Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of March 23, 2019
Another delightful puzzle from Rosa with, I think, three brilliantly outstanding clues: 10ac (BRIC-A-BRAC) with its splendid surface, 28ac (ANTONIONI) with its clever use of tear-jerker, and 14dn (ST TRINIANS) which was my first-in. I also applaud 13ac (SIXTH SENSE). Thank you, Rosa!
| Across | ||
| 1 | SEQUIN | Briefly spot one of five siblings, bright little thing (6) |
| SE[e] (briefly spot) + QUIN[t] ([briefly] one of five siblings) | ||
| 4 | OLYMPICS | Slimy cop playing games (8) |
| Anagram (playing) of SLIMY COP | ||
| 10 | BRIC-A-BRAC | Motley collection of British and international taxi drivers (4-1- 4) |
| BR (British) + I (international) + CAB (taxi) + RAC (drivers) | ||
| 11 | NACRE | Middle of manky area inside of shell (5) |
| [ma]N[ky] + ACRE (area) | ||
| 12 | RUSE | Articulate bounder’s trick (4) |
| Homophone (articulate) of “roo’s” (bounder’s) | ||
| 13 | SIXTH SENSE | Essex NHS worked with IT and ESP (5,5) |
| Anagram (worked) of ESSEX NHS IT | ||
| 15 | THEATRE | Tense male with limitless loathing for drama (7) |
| T (tense) + HE (male) + [h]ATRE[d] (limitless loathing) | ||
| 16 | DIRECT | Instruct gloomy court (6) |
| DIRE (gloomy) + CT (court) | ||
| 19 | STEROL | Good person learning about alcohol (6) |
| ST (good person, i.e. saint) + LORE (learning) backwards (about) | ||
| 21 | PANACHE | Sleep around with a revolutionary swagger (7) |
| NAP (sleep) backwards (around) + A (a) + CHE (revolutionary) | ||
| 23 | FROWNINGLY | With furrowed brow, cook admits having left (10) |
| OWNING (admits) + L (left) together in (admits) FRY (cook) | ||
| 25 | PASS | Proceed, whilst wearing pyjamas inside out (4) |
| AS (whilst) in (wearing) P[yjama]S | ||
| 27 | ARENA | Oddly agree on bad 15 (5), with “15” referring to 15ac (THEATRE). |
| A[g]R[e]E [o]N [b]A[d] | ||
| 28 | ANTONIONI | Film director opposed to screening tear-jerker (9) |
| ONION (tear-jerker!) in (screening) ANTI (opposed to) | ||
| 29 | RHAPSODY | Perhaps Odysseus withholds ecstatic words? (8) |
| Hidden word | ||
| 30 | STUPOR | Love places rebellious Romeo in daze (6) |
| O (love) + PUTS (places) together backwards + R (Romeo) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | SYBARITE | Hedonist upset by satire (8) |
| Anagram (upset) of BY SATIRE | ||
| 2 | QUIESCENT | Still totally timeless perfume (9) |
| QUI[t]E (totally timeless) + SCENT (perfume) | ||
| 3 | IRAN | Azerbaijan’s banks supporting Irish nation (4) |
| IR (Irish) + A[zerbaija]N | ||
| 5 | LOCATED | Found “feline” in Latin dictionary (7) |
| L (Latin) + CAT (feline) in OED (dictionary) | ||
| 6 | MINISTRANT | Feminist ranting about server (10) |
| Hidden word | ||
| 7 | INCAN | Old South American about to enter pub (5) |
| CA (about) in (to enter) INN (pub) | ||
| 8 | SKEWER | Spear seabird, we hear (6) |
| Homophone (we hear) of “skua” (seabird). I was once attacked by a skua, in Shetland, presumably for encroaching upon its nest. | ||
| 9 | URSINE | First to understand reproductive function of a bear (6) |
| U[nderstand] + R[eproductive] + SINE (function) | ||
| 14 | ST TRINIANS | Strain isn’t unusual in unruly school (2,8) |
| Anagram (unusual) of STRAIN ISNT | ||
| 17 | COCK-A-HOOP | Pleased to pawn a pen for Spooner (4-1-4) |
| Spoonerism of HOCK A COOP (pawn a pen) | ||
| 18 | YEASTIER | Barking eatery is more redolent of Marmite (8) |
| Anagram (barking) of EATERY IS. Mmm, I am a lover of Marmite and am guessing Rosa is too. | ||
| 20 | LANYARD | Originally lassoed aardvark’s neck with three-foot rope (7) |
| L[assoed] A[ardvark’s] N[eck] + YARD (three-foot) | ||
| 21 | POLITE | Refined crude oil in private (6) |
| Anagram (crude) of OIL in PTE (private). ‘Pte’ is a shortened form of ‘private’, as in the lowest rank of soldier, used in the British and Commonwealth military. | ||
| 22 | AFFAIR | Happening just after footballers turned up (6) |
| FA (footballers) backwards (turned up) + FAIR (just) | ||
| 24 | OMEGA | End of Psycho, fantastic conclusion! (5) |
| [psych]O + MEGA (fantastic) | ||
| 26 | UNIT | Detachment of upper-class twit (4) |
| U (upper-class) + NIT (twit) | ||
Pete – Re 8dn and your comment on it – Dare to tackle 11dn in Guardian Cryptic 27,786 (Arachne).
Yes, the clues that you have picked up for plaudits are exceptionally good.
When I see such brilliant clues, I often wonder if some setters in their spare time pick some words/ phrases and try some ideas until they come up with superb clues for use in grids later.
Can this be true?
Thanks for a great blog, Pete. I agree with your ‘brilliantly outstanding’ clues, too.
I usually say about Arachne’s puzzles, ‘too many favourites to list’ [because that might mply that the others aren’t up to much] but this time I must add 29ac [beautifully hidden] and 9 and 18dn – and especially 5dn, because, of course, you would find ‘felinus’ [‘of or belonging to a cat’] in a Latin dictionary – splendid!
And now for a second helping in today’s Arachne. 😉
So eager to get on with it that I forgot to say, ‘Huge thanks to Rosa’!
I’m another full of admiration for this puzzle and wanted to add the other hidden word at 6d to the list of outstanding clues – it’s not often they’re the loi which it was in this case for me. Thanks to RK and PM.
Hi Rishi, I just got to today’s 11dn. Another good one but I prefer the FT clue.
Thanks to Pete and Rosa Klebb
I always enjoy this setter and there were some pearls here, but I couldn’t find a way to justify FIRST TO applying beyond UNDERSTAND in 9d.
Dansar, I am glad you brought this up because it bothered me too. I wondered if ‘R’ could work as an abbreviation for ‘reproductive’ but could find no justification for that.
I looked for that before posting but couldn’t find it either. It seemed a little odd because this setter doesn’t normally take such “liberties” and a fairly minor tweak might have solved it.
Dansar (and Pete), our beloved setter does not take many liberties, true, but this multiple fodder device (with sometimes a ‘singular’ indicator) is a solid part of her repertoire.
Something she has in common with, for example, Philistine/Goliath.
That said, I agree about the validity of ‘first to’ but only in that sense that I would not use it myself that way.
But, look at other Arachne/Rosa Klebb crosswords and I am sure you’ll find more examples.
Thank you, Sil.
Thanks Rosa and Pete
On the easier side for this setter – to fill the grid – there was some tricky parsing and came here without FROWNINGLY parsed. It is always her surfaces that are her trademark and 17d must be one of the silkiest clues to contain a Spoonerism that I’ve seen and has been said the two long hidden clues were gems.
Your Marmite and our Vegemite must be one of the most loved spreads in our own countries that is universally despised by the rest of the world – my doctor once told me that it was invented as a way of giving concentrated vitamins or energy to soldiers during the war … dunno how true or not that is.
Finished down the bottom with OMEGA, ARENA and ANTONIONI (with it’s obvious now and clever construct with ANTI and ONION).