Independent 10,610 by Eccles

by

Eccles provides the midweek entertainment again today.

All good fun as we have come to expect. No unusual words, clear clues with good surfaces and the occasional smile along the way – what more can we ask for?

image of grid

ACROSS
1. Mo Farah: “Initially, I had led off; that’s less important” (6,6)
SECOND FIDDLE

SECOND (mo) F (First or ‘initial’ letter of Farah) I’D (I had) + an anagram of LED – anagrind is ‘off’

9. It results in terrible bottom sounds? (9)
DIARRHOEA

A clue-as-definition: a homophone (‘sounds’) of DIRE (terrible) REAR (bottom)

10. Starts to read out inspiring literary work in competition (5)
RODEO

R O (first letters or ‘starts’ of read out) round or ‘inspiring’ ODE (literary work)

11. Returning crocodile yet to eat part of body (6)
EYELID

Hidden (‘eaten’) and reversed (‘returning’) in crocoDILE YEt

12. Deem inappropriate type of skirt to be something rather sweet (8)
DEMERARA

An anagram of DEEM (anagrind is ‘inappropriate’) RA-RA (type of skirt)

13. Scattered boxes close to home (6)
SPARSE

SPARS (boxes) E (last letter or ‘close’ to home)

15. Conscious thought, but miles away (8)
SENTIENT

SENTImENT (thought) without the ‘m’ (miles)

18. Scorn when judgement sees Catholic becoming rector (8)
DERISION

DEcISION (judgement) with the ‘c’ (Catholic) replaced by R (rector)

19. Joyful story about Miliband? (6)
ELATED

TALE (story) reversed or ‘about’ + ED (Ed Miliband)

21. Isn’t love changing David Mitchell? (8)
NOVELIST

An anagram of ISN’T LOVE – anagrind is ‘changing’

23. South American native‘s mostly feeling affection on vacation (6)
TOUCAN

TOUCh (feeling) without the last letter or ‘mostly’ + AffectioN without the middle letters or ‘on vacation’

26. Greater amount to do over the phone for fool (5)
MORON

A homophone (‘over the phone’) of MORE ON (‘greater amount to do’)

27. Effect of cold and wind at the moment stopping first date working out (9)
SNOWDRIFT

NOW (at the moment) in or ‘stopping’ an anagram of FIRST D (date) – anagrind is ‘working out’

28. Unusually bad scoreline is of some importance (12)
CONSIDERABLE

An anagram of BAD SCORELINE – anagrind is ‘unusually’

DOWN
1. The Blues retrospectively send in crack team (7)
SADNESS

SEND reversed or ‘retrospective’ in SAS (Special Air Service – ‘crack team’)

2. Strongly desire potholer to take run-up (5)
CRAVE

CAVER (potholes) with the ‘r’ (run) moved up (in a down clue)

3. Drugs cop is Southern American chap with a high opinion of himself (9)
NARCISSUS

NARC (narcotics agent – ‘drugs cop’) IS S (south) US (American)

4. Infantry base (4)
FOOT

Double definition

5. Shortest route across the globe merited a shot (8)
DIAMETER

An anagram of MERITED A – anagrind is ‘shot’

6. Big drink with Resistance Movement (5)
LARGE

LAGER (drink) with the ‘r’ (resistance’) moved forward

7. A record player with a coin nearby (8)
ADJACENT

A DJ (record player) A CENT (coin)

8. Child prodigy from Australia found in shopping centre (6)
MOZART

OZ (from Australia) in MART (‘shopping centre’)

14. Animal lover’s heart captured by motorists on road next to animal sanctuary (8)
AARDVARK

V (middle letter or ‘heart’ of lover) in or ‘captured by’ AA (Automobile Association – ‘motorists’) RD (road) ARK (animal sanctuary)

16. Difficult task of monks who need a high ceiling? (4,5)
TALL ORDER

An ORDER of monks who need a high ceiling would be likely to be TALL

17. Conservative leader in Stevenage claiming reported growth is made up (8)
CONSISTS

CON (Conservative) S (first letter or ‘leader’ in Stevenage) round or ‘claiming’ a homophone (‘reported’) of CYST (growth)

18. Electricity provider upset a lot in party (6)
DYNAMO

MANY (a lot) reversed or ‘upset’ in DO (party)

20. Where one might eat ten diet shakes (7)
DINETTE

An anagram of TEN DIET – anagrind is ‘shakes’

22. Stumbling over nursing jargon (5)
LINGO

Hidden or ‘nursed by’ stumbLING Over

24. Caught leg, perhaps, in scramble (5)
CLIMB

C (caught) LIMB (leg, perhaps)

25. Bishop abandons generous approach (4)
ROAD

bROAD (generous) ‘abandoning’ the ‘b’ (bishop)

 

8 comments on “Independent 10,610 by Eccles”

  1. I wanted to say exactly what B&J have written in their preamble.

    Many thanks to them and of course to Eccles.

  3. I cannot match the pithyness of the first two comments – but also feel Eccles deserves just a little more feedback.  I enjoyed this from 1 to 28; plenty of pennies dropping along the way and some delightfully coherent and apposite surfaces.  Highlights being AARDVARK, TALL ORDER, CLIMB, DINETTE and, of course, the outrageous and &littish DIARRHOEA.  SECOND FIDDLE held out til late on – I had wondered about ‘fiddle faddle’ which the last three down crossers were confirming for a while.  I liked the devices in SENTIENT and DERISION.  CONSIDERABLE is a neat anagram – if rather overtly signalled.  Lovely to be right on the setter’s wavelength today.

    Thanks Eccles and bertandjoyce

  4. i really look forward to Eccles Wednesdays and once again I was not disappointed.

    At one point, for no particular reason, I had the whole of the bottom half completed and only 4dn in the top. Then, with a big ‘Doh!’,  I saw 1ac – lovely clue, which opened up the rest very nicely.

    I had ticks for SECOND FIDDLE, DIARRHOEA, TOUCAN, NARCISSUS, ADJACENT and AARDVARK but, like Postmark, I enjoyed every one of them.

    Many thanks, as ever, to Eccles and B and J.

  5. Perhaps not one of my favourite puzzles from this setter but no doubt 9a got me off on the wrong foot along with the rather odd surface read of 1a.

    Favourite was 3d which I thought was nicely constructed.

    Thanks to Eccles and to B&J for the review.

  6. Got through the whole thing in a morning which is quick for me! No grumbles. I was the opposite of Eileen @4 whereby I mostly flew through the top half and generally struggled along with the southern section. 1a was my first in and 23a my last entry.

     

    Thanks to Eccles and to Joyce and Bert.

  7. I think quite a lot of us look forward to Eccles Wednesdays – lots to enjoy but I did write ‘Jane!!’ by 9a as I knew what she’d think.

    Thanks to Eccles and B&J

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