Thanks to Armonie for a good Monday puzzle.
Armonie is often our Monday setter – a good and simple puzzle to start off the week.
Admittedly we had SHADE for 24d which left us puzzling over 23a before we realised we must have made a mistake. Otherwise, most answers fell into place.
We quite liked the clues for BORDELLO, PARANORMAL, BARNSTAPLE and REFORM. We had to check the meaning of BIER in 11a.
Across
1 Type of building predominant in Devon (10)
BARNSTAPLE
BARN (type of building) + STAPLE (predominant)
7 Mike works and cleans up (4)
MOPS
M (Mike) + OPS (works)
9 Excited about nothing? That’s a laugh! (4)
HOOT
HOT (excited) about O (nothing)
10 Show anxiety before changing places (10)
PRETENSION
TENSION (anxiety) + PRE (before) changing places (i.e. pre comes before tension)
11 Theologian in last stand – one wanting a lot (6)
BIDDER
DD (theologian) in BIER (last stand)
12 Misleading promise to wear glasses (8)
SPECIOUS
IOU (promise) to wear SPECS (glasses)
13 An inventor does, when about to endorse an agreement (8)
DESIGNER
DEER (does, deer, female deer) about SIGN (to endorse an agreement)
15 By no means all stage directors are elderly (4)
AGED
[st]AGE D[irectors] (by no means all)
17 Tory leader has pain in bum (4)
TAIL
T[ory] (leader) has AIL (pain)
19 Learned about colour many years ago (5,3)
STONE AGE
SAGE (learned) about TONE (colour)
22 Wears tie loosely, so to speak (2,2,4)
AS IT WERE
(WEARS TIE)* (*loosely)
23 Old fool makes a full stop approaching a road (6)
DOTARD
DOT (full stop) approaching A RD (a road)
25 Father managed moral development in a mystic way (10)
PARANORMAL
PA (father) + RAN (managed) (MORAL)* (*development)
26 Confirm or ‘esitate (4)
AVER
[h]AVER
27 Plain water (4)
MERE
Double definition
28 “I’m to enter a new arrangement” articulated performer (10)
MARIONETTE
(IM TO ENTER*) (*new arrangement)
Down
2 Suffer when Genoa is destroyed (7)
AGONISE
(GENOA IS)* (*destroyed)
3 Acclaimed books Edward acquired (5)
NOTED
OT (books, old testament) NED (Edward) acquired
4 Group after record for slimming (8)
TAPERING
RING (group) after TAPE (record)
5 Request reliable cooker or vessel (8,7)
PLEASURE STEAMER
PLEA (request) + SURE (reliable) + STEAMER (cooker)
6 The French rejected uniform for soccer team (6)
ELEVEN
(LE)< (the, French, <rejected) + EVEN (uniform)
7 Assistant keeps wine cold for champ (9)
MASTICATE
MATE (assistant) keeps ASTI (wine) + C (cold)
8 Obtain expert remedy (7)
PROCURE
PRO (expert) + CURE (remedy)
14 Being nervous, indisposed a prankster (3,2,4)
ILL AT EASE
ILL (indisposed) A TEASE (a prankster)
16 Faulty doorbell in disorderly house (8)
BORDELLO
(DOORBELL)* (*faulty)
18 Sat awkwardly on transport that’s in question (2,5)
AT STAKE
(SAT)* (*awkwardly) on TAKE (transport)
20 Man carries weapon in clothing (7)
GARMENT
GENT (man) carries ARM (weapon)
21 Rehabilitate engineer with a criminal record (6)
REFORM
RE (engineer) + FORM (criminal record)
24 Mark’s suspicion (5)
TRACE
Double definition
*anagram
As you say Teacow a decent Monday workout to ease into the week. I had waver as the start point for 26A but I suspect you are in line with the setters thinking with a dropped h in play.
Thanks to Armonie and Teacow.
Thanks to Armonie and Teacow. I had never come across HAVER as a verb (and it appears to be linked to foolish talk or “hem and haw”) so I chose “waver” – and I needed all the crossers to get PRETENSION, my LOI.
Most of this went in quite quickly, but I had TOTED for 3D for ages which had me scratching my head over 1A until I saw the error of my ways. Thanks Armonie and Teacow. I liked MARIONETTE.
Thanks Armonie and Teacow.
Always reliably pleasant.
Toyed with REDEEM, but 25a nixed it. BORDELLO top fav.
Loved the surfaces of 13a, 6d and 16d. COD 13a.Never heard of 1a here in Kenya but wordplay and Google came to the rescue.
Thanks Armonie and Teacow
Started off with a couple of write-ins – MOPS and AGONISE and then a steady solve to leisurely get through the warmer upper for the week. Still there were some stings in the tail of the puzzle with PRETENSION and AT STAKE which were my last couple in.
I do like that ‘does’ = DEER trick at 13a and it usually strings me along for longer than it should each time it’s used and always brings a ‘doh smile’ when the penny finally drops. Also liked the ‘articulated’ MARIONETTE.
doh, a deer, a female deer ???