Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of March 3, 2018
I found this a relatively easy and enjoyable puzzle. My clue of the week is the lovely 17dn (BRIEFEST) even though it did not come easily and was my last-in. I would also pick out 10ac (CORSAIR), 9dn (LONDONDERRY AIR) and 22dn (OZONE).
| Across | ||
| 1 | FLAT-PACK | Tiresome group ready for assembly (4-4) |
| FLAT (tiresome) + PACK (group) | ||
| 5 | PLAICE | Fish put on the radio? (6) |
| Homophone (on the radio) of “place” (put) | ||
| 10 | CORSAIR | Pirate radio initially interrupting island broadcast (7) |
| R[adio] in COS (island) + AIR (broadcast). Cos (or Kos) is a Greek island in the Aegean. | ||
| 11 | OSMOSIS | After great moment, relative learning gradually (7) |
| OS (great, i.e. out-sized) + MO (moment) + SIS (relative) | ||
| 12 | ONSET | Start working hard (5) |
| ON (working) + SET (hard) | ||
| 13 | SEDENTARY | Sun keeping garden dry, ultimately doing little (9) |
| EDEN (garden) in (keeping) STAR (sun) + [dr]Y | ||
| 14 | PRIME NUMBERS | First book 2, then 3 etc (5,7) |
| PRIME (first) + NUMBERS (book). The definition seems hardly adequate. | ||
| 18 | AIR FRESHENER | Farm worker lying back in shower of rain, here in fragrant spray (3,9) |
| SERF (farm worker) backwards (lying back) in anagram (shower of) RAIN HERE | ||
| 21 | STEGOSAUR | Goats sure to rattle old reptile (9) |
| Anagram (to rattle) of GOATS SURE | ||
| 23 | SHARP | Out of tune? Precisely! (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 24 | ICEBOAT | Arctic vessel heading off Jacobite at sea (7) |
| Anagram (at sea) of [j]ACOBITE | ||
| 25 | APRICOT | Ego caught by spring on bed – that’s juicy! (7) |
| APR (spring) + I (ego) + COT (bed) | ||
| 26 | GATHER | Understand mass (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 27 | TRUMPERY | Seek to snatch back last of the trinkets (8) |
| RUMP (back) + [th]E together in TRY (seek) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | FACTOR | Agent, pro concealing pretence (6) |
| ACT (pretence) in FOR (pro) | ||
| 2 | ARREST | Stop a lie being uttered? (6) |
| Homophone (being uttered) of “a rest” (a lie) | ||
| 3 | PLASTERER | Smoother mountain to climb, rest set out with little hesitation (9) |
| ALP (mountain) backwards (to climb) + anagram (set out) of REST + ER (little hesitation) | ||
| 4 | CHRISTMAS PARTY | Winter jolly cold: Apr/May T-shirts out? (9,5) |
| C (cold) + anagram (out) of APR MAY T SHIRTS | ||
| 6 | LEMON | Yellow line less popular one day (5) |
| L[in]E (line less popular) + MON (one day) | ||
| 7 | IN SPADES | How one might bid, to a very great degree (2,6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 8 | ESSAYIST | Writer perhaps is in rare set (8) |
| SAY (perhaps) + IS (is) together in anagram (rare) of SET | ||
| 9 | LONDONDERRY AIR | Old song heard in the seat of Westminster, possibly? (11,3) |
| Homophone (heard) of “London derriere” (the seat of Westminster, possibly) | ||
| 15 | MAELSTROM | Half of mere mortals suffering turmoil (9) |
| Anagram (suffering) of ME[re] MORTALS | ||
| 16 | HASSLING | Prepared to bring down Goliath? That’s worrying (8) |
| HAS SLING (prepared to bring down Goliath) | ||
| 17 | BRIEFEST | Celebration of French produce, most limited (8) |
| BRIE FEST (celebration of French produce) | ||
| 19 | GAUCHE | Uncomfortable being left in Paris? (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 20 | SPOTTY | Pimply student’s opening nuts (6) |
| S[tudent] + POTTY (nuts) | ||
| 22 | OZONE | Measure of weight with atomic number of hydrogen gas (5) |
| OZ (measure of weight) + ONE (atomic number of hydrogen) | ||
I believe you meant “Christmas Party” for 4d. Otherwise, thanks for a long-awaited confirmation.
Thanks Mudd and Pete. Just a small slip in the parsing of 3dn, where I am sure you meant to say “anagram (set out) of REST” for the middle element.
Oh dear, I am getting sloppy again. Thank you Rick and Pelham for these corrections.
Thanks Mudd & Pete.
Unlike yourself, I found this much more difficult than usual from Mudd. My only contribution here is to point out another parsing slip — in 15 down the anagram indicator is suffering, not suffering turmoil.
D’Oh! Another one. I guess “suffering turmoil” seemed like a better anagram indicator!
Thank you.
Thanks Mudd and Pete
I also found this took longer than normal for this setter and didn’t properly parse the, what turns out to be very slick, LONDONDERRY AIR.
I actually thought that PRIME NUMBERS was cleverly defined to give a good surface reading that tried to subtly mislead one – found APRICOT more loosely defined if one was being critical at all.
Lots to like and finished up in the NW corner with FLAT PACK and ARREST the last couple in.
I agree that the definition for APRICOT is rather loose but I am surprised by your approval of the definition for PRIME NUMBERS. Are you considering the enumeration as part of the clue (and thus also part of the definition)?
Nope, I hadn’t thought of it that way – if he had of written ‘2 or 3 for example’ then there would probably not have been a discussion at all of the definition. If he writes ‘2, 3, etc.’, then there is probably also not much of a debate. He writes ‘then’ instead of the comma to create a smooth surface and for me a misdirection on the word play of how to justify PRIME NUMBERS which made me appreciate the clue all the more when that penny dropped.
If you follow your point of counting book 1, book 2, book 3, etc. – that is, where number can mean a book (more in the context of periodicals or magazines though) then one could argue the point for some sort of quirky &lit type clue I guess.