Another enjoyable puzzle from Everyman, but one where I suspect less experienced solvers will be saying ‘too hard’. I could be wrong.
Abbreviations
cd cryptic definition
dd double definition
cad clue as definition
(xxxx)* anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x] letter(s) removed
definitions are underlined
Across
1 Sly boasts must supply evidence of wealth
STATUS SYMBOLS
(SLY BOASTS MUST)* The anagrind is ‘supply’, which you have to read as an adverb derived from the adjective ‘supple’.
8 Section of atlas, I assume!
ASIA
Hidden in atlAS I Assume. A cad – the whole clue can be read as the answer.
9 Degrader of transportation?
FARE DODGER
(DEGRADER OF)* Another cad, but with a rather clunky definition because of that.
10 Health expert let fish go bad after flipping
DOCTOR
A reversal (‘after flipping’) of ROT COD.
11 Find out about unusual radiation
INFRA-RED
An insertion of RARE in (FIND)* The anagrind is ‘out’ and the insertion indicator is ‘about’.
12 Actor – Alec Guinness, say – given line
KNIGHTLEY
This is a tough clue, and was my last one in. It’s a charade of KNIGHT (of which Sir Alec Guinness is an example) and LEY, for the ‘line’ across the landscape. It proved tough for me because although the solution was always likely to be ‘actor’, there are lots of them, so if you were struggling with the subsidiary indicator then you couldn’t really have a guess. Referencing Kiera KNIGHTLEY, the English actor/actress.
14 Unappealing, lousy (on the outside)?
UGLY
Another cad. The outside letters of the first two words of the clue.
15 Head of Blackpool Zoo, bumbling buffoon
BOZO
A charade of B for the first letter of ‘Blackpool’ and (ZOO)*
16 You’ve let me down, putting rotten butter on butties regularly
ET TU BRUTE
A charade of (BUTTER)* and UTE for the even letters of bUtTiEs. I wasn’t mad keen on the definition here.
20 Committed saint with extremely abnormal verruca
STALWART
A charade of ST, AL for the outside letters of ‘abnormal’ and WART.
21 Dishevelled, untidy, in state of undress
NUDITY
(UNTIDY)*
23 Part of Yorkshire fighter rose for the audience?
PLAIN FLOUR
I liked the clever misdirection here. It’s a homophone (‘for the audience’) of PLANE and FLOWER. We are of course talking puddings.
24 Compact weapons withdrawn
SNUG
A reversal of GUNS.
25 Religious instruction fervently shuns cold soya
SUNDAY SCHOOLS
(SHUNS COLD SOYA)* with ‘fervently’ as the anagrind.
Down
1 Halfwit gets in early to see poet
SASSOON
An insertion of ASS in SOON, referencing the First World War poet.
2 This actor wants to get away
APART
A dd.
3 Enthusiastic usurer initially obtaining obscene profit
UP FOR IT
A charade of U for the first letter of ‘usurer’ and (PROFIT)*
4 Here you might rest with ‘Paddington Enters Armed Forces’?
SERVICE STATIONS
I presume the setter is suggesting that Paddington Enters Armed Forces could be a book about the Peruvian bear, in which case it’s a rather fanciful surface. An insertion of STATION in SERVICES.
5 Financier Bernie did this with the loot, we’re told
MADOFF
Bernie MADOFF was the financier convicted in 2009 of running a massive Ponzi scheme which embezzled $65bn from client accounts. He is due for release on November 14, 2139, apparently. His surname is pronouced MADE OFF, which is the source of the homophone used in the clue.
6 A heap, old boy? Not a sausage
OLD BANGER
A charade of O, L[A]D and BANGER, spoiled somewhat by having ‘old’ in both the wordplay and the solution.
7 Unseemly exchange by railway is quite a sight
SCENERY
A charade of SCENE and RY. ‘There was quite a scene when they met last night.’
13 Ultimately, visiting Arizona, Illinois, Long Island and Ontario is big deal
GAZILLION
A charade of G for the last letter of ‘visiting’, AZ, IL, LI and ON for the US state abbreviations and ON for the abbreviation for Ontario. Which is in Canada. Which is not part of the United States. Thank you to my fellow blogger Peter O for correcting me at comment no. 12.
15 Campaigns against ‘having area for old wine collection’
BATTLES
Everyman is inviting you to take BOTTLES for ‘wine collection’ and replace the O with A.
17 Hunt: pro renewal of Humberside etc
UP NORTH
(HUNT PRO)* Humberside and quite a lot of etc is indeed UP NORTH, as in ‘it’s grim oop north’.
18 Vacant twit in tutu’s dancing, getting sounds of disapproval
TUT-TUTS
An insertion of TT for ‘twit’ vacated (in other words, the middle two letters removed) in (TUTUS)*
19 Sordid affair that’s seen at evening classes
RAFFIA
(AFFAIR)* Good surface, but a deeply random definition. RAFFIA is a palm, whose fibres are often used for things like basket weaving and other crafts. Which could be offered at evening classes in your area; check local websites for details.
22 Every so often, DJ is sick of dance music
DISCO
The regular letters of Dj Is SiCk Of.
Many thanks to Everyman for this Sunday’s puzzle.
My favourites were ET TU, BRUTE & FARE DODGER (loi).
Thank you Everyman and Pierre.
Got stuck on 9ac, thinking it must be FORD/?????? But couldn’t manufacture a Ford model from the rest of the fodder.
Thanks P&E
When I did this last week, I was struck by the number of clues which required, again, a leap of faith. Maybe that’s the new style, but I’m not a fan of the imprecision of the definitions. Examples would be 8a, 9a, 16a, 23a, 6d, 17d (there’s an awful lot of ‘up here’) and 19d. The wordplay for the most part is OK, it’s the imprecise definitions which for me detract from the enjoyment.
Thanks to Pierre and Everyman
Mostly a good puzzle, but I agree with our blogger that having OLD in both clue and answer rather spoilt 6dn. The thought process associating RAFFIA with evening classes seems like harking back to something from another era, but perhaps it still goes on.
The definition at 16ac is feeble as in it’s original context the expression meant a bit more than just ‘you’ve let me down’ and the important point that it’s ‘you TOO…’ is not covered.
I too was unimpressed with 6d. Ive waited all week to see why OLD in the clue was also in the answer and 16d “youve let me down” rather summed up my feelings about these two clues. The rest were enjoyable.
Thanks Pierre. I thought last week that this had broken the sequence of having some related entries in the grid, but I see now that the three long solutions are all two-word phrases with S as the first letter of each word.
Agree with most of the above. 6d is rather lazy. As for12a, it defeated me, possibly me rather than setter but definitely not happy. Agree that leaps of faith and loose definitions are not good practice but this is what it now seems to be. Still find it slightly less fun than before.
I found this easier than last week’s and do agree about the looseness of some definitions but did enjoy the puzzle nonetheless.
You can’t please everyone of course but I liked ET TU BRUTE.Also KNIGHTLEY and INFRA-RED.
Thanks to Pierre and Everyman (for those old enough “Will the real Everyman stand up please”)
Any criticism of this puzzle was more than offset by the excellent MADOFF. Laughed out loud when I clocked it.
Thanks Everyman.
I groaned at MADOFF seeing as that pun was all over the place when the story broke (there was even a film with the terrible title “Madoff: Made Off with America”).
Should the setter have come up with something different for the B in BOZO, seeing as the head of Blackpool Zoo is a real person?
I thoroughly enjoyed this puzzle. If this is the new Everyman’s style, I’m quite content.
I agree that 6d was inelegant, but the two very good &lit / cads (8a and 14a) and the one OK &lit / cad (9a) amused me.
23a was my last one in, and it raised a smile when the penny dropped.
Regarding Nila Palin @10’s question, if I were the head of Blackpool Zoo, I would be pleased and amused to show up in this context, but I suppose others might not be.
Pierre
I was disappointed by this week’s offering, mainly for the loose definitions cited above .
Thanks for the blog, but might I suggest that you take another look at your comment for 13D. Who do you think you are – Trump?
Whoops. In my defence, no-one this side of the pond noticed …
Blog corrected, thank you for pointing it out. Good job Everyman gets syndicated in New Zealand and not Canada.
These latest Everyman offerings feel like a “work in progress” and some things are not quite panning out yet but I do find them a refreshing change from somewhat “paint by numbers” approach we used to get on Sundays. As my old headmaster used to say: “I look forward to his progress with interest”
Enjoyed the Yorkshire clue but agree with all of the above comments, especially the repetition of ‘old’ which held me up as I felt the answer couldn’t possibly be right. And goodness me, some of the definitions are random, as are the anagrinds (fervent?)
Can’t say I’d heard of Ley Lines. In NZ we know all about laylines in sailing parlance, but they are unrelated.
Enjoyed some but was defeated by others. I thought this was a mix of good clues and jolly awful ones. I liked doctor and stalwart. Don’t know who Madoff is nor who to pronounce his name. Never heard of Lay lines either. I do wish there were more easy ones that I could get quickly on my first read through, so I could get started quicker.
I meant ley lines.. I do know what lay lines are.
This puzzle was “curate’s egg”. I agree with Skinny@3 that there was a great deal of imprescision and a need for leaps of faith. And 6 down was just plain sloppy and lazy.
Didn’t quite manage to parse 2 down; i.e. didn’t twig that “a part” is what an actor wants! Duh!
Got 13 down right away but was unsure/unhappy about it, feeling that “gazillion” is not really a legitimate word — although it is in my New Oxford dictionar.
I agree with Peter Aspinall above: the Madoff clue made up for everything else. I got further with this puzzle than others recently, and the quality of some clues more than makes up for the ‘looseness’ of other IMHO.
Many thanks Pierre and Everyman.
Doh!! Lack of editing function meets auto correct: Peter AspinWall. Apologies.
Incidentally, I see that in the last day or two, Mr. Madoff is trying to get his 150 year sentence reduced I suppose they could knock 6 months off for good behaviour (given that he is behaving good).