Phi eases us into weekend
Phi’s puzzles often test our general knowledge. There was certainly a good mix of topics today.
I did wonder whether the bleach, lye and stomach pains clue was an oblique reference to recent amateur medical advice from across the pond, but I don’t know when this puzzle was compiled.
I haven’t heard reference to old Scottish Counties for a while, so it was good to be reminded of ROSS AND CROMARTY. There are two other Scottish geographic references with IBROX. and LANARK, but not enough locations to constitute a theme. COWES rather spoilt the Scottish thoughts anyway.
| No | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
| Across | |||
| 8 | Object very much encountered in Government around the end of March (9) |
SO (very much) + ([MET {encountered} + IN + G {government}] containing [around] H [final letter of {end of} MARCH]} SO MET (H) IN G |
SOMETHING (an object) |
| 10 | Range currently stocked? At a subsequent time, rather (5) |
AGA (large, permanently-lit iron stove with multiple ovens, used for cooking and heating; range cooker) + IN (currently stocked) AGA IN |
AGAIN (at some future time) |
| 11 | Product of cows from meadow yonder? Not entirely (7) |
LEA (meadow) + THER LEA THER |
LEATHER (treated skin, which could be a product from cows hide) |
| 12 | Almost fail to involve European city in work on paper (7) |
OMI O (RIGA) MI |
ORIGAMI ( the Japanese art of folding paper so as to make figures shaped like animals, birds, etc.) |
| 13 | Title for man giving nowt ultimately away? (5) |
MIS MISER |
MISER (one who hoards wealth and does not spend it unnecessarily; a title descriptive of a man who gives nothing away) |
| 14 | Fighter plane brought in faulty, not initially operational (9) |
F (fighter plane as in F-15, F-16 etc) contained in (brought in) E (F) FECTIVE |
EFFECTIVE (serviceable; operational) |
| 16 | Dr Rory, a Scotsman, could be working here (4,3,8) |
Anagram of (could be working) DR RORY A SCOTSMAN ROSS AND CROMARTY* |
ROSS AND CROMARTY (one of the old Counties of Scotland, covering an area north and west of Inverness) |
| 19 | Mixture of bleach and lye gives you stomach pain (9) |
Anagram of (mixture of) BLEACH and LYE BELLYACHE* |
BELLYACHE (stomach pain) |
| 22 | German linguist forbidding using repeated letter at the end (5) |
GRIM (forbidding) + M (last letter of [at the end] GRIM) thereby using a letter repeatedly at the end GRIM M |
GRIMM (reference Jacob Ludwig Karl GRIMM (1785 – 1863), a German philologist, jurist, and mythologist. He is known as the discoverer of GRIMM‘s law of linguistics. With his brother he edited GRIMM‘s Fairy Tales) |
| 24 | Wooden weapon with pine front (7) |
LONG (yearn; pine) + BOW (front [of a boat]) LONG BOW |
LONGBOW (historically, a wooden weapon, drawn by hand) |
| 26 | Keeps absorbing independent news items (7) |
STORES (keeps) containing (absorbing) I (independent) STOR (I) ES |
STORIES (news items) |
| 27 | One place for matches involving Rangers primarily? (5) |
I (Roman numeral for one) + (BOX [where matches are kept] containing [involving] R [first letter of {primarily} RANGERS]) I B (R) OX |
IBROX (district in Glasgow. IBROX stadium is the home of [Glasgow] Rangers Football Club) |
| 28 | Bird to show affection in two ways (9) |
SPOON (indulge in sentimental courtship) + BILL (caress or talk fondly) giving two ways of showing affection SPOON BILL |
SPOONBILL (any bird of a family similar to the ibises, with long, flat, broad BILL SPOON-shaped at the tip) |
| Down | |||
| 1 | Sanctuary unknown in a degraded area (6) |
Y (letter frequently used to represent an unknown value in mathematics) contained in (in) (A + SLUM [overcrowded, squalid neighbourhood.; degraded area]) A S (Y) LUM |
ASYLUM (a place of refuge; sanctuary) |
| 2 | Setter’s visas having insuperable problems (8) |
I’M (I am; Setter is; Setter’s) + PASSES (visas) IM PASSES |
IMPASSES (deadlocks; stalemates; insuperable problems) |
| 3 | Prepared that fellow with money to support US lawyer (2,3,5) |
ATT (attorney; US lawyer) + HE (that fellow) + READY (money) As this is a down entry, the letters HE and READY are ‘supporting’ the letters ATT AT T HE READY |
AT THE READY (prepared) |
| 4 | Confusion over study about entrance to harbour (place a little way out to sea) (8) |
PIE (confusion) + (READ [study] containing [about] H [first letter of {entrance to} HEAD) ‘over’ relates to the down nature of this clue. PIE R (H) EAD |
PIERHEAD (the seaward end of a PIER [a little way out to sea]) |
| 5 | River valley starts to widen after downpour initially (4) |
WADI (first letters of [starts to] each of WIDEN, AFTER, DOWNPOUR and INITIALLY) W A D I |
WADI (river valley) |
| 6 | I’m … I’m afraid to pick up sausage (6) |
(I’M [I am] + ALAS [I’m afraid]) all reversed (to pick up; down clue) (SALA MI)< |
SALAMI (highly seasoned Italian sausage) |
| 7 | Ridiculous oven set up in university city (8) |
KILN (large oven) reversed (set up; down clue) and contained in (in) (U [university] + ELY [city in Cambridgeshire]) U (NLIK<) ELY |
UNLIKELY (improbable; outrageous) |
| 9 | Leave, following being involved in error (2,3) |
F (following) contained in (being involved in) GOOF (blunder; error) GO O (F) F |
GO OFF (leave) |
| 15 | Appalachian holiday venue affected and reduced under pressure? (10) |
CAMP (affected) + GROUND (reduced to powder by crushing or pressure) CAMP GROUND |
CAMPGROUND (popular form of holiday venue throughout the Appalachian region of America) |
| 16 | Bawdy writer redrafted serial, penning a book (8) |
Anagram of (redrafted) SERIAL containing (penning) (A + B [book]) R (A B) ELAIS* |
RABELAIS (reference Francois RABELAIS [1494 – 1553], French writer noted for writer for satire, the grotesque, bawdy jokes, and songs) |
| 17 | Others work squeezing Edward’s organ part (4,4) |
(REST [remainder; others] + OP [opus; work]) containing (squeezing) ED (Edward) RE (ED) ST OP |
REED STOP (set of reed-pipes controlled by a single organ STOP; organ part) |
| 18 | Nasal problem? Suggestion is provided about one after runs (8) |
R (runs) + ([HINT {suggestion} + IS] containing [about] I [Roman numeral for one]) R HIN (I) T IS |
RHINITIS (inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose; nasal problem) |
| 20 | Lively activity seen around a new Scots town (6) |
LARK (frolic; lively activity) containing (around) (A + N [new]) L (A N) ARK |
LANARK (town in Scotland) |
| 21 | Island location where herd’s heard? (5) |
COWES (sounds like [heard] COWS [herd]) COWES |
COWES (town on the Isle of Wight) |
| 23 | Predominantly with some dampness but no current (6) |
MO MOSTLY |
MOSTLY (predominantly) |
| 25 | Lad accepting kiss with an indifferent sound? (4) |
BOY (lad) containing (accepting) X (symbol for a kiss) BO (X) Y |
BOXY (of reproduced music, sounding as if recorded in a BOX; with an indifferent sound). |
I didn’t understand how ‘Boxy’ worked, to thanks for that and the Blog Duncan. Thanks also to Phi of course for another excellent puzzle. There used to be a Glasgow-based football team called Third Lanark, which regularly came up in the TV football results back in the day. Their name originated from the 3rd Lanarkshire Rifle Volunteers. They were liquidated in 1967 but reformed as an amateur club in 1996. Just thought I’d bung that in for free – I’m missing football!
Another really enjoyable puzzle from Phi.
I particularly enjoyed 13 and 27 ac.
Thanks to Phi and Duncanshiells
A little trickier than some Phi offerings, but once we got 16ac (misled by the ‘Dr’ we thought we might be looking for a hospital department until we twigged ROSS AND CROMARTY) we were well away.
We liked ORIGAMI, UNLIKELY and the &lit-ishness of MISER.
Thanks, Phi and Duncan
Excellent end to the Indy week. Like Duncan, I enjoyed the range of subject matter on offer.
I got GRIMM quickly because I work in languages and knew his famous law; but I never knew he was one of the brothers GRIMM as well. You learn stuff, as I keep saying.
I’m assuming the scattering of Scottish references are random, but you never know with Phi. Thanks to him anyway, and to Duncan for blogging.
Good weekend to all.
I think the theme is the Scottish writer (& artist) Alasdair Gray – Lanark and Something Leather are definitely by him – but I should defer to someone more knowledgeable.
You could be right, Herb. Googling Alasdair Gray turned up Unlikely Stories, Mostly although I couldn’t find anything else. And today is 5 months to the day since he died.
Thanks, Duncanshiell and Phi. Was the solution to 4D meant to say “H [first letter of {entrance to} HARBOUR?
Michael from OZ @ 7
Yes, sorry – should be first letter of HARBOUR
Is Origami a verb?
If not I’m not sure it is ‘work ON paper’.
Minor quibble in a much enjoyed puzzle so thanks to S&B
I was planning on rereading Lanark so when Gray died at the end of 2019, I dug it out and also gridded the puzzle. Rather pleased, having slotted in several things, to find the long answer threw up something Scottish.
K’s D: I think most people (me included) say “You mean he was a linguist as well?” when they discover something new about Jakob Grimm.
thought of Gray when I got LANARK but then forgot about it until I’d finished. Then I thought I’d better look for a theme and there it was. I’ve read several of his books and saw him at a science fiction convention once.
The first edition of Unlikely Stories Mostly had an erratum slip inserted that said, “This slip has been inserted by mistake.”
Curiously, the Independent today has an article about Lanark and Gray. Coincidence?