Serpent continues to present an entertaining challenge
The last Serpent puzzle I blogged (9995) had HIDDEN AGENDA in the central row and central column. Today we had HIDDEN DEPTHS What can Serpent HIDE in his next outing?
Once again I found some entertaining and complex wordplay in the puzzle. Favourites today were the construction of GO OFF AT THE DEEP END where it took me a while to spot the newspaper man and ECOLOGIST
I also liked the surface of the clue for TEA DANCE with its political allusions. Cover for the bedroom was an interesting, but fair definition at 13 across NIGHTCAP
I look forward to the next Serpent puzzle I have to blog.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
| 1 | Cruiser evacuated two islands in emergency (6) |
CR (letters remaining when the central letters are removed from [evacuated] CRUISER) + (IS [island] + IS [island] to give islands) CR IS IS |
CRISIS (emergency) |
| 5 | Hospital centre briefly treated deep cut (6) |
Anagram of (treated) (H [hospital] and CENTRE excluding the final letter [briefly] E) TRENCH* |
TRENCH (long, narrow, deep cut in the earth) |
| 10 | Speech having no boundaries or proportion (5) |
ORATION (speech) excluding the outer letters (having no boundaries) O and N RATIO |
RATIO (proportion) |
| 11 | Author would endlessly seduce everyone alike (9) |
I’D (author [I] would [‘D]) + ENTICE excluding the final letter (endlessly) E + ALL (everyone) also excluding the final letter (endlessly) L I’D ENTIC AL |
IDENTICAL (exactly alike) |
| 12 | Freak mistake by newspaper man including writer in document (2,3,3,4,3) |
GOOF (mistake) + FT (Financial Times [newspaper]) + HE (man) + (PEN [writer] contained in [in] DEED [legal document]) GO OF F T HE DEE (PEN) D |
GO OFF THE DEEP END (lose one’s temper completely; freak [out]) |
| 13 | Patching frayed cover for the bedroom (8) |
Anagram of (frayed) PATCHING NIGHTCAP* |
NIGHTCAP (CAP worn at NIGHT; cover worn in the bedroom) |
| 15 | Attack service in new set (6) |
RAF (Royal Air Force, one of the armed services) contained in (in) an anagram of (new) SET ST (RAF) E* |
STRAFE (rake with machine-gun fire from low-flying aeroplanes; assail; attack) |
| 16 | Name becomes label in complete senility (6) |
N (name) replaced by (becomes) TAG (label) in DONE (complete) DO (TAG) E |
DOTAGE ( weakness and childishness of old age; senility) |
| 19 | Enacted a reform giving PM opportunity to take steps (3,5) |
Anagram of (reform) ENACTED A TEA DANCE* |
TEA DANCE (DANCE held in the afternoon [pm] at which TEA is served) |
| 22 | Completely covered in fluff from head to toe? (4,2,3,6) |
DOWN [fluff] + (TO THE GROUND [covered from head to toe]) DOWN TO THE GROUND |
DOWN TO THE GROUND (completely) |
| 25 | Environmental expert first to pursue on-line carbon monoxide register (9) |
E (electronic; on-line) + CO (chemical symbol for carbon monoxide) + LOG (register) + IST (first) E CO LOG IST |
ECOLOGIST (one who studies the environment and presumably environmental expert in the subject) |
| 26 | Food company breaking embargo (5) |
CO (company) contained in (breaking) BAN (embargo) BA (CO) N |
BACON (meat; food) |
| 27 | Look up to one abandoning dream (6) |
REVERIE (fanciful notion; mental abstraction; dream) excluding (abandoning) I (Roman numeral for one) REVERE |
REVERE (regard with high respect; look up to) |
| 28 | Dreary tone returns in comic strip (6) |
DUN (dusky colour; dreary tone) reversed (returns) contained in (in) DEE (reference Jack DEE [born 1961], English comedian) DE (NUD<) E |
DENUDE (strip) |
| Down | |||
| 2 | Gave further consideration to how badly he got hurt (9) |
Anagram of (badly) HE GOT HURT RETHOUGHT* |
RETHOUGHT (gave further consideration to) |
| 3 | Food that is rotten (5) |
SCOFF (both ‘rotten’ and SCOFF can be defined using the words deride or derision) SCOFF |
SCOFF (food) double definition |
| 4 | Upset about family home robbed of contents in Barnet (8) |
SAD (upset) containing (about) (KIN [family] + HE (letters remaining in HOME when the central letters OM are removed [robbed of its contents]) S (KIN HE) AD |
SKINHEAD (hairstyle [barnet]) |
| 5 | Tax shelters stop being fashionable (6) |
TRY (irritate, tax) containing (shelters) END (stop) TR (END) Y |
TRENDY (fashionable) |
| 6 | Appealed to men wanting leader dealt with (9) |
MEN excluding the first letter (wanting leader) M + TREATED (dealt with) EN TREATED |
ENTREATED (beseeched; asked earnestly; appealed to) |
| 7 | Store ready for those who listen (5) |
CACHE (sounds like [for those who listen CASH [ready money]) CACHE |
CACHE (store) |
| 8 | Revolutionise banking system and National Insurance for a start (6) |
GIRO (banking system) reversed (revolutionise) + NI (National Insurance) reversed (revolutionise) – the reversal indicator applies to both GIRO and NI separately in series ORIG< IN< |
ORIGIN (start) |
| 9 | Give stick to someone facing something going rapidly downhill (7) |
SLEDGE (seek to upset the batsman’s concentration by making offensive remarks; give stick to someone facing [a bowler]) SLEDGE |
SLEDGE (conveyance with runners for sliding on snow and go downhill rapidly) double definition
|
| 14 | Nervously tiptoe going rather hesitantly at first on this? (9) |
Anagram of (nervously) TIPTOE and GRH (initial letters [at first] of each of GOING, RATHER and HESITANTLY) TIGHTROPE* |
TIGHTROPE (taut ROPE or wire on which feats of balancing and acrobatics are performed; a middle course between dangerous or undesirable alternatives; each definition indicating somewhere you might venture hesitantly) |
| 16 | Broadcast word used to name church and houses (9) |
AND containing (houses) (NOUN [word used as the name of a person, animal, thing, place or quality)] + CE (Church [of England]) AN (NOUN CE) D |
ANNOUNCED (broadcast) |
| 17 | Abandoned taking action about disturbed rest (8) |
DEED (action) containing (about) an anagram of (disturbed) REST DE (SERT*) ED |
DESERTED (abandoned) |
| 18 | Avoid going on motorway in small electric car (6) |
DODGE (avoid) + M (motorway) DODGE M |
DODGEM (small electric ca, most commonly seen at fairgrounds) |
| 20 | Finish tipping having blown raise (6) |
UPENDING (tipping) excluding (having blown) UP (raise) ENDING |
ENDING (finish) |
| 21 | Take steps to get journey under way (6) |
ST (street; way) + RIDE (journey) this being a down clue RIDE is entered under ST ST RIDE |
STRIDE (walk with long steps) |
| 23 | What author did with mind-numbing repetition (5) |
W (with) + ROTE (repetition or performance without regard to the meaning; mind numbing repetition) W ROTE |
WROTE (what an author did) |
| 24 | Boy conducting detailed examination without parental control (5) |
PROBING (conducting detailed examination) excluding (without) the P and G forming PG (parental guidance) ROBIN |
ROBIN (boy’s name) |
For 3 Down, I had SC (‘scilicet’, Latin ‘namely’, ‘that is’) + OFF (‘rotten,). Good puzzle, always find Serpeont on the tough side. Thanks to both.
Another good one from Serpent, with a Nina as a reward at the end.
I parsed 3d as ‘Food’ as def = SC (‘that is’ (scilicet)) + OFF (‘rotten’).
I enjoyed TEA DANCE and the complicated parsing of GO OFF THE DEEP END.
It would be nice to think that the reaction following the less than savoury events on the cricket field in South Africa earlier this year will put an end to the practice described in 9d, but I fear not.
Thanks to Serpent and to Duncan
Woops, sorry for crossing Grant.
Excellent, as always. I included ‘how’ as part of the definition in 2d and parsed 3d as SC (that is) + OFF (rotten).
Favourites include ECOLOGIST, TIGHTROPE & STRIDE.
Saw the nina and thought, perhaps, some of the solutions related (trench, deep end, the ground?). Perhaps also ‘end’ appearing in 5d and 20d. Maybe stretching things here?
Thanks to Serpent and Duncan.
Another crossing over. Took too long typing.
Anyone else start off with ADMIRE for 27 as it sort of parses (seemed to at the time)?
But 14d forced me to rethink as did 23d.
Spotting the :hidden bits helped to tie the whole thing up esp with the long ones conforming to the message.
Another entertaining challenge from Serpent.
Thanks for blog too duncanshiell.
I’m happy to accept that the SC (namely; that is) + OFF (rotten) parsing at 3 down is better than my rather weak double definition suggestion.
Its a good day for excellent brain stretching. As usual, I didn’t spot the Nina
Thanks to Serpent and Duncan
Failed to parse 28a and 24d, but completed it online without help of any kind. Missed the hidden message, as usual, but in my defence the website throws you out as soon as you have completed the puzzle.
Another one who didn’t spot the NINA but an excellent puzzle, thanks Serpent.
Thanks Duncan, good blog with detailed descriptions. I did like the PM’s opportunity to take steps; sounds like the Tory Party Conference all over again!
Excellent crossword. The only very slight criticism I have is of 14dn, which suggests that you tiptoe on a tightrope. The very reverse. You make absolutely sure your feet are anchored. I imagine, not being a tightrope walker myself.
Serpent is right up there with the very best, in my opinion. Another classy set of clues, and I liked the HIDDEN DEPTHS.
Thanks Serpent and Duncan.