Independent 10,859/Poins

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Always a pleasure to see a Poins puzzle on my watch, although I’m more used to coming across him in the Independent on Sunday slot.

I found this a well-constructed puzzle which yielded steadily. Poins seldom gives you many anagrams (there’s only one full one here), but there were a sufficient number of straightforward clues to get you going. He does like an insertion, though: 15 of the 28 clues use this device.

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 Popular tenor interrupting period of success by choice
DAINTY
An insertion of IN for ‘popular’ and T in DAY. The insertion indicator is ‘interrupting’. To make the clue work, we have to equate DAY with ‘period of success’, and I can only think of one day ‘succeeding’ another in a regular 24-hour cycle. That could well be bollocks, of course.

Edit: not complete bollocks, but please find a better explanation in the first comments on the blog.

4 Earliest of books doesn’t have enough on each significant body of water
BLACK SEA
A charade of B, LACKS and EA.

9 Adele occasionally accommodated by fruit seller
PEDLAR
The even letters of ‘Adele’ inserted into PEAR. The insertion indicator is ‘accommodated by’.

10 Head of Institute finding nothing about glass substitute unfavourable
INIMICAL
A charade of I and MICA inserted into NIL. The insertion indicator is ‘about’.

12 Count to divulge confidential information
TELL
A dd. Think election night, with the TELLERS; or a bank employee in days of old.

13 Actively pursued question about commercial featuring foxes for instance
QUADRUPEDS
An insertion of AD in (PURSUED Q)* The insertion indicator is again ‘about’; the anagrind is ‘actively’; the choice of ‘fox’ as an example of a QUADRUPED is entirely random, I think. Unless Poins is an old-fashioned cove who’s thinking of Fox’s Glacier Mints.

15 Regard Labour leader in Lincoln as worthy of respect
CONSIDERABLE
A charade of CONSIDER and L inserted into ABE. The insertion indicator is ‘in’. ‘Her achievements as a setter are considerable.’

18 Someone favoured hiding deserter in abandoned parsonage
PERSONA GRATA
An insertion of RAT in (PARSONAGE)* The insertion indicator is ‘hiding’. Well, if you can have a PERSONA NON GRATA …

21 Calm and positive after the Spanish exam
ELEVEN PLUS
A charade of EL for one of the words for ‘the’ in Spanish, EVEN and PLUS. For overseas solvers, the ELEVEN PLUS was once an obligatory exam that all children in England took in the last year of primary school before moving on to secondary education: if you passed, you went to a Grammar School; if you failed, you went to a Secondary Modern. It was phased out in the 1970s but is still retained by a small number of Local Education Authorities in England. Don’t get me started.

22 Concern for tree close to stream
FIRM
A charade of FIR and M for the last letter of ‘stream’. Most often heard in this context in the phrase ‘a going concern’.

24 Astonished by work in French? I’d say
OPEN-EYED
A charade of OP, EN for one of the words for ‘in’ in French, and EYED, which is a homophone (‘say’) of ‘I’d’.

25 US patriot always flanked by soldiers
REVERE
An insertion of EVER in RE for Royal Engineers. The insertion indicator is ‘flanked by’. Referring to Paul REVERE, whose role in alerting compatriots to the British attack during the American War of Independence was popularised nearly a century later by Longfellow’s poem Paul Revere’s Ride, which has more historical inaccuracies than you can shake a stick at. But it seems well established in popular memory.

26 Difficult task to find a piece of yellow elastic
STRETCHY
A charade of STRETCH and Y for the first letter of ‘yellow’.

27 Tasteless articles looking into South American’s importance in society
STATUS
An insertion of TAT in S and US, with ‘looking into’ as the insertion indicator.

Down

1 Pickpocket’s account of a fool
DIPSTICK
A charade of DIPS and TICK. DIP is another word for a ‘pickpocket’ and TICK is a slang word for ‘account’. ‘He bought it on tick.’

2 Disliking work? Manage to stop during period of fasting
INDOLENT
An insertion of DO for ‘manage’ in IN LENT. The insertion indicator is ‘to stop’.

3 Make an effort to take in launch of aircraft carrier
TRAY
An insertion of A for the first letter of ‘aircraft’ in TRY. The insertion indicator is ‘to take in’.

5 Unduly protracted line about disease consuming Haggard
LONG-DRAWN-OUT
A charade of L, ON and DRAWN inserted into GOUT. The insertion indicator is ‘consuming’ and the capitalisation of Haggard is to make reference to the author of that ilk.

6 Arrived to arrest Unionist draped in old Irish tricolour perhaps as disguise
CAMOUFLAGE
An insertion of U in O FLAG, all inserted into CAME. The two insertion indicators are ‘to arrest’ and ‘draped in’.

7 Feel pain during kinky sex with American boss
SACHEM
An insertion of ACHE in S and M. The insertion indicator is ‘during’. My Collins has:

sachem (US) n a Native American chief, a sagamore; a political leader

8 Return of volunteers to continue after much delay
AT LAST
A reversal of TA and LAST. TA stands for Territorial Army. It became the Army Reserve eight years ago but continues to appear in crosswords.

11 Head of state school admitting Sociology’s first to go in outline of government’s agenda
QUEEN’S SPEECH
A charade of QUEEN followed by S for the first letter of ‘Sociology’ and PEE for ‘to go’ in SCH. The insertion indicator is ‘admitting’.

14 Very energetic new deputy
VICEREGENT  VICEGERENT
(V ENERGETIC)*

16 Demonstrate when party’s declaration of intent falls short
MANIFEST
MANIFEST[O]

17 Weapon left in the possession of Deputy Führer unlikely to cause any damage
HARMLESS
An insertion of ARM and L in [Rudolf] HESS. The insertion indicator is ‘in the possession of’.

19 Contribute to endless books on Scotland’s earliest serfs
HELOTS
A charade of HEL[P], OT for Old Testament or ‘books’ and S for the initial letter of ‘Scotland’.

20 Facing material damage to revenue after United’s exit
VENEER
(REVEN[U]E)* The anagrind is ‘damage to’.

23 Pressure to show spirit right away
HEAT
HEA[R]T

Many thanks to Poins for the Monday entertainment.