Independent 9858 / Phi

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Another Phi-day comes round and yet another classic Phi puzzle.

 

As we have now come to expect, we can’t help feeling that there is something going on here, but we can’t find a theme or a nina. Any ideas out there?

We really weren’t too keen on the clue for 21ac, but no complaints about the rest of the puzzle – a good Friday work-out and more enjoyable in our opinion, than last Saturday’s puzzle.

Across
1   Attempt permitted to interrupt dreadful trio in opera (9)
RIGOLETTO GO (attempt) LET (permitted) in or ‘interrupting’ an anagram of TRIO – anagrind is ‘terrible’
6   Roster of names curtailed after capturing feasible rugby team (5)
LIONS LISt (roster of names) without the last letter, or ‘curtailed’ round or ‘capturing’ ON (feasible)
9   Increasingly crude exclamation about bit of crude language? (7)
COARSER COR (exclamation) about ARSE (‘bit of crude language’)
10   Prompting Judge to override start of recording (7)
JOGGING J (judge) replacing or ‘overriding’ the first letter or ‘start’ of lOGGING (recording)
11   Sinful? Quick to pull back (4)
EVIL LIVE (‘quick’) reversed or ‘pulled back’
12   Trip to Concertgebouw, perhaps, requiring everyone to pay? (5,5)
DUTCH TREAT ‘Concertgebouw’ is a DUTCH concert hall in Amsterdam – a trip there could be considered a TREAT
14   Uncertain start to derby – but foul is despicable (8)
DOUBTFUL D (first letter or ‘start’ to ‘derby’) + an anagram of BUT FOUL (anagrind is ‘despicable’)
15   See 5 Down
18   What’s used to mash potatoes, other veg and half of leek? (6)
BEETLE BEET (‘other veg’) LEek (‘half of’). We hadn’t come across this word for a potato masher before, but it’s there in Chambers, so we’ll know what to call the spud-basher in future!
19   Government left soldiers with bills to pay? Wonderful (8)
GLORIOUS G (government) L (left) OR (other ranks – soldiers) IOUS (bills to pay)
21   Easily the best for those hating percussion? (10)
UNBEATABLE This doesn’t quite work for us, but it must be that percussion instruments, which have to be ‘beaten’ might be considered UNBEATABLE by those who dislike them
23   In the thick of receiving millions in support (4)
AMID M (millions) in AID (support)
26   Disliked accommodating a Parisian affected by the past (7)
HAUNTED HATED (disliked) round or ‘accommodating’ UN (‘one’ in French, or ‘a’ Parisian)
27   Variety of coat? Yes (3,4)
TEA COSY A Clue-as-Definition – an anagram of COAT YES – anagrind is ‘variety of’
28   Tense time in self-produced song (5)
DITTY T (tense) T (time) in DIY (‘self-produced’)
29   Delivery of claret following punch? (9)
NOSEBLEED Cryptic definition – a punch on the NOSE might lead to a ‘delivery of claret’ or BLEED
Down
1   Quick investigation regarding source of corruption in church (5)
RECCE RE (regarding) C (first letter or ‘source’ of ‘corruption’) in CE (church)
2   Old King with freedom to release fifty in acknowledgement (9)
GRATITUDE GR (‘old king’ – one of the various King Georges) lATITUDE (freedom) without or ‘releasing’ the ‘l’ (fifty)
3   Past TV series? Some not so likely to be brought up (4)
LOST Hidden (‘some’) and reversed (‘brought up’) in ‘noT SO Likely’
4   Hill climbing out with our squad involved (8)
TORTUOUS TOR (hill) OUT reversed or ‘climbing’ US (‘our squad’)
5/15   Various job lots seen to incorporate constant warning (6,6)
OBJECT LESSON An anagram of JOB LOTS SEEN (anagrind is ‘various’) round or ‘incorporating’ C (constant)
6   Large distance? Largish yet possibly achievable! (5-5)
LIGHT-YEARS An anagram of LARGISH YET – anagrind is ‘possibly achievable’
7   Green shows shape of hole, as it happens (5)
OLIVE O (‘shape of hole’) LIVE (as it happens)
8   Views complaints about metal grille at the opening (9)
SIGHTINGS SIGHS (complaints) about TIN (metal) G (first letter or ‘opening’ of ‘grille’)
13   Surgeon initially reckoning to constrain skin blemish steadily (10)
STALWARTLY S (first or ‘initial’ letter of ‘surgeon’) TALLY (reckoning) round or ‘constraining’ WART (skin blemish)
14   Society girl greatly wanted to embrace you finally becoming abandoned (9)
DEBAUCHED DEB (Society girl) ACHED (‘greatly wanted’) round or ‘embracing’ U (last or ‘final’ letter of ‘you’)
16   Meteorologist’s first study blocking keeping weather indicator (5,4)
STORM CONE M (‘first’ letter of ‘meteorologist’s’) CON (study) in or ‘blocking’ STORE (‘keeping’)
17   Enterprise navigator upset about recent wails (8)
ULULATES SULU (‘Mr Sulu’ – navigator on the Starship ‘Enterprise’ in the original ‘Star Trek’ TV series) reversed or ‘upset’ about LATE (recent)
20   Information about Arab-Dutch plot (6)
GARDEN GEN (information) about AR (Arab) D (Dutch)
22   Outspoken but interrupted by Liberal then Nationalist (5)
BLUNT BUT round or ‘interrupted by’ L (Liberal) and N (Nationalist)
24   Unappealing poster showing nymph (5)
DRYAD DRY (unappealing) AD (poster)
25   Meat from US picnic (no cake around) (4)
LAMB cLAM-Bake (‘US picnic’) without ‘cake’

 

8 comments on “Independent 9858 / Phi”

  1. At the easier end of the Phi spectrum, I thought, and none the worse for it. He’s a wonderful setter, but sometimes one feels that he strays over the beauty-of-surface/solvabilty interface. I agree about 21, though did wonder whether something like ‘unable to bear beat’ was intended, but you’d want a bit more of a nudge towards that in the clue. All good fun nonetheless. Thanks to Phi & Bertrandjoyce.

  2. Had to look up the concert hall and also the ‘spud masher’ and thought I’d missed something in 21a – apparently not!

    No particular favourite but enjoyed the solve.

    Thanks to Phi and to B&J for the blog.

  4. Came together in the end after a few hold ups along the way with ULULATES (Star Trek references go straight over my head) and UNBEATABLE.

    Who would ever have known there was an official name for the humble potato masher? Along with this my favourite was NOSEBLEED.

    Thanks to Phi and B&J.

  5. All pretty straightforward and, as GB says @1, at the easier end of the Phi spectrum.  We don’t have any issue with 21ac but we wondered why the lower-case ‘d’ for ‘derby’ in14ac – the race, like the city, has an initial capital.  And TEA COSY evoked a groan once we saw it.

    Our favourites were RIGOLETTO, DUTCH TREAT and STORM CONE – the latter since one of us has had a long-standing interest in meteorology.

    Thanks, Phi and B&J.

  6. I was annoyed with myself when I found I’d absent-mindedly erased a twelfth thematic entry – don’t usually reach twelve in a grid like this. I would however like to point you to the wonderful and macabre world of Edward Gorey where you will find The Glorious Nosebleed, The Lost Lions, The Evil Garden, The Haunted Teacosy, The Object Lesson and (my own entry point) The Doubtful (Guest). Gorey is somewhere on a line between Lewis Carroll and Edgar Allan Poe, with traces of Agatha Christie, and well worth a look to see whether he’s your cup of tea.

  7. Thanks Phi for reminding me of Edward Gorey. My sister is a fan and I bought a couple of books as presents. I remember Doubtful Guest now but of course no bells rang while solving. Favourite Dutch Treat. Thanks also to B&J.

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