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A significantly humbling experience, akin to a marathon struggle with each km feeling like the 42nd. Thanks Redshank.
Just didnt get on to his wavelength today. Made it through about half of the crossword before I ground to a halt and needed help from the interwebs to solve/parse several clues.
| Across | ||
| 9 | NOUVELLE CUISINE | Novel clue (cryptic) I found in Paris factory making fresh food (8,7) |
| [NOVEL CLUE]* { I in USINE (french for factory) } | ||
| 10 | OBELI | Cross references in Vile Bodies withdrawn (5) |
| hidden, reversed in “..vILE BOdies..” | ||
| 11 | COOPERATE | Our Henry put away work altogether, so I’ve heard (9) |
| COOPER (our henry, referring to henry cooper, boxer) ATE (put away) | ||
| 12 | CONGER EEL | Leave dance for the long haul? (6,3) |
| CONGE (leave) REEL (dance) – cryptic def referring to a long type of eel | ||
| 14 | STILT | Small lean wader (5) |
| S (small) TILT (lean) | ||
| 16 | PENCIL SHARPENER | With which writer makes good points? (6,9) |
| cryptic def | ||
| 19 | COSTS | Damages function way back (5) |
| COS (function, cosine) TS (reverse of ST – back) | ||
| 21 | MEMORABLE | Noteworthy island city motorway, westbound (9) |
| ELBA (island) ROME (city) M (motorway) , all reversed | ||
| 23 | SUBJUGATE | Crush inferior ropemaker, absorbing good one (9) |
| [SUB (inferior) JUTE (ropemaker)] containing [G (good) A (one)] | ||
| 25 | COATI | Fleece current American denizen (5) |
| COAT (fleece) I (current) | ||
| 26 | SIGN OF THE ZODIAC | Indicator from old Ford Scorpio maybe (4,2,3,6) |
| cryptic def, referring to the ford zodiac | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | ENDOSCOPIC | Finish huge company image used in keyhole surgery? (10) |
| END (finish) OS (huge, over size) CO (company) PIC (image) | ||
| 2 | TUREEN | Wooden items include superior serving bowl (6) |
| TREEN (wooden items) containing U (superior) | ||
| 3 | BERIBERI | Drink one to limit bone disease (8) |
| [BEER (drink) I (one)] containing RIB (bone) – this should be hyphenated? | ||
| 4 | BLOC | British officer upended axis (4) |
| B (british) [ reverse of COL (officer) ] | ||
| 5 | SCHOOLMARM | Miss train miles outside Arkansas (10) |
| SCHOOL (train) [ MM (miles, m – mile) around AR (arkansas)] | ||
| 6 | BICEPS | Weightlifters use them to purchase fungi by phone (6) |
| sounds like BUY (purchase) CEPS (fungi) | ||
| 7 | RIPARIAN | Pick up Irish porcelain associated with banks (8) |
| RI (reverse of IR – irish) PARIAN (porcelain) | ||
| 8 | MEME | Behavioural trait expressed by egoist? (4) |
| cryptic def; read as ME ME | ||
| 13 | EPSOM SALTS | Track ancient mariners supplying purgative (5,5) |
| EPSOM (track) SALTS (ancient mariners) | ||
| 15 | THREE-PIECE | Penny leaves old money for sort of suite or suit (5-5) |
| THREE penny PIECE (old money) with ‘PENNY’ leaving. | ||
| 17 | NOSEBAGS | English lad, upset, grabs fodder in these (8) |
| [ E (english) SON (lad), all reversed ] BAGS (grabs) | ||
| 18 | PORK CHOP | Go in through this surgery to save king’s rib (4,4) |
| [PORCH (go in through this) OP (surgery)] containing K (king) | ||
| 20 | STUPOR | US port snarled up, result of too much snow? (6) |
| US PORT* – referring to snow’s meaning of cocaine | ||
| 22 | BEAT IT | You can’t miss this bolt (4,2) |
| cryptic def | ||
| 23 | SASH | Second wooden frame (4) |
| S (second) ASH (wooden) | ||
| 24 | EWER | Water-carrier, with or without lid (4) |
| cryptic def; S being the lid. | ||
*anagram
My experience was the same as yours Turbolegs.
For 22d, I took “you can’t miss this” -> BE AT IT.
Thanks (I think) to Redshank and Turbolegs.
I loved this-the setter is classy. whereas i am not and maybe entered COOPERAGE rather than COOPERATE.One track mind?
As for 20, not sure if the setter knows his drugs well enough
Once seen on the wall of a rock dressing room was “Reality is for people who cant handle drugs” Raised a smile at the time but alas……
Thanks Redshank and turbolegs
Thanks, Turbolegs – and thanks, Hovis, for your comment re BEAT IT, which I just couldn’t see.
My favourites were NOUVELLE CUISINE – lovely! – and COOPERATE: the definition is actually ‘work all together’, hence the ‘so I’ve heard’.
Many thanks to Redshank for the puzzle.
And a thanks back at you, Eileen, for explaining 11a. In my mind, I read ‘altogether’ as ‘all together’ and didn’t see the point of the last bit.
Not sure if it\’s just me being an amateur but didn\’t enjoy this puzzle so much. Too many words I just hadn\’t heard of (9, 12, 25, 3, 5,7) that I couldn\’t complete without Google or 15sq.
Is it reasonably expected to complete this blind?
Thanks to Redshank and Turbolegs. Very tough going for me in the US though I did get through with a lot of guessing and some help from Google. LOI was PORK CHOP. I did get the three long across answers but I did not know “usine,” “parian” or “our Henry” Cooper, and did not parse BERI BERI and several others.
Tempted by the tantalizing intro, but rattled it off in no time, ENDOSCOPIC having got me off to a flying start.
Chambers has altogether: all together (obs or by confusion). Put me down for by confusion, and thanks to Eileen for pointing out the difference.
thanks Redshank, Turbolegs
Reading your comment @7, James, I couldn’t resist seeing what Chambers had to say on ‘alright’, as popularised on “It’ll be alright on the night”. It says ‘less acceptable version’. I’m sure plenty think it still unacceptable.
Hovis @8 – yes: it’s altogether wrong. 😉
I didn’t start till 6pm and was surprised at how quickly I progressed. Like @3 Eileen I liked NOUVELLE CUISINE. I think in future I’ll start Redshank in the evening rather than before breakfast. Thanks Redshank and Turbolegs.
Thanks Redshank and Turbolegs
Found this pretty solid going over a number of shortish sessions across the day. Wasn’t able to fully parse 9a (never heard of the French USINE – would that be a term that would be expected to be known in the UK?) and I forgot to go back nd sort out the wordplay of 21a (and not sure whether I would’ve been able too if I had of).
A lot of new terms and was curious about ‘Our Henry’ as the reference to the boxer, COOPER. Was that a common reference? Otherwise could’ve been ‘Our Tommy’ for the comedian, etc. took a while to see the cryptic logic for PORK CHOP (thought it was quite clever when did.
Many tip clas clues and was chuffed to finally get it out correctly.
Finished in the SE with that PORK CHOP, COATI and BEAT IT (another unparsed answer) as the last few in.