My first blog for a while, many thanks to Gaufrid whilst I’ve been a bit under the weather.
Didn’t have too many problems solving this, typing it up is another matter as I’m still rather shaky, so sorry for any typos or errors.
Thanks Everyman, that was fun to be able to get my brain back in gear.
Across
1 Eager demon before a match not lacking heart (9)
IMPATIENT
IMP – demon & A & TIE – match & a heartless N(o)T
6 Front of ship supporting weight (4)
PROW
PRO – for, supporting & W(eight)
8 Barriers broken by real pest involved in deceptive behaviour (5,9)
FALSE PRETENCES
[REAL PEST]* involved inside FENCES – barriers. I’d have thought the criminal meaning of fences mighht make a better surface but that’s just me
10 Sign changes, losing volume (5)
ARIES
Zodiac time, V(olume) removed from (v)ARIES
11 Horse in endless action after record back in time of greatest achievement (6,3)
GOLDEN AGE
NAG – horse – in an endless DEE(d) after LOG – record reversed
12 Items as arranged for artist (7)
MATISSE
[ITEMS AS]* arranged
14 Saint surrounded by snakes and crows (6)
BOASTS
S(ain)T inisde BOAS – snakes
17 Difficult hearing (6)
TRYING
Double definition
18 Audibly dismissed, revolutionary pair left (3,4)
OUT LOUD
OUT – dismissed in cricket say & a reversed [DUO & L(eft)]
20 Strengthen control, following evil creature east (9)
REINFORCE
REIN – control & F(ollowing) & ORC – fierce creature & E(ast)
22 Diving bird black in colour apart from tail (5)
GREBE
B(lack) in a tailless GREE(n)
23 Doubts, even if temporary initially, harboured by assistants (6,8)
SECOND THOUGHTS
THOUGH – even & T(emporary) inside SECONDS – assistants in a duel say
24 Happy tips in general accepted (4)
GLAD
Tips of G(enera)L A(ccepte)D
25 Critic‘s article in German about time with performer (9)
DETRACTOR
T(ime) in the German article DER & ACTOR – performer
Down
1 Format mainly designed to be provocative (12)
INFLAMMATORY
[FORMAT MAINLY]* designed
2 Friend not clear about right method of fortune-telling (9)
PALMISTRY
PAL – friend & R(ight) in MISTY – not clear
3 Strain without opening lock (5)
TRESS
No opening to (s)TRESS
4 Tea before the usual time holding amount of work up (4,4)
EARL GREY
ERG – a work unit reversed inside EARLY. An ERG is a cgs unit of work or energy; the work done by a force of one dyne acting over a distance of one centimetre. So now you know!
5 Gossip, tons and tons in story (6)
TATTLE
2 * t(ons) inside TALE – story
6 Write note on amount paid for festival (9)
PENTECOST
PEN – write & TE (a drink with jam and bread) & COST
7 Musical drama in old age retaining power (5)
OPERA
O(ld) & P(ower) & ERA – age
9 Shrewd sellers newly disposing of large piece of furniture (5,7)
WELSH DRESSER
L(arge) removed from a newly [SHREWD SEL(L)ERS]*
13 Cool gains for excited Democrat (9)
SANGFROID
[GAINS FOR]* excited & D(emocrat)
15 Bird coming from south to north, swallow around church (9)
STONECHAT
S(outh) & TO & N(orth) & CH(urch) inside EAT – swallow
16 Plant, cut by me, covering a bit (8)
SOMEWHAT
ME inside SOW – to plant & HAT – covering
19 Hero, dedicated, partly undermined (6)
ERODED
Hidden – partly – inside hERO DEDicated
21 One understanding dream (5)
IDEAL
1 & a deal, understanding
22 Fuss raised about last item of menu after good cheese (5)
GOUDA
G(ood) & end of (men)U in ADO – fuss reversed
Thanks Everyman and welcome back flashling
Thank you Everyman and flashling – do hope you are soon fully recovered.
A pleasant solve after the efforts of the week. I had been expecting EARL GREY to turn up at some point, but guess it will be a while before Lapsang souchong does.
Welcome back flashling, hope you’re back to full health before long.
Regarding the puzzle, it was very much on the easy side, with the RHS last to fall. Don’t ask why it took me so long to get 9d as I live in, well, Wales. 🙂
As a rather upper class ex-girlfriend was fond of saying, “It is NOT Earl Grey Tea! It is Earl Grey’s Tea!”
Ah, well… language changes through usage, I guess.
I am more at home with ergs than the niceties of tea names.
Thanks, Everyman and flashling!
Thank you Everyman and flashling
New words for me were STONECHAT, WELSH DRESSER
I needed help to parse 11a.
Didn’t find this one that easy. These crosswords are more for purists. I think that’s why there aren’t many comments these days. Guessed a lot and there were many I couldn’t parse.
Needed help with the last three (16/19D 25A). Sometimes HWs elude me. Got the rest quite quickly (i.e. under an hour, good for me) although had to confirm Stonechat
Grebe and Earl Grey were nice
Thanks Flashling, happy recuperations, and EM
Similarly raced through most of it but 16d stumped me and I’d never heard of a Stonechat.
Like others I struggled with 16d. Rest was simple enough despite not having heard of a GREBE or a STONECHAT. Both were good clues. I enjoy these types where you can parse the answer and then confirm using google.
Sorry to hear you were not well Flashling. Get well soon.
Glad to hear you are on the mend flashling. Grebe and a couple of others we had trouble parsing. We had heard of grebes but not stonechats. Had to use Mr. Quinapalus to find that. We are more familiar with tuis, kereru and moreporks.