Hob takes the Saturday hot-spot today.
All good fun as we have come to expect from this setter, with several 10ac clues.
Joyce had never come across 19ac – Bert had a rather vague memory of this version of the Chinese currency, but we both were puzzled by the fact that the day-to-day currency in China is the Yuan. An online check revealed that the relationship between Renminbi and Yuan is similar to that between Sterling and the pound – respectively the national currency and its primary unit. You learn something every day in crossword land!
| ACROSS | ||
| 7 | Win at home? No, I don’t believe it! (3,4) | |
| GET AWAY | WIN (get) AWAY (at home? – No) | |
| 8 | Cooked meal all over plate (7) | |
| LAMELLA | Anagram of MEAL ALL – anagrind is ‘cooked’ | |
| 9 | Journey time not quite ready (4) | |
| TRIP | T (time) RIP |
|
| 10 | Popular outlet – setter’s showing creativity (9) | |
| INVENTIVE | IN (popular) VENT (outlet) I’VE (setter’s – setter has) | |
| 12 | SE Asian native, one displaying bloomers after stripping off (5) | |
| LORIS | ||
| 13 | Clap team off – one in top of table setting (5,3) | |
| PLACE MAT | Anagram of CLAP TEAM – anagrind is ‘off’ | |
| 16 | On reflection, crossword has them (4) | |
| ROWS | Hidden and reversed or ‘on reflection’ in the clue crosSWORd | |
| 17 | Devices worn on boots in 22A (5) | |
| SPURS | SPURS (devices worn on boots) and football team from Tottenham – 22ac | |
| 18 | Location of shopping arcade? Likely in the centre (4) | |
| DELI | Hidden (‘in the centre’) in arcaDE LIkely | |
| 19 | Small bird, say, born in small Asian capital (8) | |
| RENMINBI | REN (sounds like ‘wren’ – small bird) + B (born) inside MINI (small) | |
| 21 | Friendship or sex, in a setter’s case (5) | |
| AMITY | IT (sex) in or ‘cased by’ A MY (setter’s) | |
| 22 | The man running after a small child somewhere in London (9) | |
| TOTTENHAM | An anagram of THE MAN – anagrind is ‘running’ after TOT (small child) | |
| 24 | Awful finisher, reportedly? (4) | |
| DIRE | Sounds like (‘reportedly’) someone dying. The ? refers to the fact that there isn’t a word ‘DIER’ | |
| 26 | Spanish guitarist goes touring the Italian way (7) | |
| SEGOVIA | An anagram of GOES – anagrind is ‘touring’ VIA (Italian for way) | |
| 27 | Badmouth a team here, with very loose talk? (7) | |
| ASPERSE | A + a homophone (‘loose talk’) of SPURS (a team featured at 17ac) | |
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | A Lord‘s match? He’s going (4) | |
| PEER | Double definition and PEER (someone relieving themselves or peeing) | |
| 2 | Places to leave motor boats weighed down by fish (3,5) | |
| CAR PARKS | ARKS (boats) underneath or ‘weighed down by’ CARP (fish) | |
| 3 | City End’s toilets (6) | |
| LADIES | LA (city) DIES (ends) | |
| 4 | Killer, one shut up in prison (4) | |
| CAIN | I (one) ‘shut up’ in CAN (prison) | |
| 5 | Against Spain, an example of Moore’s passing (6) | |
| DEMISE | DEMI’S (as in Demi Moore) E (Spain) | |
| 6 | This, for one, is not even cultured (4) | |
| CLUE | Odd letters or ‘not even’ letters in CuLtUrEd | |
| 11 | Gassy state? Deep-fried Indian breads contain zero gas (9) | |
| VAPOURISH | VA (Virginia – state) PURIS (deep fried Indian breads) around O (zero) + H (Hydrogen – gas) | |
| 12 | Undone by game against Home Counties (5) | |
| LOOSE | LOO (game) SE (Home Counties) | |
| 14 | Ratings for muscles (3) | |
| ABS | ABS (able-bodied seamen – ‘ratings’) | |
| 15 | Marble top taken from kitchen (5) | |
| ALLEY | ||
| 17 | Day of the week for a rising setter (3) | |
| SUN | A play on the fact that the SUN rises and sets | |
| 18 | Got less done, with daughter replacing son (8) | |
| DWINDLED | ||
| 20 | What one might pass in Test before smooth run-out (6) | |
| MOTION | MOT (test) I |
|
| 21 | Nearly lost a match, only header worked (6) | |
| ALMOST | An anagram of LOST A and M (first letter or ‘header’ of match) – anagrind is ‘worked’ | |
| 22 | Conversely, side fall heavily (4) | |
| TEEM | A homophone (‘conversely’, as in ‘conversation’) of TEAM (side) | |
| 23 | Fine chap, if somewhat hysterical (4) | |
| ERIC | Two defintions and hidden in (‘somewhat’) hystERICal | |
| 25 | Career in a rock group (4) | |
| RUSH | Double defintion | |
Very enjoyable, but it was only on reading your blog that I realised that 22a 17a had multiple homophonic references on the way through. I can see 9 now, but of course they were no help at the time. FA cup this w/e as well, and Spurs are on their way to Wembley…… oh hang on
Thanks to Hob and B&J
Make that 10 – just noticed half a left-back @ 1d.
Many thanks Paul A – not knowing anything about Spurs we missed the connections. We can find Harry Kane (Cain), Dele Alli (Deli and alley), Erik Lamela (Eric and lamella), Hugo Lloris (loris), Eric Dier (Eric and dire). All of these are on the current team.
Can you help with the others please?
Well done Hob!
Have just found Keiran Trippier (Trip and Peer) and Danny Rose (rows)!
Sun @17d (Son Heung Min), I suppose, and maybe Teem at a stretch.
Shameless attempt at ingratiation with the gaffer by Hob.I’ll be watching for a Wenger-gloating puzzle up next.
Segovia is joining on loan in the close season.
thanks to Hob, B&J
@Paul A
I was thinking Eric + Sun =Eriksen and that the Min was in Renminbi but who knows?… great fun anyhow
Great, thanks Hob, B&J
Result of Spurs losing Harry Kane? Brother! (6,5)
I knew the football team but all the related references went over my head – sorry, Eimi!
8 &19a were new to me as was the actor Eric Fine and the Indian bread.
Struggled to parse 11d and thought the definition in 13a was a little odd.
Thanks to Hob and to B&J for the explanations.
I found this quite tough, and had to cheat in the end. Even then, I couldn’t see 5dn. A word search got me 19ac, but when I saw it, it rang a bell. I think it’s turned up before.
My father took me to see Spurs play once. Danny Blanchflower was still playing for them then.
Disappointed space couldn’t be found for Toby Alderweireld or Moussa Sissoko.
Smashing puzzle though and sorry about today’s result.
Tough going but we got there with a bit of help – RENMINBI wasn’t quite new to us having been encountered in crosswordland once before but promptly forgotten so we needed a wordfinder to remind us of it. And we thought SUN was either (a) too obvious or (b) too subtle. Some of the homophone indicators (e.g. ‘conversely’) seemed to be stretching things a bit, too.
Thanks, though, to Hob – and to B&J especially for being on duty two days running.
Broken heart, maybe a bit hyperbolic; familiar sense of disappointment, more like.
Familiar broken heart for me
Great puzzle, though, I thought