The puzzle can be found here.
Hello everyone. Before I head to the crossword, I would like to express my gratitude to those too busy to read this, those busy working to keep us all as safe and provided for. It feels worth saying anyway. My best wishes to you all – stay safe, stay well and stay ok, and may your biggest problem be boredom!
On that front, Skinny has provided splendid entertainment which took me pretty much the expected number of minutes and head scratches for a Sunday Indy. How nice that some things are normal. Many thanks, Skinny.
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER.
Across
6a Uproar of ultimately catastrophic, harmful relationship (7)
CLAMOUR
The last letters of (ultimately) catastrophiC and harmfuL + AMOUR (relationship)
7a Like a fruitcake, only more so (7)
NUTTIER
A cryptic definition, or two definitions in one, using fruitcake as the cake which might include nuts, or alternatively a “nutty” person
9a First bit of stinking blubber to clean up (5)
SWEEP
The first letter of (first bit of) Stinking + WEEP (blubber)
10a Sleuth hides gold in jars and disappears immediately (9)
VAPORISES
PI (sleuth) contains (hides) OR (gold), and all of this is in VASES (jars)
11a Roast meat sat uneasily (7)
LAMBAST
MEAT plus SAT anagrammed (uneasily)
13a Harmonise with piece of music on curriculum (6)
CONCUR
A piece of musiC ON CURriculum
15a Flimsy Trident missiles are kept here, targeted primarily against Bali’s interior (13)
INSUBSTANTIAL
IN SUBS (Trident missiles are kept here), the initial letter of (… primarily) Targeted, ANTI (against), and bALi’s middle letters (interior)
19a The reformed, almost agreeable native (6)
ETHNIC
An anagram of (… reformed) THE, plus most of (almost) NICe (agreeable)
20a & 6D. Cowardliness – trait originally cultivated in royal household (7,6)
WINDSOR CASTLE
COWARDLINESS and the first letter of (… originally) Trait, anagrammed (cultivated)
23a Further work of tailor, at ease about finishing touches of fancy apparel (9)
RESTYLING
RESTING (at ease) around (about) the last letters of (finishing touches of) fancY and appareL
24a Bear with me, short of English charm (5)
TOTEM
TOTE (bear) with M[e] (from the clue) without (short of) E (English)
26a Expression of exuberance associated with invention of a bicycle trick (7)
WHEELIE
WHEE (expression of exuberance) next to (associated with) LIE (invention)
27a Promote variety of vegetables, but not garlic, shallots and broccoli to begin with (7)
ELEVATE
An anagram of (variety of) VE[g]ETA[b]LE[s] missing (but not) the initial letters of (… to begin with) Garlic, Shallots and Broccoli
Down
1d Rooney’s caught Peter out (4)
WANE
A homophone of (… ‘s caught) WAYNE (Rooney)
2d 6A is fair game (6)
HOOPLA
A double definition, the first of which (6a=clamour) was new to me. The answer is hyphenated in Chambers, but not in Oxford or Collins, which I believe to be the Indy’s bible
3d Investigators announced to conduct an administrative sell-off (9)
PRIVATISE
Sounds like (… announced) PRIVATE EYES (investigators)
4d Approaching bad weather wiping out French seat of government (8)
STORMONT
STORM [fr]ONT (approaching bad weather) removing (wiping out) FR (French)
5d It’s fabulous smashing fascists, left and right (5,5)
FIRST CLASS
An anagram of (smashing) FASCISTS, L and R (left and right)
6d See 20 Across
7d Frank’s cycling over my dead body (4)
NOPE
OPEN (frank) is cycling, the last letter moving round to the front
8d Nick’s upset, missing opening of Ukrainian tourist destination (6)
RESORT
TRO[u]SER (nick) is reversed (upset) missing the first letter of (opening of) Ukrainian
12d City centre has changed under Mayor’s lead (10)
MANCHESTER
CENTRE HAS, anagrammed (changed), following (under, in a down answer) Mayor’s first letter (lead)
14d Arrangement of Grieg sonata at last we’d listened in on (9)
EARWIGGED
An anagram of (arrangement of): GRIEG + sonatA at last + WED
16d One lending boxes reserved for acrobat’s equipment (8)
UNICYCLE
UNCLE (one lending) contains (boxes) ICY (reserved)
17d Have another pull, it’s very sore (6)
REDRAW
RED RAW (very sore). The picture below (with a different meaning of the answer) is from themonsterproject.org
18d Midnight mass? (6)
GRAMME
The letter found mid-niGht is the abbreviation for the answer
21d One’s excluded from more elegant conversation (6)
NATTER
I (one) is removed from (excluded from) NATT[i]ER (more elegant)
22d Spear a fish (4)
PIKE
A double definition
25d Creature, early version thereof eating nothing without support (4)
TOAD
TAD[pole] (toad: early version thereof) containing (eating) O (nothing), without POLE (support)
Excellent. Mostly straightforward but struggled a bit in the SE with TOAD my last one to parse. Some really nice anagrams, I thought, particularly the one for WINDSOR CASTLE.
Thanks to Kitty and Skinny.
Great puzzle and great review. Like Kitty, I didn’t know the meaning of 6a needed for 2d.
I loved the smooth surfaces and accurate cluing. My top few were 1d, 3d, 16d & 18d.
Many thanks to Skinny and to Kitty.
Enjoyed this. As a scientist I insist that g is the abbreviation for the SI unit gram, not for some archaic spelling of gramme!
Quite a few here where I got the solution from the crossers and the def, then slowly checked out the word play. Nothing much else to do today, so it passed the time very nicely. Now on my 16th day of self-isolation.
Thanks to Skinny and Kitty.
I struggled on 7A/7D crossers but got there in the end. Very enjoyable. Thanks Skinny and Kitty (especially for the entertaining images).
Thanks Skinny and Kitty
A couple of tweaks to the blog: 11 isn’t a total anagram, it’s LAMB (meat) followed by AST (sat uneasily), and 8 also isn’t an anagram, it’s a straight reversal (upset, literally) of TROUSER without the U.
Of course Simon – thanks. It’s what comes of procrastinating by searching for pictures first! Blog amended.
Enjoyed this, the last of the dailies for me today, i’ve baked bread and fed the dogs – now i’m worried i have no excuse not to attack some more serious chores.
i enjoyed the long anagram (20/6d) and my favourite clue was MANCHESTER – Andy Burnham does seem to make a difference.
Many thanks Skinny and Kitty, everyone stay safe please
Hi all, thanks to Kitty for a great blog, and to all for the comments, they’re greatly appreciated.
On the point of Gramme – it was raised pre-publication, but in it’s defence, I’ve been making surfactant and polymer recipes for three decades or so, and from the start, we always used GRAMMES rather than GRAMS. Also in it’s defence, it is in the BRB as a spelling.
Anyhoo, onwards and upwards, thanks again.
V nice puzzle, thanks Skinny, Kitty, especially the anagrams, fascist-smashing, royal-bashing
Was that cat trying out the lift for the first time? It looked like it didn’t know what was going on.
Ericw@ 2 As a pedant, don’t you mean: ‘I insist that g is the spelling for the SI unit gram, not for some archaic spelling of gram!’?
Certainly needed Kitty’s help to parse a few of these, namely 2,18 & 25d, and I was a bit slow to arrive at PRIVATISE.
WANE gets my vote for COTD despite the fact that I don’t follow the game.
Thanks to Skinny & to Kitty for producing such an uplifting review. On the subject of those who are busy working to keep us safe – and at the risk of embarrassing you – my heartfelt thanks for your personal contribution on the volunteering front.
Thanks kitty as a key nhs worker apparently this is one of the few escapes i get.