An easier-than-usual puzzle this week.
Although there are the usual obscurities, there are some accessible hidden clues to get the solver started and everything is clued with perfect fairness.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | JOSH |
Quartet of banjos harmonizing rag (4)
|
| Hidden in “banjos harmonizing”. | ||
| 4 | POSTOBIT |
Zero stake for Jock in grave, borrower’s bond (8)
|
| 0 STOB (Scottish term for a stake) in PIT. | ||
| 10 | OPHIUCHUS |
Star group? I hop frantically united with such playing (9)
|
| *(I HOP U SUCH). Perhaps surprisingly, this constellation (the Serpent-Bearer) is to be found in Chambers, under ophi-. | ||
| 11 | ELECTRO |
Printing plate? Choose what’s right for printers (7)
|
| ELECT RO (recto). | ||
| 12 | FESTA |
Selection of life statues that makes a Roman holiday (5)
|
| Hidden in “life statues”. | ||
| 15 | SPED |
Having lost new exhaust, was over the limit? (4)
|
| SPE(n)D. | ||
| 16 | LINGOT |
Rough lump of old metal, green wrapped in cloth (6)
|
| GO (as in green traffic lights) inside LINT. | ||
| 17 | BESORT |
Shakespearean company, as is fitting, seen in flickering strobe (6)
|
| *STROBE. Chambers defines this in its nounal sense as “suitable company”. | ||
| 19 | AS REGARDS |
Heaven’s including extremes of rapture? That’s touching (9, 2 words)
|
| R(aptur)E in ASGARD’S. Asgard was the heaven of Norse mythology, | ||
| 21 | SCREAMERS |
Crown appearing in bowlers? They’ll end in headlines maybe (9)
|
| CR(own) in SEAMERS (bowlers). In newspaper parlance, screamers are sensational headlines; the term also refers to exclamation marks. | ||
| 24 | ESCROL |
Learning about Civil Service goes over legal deed (6)
|
| CS in LORE (all rev). It’s an alternative form of escrow. | ||
| 25 | ABATES |
Reduces tea-bags when stirred (end of bag coming off) (6)
|
| *TEABA(g)S. | ||
| 27 | PLOD |
PC goes off, having written off expenses briefly (4)
|
| (ex)PLOD(es). | ||
| 29 | RIVEL |
Line I have written between opposite sides (5)
|
| IVE between R and L. It’s a dialect term meaning to wrinkle. | ||
| 30 | GOOD OIL |
Slush spoilt lido? Information Aussie finds reliable (7, 2 words)
|
| GOO *LIDO. | ||
| 31 | REHEARSAL |
Judges in authentic practice (9)
|
| HEARS (judges) in REAL. | ||
| 32 | FERRETED |
Was searching to put off match official from behind (8)
|
| DETER REF (all rev). | ||
| 33 | YEWS |
Trees displaying little width, quite round (4)
|
| W in YES. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | JOE BLAKE |
Taipan e.g., from east in occupation on body of water (8, 2 words)
|
| E in JOB, LAKE. This is the second Australian term in the puzzle, but unlike 30 across, this one is not indicated as such. It’s rhyming slang for a snake. | ||
| 2 | SHEEN |
Female absorbing energy beneath sun’s radiance (5)
|
| E in HEN, under S. | ||
| 3 | HICK |
Yokel, gormless, doffing cap (4)
|
| (t)HICK. | ||
| 4 | PUTLOG |
Place thick piece of wood as part of scaffolding (6)
|
| PUT LOG. It’s a crosspiece in a scaffolding. | ||
| 5 | SHOWBREAD |
Bad shower disrupted Sabbath display (9)
|
| *(BAD SHOWER). | ||
| 6 | TUFTED |
What sounds like thug, unruly youth with a quiff? (6)
|
| Sounds like “tough Ted”. | ||
| 7 | BESPOKE |
Finest trimmed bonnet made to order (7)
|
| BES(t) POKE. “Poke” is short for “poke bonnet”, a type of bonnet with a projecting front. | ||
| 8 | INTERPRET |
Render what goes to make winter pretty (9)
|
| Hidden in “winter pretty”. | ||
| 9 | TOAD |
Former paddock, area enveloped in bushy creeper (4)
|
| A in TOD (a bush, hence bushy), with two definitions, the first being an alternative spelling of “puddock”. | ||
| 13 | FISH SLICE |
Cook is i/c shelf – it’s for flipping stuff in pans (9, 2 words)
|
| *(IS IC SHELF). | ||
| 14 | STARLIGHT |
Sailor on latitude in what’s seen as guide for night-time sailing? (9)
|
| TAR L(atitude) inside SIGHT (“what’s seen”). | ||
| 18 | TASSELLS |
Raised perched hawks – male ones (8)
|
| SAT (perched) (rev), SELLS (hawks). It’s one of many variant spellings of “tercel”; as this means a male hawk, it follows that “ones” in the clue is referring back to “hawks”, just avoiding it doing double duty. | ||
| 20 | RECOVER |
Come round to treat with new upholstery? (7)
|
| Double definition, although I’m not sure that the second one is completely accurate – if you re-cover your sofa, have you re-upholstered it? | ||
| 22 | COULEE |
Lava-flow from volcano’s centre almost at an end – shelter (6)
|
| (vol)C(ano) OU(t), LEE. | ||
| 23 | ABROAD |
A secondary thoroughfare in foreign parts (6)
|
| A B-ROAD. | ||
| 26 | THOSE |
Demonstrative term from character, first to last (5)
|
| ETHOS, with the first letter moved to the end. | ||
| 27 | PROF |
Teacher offering improvement when it’s lacking (4)
|
| PROF(it). | ||
| 28 | ADRY |
Parched by a desert? Thus beset possibly (4)
|
| Compound anagram: take “by a desert” and remove the letters of “beset”, and rearrange what is left. |
Thanks bridgesong.
I thought TOD in 9 was ivy, hence ‘bushy creeper’. One of Azed’s more devious uses of a word with only one meaning now. For some reason I thought ‘puddock’ was a fish, even though I had all the crossers, and didn’t check for ages.
Thanks as ever to Azed.
In 1d, the taipan is an Aussie snake (might not look an aboriginal name, but it is)
Are more Australian words appearing in Azed these days? Favourite was JOE BLAKE although I’ve never heard it used. Like Phi @2 I think the Australian indication is implicit due to the Taipan. Never seen one of them either and don’t want to.
Thanks bridgesong and Azed.
Thanks for the blog, my Chambers93 does not give JOE BLAKE but the clue was fair.
I agree with Gonzo about TOD , Chambers gives – a bush , especially ivy. However bush is being used in a different sense here, it means a bunch of ivy that was typically hung over the door of a pub, Bushy in the clue is not really appropriate.
I may be wrong about TOAD, because I agree with Gonzo and Roz that TOD cannot really equate to “bushy”. In that case it’s just a conventional clue with “creeper” referring to ivy, not to the amphibian.
I too thought that the creeper related to the bush (as in especially of ivy) not the toad. Tod is also a fox. Maybe the bushy tail is related in etymology.
Re Roz@4, is this where The Old Bull And Bush comes from? (vague memories of the Good Old Days on TV in my younger days)
I’ll not join the discussion about TOAD because it was one that I didn’t get; as well as POSTOBIT and OPHIUCHUS. However I managed the rest and really enjoyed myself. I’m really getting into these now, and having fun with all the jorums! Fave clue was the excellent JOE BLAKE.
Many thanks to AZED and bridgesong.
Glad you are enjoying it so much trish@7 , practice is everything with Azed.
Tim @6 you are surely correct. Old taverns would have a bunch of something over the door to show they sold alcohol. Vines in summer, holly or ivy in winter. Many pub names include the word bush.
Gonzo@1: a “piddock” is a sort of shellfish, so you were almost right
Thanks to Azed and bridgesong.
The usual enjoyable tussle.
Ophiucus is in the ever reliable Bradford as well as Chambers.