A pleasing puzzle in the usual IoS style, where I was troubled only by one or two remote synonyms.
Abbreviations
cd cryptic definition
dd double definition
cad clue as definition
(xxxx)* anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x] letter(s) removed
definitions are underlined
Across
1 Converting our assets and income into something very welcome
MUSIC TO ONE’S EARS
(OUR ASSETS INCOME)*
9 List of names not considered for product launch
ROLL OUT
A charade of ROLL and OUT.
10 Reportedly what a roofer may do that’s perceptible by touch
TACTILE
A homophone (‘reportedly’) of TACKED TILE, TACK TILE, which is potentially what a roofer would do with a hammer in one hand and a slate in the other.
11 Bitter, bitter having leaked runs
ACID
AC[R]ID
12 Bill caught sound of caller on mobile briefly, Stanley perhaps?
ACCRINGTON
A charade of AC for account or ‘bill’, C for the cricketing ‘caught’ and RINGTON[E]. Accrington Stanley are a long-established football club, now playing in League One of the English Football League. The club that wouldn’t die, for those interested in the beautiful game. If you are not interested in footie, then you might have struggled to get this one; but if that narks you, then you’re doing the wrong puzzle. This is the Indy and it does football in its crossies big time.
14 Concrete is child’s play to mix, vacuous lad conceded
PHYSICAL
(CHIL[D]S P[L]AY)* The anagrind is ‘to mix’; the removal indicator is ‘conceded’; the instruction to remove the middle letter of ‘lad’ is ‘vacuous’.
16 Home Secretary defends weapon that causes injury
HARMS
An insertion of ARM in HS.
18 Golfer reflected on sloth somewhere in church
AISLE
Two crossword favourites in one clue. AI for the ‘sloth’ and [Ernie] ELS for the ‘golfer’. Is he still playing? I care less. Whatever, it’s the sloth followed by the golfer reversed.
20 South American chap, 29, main lessee
GUYANESE
A charade of GUY, AN and ESE. 29 is referencing EVERY NOW AND THEN, which is telling you to take the even letters of mAiN lEsSeE.
23 Sure sign revealing a batsman’s ambitions?
BOUNDARIES
A charade of BOUND and ARIES for the zodiacal ‘sign’. ‘We’re sure/bound to have a footie-related clue in the Indy puzzle soon.’
25 Love going around over alternative to carpet
LINO
A reversal of NIL and O for the cricketing ‘over’. A now rather old-fashioned floor covering. Short for LINOLEUM, and I think largely superseded by vinyl flooring, but I am no expert in these matters.
27 Sound name adopted by fashion designer
CHANNEL
An insertion of N in [Coco] CHANEL. ‘Sound’ in its marine sense.
28 Prepare to fire male working at IKEA previously
TAKE AIM
A charade of (AT IKEA)* and M.
29 New oven Henry wanted periodically
EVERY NOW AND THEN
(OVEN HENRY WANTED)* for our bottom row multi-word anagram.
Down
1 Innumerable milk suppliers having no space, becoming upset
MYRIAD
A reversal of DAIRYM[EN]. The EN is a printers’ space (as is an EM). ‘Upset’ is the reversal indicator, because it’s a down clue.
2 Songsmith, essentially mischievous and egocentric
SELFISH
A charade of S for the middle letter of songSmith and ELFISH.
3 Dog food
CHOW
A dd.
4 Eye surgery to itch from time to time
OPTIC
A charade of OP and the odd letters of To ItCh.
5 Friend supports new planet being discovered, of course
NATURALLY
A charade of N [S]ATUR[N] and ALLY. ‘Discovered’ is crosswordspeak for ‘uncovered’ – in other words, with the outer letters removed.
6 Assist performer indirectly
SECOND HAND
A charade of SECOND (think boxing) and HAND.
7 Pilot coming from Malaga, via Torremolinos
AVIATOR
Hidden in MalagA VIA TORremolinos.
8 Back head abandoning exam, it’s most rigorous
STERNEST
A charade of STERN and [T]EST.
13 Influence criminal case due to begin in French city
ASCENDANCY
A charade of (CASE)* and D for the first letter of ‘due’ in NANCY. The anagrind is ‘criminal’; the insertion indicator is ‘in’. The solution wouldn’t have been my first choice of synonym for ‘influence’.
15 Garlic oil’s cooked, producing a little smoke
CIGARILLO
(GARLIC OIL)*
17 Happen to block line for drinks, we hear, in party
BARBECUE
An insertion of BE for ‘happen’ in BAR CUE, with the latter element being a homophone (‘we hear’) of QUEUE. Well a BARBECUE can be a ‘party’, I suppose.
19 America imprisoning philosopher? Conversely, it could be baloney over there
SAUSAGE
An insertion of USA in SAGE. ‘Baloney’ is an American sausage.
21 Leaves hospital after cycle ride leads to accidental crash
SPINACH
A charade of SPIN, A and C for the first letters of ‘accidental’ and ‘crash’ and H.
22 Tory knight, possibly a fraudster
CON MAN
A charade of CON and MAN for the chess ‘knight’.
24 Run more than usual
EXTRA
The most common solution in contemporary cryptic crosswords. A dd and our third cricketing reference for those who are bored with footie.
26 Slip by youngster carrying pole
SKID
A charade of S for South ‘pole’ and KID. ‘Carrying’ works because it’s a down clue.
Many thanks to Silvanus for the Sunday morning coffee accompaniment.
I had trouble with MYRIAD, my last in, and missed the significance of a few other bits such as ‘baloney’ as a term for SAUSAGE in the US, or that OPTIC could be a noun for ‘eye’. I confess to being too much of an AI (a 5-toed one anyway) to bother to parse GUYANESE. I thought just ‘tack tile’, to fit the tense of the surface, was the origin of the homophone for 10a, but either will work. I did have to struggle to get ACCRINGTON, but vaguely remembered the name of the FC, if not the ‘club that wouldn’t die’ good-news story.
Yes, Ernie Els, the solver’s greatest golfing friend, is still going around, mainly (though not exclusively) on the seniors tour these days. When he eventually does retire, I wonder who his crossword successor will be?
Thanks to Silvanus and Pierre
I also felt that TACK TILE was a better fit for 10a. A nice mix of easy and not-so-easy clues made for a pleasant solve. I suspect ERNIE ELS will be in cryptics well after he has retired.
Thanks to Silvanus and Pierre.
Indeed, the homophone at 10ac is TACK TILE, to make sense of the grammar. Blog corrected.
A nice relaxing Sunday puzzle, with no hold-ups, though the SW corner slowed me a little. Thanks Sylvanus and Pierre.
Very much enjoyed this one as is invariably the case with a puzzle from this setter. So nice to get such smooth surface reads and any sporting references are always very fairly clued.
Favourites for their humour were TACTILE and CIGARILLO but at least another five were in the running for accolades.
Many thanks to Silvanus and also to Pierre for the review.
Just a thought regarding 12a – anyone remember those Milk Marketing Board TV adverts involving Ian Rush?!!
Not too difficult as one expects for an IoS puzzle, but nevertheless very satisfying. Thanks, Silvanus and Pierre.
Jane @6: We take it you mean “Accrington Stanley – Who are they? – Exactly!”
Actually our memories go further back – to the football results on the radio at Saturday teatime with Accrington Stanley, Preston North End, and all those wonderful Scottish names.
Exactly what I was referring to, Allan@7. I also remember my Dad following the football results on a Saturday to check his ‘coupons’. How invaluable those memories have become where crossword clues are concerned!
Many thanks to Pierre and to those who took the trouble to leave comments.
Chambers Thesaurus has acid, tart, sharp, sour and vinagery all listed for bitter, all of which are great synonyms for each other but none of which are the same as bitter, which is a completely different class of taste receptor that reacts readily with plant alkaloids (not exclusively) which are often quite poisonous. A handy survival mechanism, but not related to acidity. I love a pint of bitter ale, but wouldn’t touch an acid, sour pint. Likewise, would one classify the flavour of quinine as acidic? They really are quite separate things, but have clearly become intertwined over time. I wonder why.
Fun puzzle, on the tougher end of the scale for me, SW corner especially. Thanks Silvanus and Pierre, needed plenty of help with parsing today.
Good entertainment for a Sunday, a little more difficulty than some IoS puzzles, particularly liked MYRIAD and the two lengthy anagrams.
Surely the setter’s intention at 14A was to remove the contiguous letters LD (vacuous lad) in “child’s”.
Thanks to Silvanus and Pierre.
It might have been, gwep, but it works either way.
@12Pierre Might it? A rather risible justification.
@13 – There’s no reason for them to be contiguous. “Risible”???