Sorry for the late and rushed post! This was a fun and fairly easy puzzle from Philistine.
There was a minor theme of CORVIDs – crow, magpie and raven, but no COVID / CORVID joke that I could see! We found this an enjoyable puzzle, albeit on the easy side for a prize crossword. Thanks, Philistine!
Across
1. Lancer told to choose an entrance (7)
PICADOR
Sounds like “pick a door” (“told” is the homophone indicator)
Definition: “Lancer”
5. Went down as a result of what happened in a gastric haemorrhage (7)
TUMBLED
TUM (stomach) BLED might be what happened in a gastric haemorrhage
Definition: “Went down”
9. House sold off around mid-April (5)
LORDS
(SOLD)* around [ap]R[il]
Definition: “House”
10. City is suitable for everyone involved in commercial vehicle insurance (9)
VANCOUVER
U = “suitable for everyone” (the film classification) in VAN COVER = “commercial vehicle insurance”
Definition: “City”
11. Girl, nine, starts wearing ponytail twisted in an affecting manner (10)
POIGNANTLY
G[irl] N[ine] in (PONYTAIL)*
Definition: “in an affecting manner”
12. Writer having a change of heart and spirit (4)
BRIO
BIRO = “Writer” with the middle letters swapped (“having a change of heart”)
Definition: “spirit”
14. That guy talks to turbans? (11)
HEADDRESSES
HE = “That guy” + ADDRESSES = “talks to”
Definition: “turbans?”
18. Staff working to prop organisation, but not too much (2,3,6)
MA NON TROPPO
Definition: “but not too much” (used in musical notation, e.g. “Allegro, ma non troppo”)
21. Bloody half of literary device (4)
GORY
[alle]GORY = “half of literary device”
Definition: “Bloody”
22. Deceptive advocacy of dire perils and sin (3,7)
LIP SERVICE
(PERILS)* + VICE = “sin”
Definition: “Deceptive advocacy”
25. Leaving us can make it relax and wallow (9)
LUXURIATE
Compound anagram: without Us (“leaving us” (!)) LUXURIATE anagrams to IT RELAX
Definition: “wallow”
27. Route to get ‘bravo’ out of theatre land (7)
ROADWAY
[b]ROADWAY – “bravo” is the international phonetic alphabet word for B
Definition: “Route”
28. Medium or perhaps strong? You can have instant coffee at first (7)
PSYCHIC
First letters of P[erhaps] S[trong] Y[ou] C[an] H[ave] I[nstant] C[offee]
Definition: “Medium”
Down
1. Agent cut up for bowel problem (6)
POLYPS
SPY = “Agent” + LOP = “cut” all reversed (“up” in this Down clue)
Definition: “bowel problem”
2. Magpie? Five to feature in my papers (6)
CORVID
V = “Five” in COR = “my” + ID = “papers”
Definition: “Magpie?”
3. Dines out with song to provide some realism (10)
DISENCHANT
(DINES)* + CHANT = “song”
Definition: “to provide some realism”
4. 2 given intravenously (5)
RAVEN
Hidden in “[int]RAVEN[ously]” – “given” is the hidden answer indicator
Definition: [CORVID]
5. Like Bob Dylan in blue and brown, heartlessly plugged out (7,2)
TANGLED UP
TAN = “brow” + (PLU GED)*
Definition: “Like Bob Dylan in blue”, referring to his song “Tangled Up In Blue”
6, 26. New motion, top item to be debated (4,5)
MOOT POINT
(MOTION TOP)*
Definition: “item to be debated”
7. Oliver is having one portion? Must be feeling queasy (8)
LIVERISH
Hidden in “[o] LIVER IS H[aving]” – the hidden indicator is “portion”. It seems minorly inelegant that the “one” is superfluous to me – it could be “Oliver is having sandwiches?”, though I suppose you don’t get the “Please Sir, can I have some more?” reference then
Definition: “Must be feeling queasy”
8. One little and quiet place to sleep on the river (8)
DORMOUSE
DORM = “place to sleep” + OUSE = “river”
Definition: “One little and quiet”
13. Me, 21, grappling with a PhD in population studies (10)
DEMOGRAPHY
(ME GORY A PHD)*
Definition: “population studies”
15. One on the tail of pair planning lurid hijacking (3,6)
AIR PIRACY
(PAIR)* (the anagram indicator is “planning”) + I = “One” + RACY = “lurid”
Definition: “hijacking”
16. Criminal unclothed to reveal somebody with no special powers (8)
SMUGGLER
SMUGGLER “unclothed”, removing the outside letters, gives you MUGGLE, or “somebody with no special powers” in the Harry Potter universe
Definition: “Criminal”
17. Refusing food when a refusal reportedly damages you (8)
ANOREXIA
A NO = “a refusal” + REXIA sounds like “wrecks ya” or “damages you”
Definition: “Refusing food”
19. Complete and utter European (6)
FINISH
Sounds like (“utter”, or “say out loud”) “Finnish”, or “European”
Definition: “Complete”
20. Digestive movement with vigour (6)
PEPTIC
TIC = “movement” beside PEP = “vigour”
Definition: “Digestive”
23. Expensive soak in marinade (5)
STEEP
Double definition: “Expensive” and “soak in marinade”
24. 2 involved in murder (4)
CROW
The collective noun for crows is a “murder”
Definition: “[CORVID]”
A prize crossword that was (for me at least) easier than the following Quiptic! Very enjoyable to solve. Particular thanks to the compiler for being generous with the crossing letters
After my comments o General Discussion last week about reversing birds, I was CHOUGHed to see a RAVEN the right way round.
Holy Moses! Not a single comment when I came on! I looked for the blog, it wasn’t there, I looked at the Guardian thread, I looked for the blog again and there it was! No doubt someone else is typing while I am, so I’ll probably not be first, but I’ll be earlier than I’ve ever been!
I biffed in GORY but had no idea why. Thanks, mhl.
mhl, you have a typo in the blog for 5d –“brow” for “brown.”
Thanks to Philistine for a pleasant puzzle and to mhl for enabling me to check in so high on the list!
A thoroughly enjoyable puzzle from a top setter, with a good variety of clues and some clever wordplay.
My first entry was MA NON TROPPO, which was familiar to me and happened to be printed on a sheet in front of me at the time. That was one of my favourites, along with PSYCHIC (I’m always slow to suss clues like that), TANGLED UP, DEMOGRAPHY and FINISH.
Thanks to Philistine and mhl.
If easy means fair, well clued and enjoyable to solve, then I’m happy with that!! That guy talks to turbans – what a gem!
Agree this was easier than many Prize crosswords but, as was said with Pan’s even easier recent Prize, it allows more people to enjoy this pastime – so, not a bad thing. Thanks to Philistine and mhl.
The parsing for 18a is missing, mhl. MAN (staff) + ON (working) + (TOPROP)* would be my suggestion.
I really enjoyed this puzzle. Straightaway I got TANGLED UP (I like the song) then got the three covid clues – I remembered that the collective for CROWs was murder which I learned in a fairly recent crossword.
Got most of it last Saturday and returned to it yesterday to finish and parse a few like SMUGGLER which I had got but not parsed (so easy and funny when the penny dropped).
Favourites also included: PICADOR, TUMBLED, BRIO, LIP SERVICE, DEMOGRAPHY, GORY.
Thanks to Philistine and mhl
Ooops meant corvid clues
Thanks, mhl and Philistine, just the right level. I got CORVID, but could not parse it, so thanks to mhl for that. I am still not entirely happy with ID=papers, but I see how to get there.
No problems with the late posting. We in the UK have had our say before our friends in the US and Down Under have joined in. Looking forward to seeing their contribution later.
Like Fiona Anne @7, I love TANGLED UP in Blue, so that was an easy spot and I did the rest listening to Blood on the Tracks.
I hope Dormouse enjoyed being the ‘name up in lights’ treatment.
Thanks to Philistine and mhl
A SMUGGLER but no budgies this time; I enjoyed the other birds though (the five magpies set off a train of reminiscences (silver, gold, a secret never to be told…). Five ‘digestive’ clues as well, all cleverly done.
At the risk of starting a war, I’d like to suggest that a non-possessive apostrophe could usefully be included in the explanation of the U’s in LUXURIATE. Clarity trumps the rule book.
[sjshart @9: the early-rising Valentine still beat us to it!]
Enjoyable puzzle from a favourite setter, thanks Philistine and mhl.
Thanks for the blog, cleared up a few points for me. I usually find Philistine very tricky but this seemed just right, very enjoyable clues.
‘Tangled up’ went with Carol King’s Tapestry, 50th anniversary thereof, celebrated on our ABC Music Show today. Earworms by the dozen.
Thanks Philistine and mhl
Easy (for a Philistine, that is!), but very enjoyable. Loved TANGLED UP, but it might have been harder for anyone for whom Blood on the tracks isn’t their favourite Dylan album.
[In the second Dirk Gently book, The long dark teatime of the soul, Dirk describes a house he visits – it sounded exactly like our house. He adds “I bet somewhere there will be every Dylan album up to Blood on the tracks“. I thought “I haven’t got that”, bought it, and never regretted it.]
I was told years ago that if you wanted a quick trim at an Italian barber’s, you should ask for ‘Allegro ma non troppo’.
I only tackled this at lunchtime today, having been alerted last week that it was on the easy side and so it proved. However some lovely clues and like you Fiona Anne @7, TANGLED UP was an early gift. Ta Philistine & mhl.
I liked the puzzle as a whole, but was disappointed by the definition of DORMOUSE – is there anything to it other than the fact that it is on the small side for rodents and sleeps a lot? I don’t know any idioms where it is canonical for little and quiet, nor do I know any cultural references that help. Alice: nope. The last line of White Rabbit: nope (that’s my contribution to today’s earworms). [BTW: the earworm is smaller than the dormouse, but certainly not quieter.]
[Dr. WhatsOn @17
Ah, that’s an earworm! About the last time we were allowed concerts, we heard June Tabor with the Oyster Band – they covered it (as well as a mesmerising version of Joy Divison’s “Love will tear us apart”]
5 years between Tapestry and Desire, elderly brain mashing…
Dr W: I’d say quiet as a (church) mouse, but ‘quiet as a dormouse’ does seem to be a thing.
Classy puzzle. I liked the VANCOUVER ans POIGNANTLY clues very much. LUXURIATE was clever but I always find the wording of compound anagram clues hard to get my head around and this was no exception.
mhl, I think there’s a bit more to the inclusion indicators in 4 and 7. RAVEN is given in… TRAVENOUSLY and LIVERISH is one portion of “Oliver is having”.
Nice and quite gentle Saturday puzzle. Thanks, Phil and mhl.
Dr WhatsOn @17: my earworm is now Alice in Chains-Man in the Box, for which I’m genuinely grateful.
[Simon S @15
I mentioned above that I saw the phrase ma non troppo in print at the time I picked up this crossword, and in fact the phrase in full was Allegro energico, ma non troppo. As you will have guessed, it was not in an Italian barber’s but on a listing of the tracks of a classical music CD.]
grantinfreo @ 19
4 years between (the recording of) Tapestry and *Blood On The Tracks*.
Jus’ being pedantic 😉
Thanks Philistine and mhl.
Lovely puzzle.
I thought 2dn was a gem. Got it quickly but took a while until the parsing penny dropped. A rather Azed-ish clue.
Thanks mhl and Philistine – like some others I needed the blog to properly parse LUXURIATE
20D should really be ‘Digestive movement follows vigour’. Otherwise, the order is wrong. Not a fan of British cryptics. We do it better in North America.
Fighting talk from Les @27! Thanks to Philistine and MHL. Remembering this being a mixed bag for us when we tackled it last weekend (all our lunchtime crossword attempts blurring into one at the moment …). Still don’t undetstand why COR = ‘my’ in 5d if anyone can help? No quibble with ID meaning papers after a childhood of watching The Great Escape re-runs. I’ll own to being a little uncomfortable about the definition of Anorexia.
joleroi @28
“Cor blimey”, a euphemistic expression for “God, blind me”, equivalent to “My goodness!”
A rather late comment, but I very much enjoyed this. “That guy talks to turbans” for HEADDRESSES was great. I also liked the TANGLED UP in blue at 5d. [For fans of Blood on the Tracks, I would very much recommend More Blood, More Tracks released in 2019, containing a lot of the original takes for it, some of them, dare I say, better than those on the actual album.]
joleroi @28: to put it slightly more simply than muffin, both “cor!” and “my!” are expressions of surprise.
Many thanks Philistine and mhl.
Les @ 27
If you are with someone you can be beside them, in front of them, or behind them.
It’s a bit like the use of *by* which can indicate beside – so before or after. I used to think it meant after and it usually does I think – but not always.
Lord Jim @30
Thanks for that tip – now ordered. Fingers crossed!
Fun, though I could not think of the literary device I was halving. Ta to Philistine and mhl
Lord Jim @ 30 & muffin @ 32
Go for the 6disc set (if still available). It has the complete sessions, and is wonderful.
A fan speaks…
Too late, Simon!
This was fun and none the less so for being not that difficult. I liked the CORVID theme. In the blog the pasing seems to be missing from MA NON TROPPO (MAN – ON – [TO PROP]). Thank you both!
Get it as well muffin. You won’t regret it.
muffin @14 – I only got part way through reading 5d before I had TANGLED UP entered – and Blood on the Tracks is not my favorite Dylan album. Which one is? Hard to know since I love so many of them! Blonde on Blonde, maybe? Or Highway 61? Bringing it All Back Up (as my mate used to call it)? OK, Blood is in the mix. Plenty of great clues, many already mentioned – but I’ll add POLYPS. Thanks, Philistine and mhl.
Thanks mhl. A pleasant sojourn which allowed for steady progress and a few more demanding final hurdles. 18a was new to me though I was aware of TROPPO in the sense of mental degradation of someone who had lived too long in equatorial regions! I had to work on explanations for SMUGGLER and CORVID, wasn’t sure about PLANNING as an anagrind and liked the application of US in 25a.
Essexboy@11. Thanks for comments on LUXURIATE. I was still puzzling about the US in the fodder until I reached your post.
Fun puzzle.
I had many ticks: GORY, MA NON TROPPO, SMUGGLER, LUXURIATE, CORVID, PICADOR, TUMBLED, BRIO (loi)
Thanks, Philistine and mhl
This was really a pleasure to solve. What a relief after the torture last week. HEADDRESSES was my first one in and I never stopped smiling. I am also a fan of Blood on the Tracks.
I think Larry@6 has it for 18ac MA NON TROPPO and Phitonelly @21 for 7dn LIVERISH.
Les@27 The clue surface would be nonsense in your “better”, American(?) version, wouldn’t it? If one thing is “with” another thing, what order are they in?
[Of course, before J.K.Rowling made muggle mean a non-wizard, it was old-fashioned U.S. slang for marijuana or joint and I’m sure I have read somewhere that that derived from a form of criminal backslang meaning smuggle (the s moving to the end of the word, a disguise which only cryptic crossword solvers would be able to penetrate, obviously), or something smuggled. However, although Green and etymonline confirm the slang, there’s no backup for that derivation there.]
[Essex Boy, here’s a clip of a slightly different intro to Magpie,leading to the delightful Susan Stranks telling us all about some absolutely terrific new technology: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoSYIfpxSw4%5D
Man, there are a lot of Dylan fans on this site. I’m not one of them. He wrote good songs, but I wish he hadn’t tried to sing them. (Reminds me of that other great (non)singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen*.) So I was not familiar with All Tangled Up in Blue, but I still guessed the solution from the crossers and excellent cluing. Thanks mhl for untangling that one for me.
This was an outstanding crossword, fully up to Philistine’s high standard. I had too many ticks to mention individually, but as a Canuck I naturally liked 10a VANCOUVER.
[ Simon S@15, for years I went to an Italian barber – sadly no longer with us, so I can’t use that line which he would have loved. ]
[ *A fantasy of mine was to imagine a tour of the pop music equivalent of the Three Tenors – Dylan, Cohen, and Tom Waits. ]
Imagine a world without Dylan and Cohen…….? Nope, can’t do it. Oh mercy,, that in these modern times one at least is still with us (80 this year I think), and will be listened to time out of mind. Just dropping in a few of my favourites there.- enough of these rough and rowdy ways. The gravel is very much part of the charm, and his last album ( albeit more spoken than sung), steeps the mind and soothes the soul. If a man tells you he doesn’t like Beethoven, it tells you nothing about Beethoven. Anyway, can’t believe how long it took me to get the Dylan one- thanks for the help re COR- couldn’t parse it.
Thanks Philistine, I enjoyed that. Favourites were PICADOR, ROADWAY, PSYCHIC, and FINISH. Thanks mhl for the blog.
[Les@27: Cryptics in North America are better? Which ones? I’ve solved US cryptics for decades and they’ve become boring write-in’s for the most part, Harper’s magazine excepted. The NY Times has a cryptic on 2/21 that’s impeccably clued but I finished it in the time it took me to drink a glass of wine. Looking for more of a challenge I began doing the FT about 5 years ago and the Guardian more recently — they are far more devious and frankly more fun.]
24d:- Since ‘murder’ is the collective noun, I.e. many crows, I’m very surprised that no-one has explained why the answer is a single crow. I think that is the reason for ‘is involved’. One crow involved involved in the business of many.
Yes, Tom, just as a person involved in a club is a member (singular)
All a bit late now so I’ll be surprised to get a response, but out of all the ‘experts’, only Tony saw fit to comment. It would be so good to get a comment from ‘Phillistine’, too much to hope for I suppose.
Tom, your comment came two days after the crossword was blogged, and 9 days after it appeared. That is the reason why the ‘experts’ you refer to ignored your comment. Philistine is also a busy man, since he is a full-time surgeon as well as a compiler. I myself always do the crossword late, which is why I lurk but only very very rarely comment, something like twice or three times in the eight years I’ve been following this excellent and erudite site.
What is this, a chat page? No, I think not. It is for serious hopefully, constructive comment. I said I would be very surprised, I was not. All I got was a pointless remark. 2 or 3 times in 8 years; well I achieved something; the Kraken wakes!
Tom, there’s no reason for anyone else to answer since I’ve already done so. I would have thought the answer made it clear that it was a silly question in the first place. That’s probably why the blogger, mhl, simply ignored it.