Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of August 3, 2019
Alberich is back with more challenging wordplays. I had trouble figuring out 13ac (TEAR) and 7dn (SPORT). My favourite clues are 4ac (COMPOSER), 11ac (CHEERIO) and 15dn (YACHTSMAN).
| Across | ||
| 1 | MEAGRE | Simple clothing article, close to being skimpy (6) |
| A (article) + [bein]G together in MERE (simple) | ||
| 4 | COMPOSER | Bliss perhaps from business model netting millions (8) |
| CO (business) + M (millions) + POSER (model) with the definition referring to the English composer and conductor Sir Arthur Bliss (1891 – 1975) | ||
| 9 | DROSS | Refuse to sleep around randomly, for a start (5) |
| R[andomly] in (around) DOSS (sleep) | ||
| 10 | INCURIOUS | Not interested in what unpaid creditor will do? (9) |
| INCUR I.O.U.s (what unpaid creditor will do?) | ||
| 11 | CHEERIO | Before ten, companion takes ever so long (7) |
| CH (companion) + E’ER (ever) + IO (ten) | ||
| 12 | EPISTLE | I step out to get the French letter (7) |
| Anagram (out) of I STEP + LE (the French) | ||
| 13 | TEAR | Drop by, having time for reunion at last (4) |
| NEAR (by) with the ‘N’ (reunion at last) replaced by T (time) | ||
| 14 | MENTALLY | Chaps try, losing heart, to keep everything in mind (8) |
| MEN (chaps) + ALL (everything) in (to keep) T[r]Y | ||
| 17 | DIOCESAN | One among deacons possibly? (8) |
| I (one) in (among) anagram (possibly) of DEACONS and an &Lit. | ||
| 19 | ECHO | Copy is in Czech originally (4) |
| Hidden word | ||
| 22 | NIGHTIE | One’s seen in the bedroom, having close relationship (7) |
| NIGH (close) + TIE (relationship) | ||
| 24 | ICED TEA | I give up consuming Tango, a cold drink (4,3) |
| I (I) + T (tango) in (consuming) CEDE (give up) + A (a) | ||
| 25 | LIME GREEN | Wag largely lent regime colour (4,5) |
| Anagram (wag) of LEN[t] REGIME | ||
| 26 | MAMBO | Voodoo priestess’s dance (5) |
| Double definition. I had been unaware of ‘mambo’ meaning a voodoo priestess. | ||
| 27 | DETONATE | Set off to see around college (8) |
| ETON (college) in (around) DATE (to see) | ||
| 28 | STINGY | Mean to do last of laundry (6) |
| STING (to do?) + [laundr]Y | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | MEDICATE | Give treatment to referee nursing cold (8) |
| C (cold) in (nursing) MEDIATE (referee) | ||
| 2 | AFORESAID | A clue for 4 mentioned previously? (9) |
| Would be homophone! | ||
| 3 | RESORT | Engineers deal with repair (6) |
| RE (engineers) + SORT (deal with) | ||
| 5 | ORCHESTRATION | Arrangement as an alternative Treasury budget (13) |
| OR (alternative) + CHEST (treasury) + RATION (budget) | ||
| 6 | PARTIAL | Friend embraces one following craft fair? No (7) |
| ART (craft) + I (one) together in (embraces) PAL (friend). With a very clever definition. | ||
| 7 | SPORT | Jam sandwiches initially raised amusement (5) |
| R[aised] in (sandwiches) SPOT (jam) | ||
| 8 | ROSTER | Chicken perhaps served without a roll (6) |
| ROASTER (chicken perhaps) with the ‘A’ removed (served without a) | ||
| 10 | IN ONES ELEMENT | Lie spread with men not seen very much at home (2,4,7) |
| Anagram (spread) of LIE MEN NOT SEEN | ||
| 15 | YACHTSMAN | Maybe Chichester Cathedral’s leader wears many hats at work (9) |
| C[athedral] in (wears) anagram (at work) of MANY HATS. The definition refers to Sir Francis Chichester (who was a great hero to me in my youth). | ||
| 16 | ROTATORY | Corrupt a politician capable of revolution (8) |
| ROT (corrupt) + A (a) + TORY (politician) | ||
| 18 | OCTAGON | After a month suffering, Yankee cut a figure (7) |
| OCT (a month) + AGON[y] (suffering, Yankee cut) | ||
| 20 | ANGLED | Engineer missing wife and daughter gets cornered (6) |
| WANGLE (engineer) with the ‘W’ removed (missing wife) + D (daughter) | ||
| 21 | PERMIT | Pass through university (6) |
| PER (through) + MIT (university) | ||
| 23 | GAMUT | Old woman aboard boat returned compass (5) |
| MA (old woman) in (aboard) TUG (boat) all backwards (returned) | ||
Thanks to Pete and Alberich
Faultless blog, faultless puzzle, but I’m sure it wasn’t quite that long ago!
Thank you for spotting that. I have fixed the error.
Thanks Alberich and Pete
A typically neat and entertaining puzzle from this setter again. Completed it over three sessions just before heading off on holidays to Far North Queensland and only had a chance to check it off today, after getting back.
Had ticked INCURIOUS as my cod (for it’s very clever word play) closely followed by AFORESAID.
Finished in the NW corner with MEDICATE, DROSS and RESORT being the last few in … but now looking back on it, wondering why they were.
Is the absence of comments an indication that I wasn’t the only one to find this extremely difficult? Well done Pete as ever for completing it.
I did get 28 ac. No need for the ? in your blog. “to do” as in “do over” – think of the film “the Sting”