Here’s the preamble:
Nine clues lack a definition, seven of which appear in the grid reformed after a thematic adjustment; the remaining two are untouched by such CORRUPTION. All clues have been corrupted by an additional letter that is generated by wordplay; in clue order these provide most of a thematic quotation, the completion of which must be written below the grid. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended, but does not contain one grid entry or one plural, both of which can be found in Collins.
No time for much commentary this week. The thematic quotation was from the film SERPICO (at 37ac) starring AL PACINO (at 15dn): “we do not wash our own laundry! It just gets dirtier.” The seven corrupted clues were anagrams of words for criminal less the letter M (for money) being laundered (I think): CRIMINAL, MOBSTER, SMUGGLER, MOLESTER, MISCREANT, TRIGGERMAN, MISDOER.
All in all, I found this a pretty tough nut to crack.
Legend:
Definition in clue
X = Extra letter in wordplay
ABC* = anagram
ABC< = reversal
abCDef = hidden
| ACROSS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No | Entry | Extra Letter |
Clue and Explanation |
| 1 | CRIMINAL becomes CLARINI |
R | Margin of hair on the outside (7) RIM (margin) in CRINAL (of hair) |
| 6 | MOBSTER becomes SORBET |
E | Live for name of giant? (6) BE (live) for N (name) in MONSTER (giant) |
| 12 | INIGO | A | Jones, say, independent because of regressing in past (5) I (independent) + IN< (because of, regressing) + AGO (in the past) |
| 13 | OLGA | L | Russian tollgate houses (4) in tOLLGAte |
| 14 | SPED | I | Swiftly sent and nosed (4) SPIED (nosed) |
| 15 | ALLURER | T | Trumpet sounding alarm for old Nick? (7) LUR (trumpet) in ALERT (alarm); I’m guessing sounding is in the sense of probing? |
| 17 | TUPELO | Y | Outyelp cuckoo in city not far from Birmingham (6); OUTYELP*; refers to Birmingham, Alabama although it’s like saying Birmingham, UK is not far from York! |
| 18 | SMUGGLER becomes LUGGERS |
I | Old student to be situated in Greece (7) SMUG (student, obs) + LIE (be situated) in GR (Greece) |
| 19 | ALPS | S | Unruly spalpeens strike out for lofty pastures (4) (SPALPEENS – PEEN (strike))* |
| 20 | EGMA | T | Problem expressed by Will’s rustic for one rug (4) EG (for one) + MAT (rug); reference to Costard, a rustic countryman in Love’s Labours Lost |
| 22 | RAETIA | H | Brew taken in shock going from East to Roman province (6) (TEA (brew) in HAIR (shock))<; from East equivalent to in reverse |
| 23 | ADSORBS | A | Makes film board ass embarrassed (7) (BOARD ASS)* |
| 25 | NOMADIC | T | Admit con unsettled itinerant (7) (ADMIT CON)* |
| 27 | OTTARS | W | Couple about to smear special oils (6) TWO< (couple, about) + TAR (smear) + S (special) |
| 30 | ABBS | E | Almost simple describing little black book yarns (4) EAS[Y] about B (black, little) B (book) |
| 32 | SIMA | D | Crust apparent in wines I’d made (4) in wineS I‘D MAde |
| 34 | AVEYRON | O | Flourishing over yon, a department? (7) (OVER YON A)* |
| 36 | INDIGN | N | Unseemly dash in boozer (6) DING (dash) in INN (boozer) |
| 37 | SERPICO | O | Militant coopers taking on institute (7) COOPERS* holding I (institute) |
| 38 | ANOA | T | Wild ox primarily found in area to north of Australia (4) first letters of Area To North Of Australia |
| 39 | TIKE | W | Turn of humour almost essential for Yorkshireman (4) WIT< (humour, turned) + KE[Y] (essential, almost) |
| 40 | LEGIT | A | Proper support on small island (5) LEG (support) + AIT (small island) |
| 41 | IN ESSE | S | Continuing to err at the heart of one’s self (6, two words) SIN (error) + ESSE (onE’S SElf, heart) |
| 42 | MOLESTER becomes SOLERET |
H | Hero smelt musty (7) (HERO SMELT)* |
| DOWN | |||
| No | Entry | Correct Letter |
Clue and Explanation |
| 1 | MISCREANT becomes CISTERNA |
O | Nacre developed in moist environment (8) NACRE* in MOIST |
| 2 | LAPUTA | U | Saul latterly reviewed old note about Fantasy Island (6) PAUL< (Saul, latterly) + UT (old note) + A (about) |
| 3 | RIDENT | R | Grinning geek getting up in controlled passage (6) NERD< in RIT (controlled, ritenuto) |
| 4 | INULA | O | Composite plant producing an oil, primarily unctuous (5) (AN OIL U[nctuous])* |
| 5 | NICOLAI | W | Musician Otto composed timeless tonic, one following rule (7) (TONIC – T (time, ie timeless))* + I (one) after LAW (rule); reference to Otto Nicolai, 19c German composer and conductor |
| 6 | SOLUS | N | Old gold giving rise to star in isolation (5) SOL (gold in alchemy) + SUN< (star, rising) |
| 7 | OIL-GAS | L | Heating fuel is all go when lit (6) (IS ALL GO)* |
| 8 | ROUGE | A | Ruddy old party, timeless age (5) ROUT (party, old) – T (time) + AGE |
| 9 | EGER | U | Violent bore, for one, to regret in retrospect (4) EG (for one) + RUE< (regret, reversed) |
| 10 | TARS | N | Matelots bark at scientists (4) TAN (bark) + RS (scientists, Royal Society) |
| 11 | SEPTEMBER | D | Tribe measure pit at the end of summer month (9) SEPT (tribe) + EM (measure) + BED (pit) + R (end of summeR) |
| 15 | AL PACINO | R | Complain about cutting a floor-covering (8, two words) CARP< (complain, about) in A LINO (floor-covering) |
| 16 | TRIGGERMAN becomes REGRATING |
Y | Initiate a great number (9) TRIGGER (initiate) + MANY (a great number) |
| 21 | ASSONANT | I | Resembling sonatinas in performance (8) (SONATAS IN)* |
| 24 | DOMINGO | T | Little monk can call Spanish tenor (7) DOM (monk) + TIN (can) + GO (call); reference Placido Domingo |
| 26 | MISDOER becomes DORIES |
J | Jim’s set off by energetic person (6) JIMS* + DOER (energetic person) |
| 28 | TO DATE | U | Away climbing with girlfriend, perhaps, until now (6, two words) OUT< (away, climbing) + DATE (girlfriend, perhaps) |
| 29 | RUGOSE | S | Wrinkled little dogs, doing pee, adopted by paragon (6) PUGS (dogs) – P (pee) in ROSE (paragon) |
| 31 | SYPES | T | Crusty pessimists imprisoning soaks (5) in cruSTY PESsimists |
| 32 | SOCLE | G | Part of wall goes rotten absorbing chlorine (5) GOES* holding CL (chlorine) |
| 33 | ANVIL | E | See inside dissection of alien for small bone (5) V (see) in ALIEN* |
| 34 | ASTI | T | Wine fantasticos will be taking to heart (4) centre of FANTASTICOS |
| 35 | VEIN | S | Moving venison on dispelling mood (4) (VENISON – ON)* |
Thanks for this – it was driving us crazy. This is the first for some time where we couldn\’t complete.
Got the theme and most of the themed words but don\’t understand the thematic adjustment eg why sorbet? Seems just a random word to fit the grid and fit to with others. Am I missing something?
Brian, sorry the endgame defeated you. Regarding the entries from the thematic words, they are just anagrams of the letters remaining once the M has been removed. That said, [M]OBSTER could as easily have resulted in STROBE, and [M]ISCREANT given SCANTIER. To that extent, the entries chosen by Eclogue were probably dictated by the rest of the grid.
I found this one tough and managed to make it tougher still by initially entering GASOIL instead of OILGAS.
It couldn’t be any random anagram of the words minus the M because (for example) there were 2 unchecked letters in 1D.