Typical Alberich fare this morning, always a joy…
…after blogging the Guardian crossword with its obvious error yesterday, it was a relief today to have to blog a really good puzzle, full of excellent clues and a variety of devices and clever misdirections.
Thanks, Alberich.
| Across | ||
| 1 | MANICURE | How doctor describes male patient’s cosmetic treatment? (8) |
| MAN I CURE (“how doctor describes male patient”) | ||
| 5 | PSYCHO | Excerpt from Gypsy Chorus used for film (6) |
| Hidden in (excerpt from) “GyPSY CHOrus”
Refers to Hitchcock’s classic 1960 movie. |
||
| 9 | ANTELOPE | Stake holds back European animal (8) |
| ANTE (“stake”) holds <=POLE (“European”, back) | ||
| 10 | CRUMBS | Fancy some bits of cake? (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 12 | REIGN | Speaker’s downfall is to predominate (5) |
| Homophone of (speaker’s) RAIN (“downfall”), indicated by | ||
| 13 | SPECTATOR | Harry Potter’s beginning to charm a viewer (9) |
| *(potters c a), where the C is the begginning of C(harm) | ||
| 14 | CHASTE | Pure heroin found in class (6) |
| H(eroin) found in CASTE (“class”) | ||
| 16 | ACHIEVE | Perform Bach and Prokofiev’s final trios with energy (7) |
| (b)ACH + (prokof)IEV + E(nergy) | ||
| 18 | ENTAILS | Calls for offal right away (7) |
| ENT(r)AILS (“offal”, with R(ight) away) | ||
| 20 | AERIAL | Receiver of Shakespearean spirit, so they say (6) |
| Homophone (so they say) of ARIEL (“Shakespearean spirit” from The Tempest) | ||
| 22 | MINT SAUCE | Accompaniment to lamb is nice – a must when cooking (4,5) |
| *(nice a must) | ||
| 23 | APPLE | Place secured by mimic for Pippin? (5) |
| Pl.(ace) secured by APE (“mimic”) | ||
| 24 | URINAL | River surrounds fashionable place to go (6) |
| URAL (“river”) surrounds IN (“fashionable”) | ||
| 25 | COGITATE | Business has private gallery to consider (8) |
| Co,(mpany, so “business”) + G.I. (American “private”) + TATE (“gallery”) | ||
| 26 | HOGGED | Did some gardening, keeping horse cornered (6) |
| HOED (“did some gardening”) keeping GG (“horse”)
My surname is Hogg, but I don’t think I’ve come across that definition before? |
||
| 27 | TERMINAL | Final word one and all oddly ignored (8) |
| TERM (“word”) + I (“one”) + (a)N(d)A(l)L | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | MEAGRE | Inadequate male meets a bore (6) |
| M(ale) meets EAGRE (tidal “bore”) | ||
| 2 | NOTWITHSTANDING | I don’t want things disturbed yet (15) |
| *(i dont want things) | ||
| 3 | COLIN | Introducing 50 Cent? That’s him (5) |
| COIN (“cent?”) introducing L (“50”) | ||
| 4 | RIPOSTE | Sally’s on about current job (7) |
| RE (“on”) about I (“current”) + POST (“job”) | ||
| 6 | STRETCHER | Extremely stout person heaving a brick (9) |
| S(tou)T + RETCHER (“person heaving”) | ||
| 7 | COME THE RAW PRAWN | Aussie’s attempt to deceive won’t hamper a crew at sea (4,3,3,5) |
| *(wont hamper a crew) | ||
| 8 | OBSERVER | Upstanding cleric’s after new robes, one notices (8) |
| <=REV (“cleric”, upstanding) after *(robes) | ||
| 11 | VEGA | US city expels young female star (4) |
| (las) VEGA(s) (“US city”, expelling LASS (“young female”) | ||
| 15 | SHIPSHAPE | Having eaten joints, Mum needs a gym to get trim (9) |
| SH (“mum”, as in “keep mum”) + A + P.E. (“gym”), having eaten HIPS (“joints”), so S(HIPS)H-A-P.E. | ||
| 17 | VERMOUTH | It is truly endless insolence (8) |
| VER(y) (“truly”, endless) + MOUTH (“insolence”) | ||
| 19 | SCUD | Swiftly move missile (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 20 | ACETONE | One colouring is an organic solvent (7) |
| ACE (“one”) + TONE (“colouring”) | ||
| 21 | REPEAL | Revoke article in disgust (6) |
| A (“article”) in REPEL (“disgust”) | ||
| 23 | AXIOM | Man wants a kiss on principle (5) |
| I.O.M. (Isle of “Man”) wants A X (“kiss”) on | ||
*anagram
Thanks, loonapick – a joy and a relief indeed.
I really enjoyed this, especially the clever anagrams at 2 and 7dn. I tried for a minute or two to justify MEDITATE at 25ac but ACETONE soon set me right.
MINT SAUCE wrote itself in – but with a smile – and I liked the clue for SHIPSHAPE, too.
Many thanks to Alberich for brightening up yet another dull, dreary day, weatherwise.
I think at least half the Aussie-isms were either made up or recycled by B Humphries. I laughed at the Private Eye strip and when I came out here it was different
I first thought 19 was DART. VERMOUTH well worth a mention.
Thanks both. Re 26a, I think “hogged” as in “cornered the market”. As to your “deliberate” error, “pure” should be underlined in 14a.
Thanks Alberich and Loonapick.
Like Copmus, I also initially had DART for 19d.
A good and sound crossword.
Very nice. The long anagrams are excellent for natural surface, and I was lucky to remember Come the raw prawn from a recent puzzle – an amusing expression. I love things like “pure heroin”, “fashionable place to go” etc, lovely clues. The Harry Potter one stands out as well.
A much more pleasant solve than today’s guardian, which was too much work.
Many thanks Alberich, and thanks as always loonapick
Totally agree with Dutch’s second para.
Thanks to Alberich and loonapick. I too started with dart, not SCUD, and was defeated by COME THE RAW PRAWNS (even with all the crossers) and VERMOUTH. I did pencil in CRUMBS but did not get the connection to “fancy.” Still, I agree that this puzzle was more enjoyable than today’s Guardian.
Thanks Alberich and loonapick
In catch up mode still and only got to this one today. Initially found it on the easy side, but slowed down as I progressed through it. Embarrassingly, took a long time to get the Aussie-ism at 7d, needing most of the crossers to do so – it’s rarely used in everyday speech.
I had HOGGED as john@3 did.
Finished in the SW corner with URINAL and VERMOUTH (where I always get slowed up with this definition of ‘it’) !