It has been a while since I blogged a Saturday Indy Phi – April 2016 to be precise – although I have covered a few of his Kcit EVs in the meantime…anyway, he is always good for a nice ‘turn of phrase’…
…and so it turned out to be!
(NB. The appearance of a Phi on Saturday probably compensates for the lack of a Phi on Phi-day yesterday – see RatkojaRiku’s blog for an explanation why…)
I found this a fairly gentle solve – along the lines of the recycled Phi’s that I do in the i most Saturdays – and, after a quick scan of perimeter, diagonals and unchecked columns/rows for possible Ninas, I was about to file it under ‘uneventful’ when I spotted that there are four anagrams of PHRASE in the outer columns – PHASER, SHAPER, SERAPH and SHERPA!
A nice touch…
My solving notes have an exclamation mark next to 11A COPY TYPIST – nice anagram and diverting surface…and at 27A ‘melon and peanut dished up with cola’ probably wouldn’t help the ‘fat American’ at 25A only following 50% of their diet! If you have ‘hairs and swellings left and right in different places’ (6D), you probably ought to pay a visit to your doctor…
I also enjoyed CREDENZA at 2D, mainly because I have been moved around various offices in my time, and always enjoy the look on people’s faces when I ask if the credenza is going with us – I think most people think it is one of the office plants!…
Anyway, thanks to Phi, and hopefully all is clear below…
| Across | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clue No | Solution | Clue | Definition (with occasional embellishments) / Logic/parsing |
|
| 7A | SHIRE HORSE | One may draw wages in foreign shores (5,5) | one may draw (a cart, or plough) / S_HORSE (anag, i.e. foreign, of SHORES) around HIRE (wages) |
|
| 9A | HARE | Almost all concubines hurry (4) | hurry / almost all of HARE( |
|
| 10A | USED | Thought to expend money after employment (4) | after employment / ( |
|
| 11A | COPY TYPIST | Quiet year in unusual city post – one won’t work for dictator (4,6) | one won’t work for a dictator! / CO_TYPIST (anag, i.e. unusual, of CITY POST) around PY (P – quiet, Y – year) |
|
| 12A | GRANDSON | Good African currency’s ready for younger relative (8) | younger relative / G (good) + RANDS (African currency’s) + ON (ready) |
|
| 14A | RARELY | Annual return adopted by bank on only a few occasions (6) | on only a few occasions / R_ELY (bank on) around (adopting) AR (Annual Return, finance) |
|
| 15A | STATUE | University blocking national memorial? (6) | memorial? / STAT_E (national) around (blocked by) U (university) |
|
| 16A | HERMES | Greek god giving that girl endless chaos (6) | Greek god / HER (that girl) + MES( |
|
| 19A | CURSED | Better to keep son wretched? (6) | wretched / CUR_ED (better) around (keeping) S (son) |
|
| 21A | TORTOISE | Slow mover, old, is tucking into sweet cake (8) | slow mover / TORT_E (sweet cake) around (tucked into by) OIS (O – old, IS) |
|
| 23A | MIRROR BALL | Tabloid gala, a thing of sparkle and glitz (6,4) | a thing of sparkle and glitz / MIRROR (tabloid newspaper) + BALL (gala) |
|
| 25A | SUET | Fat American backed 50% of diet (4) | fat / SU (US, or American, backed) + ( |
|
| 26A | JUMP | Judge sports referee should get a change of scene (4) | a change of scene (cinematically?) / J (judge) + UMP (abbreviation for umpire, sports referee) |
|
| 27A | CANTALOUPE | Melon and peanut dished up with cola (10) | melon / anag, i.e. dished up, of PEANUT with COLA |
|
| Down | ||||
| Clue No | Solution | Clue | Definition (with occasional embellishments) / Logic/parsing |
|
| 1D | PHASER | Has to be embraced by a stunner (6) | stunner / P_ER (a, for each) around (embracing) HAS |
|
| 2D | CREDENZA | Wild craze to import domestic office furniture item (8) | furniture item / CRE_ZA (anag, i.e. wild, of CRAZE) around (importing) DEN (domestic office) |
|
| 3D | CHIC | Smart girl dismissing knight (4) | smart / CHIC( |
|
| 4D | YESTERYEAR | Certainly hurry to consume whisky in former days (10) | in former days / YES (certainly) + TE_AR (hurry), around (consuming) RYE (whisky) |
|
| 5D | SHAPER | Former priest? Hears cracks about that (6) | former / SHA_ER (anag, i.e. cracks, of HEARS) around P (priest) |
|
| 6D | BRISTLES | Hairs and swellings left and right in different places (8) | hairs / B( |
|
| 8D | REPINE | Theatre in Spain to feel discontented (6) | to feel discontented / REP (repertory theatre) + IN + E (Espana, Spain) |
|
| 13D | SOUNDTRACK | Reliable course to produce music for film (10) | music for film / SOUND (reliable) + TRACK (course) |
|
| 15D | STUDIOUS | Keen to research place that breeds debts (8) | keen to research / STUD (place that breeds) + IOUS (debts) |
|
| 17D | MOONSHOT | Working quietly to block debatable space mission (8) | space mission / MO_OT (debatable) around blocked by) ONSH (ON – working, SH – quietly, interjection) |
|
| 18D | STRAIN | Stigma involving Queen creates tense situation (6) | tense situation / ST_AIN (stigma) around (involving) R (regina, queen) |
|
| 20D | SERAPH | Angel hurries up to catch Paternoster’s opening (6) | angel / SERA_H (hares, or hurries, up) around (catching) P (opening letter of Paternoster) |
|
| 22D | SHERPA | Mountain guide initially hesitant, coming in after French climbing (6) | mountain guide / S_ERPA (apres, or after, in French, climbing) around H (initial letter of Hesitant) |
|
| 24D | LOAM | Middle of plot on American soil (4) | soil / LO (middle letters of pLOt) + AM (American) |
|
There’s an error in blog for 5d. The definition is just FORMER, I.e. someone (or something) that forms. In 12a, I took the currency as RAND with the S coming from the ‘S in the clue. Didn’t spot the turns of phrase – nice one.
Thanks, Hovis – both duly updated – I must have been thinking of ‘shaker’, although I don’t think they could be described as priests!
The HARE and the TORTOISE and The STATUE of HERMES are two of Aesop’s FABLEs. I’d clearly been spending too much time with Ebenezer Cobham…
Aha! Phrase and Fable – nice one!
Thanks, Phi and mc_rapper67.
Aha – thanks for popping by, Phi – far too clever for this blogger of little brain…I was half-way there!…