Sleuth provides the FT challenge this Thursday morning.
I found this one a little frustrating as I instantly put in about half of the answers, and then found myself stalling as I struggled to parse some of the solutions.
There’s one I’m still not sure about (19ac), and my LOI was 20dn, where I’m not sure that the definition works.
Alongside some very straightforward clues, there were lots of others with clever wording such as 1ac, 5ac, 21ac, and 4dn.
Thanks, Sleuth.
| Across | ||
| 1 | HABITUAL | Customary problem user has upgrading ageing laptops primarily (8) |
| HABIT (“problem user has” – think drugs, for example) + U(pgrading) A(geing) L(aptops) | ||
| 5 | TWO-BIT | Figure in one’s wake had an effect that’s paltry (3-3) |
| TWO (“figure in one’s wake”) + BIT (“had an effect”) | ||
| 9 | RELEGATE | Put lower limb in a tree swaying (8) |
| LEG (“limb”) in *(a tree) | ||
| 10 | ASPIRE | A father pocketing little money finds hope (6) |
| A + SIRE (“father”) pocketing P(enny, so “little money”) | ||
| 12 | SHEER | Unmitigated cut by the sound of it (5) |
| Homophone of SHEAR | ||
| 13 | COME OFF IT | Desist from computers and the like? Don’t be ridiculous! (4,3,2) |
| COME OFF (“desist from”) I.T. (“computers and the like”) | ||
| 14 | VIABLE | Sailor put in base with potential for growth? (6) |
| A.B. (able-bodied “sailor”) put in VILE (“base”) | ||
| 16 | GO SPARE | See red and green box by front of embassy (2,5) |
| GO (“green”, as in “green light”) + SPAR (“box”) + E(mbassy) | ||
| 19 | PIANIST | Spiritual number is put in hands of six-footer as source of music (7) |
| PI (“spiritual” or “number”, or “spritual number”?) + IS in ANT (“six-footer”)
I’m not 100% sure on this parsing, as I can’t decide if Sleuth has used a cryptic clue within a crytic clue. |
||
| 21 | PENCIL | Writer beginning to promote revolutionary policy about Cuba (6) |
| P(romote) + <=LINE (“policy”) about C(uba)
C is the international car resignation abbreviation for Cuba. |
||
| 23 | LUCRATIVE | Profitable travel I organised entertaining posh clients principally (9) |
| *(travel I) entertaining (U (“posh”) + C(lients)) | ||
| 25 | SWOON | Faint bit of writing readily accepted (5) |
| W(riting) accepted by SOON (“readily”) | ||
| 26 | ABOARD | A set of executives on a train? (6) |
| A + BOARD (“set of executives”) | ||
| 27 | SEMOLINA | A lemon is liquidised in pudding (8) |
| *(a lemon is) | ||
| 28 | ENTICE | Allure in English and French resort over time (6) |
| E(nglish) + NICE (“French resort”) over T(ime) | ||
| 29 | BETRAYAL | Opinion shown by two men is breach of trust (8) |
| BET (“opinion”, as in “it’s me bet he’s up to no good”) + RAY + AL (“two men”) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | HARASS | Badger, timid mammal almost when close to humans (6) |
| HAR(e) (“timid creature”, almost) + AS (“when”) + (human)S | ||
| 2 | BALLERINA | Liberal in Arab line trained as a theatrical performer (9) |
| L(iberal) in *(Arab line) | ||
| 3 | TIGER | Golfer among friends in row about golf (5) |
| TIER (“row”) about G(olf)
To his friends, Tiger Woods, the golfer, would be simply “Tiger”. |
||
| 4 | AUTOCUE | Supplier of lines needed by anchor? (7) |
| Cryptic definition – an autocue wouold supply lines to a (news) anchor. | ||
| 6 | WISCONSIN | Sun is among western symbols popular in state (9) |
| S(un) among W(estern) ICONS (“symbols”) + IN (“popular”), so W-I(S)CONS-IN | ||
| 7 | BRIEF | Short statement of aims (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 8 | TWENTIES | Period elapsed in ruined site (8) |
| WENT (“elapsed”) in *(site) | ||
| 11 | SMUG | Singular idiot of a conceited nature (4) |
| S(ingular) + MUG (“idiot”) | ||
| 15 | BRIC-A-BRAC | British gallery with British artist about to show old curios (4-1-4) |
| Br(itish) + I.C.A. (“gallery”) + B(ritish) + R.A. (“artist”) + c (circa, so “about”)
I.C.A. stands for Instirute of Contemporary Art, an art museum and exhibition space in Boston, USA. R.A. stands for Royal Academy (of Arts) and is standard crosswrodese for “artist”. |
||
| 17 | ANIMOSITY | It may so spread around province as hatred (9) |
| *(it may so) around N.I. (Northern Ireland, so “province”) | ||
| 18 | SPILLAGE | End of copious loot? There’s evidence of waste (8) |
| (copiou)S + PILLAGE (“loot”) | ||
| 20 | THIN | Unaccountable dislike when spurning good diet? (4) |
| (THIN)g (“unaccountable dislike”, as in “I have a thing about spiders”) | ||
| 21 | PRECEDE | Introduce pressure with arbitrary decree (7) |
| P(ressure) + *(decree) | ||
| 22 | ON CALL | Side with name describing some doctors? (2,4) |
| ON (“side” – think cricket) + CALL (“name”) | ||
| 24 | CLOUT | Influence clubs over ill-mannered person (5) |
| C(lubs) + LOUT (“ill-mannered person”) | ||
| 25 | SCOUR | Examine thoroughly part of this coursework (5) |
| Hidden in “thiS COURsework” | ||
*anagram
Thanks loonapick
I too wondered about the parsing of 19ac. I initially had it as you have indicated but that doesn’t account for the ‘hands of’. I eventually decided to go with PI (spiritual) plus N (number) IS in A[n]T (hands of six-footer).
I too wondered whether the N was accidentally clued twice or if PI was clued twice. Neither is really acceptable imho. 20d was my LOI which I parsed as in the blog but wasn’t entirely convinced it was right. Apart from these minor points, a quick, enjoyable solve with many well written clues. Thanks to all.
Sorry, just understood what you meant Gaufrid. Bit slow today. ‘In the hands of’ referring to the end letters (left and right hand sides) of ant.
I thought this trickier than usual for a Sleuth – an enjoyable solve
Thanks to him and Loonapick too
Figure in one’s wake is a very clevva way to clue two..tho the but part is iffy. Several iffy ones i thot today
Thanks Sleuth and loonapick.
There is, or certainly was, an I(nstitute of) C(ontemporary) A(rts) in London.
Yes, Simon @ 6, there certainly is/was. I did a week’s season playing at the ICA way back in 1988. Kindly reviewed too.
Thanks to CS for alerting me to the leprechaun’s FT appearance today. Very much enjoyed this and learned a couple of new things – the abbreviation for the 15d institute and the use of ‘allure’ as a verb.
Thanks to Sleuth (pleased to note that you slotted in the homeland!) and thanks to Loonapick for the decryption.
As to ICA, used in 15d, just have a look at the magnificent Hob puzzle in the Indy today (and at 14d, in particular).
So, that’s 40% of my “Five a day” ….
I took PI as ‘spiritual number’.
There’s no other way the clue will work.
Yes, as you say Loonapick, a sort of cryptic definition as part of the construction.
Some may not like it, other may say ‘novel’.
Good crossword which I rather enjoyed.
Thanks Sleuth and loonapick
Nice crossword that took a couple of shorter sittings either side of a 30 minute lunch to get out. Some really clever devices used in this one – a couple that were too good for me to parse properly:
TWO BIT – an excellent way of defining TWO and a not so obvious definition of BIT;
PIANIST – which I had parsed similarly to the blog with the same question mark – Gaufrid’s version makes it deviously very good.
With 20d, I went with the THIN definition being ‘when spurning good diet’ – implying a double use of ‘when spurning good’ (or does that just count as being a 3/4 &lit clue?). That one an VIABLE were my last couple in.