The Observer crossword from July 8, 2018
Some Everyman puzzles are (slightly) harder than others. This one was somewhere in the middle, nicely pitched, precise and a joy to solve.
I started in the NE with the cute 7d and ended in the same quarter (with the interconnected 4ac and 6d).
Good crossword.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | RAVAGE | Destroy resistance, mean, without hesitation (6) |
| R (resistance), followed by AVERAGE (mean) without ER (hesitation) | ||
| 4 | SCOWLING | Bully in cast looking menacing (8) |
| COW (bully) inside SLING (cast) | ||
| 9 | SELF-EXPLANATORY | Legend, about pixie and old partner with proposal and answer, easily understood (4-11) |
| STORY (legend) around {ELF (pixie) + EX (old partner) + PLAN (proposal) + A (answer)} | ||
| 11 | ORDINARILY | Noise with hectic air in airport as a rule (10) |
| DIN (noise) + anagram [hectic] of AIR, together inside ORLY (airport, in Paris) | ||
| 12 | DATE | Appointment kept by lord at embassy (4) |
| Hidden answer [kept by]: lord at embassy | ||
| 13 | SEPIA | Tone of old photographs, religious in the main? (5) |
| PI (religious, short for ‘pious’ before anyone asks) inside SEA (the main) | ||
| 15 | OVERPAID | Rewarded too highly in past with power and support (8) |
| OVER (past) + P (power) + AID (support) | ||
| 18 | DEMERARA | Strange dream about time required to make sugar (8) |
| Anagram [strange] of DREAM going around ERA (time) I wonder if I’m the only one who always forgets how to spell it, 2As, 3? |
||
| 19 | LINGO | Learner at home with good old jargon (5) |
| L (learner) + IN (at home) + G (good) + O (old) | ||
| 21 | DEAR | Diamonds are awfully expensive (4) |
| D (diamonds) + anagram [awfully] of ARE Simple? Yes, but a very neat clue. |
||
| 22 | RISK-AVERSE | Music in stream’s electronic, not adventurous (4-6) |
| SKA (music) inside RIVER’S (stream’s), followed by E (electronic) For those who don’t know, ska is a type of Jamaican music similar to reggae. I don’t know how it is nowadays but it was very popular in the (late) sixties. One can think of Desmond Dekker (& The Aces) or Jimmy Cliff. A seond wave emerged a full decade later when The Specials, The Selecter, The Beat and also Madness were knocking on the door. |
||
| 25 | GRENADIER GUARDS | Regiment arranged rig used at sea (9,6) |
| Anagram [at sea] of ARRANGED RIG USED Read all about them here . |
||
| 26 | OPTIMIST | Work, mostly cautious, by saint, hopeful one (8) |
| OP (work) + TIMI[d] (cautious, mostly) + ST (saint) | ||
| 27 | ITALIC | Sloping island, one covered with powder (6) |
| I (island), followed by I (one) inside TALC (powder) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | RESPONSE | Press one in trouble to give answer (8) |
| Anagram [in trouble] of PRESS ONE | ||
| 2 | VALID | Legal volume with article on cover (5) |
| V (volume) + A (article) + LID (cover) | ||
| 3 | GREENGAGE | Fruit in odd parts of garden with promise (9) |
| The odd letters of GARDEN, followed by ENGAGE (promise) | ||
| 5 | CHARLIE PARKER | Thousand, enthralled by broadcast clip, hear rare saxophonist (7,6) |
| K (thousand) inside anagram [broadcast] of CLIP HEAR RARE Charlie Parker (1920-1955) , famous jazz musician. His nickname was Bird, also the title of this 1988 biopic . |
||
| 6 | WEAR | Tolerate sport (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 7 | ISOLATION | Idyll’s beginning thus with language about love and loneliness (9) |
| I[dyll] + SO (thus) + LATIN (language) around O (love) My first one in, and a really sweet clue. |
||
| 8 | GEYSER | Grand view around south over river in spring (6) |
| G (grand) + EYE (view) around S (south), followed by R (river) We’ve seen a few geysers recently but this time it wasn’t a homophone of ‘geezer’. |
||
| 10 | PERSONALITIES | Private investigation initially links big names (13) |
| PERSONAL (private) + I[nvestigation] + TIES (links) Another one I liked. |
||
| 14 | PREVALENT | Stop enclosing area on large common (9) |
| PREVENT (stop) around {A (area) + L (large)} | ||
| 16 | POLE VAULT | Value plot prepared for field event (4,5) |
| Anagram [prepared] of VALUE PLOT | ||
| 17 | FORENSIC | Is emperor loudly upset over chapter of scientific evidence? (8) |
| IS + NERO (emperor) + F (loudly), the whole lot reversed [upset], + C (chapter) | ||
| 20 | ADAGIO | A soldier in trouble for slow movement (6) |
| A + {GI (soldier, American private) inside ADO (trouble)} | ||
| 23 | RURAL | Pastoral artist restricted by endless regulation (5) |
| RA (artist) inside RUL[e] (regulation, without the end) | ||
| 24 | WARM | Conflict with spymaster getting heated (4) |
| WAR (conflict) + M (spymaster, James Bond character) | ||
I enjoyed this puzzle.
Needed help to parse 1a.
My favourites were 9a and 17d.
Thank you Sil and Everyman.
Thank you Everyman for a pleasant puzzle and Sil for a super blog.
Some lovely clues as Sil points out, those for DEAR, ISOLATION and PERSONALITIES – I also liked those for CHARLIE PARKER, GRENADIER GUARDS and ADAGIO.
It is lucky that the clue for GEYSER was not the homophone of ‘geezer’, Kiwis pronounce it ‘guyza’.
I thought this was pretty straightforward again, though as good as ever. 3d at the close was the only clue to cause real issues, if I remember rightly. 21ac was particularly nicely done, wasn’t it?
I can confirm you definitely not the only one who can’t remember how to Demerara. Thanks heaps for the blog, enjoyable puzzle today.
Yes, nice, touch harder than some of late. Didn’t know the jazz man and using M for the Thousand had Charlie Palmer which held me up a bit – not helped by not knowing SKA but it had to be Risk Averse. That all took so long that I threw in the towel with Personalities after exhausting all possible thirteen letter words beginning PI.
Also it’s too nice a day to stay inside.
Absolutely loved this. Didn’t take me too long. i expected everyone to say it was easy. Funny how we’re all different.
Thanks Everyman. More at this level will suit me fine. Loved 24 down.
A nice quick crossie. Only one I didn’t get was demerara. Had all the letters, but never having heard the word, my guess was mederara.