The Observer crossword from June 10, 2018
Another flawlessly clued puzzle from many solvers’ Sunday favourite.
That said, the surfaces – although generally meaningful – could have done with a bit more spice. Everyman puzzles often have a dose of cultural references but, apart from Richard Wagner, there was none of it ‘today’. Which is the main reason that the blog is somewhat ‘dry’. But, let’s face it, the Spanish do not always win but they are still pretty good, aren’t they? Meanwhile, nice for our solvers down under (and there are many!) to have 27ac included.
[and nice for Pierre to have 6ac included]
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | DOWNSTREAM | In direction of current ambition, securing private street (10) |
| DREAM (ambition) around {OWN (private+ + ST (street)} | ||
| 6 | SKUA | Seabird‘s wings in storybook turning gold (4) |
| S[toryboo]K + a reversal [turning] of AU (gold) | ||
| 9 | EIGHT | Crew took food according to report (5) |
| Homophone [according to report] of ATE (took food) | ||
| 10 | SCRAMBLED | Get lost, drained and muddled (9) |
| SCRAM (get lost) + BLED (drained) | ||
| 12 | TURNIP | Track back and pinch vegetable (6) |
| Reversal [back] of RUT (track), followed by NIP (pinch) | ||
| 13 | CINNAMON | Stocked by fantastic inn, amontillado’s spicy stuff (8) |
| Hidden answer [stocked by]: fantastic inn amontillado | ||
| 15 | FRINGE BENEFIT | Extra nervous beginner, last of intake in row taken round (6,7) |
| Anagram [nervous] of BEGINNER + [intak]E, together inside a reversal [taken round] of TIFF (row) | ||
| 18 | TORTOISESHELL | Cat getting little horse so agitated (13) |
| Anagram [agitated] of LITTLE HORSE SO | ||
| 20 | OVERTURN | Open with silly run, upset (8) |
| OVERT (open) + an anagram [silly] of RUN | ||
| 21 | BARBED | Hurtful obstacle followed by plot (6) |
| BAR (obstacle) + BED (plot) | ||
| 24 | ANNOYANCE | Article, canny one stirring anger (9) |
| A (article) + an anagram [stirring] of CANNY ONE | ||
| 25 | ISSUE | Question for children (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 26 | YAWL | Sailing boat left course, going west (4) |
| L (left) + WAY (course), together reversed [going west] | ||
| 27 | WELLINGTON | Healthy and popular, with good weight? Capital (10) |
| WELL (healthy) + IN (popular) + G (good) + TON (weight) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | DYESTUFF | Colourant below standard? Certainly time to go into that (8) |
| DUFF (below standard) with YES (certainly) + T (time) going inside | ||
| 2 | WAGER | Gamble from composer dropping name (5) |
| WAGNER (composer) minus N (name) | ||
| 3 | SITTING PRETTY | Smart about appeal, fairly well placed (7,6) |
| STING (smart) around IT (appeal), followed by PRETTY (fairly) | ||
| 4 | REST | Unwind remaining part (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 5 | ADROITNESS | Run into trouble over testimony lacking weight and expertise (10) |
| R (run) inside ADO (trouble), followed by WITNESS (testimony) minus the W (weight) at the start | ||
| 7 | KILOMETRE | Outfit infiltrated by devious mole supported by engineers in distance (9) |
| Anagram [devious] of MOLE, going inside KIT (outfit), then followed by RE (engineers) | ||
| 8 | ARDENT | Passionate in study, enthralled by technique (6) |
| DEN (study) inside ART (technique) | ||
| 11 | MANIFESTATION | Display from person providing website’s latest post (13) |
| MAN (person) + IF (providing) + [websit]E + STATION (post) | ||
| 14 | ABHORRENCE | Sailor, leader of heroes previously, admitting sin, raised disgust (10) |
| AB (sailor) + H[eroes] + ONCE (previously), going around a reversal [raised] of ERR (sin) | ||
| 16 | IN THE KNOW | We think differently about number possessing inside information (2,3,4) |
| Anagram [differently] of WE THINK, going around NO (number) | ||
| 17 | BLUDGEON | Learner in shift working for club (8) |
| L (learner) inside BUDGE (shift) + ON (working) | ||
| 19 | BOTANY | Study of plants in colour occupying child (6) |
| TAN (colour) inside BOY (child) | ||
| 22 | BESET | Live group, harassed (5) |
| BE (live) + SET (group) | ||
| 23 | DEAL | Agreement necessary to provide alibi (4) |
| Hidden answer [necessary to]: provide alibi | ||
I found this one more difficult than usual, but it was a good Sunday workout.
New words for me were YAWL & DYESTUFF.
I could not parse 15a.
27a was a surprise – at first glance I had assumed it would be Washington!
Thanks Everyman and Sil
Thank you Everyman and Sil.
Like michelle, I found this more difficult than usual and had to parse some of the long answers after entering them.
I also first thought of Washington even though I was born in WELLINGTON and lived there for the first 12 years of my life.
Thanks to the setter and Sil. After going through the clues the first time I only had about three words entered and worried I might not get it finished. But slowly the grid started to fill in and after about 90 minutes it was complete. I found the cluing very good. Last one in was Dyestuff. I enjoyed Fringe Benefit and Sitting Pretty.
Well I struggled with this, but then again I was struggling to think full stop at the time so… Having struggled badly through three quarters I gave up, came back later the same evening and fairly flew through.
Nice. Favourites were Wellington of course, amd Scrambled. Didn’t fully parse 11D, the ‘IF’ part eluded me.
5D was LOI.
Back to the soccer replays.
Took a long time to do this one. Filled the bottom half first. Took a long time to get dyestuff and was surprised to find it was a word. Nice to find Wellington there.
Well done to get so far in the World Cup, England and good luck against Sweden tomorrow.
This one was a bit of a wake up call for me after a few easy weeks. I needed help with 21ac even more bought I guessed the two parts. LOI was 17d. Thanks Sil & Everyman.
The surface for 19 down (botany) was too obvious. I struggled with 1 down (dyestuff); “duff” for “below standard” was too obscure for me. Couldn’t parset 11 down (manifestation) and 14 down (abhorrance) although the answers were obvious. Kind of a mix of too easy and too hard, but I guess it all balanced up, and was in the end both a chanllenge and do-able.
Got off the mark quick enough but stalled with scattered clues. Couldn’t for the life of me parse 1d and went for DYESTOFF (close enough!). Not a word I’d heard of.
Enjoyed BLUDGEON and FRINGE BENEFIT. A good crossie!
@Barrie, I tried a Chifonie and also a Picaroon. Some fairly sophisticated clues in that lot. My first Chifonie was the 2nd Jan issue which I got out in next to no time. I wondered what that fuss was all about. Then I tried the next one and only got through half! Picaroon was tricky again. Check out this superb anagram from Picaroon:
I’ll be welcomed by Stefan Edberg out drinking (6, 7)
I notice that 6 across SKUA
is AUKS spelled backwards.
So it is ‘seabirds’ in both directions.
Intentional or coincidence?