A quick solve, but a technical DNF because I can’t parse 6 Down.
All sugestions welcome, I’m bound to be missing something here. Otherwise, a jolly romp, for which thanks to Slormgorm.
| Across | ||
| 1 | DRAWING | Inspiring sort of picture (7) |
| Double definition. | ||
| 5 | CAPABLE | Fit guy enthrals old man (7) |
| CABLE (rope, ‘guy’) around PA (‘old man’). | ||
| 9 | SKINT | Hard-up family seen in street (5) |
| KIN in ST[reet]. | ||
| 10 | REMOULDED | Rude model must be sacked and recast (9) |
| Anagram (‘must be sacked’) of RUDE MODEL. | ||
| 11 | ABHORRENT | A brother dancing around noon is repulsive (9) |
| Anagram (’dancing’) of A BROTHER aroun N[oon]. | ||
| 12 | FLEES | Takes off very small jumpers in hearing (5) |
| Homophone (‘in hearing’) of FLEAS (’very small jumpers’). | ||
| 13 | SAUNA | Small gold top from Next and a sweater? (5) |
| S[mall] + AU (‘gold’) + 1st letter of Next + A, w mildly cryptic def. | ||
| 15 | ILL HUMOUR | Sick jokes can create bad temper (3,6) |
| ILL (‘sick’) + HUMOUR (‘jokes’). | ||
| 18 | REED ORGAN | Music producer garnered Oscar for new arrangement (4,5) |
| Anagram (‘for new arrangement’) of GARNERED + O[scar]. | ||
| 19 | SLIPS | Little mistakes by cricketers in the field (5) |
| Doule def. | ||
| 21 | LOTUS | Bloomer you found in a great deal (5) |
| yo[U] in LOTS (‘a great deal’). | ||
| 23 | CHOIRGIRL | Miss singing with others in church? (9) |
| Cryptic whole-clue def. | ||
| 25 | INTUITION | Sort of knowledge gained from popular lessons (9) |
| IN (‘popular’) + TUITION (‘lessons’). | ||
| 26 | PLACE | One must leave fish restaurant, perhaps (5) |
| PLAiCE (‘fish’) without 1. ‘Restaurant’ a little loose for ‘place’ but ‘twill serve, given common puns for fish & chip shops (“Harry’s Plaice” &c). | ||
| 27 | HENPECK | Nag hot nurse to get quick kiss (7) |
| H[ot] + E[nrolled] N[urse] + PECK (‘quick kiss’). | ||
| 28 | RUNLESS | Cut down on jogging like an unfit batsman? (7) |
| I.e., ‘run less’, ho, ho. | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | DISMAYS | Insult about former PM shocks (7) |
| DISS around (Theresa) MAY. Still (just) P.M. as I type. | ||
| 2 | ACID HOUSE | Dance music in a police station? (4,5) |
| I.e., A C.I.D. HOUSE | ||
| 3 | INTER | Bury FC? (5) |
| Double def. ‘Inter’ = ‘to bury’ + INTER[nazionale] = the Milan football club. | ||
| 4 | GARDENING | Gang used nerd and I working on a plot (9) |
| Anagram (‘working’) of NERD + I in GANG, ‘used’ signifying the inclusion, we take it. ‘Working’ doing double duty, I think. | ||
| 5 | COMET | Heavenly body seen by yours truly in bed (5) |
| ME in COT. | ||
| 6 | PLUS FOURS | Trousers and uniform brought inside as well as coats (4,5) |
| Not sure how this works. ‘And’ = PLUS, FURS = ‘coats’ leaves an ‘O’ missing and Uniform unaccounted for. ‘As well as’ = PLUS could ‘coat’ SFOR with U[niform] inside, but what’s the SFOR about? FOR might = ‘as’ (‘because’), ‘coating’ U, again, all surrounded by PLUS, but that leaves an ‘S’ over. Answers to Confused of Buxton. Oh, and plus fours are so called because of the extra 4″ of material needed to make those daft, saggy knees. |
||
| 7 | BADGE | I have a black and white coat shortened for Mark (5) |
| BADGEr. | ||
| 8 | END USER | Some send us errands for a consumer (3,4) |
| Inclusion in ‘sEND US ERrands’. | ||
| 14 | A DOGS LIFE | Somehow old age is about fine – or it’s this (1,4,4) |
| Anagram (‘somehow’) of OLD AGE IS + F[ine] w rueful semi &lit. | ||
| 16 | LANDOWNER | Laird’s description network- breaking virus? (9) |
| LAN (local computer ‘network’, I believe) + DOWNER (that which may ‘down’ e.g. a network, but I’m only guessing). | ||
| 17 | ORIGINATE | Create talk that’s full of international spirit (9) |
| I[nternational] + GIN (‘spirit’) in ORATE (‘talk’). | ||
| 18 | RALEIGH | Tobacco-importer briefly justified importing beer (7) |
| RIGHt (‘justified’, shortened) around ALE. Sir Walter, the spuds, baccy and muddy cloak bloke. | ||
| 20 | SELLERS | Comedic actor: Merchant, S. (7) |
| Peter of that ilk. | ||
| 22 | TITAN | Giant brown bears bit, but not at first (5) |
| bIT in TAN. | ||
| 23 | CLINK | Cooler climate’s likely in North Korea initially (5) |
| 1st letters of middle 5 words. | ||
| 24 | RIPEN | Mature beef with no starter and drop of Nolly? (5) |
| gRIPE (moan, ‘beef’, without 1st letter) + 1st of ‘Nolly’. | ||
*anagram
Pleasant solve. I have to confess I was too lazy to be bothered with the exact parsing of GARDENING and PLUS FOURS, both of which looked “about right”. Looking at the latter now, I can’t really add anything unless there is a boo-boo in the clue, which sounds like the poor workman blaming his tools.
I liked the ‘Tobacco-importer’ and the reminder of Peter SELLERS. I have to agree with 14d.
Thanks to Slormgorm and Grant
Re the anno for 6d PLUSFOURS.
Can we see it PLUS FO(U)RS?
PLUS (and) U (uniform) in (brought inside) FURS (homophone – “as well as” – of FURS (coats)
Pl ignore
PLUS (and) U (uniform) in (brought inside) FURS (homophone – “as well as” – of FURS (coats)
Instead read
PLUS (and) U (uniform) in (brought inside) FORS (homophone – “as well as” – of FURS (coats)
PLUS+ FO(U)RS
Does this make sense?
In 16d can’t we take ‘downer’ as something that ‘downs’ us, or forces us to lie down, viz.’virus’ for example.
To Rishi @3,4:
I can’t make either of your suggestions quite work either. FORS isn’t a homophone of FURS, even if ‘as well as’ works as the indicator, which, again, I don’t think it does, quite.
And in 16d, I can’t see ‘downer’ as a biological virus. I think my guess is probably right; I was just saying that it felt a bit loose.
Other suggestions for the pesky plus fours welcome.
16d must be missing an of.
Laird = definition
Description of network-breaking virus = LAN downer
Also think PLUS FOURS has to be U inside PLUS FORS, by mistake.
Merchant S. was nice, also Bury FC
Thanks Slormgorm, Grant
I think you are correct in your parsing for 16d. A virus that brings down a local area network could be termed a LAN downer.
I reckon 6d is just a very careless error on the setter’s part. “As well as coats” translates as “plus furs” and “uniform brought inside” translates as putting in a U not an O. Hope I’m proved wrong.
My favourite was SELLERS with the clever reference to Steve Merchant.
We crossed James. Clearly we think alike. Don’t think 16d need an of. As in blog, we take Laird’s description as definition, then network-breaking virus as wordplay.
To James:
Agree re ‘of’ in 16d. The clue is ungrammatical without it. But I’ll defend my def, though not to the death: ‘description’ cd fall either side of the line with or without the ‘of’.
It also looks sure that the ‘plus fours’ thing is an error. One’s always reluctant to lay blame, but this is I think clearly a setting/editing slip.
Crossing going on, but I still say (with James) that 16d is grammatically illegal as a clue without the ‘of’.
I take the point on grammar. Indeed, it would be a better clue with “of” and Laird by itself as definition.
Best clue for me 27a for ironic surface.
Thanks Slormgorm and Grant
Reasonably straightforward solve apart from the ‘wrong un’, which I decided quite quickly was one of those ones that had slipped through – the answer was obvious … and the word play was just as obviously wrong.
Liked TITAN and HENPECK but the clear clue of the day for me was the clever LANDOWNER (which I had parsed the same way as Hovis).
Finished in the SE corner with RIPEN and PLACE as the last couple in.
Thanks Slormgorm and Grant.
It’s probably quite obvious, but not to me. What is Nolly?