The puzzle can be found here.
Hello, and Happy Star Wars Day! I thought this was a hard nut to crack, but super. Expecting a challenge from Filbert, I was pleased to make a good start, then made slow but steady progress on clues which yielded to concentrated pondering and a bit of looking sideways. The last few took rather more worrying away at; in particular, I got caught in a KNOTHOLE while having a major battle with the intersecting giant corporation. With such woes at the end I almost forgot how good the rest of it was. Fortunately, having the job of writing the blog meant that I got to appreciate it fully.
I nearly gave up listing favourite clues at all. From the beginning, we have REVAMP and the brilliant HEDGEROW, but there’s also TINSELTOWN, APERTURE, and many more. Plus I really enjoyed the numbery ones, RATIO and EXILE.
Thanks Filbert. May the Fourth be with you!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER.
Across
1a Minister first to advise Mrs May about makeover (6)
REVAMP
REV (minister), the first letter of (first to) Advise, and PM (Mrs May) reversed (about)
4a Hard border dispute that divides the country (8)
HEDGEROW
A charade of H (hard), EDGE (border), and ROW (dispute)
10a Harry Kane limited by OK team playing hardball (7)
YANKEES
Make an anagram of (harry) KANE; this is inside (limited by) YES (OK)
11a Man preparing to paper holds length to cover the wall (7)
PLASTER
PASTER (man preparing to paper) contains (holds) L (length). The paster could be a ladyperson, of course, so tut tut to Filbert! But what a lovely way the wallpaper in the surface covers the plaster of the answer
12a Working in front of computers getting the job done (2,2)
ON IT
ON (working) before (in front of) IT (computers)
13a Hollywood resolved ‘listen to women’, but only outwardly? (10)
TINSELTOWN
An anagram of (resolved) LISTEN TO plus WomeN without the middle letters (but only outwardly)
15a Date before breakfast, maybe at great cost (6)
DEARLY
D (date) + EARLY (before breakfast, maybe)
16a Come up with a positive challenge to get daughter involved (7)
PROVIDE
PRO (a positive) + VIE (challenge) containing (to get … involved) D (daughter)
20a Bronwen possibly one whose gender you’re unsure of (7)
NEWBORN
BRONWEN anagrammed (possibly)
21a Start earlier if picture is unfinished (4,2)
DRAW IN
We get our answer if DRAWINg (picture) is missing its last letter (is unfinished)
24a Go easy on a politician trying to save the world (5,5)
GREEN LIGHT
LIGHT (easy) after (on) GREEN (politician trying to save the world)
26a British males’ preparation for sex is rather dry (4)
BRUT
B (British) + RUT (males’ preparation for sex)
28a Feeling sparks by the fireplace (7)
ATINGLE
AT INGLE (by the fireplace)
29a Minimal legroom restricts movement (7)
ALLEGRO
Here, minimAL LEGROom contains (restricts) movement in music
30a Fresh water in Yorkshire? Start with a hole (8)
APERTURE
We have PERT (fresh, saucy) and URE (water in Yorkshire?), and the instruction to start with A (from the clue)
31a Lie protected huge corporation (6)
NESTLE
Two definitions. To nestle, or the huge corporation Nestlé
Down
1d Portrait painter only bothered with warm colours for skin (8)
REYNOLDS
ONLY anagrammed (bothered) with REDS (warm colours) around it (for skin). I may have heard of Sir Joshua Reynolds, but needed the wordplay to find him. Ironically, (see the National Gallery website) the flesh tones in his portraits are now actually much paler than they were originally because the reds have faded
2d Large Starbucks coffee too long arriving is cool (9)
VENTILATE
VENTI (large size of coffee in Starbucks) plus LATE (too long arriving)
3d Look unpleasant when caught (4)
MIEN
Sounds like (… when caught) MEAN (unpleasant)
5d Risk is fair, I agree (8)
EXPOSURE
EXPO (fair) + SURE (I agree)
6d Ignored left and right, nothing earl ever says sticks (4,6)
GEAR LEVERS
Without some surrounding letters (ignored left and right), nothinG EARL EVER Says
7d Ten to three, perhaps time I sweep up outside (5)
RATIO
T (time) and I (from the clue) with OAR (sweep) reversed (up) around them (outside)
8d Faction admits Irish connections (6)
WIRING
WING (faction) contains (admits) IR (Irish)
9d When alfresco meal’s half eaten clear food (5)
ASPIC
AS (when) plus PIC[nic] (alfresco meal) which is half gone (‘s half eaten)
14d Unreliable way to get to Heathrow first thing? (3-2-5)
FLY-BY-NIGHT
To FLY BY NIGHT might be a way to get to your destination (possibly Heathrow) early in the morning. I’m off this very morning to that very place to meet an incoming flight, and very nearly wasn’t, so this surface — including the “unreliable” — is incredibly appropriate
17d Quite blue on the Conservative side (9)
DOWNRIGHT
DOWN (blue) followed by (on) RIGHT (the Conservative side). Alternatively, I think this works as a straight charade, with RIGHT = on the Conservative side
18d Withholding affection if rude or misbehaving (8)
FROIDEUR
IF RUDE OR anagrammed (misbehaving)
19d Say, less than complete absence of imperfection? (8)
KNOTHOLE
Sounds like (say) NOT WHOLE (less than complete). Beyond taking me an age to think of the answer, I puzzled for a further eon about the “absence of” because I couldn’t see past the definition being simply “imperfection” … but the knot has gone from the wood to leave the knothole. Seems so simple now!
22d Animal you finally brought inside barking again … (6)
IGUANA
The last letter of (… finally) yoU brought inside an anagram of (barking) AGAIN
23d … for each person going down the road (5)
AHEAD
A HEAD (for each person)
25d Eleven minus three divided by eleven, one away (5)
EXILE
ELE[ven] minus three [letters off the end], having inserted into it (divided by) XI (eleven, Roman style)
27d Bolt‘s quick, finishing sooner than expected (4)
FLEE
FLEEt (quick) without the last letter (finishing sooner than expected)
I think you have said it all in your blog, Kitty. I agree wholeheartedly with everything you wrote. I must admit that I had the same problem with KNOTHOLE but didn’t manage to think of it as an absence.
FROIDEUR was a new word for me. My French is hopeless but it came to my aid here in getting the anagram. Took me a little while to see “Go” as the definition in 24a.
Excellent crossword with excellent surfaces. 26a reminds me of “the great smell of brut” aftershave adverts. Thanks to Filbert for the head scratching and to Kitty for the entertaining blog.
I never know quite what to make of Filbert’s puzzles. I can appreciate their cleverness and find them enjoyable for the most part. Overall they are very challenging and, although I can eventually solve most of the clues unaided, I can never finish without a fair bit of electronic assistance. When I have finished, I am not sure if it is with a sense of satisfaction or one of relief.
I didn’t like 2d which requires unreasonable specialist knowledge of a ghastly American retail chain and I don’t think that the definition for 20a is particularly sound. I was also very surprised to check and find that OAR can be used as a verb – ugly!
I had lots of ticks as well with 1a, 4a, 24a & 25a getting double ticks. A big tick too for Kitty’s picture to illustrate 31a.
Thanks to Filbert and to Kitty.
Rabbit Dave @2. I also didn’t know VENTI but felt it was easy to guess and, personally, given the proliferation of Starbucks, wouldn’t class it as specialised knowledge. I also thought 20a was a bit odd and would better be served with a concluding question mark.
Quite a relief to read that others also found this one difficult. 20a earned an ‘umm’ from me and – like RD – I was very surprised to see that OAR can be used as a verb.
Top of my list for their topicality were 1&4a with smile of the day going to 14d.
Thanks to Filbert and to Kitty for the informative and beautifully illustrated blog – always a great pleasure to look through.
Hovis @3. Hmm… I take your point but I don’t regard what is served in Starbucks (and other similar outlets) as proper coffee. I once tried a “coffee” there many moons ago, and wild horses couldn’t drag me into another one ever again 😉
I’ve been away for a bit and haven’t solved many puzzles and I must say that this was a belter to get back into the swing with. Tough, for sure, but very good. I knew venti (thanks Filbert for resisting the venti latte gag) but it is a bit niche…even most Starbucks customers won’t know it. @RabbitDave the coffee itself is fine; if you order an espresso it’s perfectly drinkable. I only ever used to visit Starbucks for the wifi when travelling and since free data roaming I do wonder how they survive.
Thanks to Filbert & Kitty (nice blog!)
Thanks to Kitty and Filbert
Half of this went in so quickly that I wondered if it really was Saturday, but the second half took at least ten times as long.
I have been in a Starbucks just once, but I will never forget the price of a Venti.
I’m often impressed by the way setters (mostly Guardian and Independent) can intertwine political events with unhelpful looking solutions, but 4a and 13a are exceptionally good.
I thought the def @20a fairly weak – I might ask how the baby or it was before I knew the gender, but NEWBORN is a fair stretch.
I may be wrong but for me the poorest wordplay was for FROIDEUR. I knew the word and was sure of the entry before I had finished reading, but the omission of OF in the clue I thought a little misleading.
My main hold ups were the excellent 24a,30a, and 19d. I have trouble seeing something essential to the healthy growth of a tree as an imperfection.
I love the pictures. The “what have I ever done to you” look at 2d is priceless.
Thanks to Kitty for the super blog and compliments, and everyone who’s commented.
I continue to be mildly surprised each time the puzzle turns out to be so hard, but did have an inkling the knothole/nestle combo might cause trouble. I dug the nestle clue out from an old unpublished puzzle because I really liked it and didn’t want it to go to waste.
Oar can be a verb, but sweep meaning oar is also a noun – I agree ‘to oar’ is inelegant, but like sweeps as things. I admit I only came across it while writing the clue.
Ventilate – nobody’s favourite, not mine, nor the ed’s. If I could have come up with a better one, I’d have replaced it. I felt about Starbucks rather as I do about drugs in clues: outside my experience, so shouldn’t be used.
Isn’t the first thing everyone asks of a newborn, is it a boy or a girl?
Now back to the snooker.