We are in very strange times being ruled by an unelected buffoon, so the clue to 20/6 will pin this puzzle to a very narrow time window, hopefully.
Solving went steadily with about half in at the first pass, and most of the rest became clear steadily until the last two or three at the top. It seems quite often when I cannot get 1ac it resists right to the end.
A nice mix of clues as usual and nothing to quibble about.
| Across | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PROFUSE | Liberal authority combine (7) PRO (authority) FUSE (combine) Last one in. Still dubious about “authority” for PRO – seems to me like one more step from “expert” |
| 5 | IMMORAL | “One’s taking very little time with head – bad” (7) I’M (One’s) M[inute] (very little time) ORAL (head) |
| 11 | LIE IN STATE | Play fast and loose with the truth to get elected, say, and end up like a Russian tyrant? (3,2,5) LIE (Play fast and loose with the truth) IN (to get elected) STATE (say). Favourite clue for the surface |
| 12 | BRETHREN | “Britain getting there” trashed by last of forlorn community members (8) BR[itain] (THERE)* AInd: trashed, [forlor]N |
| 13 | SCREED | Long, tiresome passage: ‘the ultimate in Boris’s belief system’ (6) [bori]S CREED |
| 14 | OBESE | Internally probe senators owning corporation (5) Hidden in prOBE SEnators. First one in. Sometimes hidden answers appear easy |
| 16 | STRETCHED | Taxed senior Tory leaders were sick (9) S[enior] T[ory] RETCHED (were sick) |
| 19 | EXPERTISE | No longer cocky, that is, without introduction to sexual proficiency (9) EX-PERT (no longer cocky), I.E. (that is) around (without) S[exual] |
| 20/6 | PRIME MINISTER | Boris needs to prepare to fire cabinet colleague (5,8) PRIME (prepare to fire) MINISTER (cabinet colleague) |
| 22 | BLOW IN | Show up suddenly with cannabis? Trendy (4,2) BLOW (cannabis) IN (trendy) I needed all crossers to get this |
| 24 | ESPRESSO | Hacks love going after drugs and drink (8) ES (drugs) PRESS (hacks) O (love) |
| 26 | OVERPRICED | Costly rice proved to be soggy (10) (RICE PROVED)* AInd: to be soggy |
| 28 | PRE-EMPT | Peter sneakily holds back 20/6, to beat the opposition to it (3-4) (PETER)* AInd: sneakily around (holds) PM< (see answer to 20/6) |
| 29 | USURPED | Pushed-aside American was rude at the dinner table, taking top off? (7) US (American) [b]URPED |
| Down | ||
| 2 | ROVER | Transient leader of Right finished (5) R[ight] OVER (finished) |
| 3 | FORETASTE | Preview of a setter’s bollocks (9) (OF A SETTER)* AInd: is bollocks Penultimate one solved. I thought the definition was the other end of the clue |
| 4 | SALARY | Labour’s reward: some colossal ‘Aryan’? (6) Hidden in colosSAL ARYan. |
| 7/25 | OUTER SPACE | Dismissed by Brenda, Gap amounts to “alien territory!” (5,5) OUT (dismissed) ER (Brenda) SPACE (gap). Co-incidentally I solved this soon after doing Nutmeg’s Guardian that had the same answer |
| 8 | AT THE HELM | 20/6 fancies he is playing Hamlet (article inside) (2,3,4) THE (article) inside (HAMLET)* AInd: playing |
| 9 | KEYNOTE SPEECH | Cheeky note about recruiting ESP nuts could be party conference highlight (7,6) (CHEEKY NOTE + ESP)* AInd: nuts |
| 15 | BOX CLEVER | Fight the two main party leaders at all times – be cunning! (3,6) BOX (fight) C[ons] L[abour] EVER (at all times) |
| 17 | CARPENTER | “Maker of cabinets“, US president impounds a writer? (9) PEN (writer) inside CARTER (US president) |
| 18 | ETON CROP | Boris and his year’s school chums? Not much on top! (4,4) Double Def referencing the origins of the current ridiculous PM and indeed most Tory PMs |
| 21 | SPADES | Digger’s suit (6) Double Def – Should this be “Diggers’ suit” ? |
| 23/27/10 | WORSE THAN EVER | Never had it so bad over here – wants to relocate (5,4,4) (OVER HERE WANTS)* AInd: to relocate |
Interestingly my first one in was also 14a, but I mistakenly put TORSO, hidden in senaTORS Owning, meaning Corporation. It caused a few problems for me later on, until I realised my mistake.
It is Digger’s in 21 in reference to the Dirty Digger.
It was pure coincidence that a different setter (Nutmeg) used OUTER SPACE in Guardian 27895, published on August 9, the official publication date of Eye 1502. Something much odder happened on August 7, the day that subscription copies of Eye 1502 arrived in the post and the Guardian cryptic (27893) was set by Cyclops’ alter ego, Brummie. The clue for 27a in Guardian 27893 is “Ex-president recruits writer who could assemble a cabinet?”, solution CARPENTER, a word that is essential to that crossword’s theme. I cannot understand why the setter has reused the same clue (slightly reworded) in Cyclops 657. It would not have been difficult to clue 17d in a different way.
Can someone explain how “owning corporation” can mean “obese”? I’m baffled.
Ben @4 -Corporation Is a dated term for a paunch. I only heard of this through doing the private eye Crossword. It comes up now and again.
My Oxford Dictionary of English has the following def 3..dated’, humorous A PAUNCH
There are a couple of examples of authors using “corporation” here:
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/corporation
For ne, I got this done fairly quickly and without any recourse to internet or some time away from it. However, I did spend a lot of time thinking about the relevance of 20th June until I started on the down clues!!!! I got Immoral but spent a few days thinking about why RAL was head…….I had ‘mo’ for ‘a short time’ and so missed ‘oral’!!!! Is a minute really a short time though? Depends on the relativity, I suppose.
Winsor@7, snap! I have “RAL?” written next to the clue on my copy. Is M a “very little time”, because it’s an extra short abbreviation of ‘minute’ (normally ‘min’)? My Chambers doesn’t even give it, although Collins online suggests it can be used for ‘minutes’ (as in 3h 15m, I suppose).
I think “digger’s” is ok, because if you enter SPADE’S, you leave out the apostrophe.
Here’s a list showing all the words that Cyclops abbreviates to ‘m’:
http://web.archive.org/web/20060709034430/http://www.btinternet.com/%7Eed.xword/AbbrevM_O.html
@John E…very interesting…so m could also be parsed as half a millimetre!
Winsor@10. If you allow ‘m’ as an abbreviation for minute (which Cyclops does), the cryptic definition ‘very little time’ is playing with a pair of closely related words (the one meaning ’60 seconds’ and the one meaning ‘tiny’ have a shared etymon).
John E….I like that thought very much but I still have an issue with one minute being considered very little, in terms of time. Compared to an era, yes….but to a second? Or a ‘mo’. which I consider as being a few seconds. Then again, my children will say “Wait a mo” and expect me to stand around for half an hour!!!! I guess I’m splitting hairs….or ha///irs as cyclops might have it.
@John E, thanks very much for opening the door to the archive of Eddie James’ (presumably lapsed) website, where I’ve just spent an hour or two browsing. Here’s a gem I found in his ‘Clues I Like’ page:
The Artist Formerly Known As Princess (5)
which is by Shed (Guardian 23019)
@Winsor, ‘mo’ a few seconds? It’s short for moment, which is surely a second at the longest (when not being perverted by your kids, of course)?
Thanks, had no idea that “corporation” could mean a big belly. Guess that makes me a CEO!
The Artist Formerly Known As Princess (5)
RA + NEE
Re 18D
Eton Crop was a hairstyle popular for a short time in the 1920s.
Boris, of course, went to the school so him and his classmates were an “Eton Crop”.