphodel. My parsing for 17d matched yours RR.
Lovely stuff as ever. I’m with Hovis that it was harder-end for this setter, though I didn’t help meself by missing the anagram for 16d for a while. Fave clue today is the elegant 14a so thanks to Dac for the puzzle and to RR for the blog.
Just about right for me. Got it all without aids, although it took me ages to get 11dn.
I couldn’t parse 18ac. I thought the answer was obvious and got it just from the first letter and the enumeration. I’m embarrassed seeing the explanation as I visited Scott’s house in Abbotsford just last week.
Good to have Dac back in the Wednesday slot. Apart from putting REPEAT for 2dn (no wonder I couldn’t parse it) I got everything except 11dn, which I just couldn’t see. Easy enough to parse, though, once I got the answer from Chambers Word Wizard.
Thanks, Dac and RatkojaRiku