Azed 2531

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The last Azed of 2020 before the Christmas special, and quite a gentle one, I thought. Thanks as always to Azed.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Across
1. POGGE Hard-plated fish from foreign river rolling part of roe (5)
PO (river) + reverse of EGG (part of roe)
7. GRASP Government file making sense? (5)
G + RASP
12. CURCULIO Fruit pest, rare thing enveloping most of stem (8)
CUL[L] (to stem) in CURIO
13. THUMBPOT Child pockets crumpled bumph – it’s suitable for seedling (8)
BUMPH in TOT
14. CREMOR Pair of characters in oyster place changing places for sort of smoothie? (6)
CROMER with the O and E swapped. Cromer is more famous for its crabs, but it seems you can get oysters there too
15. AMENT One needing psychiatric help grieves having wings clipped (5)
[L]AMENT[S]
16. HYPE Publicity stunt? It stimulates artificially (4)
Double definition
17. MAMZERIM Mass entering bewildering system, on edge? They’re misbegotten (8)
M in MAZE + RIM
18. ASTROMETRY Rate ‘stormy’ vague in precise measurement of space (10)
(RATE STORMY)*
21. SCRATCHERS Nick bits of earlier recorded stuff? Could be Grub Street denizens (10)
SCRATCH (Nick, name for the devil) + first letters of Earlier Recorded Stuff
24. DOORPOST Stop fumbling after cross comes back – I won’t catch a thing! (8)
Reverse of ROOD (cross) + STOP* – reference to the phrase “deaf as a doorpost”
26. YEST What caused ferment in parliamentary establishment (4)
Hidden in parliamentarY ESTablishment – old variant of yeast
28. PILUM Roman army issue, troublesome flyer when holding line (5)
L in PIUM (“a small but very troublesome Brazilian fly”). The pilum was a Roman javelin
29. CHASER One that’s set off in search? (6)
SEARCH* &lit
31. SMALLAGE Wild celery, herb seen round shopping area (8)
MALL in SAGE
32. TENT-WORK Piece of embroidery showing two figures beside queen and king? (8)
TEN + TWO (numbers, figure) + R + K
33. TROAD He leaves the highway for track no longer used (5)
T[HE] + ROAD
34. ANDES Return of comic dame, central character in Christmas range (5)
Reverse of EDNA (Dame Edna Everage) + [chri]S[tmas]
Down
1. PITCH AND PUTT Stone cold performer turned up leading road race? Context not requiring drivers (12, 3 words)
PIT (stone, in a fruit) + C + HAND (performer) + reverse of UP + TT (race); the drivers in question are golf clubs
2. OCHRY Brownish-yellow piece of pseudochrysolite (5)
Hidden in pseudOCHRYsolite
3. GLUE This size, OS, is not right for OU gels (4)
Composite anagram: (OU GELS)* = GLUE OS
4. GAMMER Elderly female or male entering, keen competitor on the circuit (6)
M in GAMER
5. SUPRA Page in section of the Koran, as above (5)
P in SURA (a chapter of the Koran)
6. GROMMET Surfing tyro got mermaid helplessly rolling about (7)
Anagram of GOT + MERMAID less AID
8. RUMMER Tympanist missing entry – rather odd (6)
[D]RUMMER – “tympanist” for “drummer” is a definition-by-example, so should really have a “maybe” or something
9. ALMERY Food store – see one denied pant for meal concealed (6)
PANTRY (a food store) with PANT replaced by MEAL*
10. SIGNIOR Gentleman’s society I included in endless snub (7)
S + I in IGNOR[E]
11. POSTMISTRESS She runs local concern, job with medium pressure around one (12)
POST (job) + I in M[edium] + STRESS
19. SPOILER Pliers somehow gripping ring device assisting plane’s descent (7)
O in PLIERS*
20. MAORMOR Chairman presiding over room as alternative to senior steward (7)
MAO + RM + OR
21. SOLANO A number as introduction for unaccompanied wind (6)
A N in SOLO
22. CRUSTA Cocktail coming from vineyards cheers (6)
CRUS + TA (thank you, cheers)
23. HYALIN This dinghy a liner envelops, result of degenerative process (6)
Hidden in dingHY A LINer
25. SCARY Grant maybe topped by latest of cuts, alarming (5)
[cu]S + CARY (Cary Grant, actor)
27. SEGUE Proceed directly, as in court (5)
EG (as) in SUE
30. SARD Stone that’s reddish-brown with being dug out of turf (4)
SWARD less W[ith]

7 comments on “Azed 2531”

  1. Thanks Andrew, I didn’t spot the nick/scratch/devil trine, just took it literally.
    Thanks as ever to Azed. Favourite GROMMET.

  2. Thanks, Andrew. I got through this OK, with quite a few ??? on parsing, though. Is the word in 1D supposed to be “contest”? I still do not get “context,” there. Like Gonzo, I also took “nick” and “scratch” literally on 21A. I read 9D as you did, but I still find it very obscure/awkward, and do not really see an anagram indicator; I think “meal rustled up” might have made more sense. Is 33A properly read as “T ROAD,” referring to the former Irish highway system?

  3. I’ve almost no memory of completing this, and my copy went out with the recycling midweek, but it did occur to me that the definition of AMENT was perhaps a little inaccurate. I’m not a medic, but surely someone with this condition would need help from a different speciality, such as neurology?

  4. 30dn defeated me. I guessed SAND as in sandstone.

    Several others I couldn’t parse so thanks for the explanations. I’d heard of Cromer didn’t know it was famous for crabs, let alone oysters, and it didn’t suggest itself to me in 14ac.

    Cineria@2: 1dn sort of works for me. In the context of pitch and putt, you don’t need drivers.

  5. If you played in our cricket team, D2 grade, back in the 1980s, it didn’t matter where you fielded. If you were put in the slips, it was given that you would drop catches. Anything that went whoosh in the air got dropped by whoever was under it. We were known as “doorposts” because we were hardly swift and couldn’t catch. I’ve done all my searches but I can find no reference to this use of “doorpost” outside Australian colloquial.

    This wasn’t difficult but hands up who got things wrong with SCROUNGERS at 21 Ac (which parses). And SERVE at 27 (doesn’t parse but it wouldn’t be the first time Azed’s outwitted me)? So it took me frustratingly longer than normal.

    Weird coincidence. Three weeks ago (2529) we had GANT at 6 Dn. The original online clue read: “Lady’s man, run out, Sandy’s indication that he’s ready for bed”. I assumed this was Cary G[r]ant.

    It was subsequently changed to “Lady’s man, all out, Sandy’s indication that he’s ready for bed”. G[all]ant. Now Cary Grant pops up.

    Stefan

  6. This certainly took longer than the usual couple of sessions and I still managed to make a mess of the middle area. As always, it was an enjoyable tussle – thanks for that Azed. And thanks Andrew for explaining my inadequacies.

  7. Completed it but couldn’t parse ALMERY, which was LOI. Rather obvious now it’s been explained! Thanks to Azed and Andrew.

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