Some very simple clues mixed in with some really quite obscure ones. Perhaps I’m just having an off morning?
I had to enlist assistance for 11a, not being worldly enough to have heard of the RUC, and I think my LOI, 3d, is a tenuous solution (to a possibly a tenuous clue) but do let me know if I’ve missed something. I like a challenge, and this certainly was one for me!
NE[w] YORK (no trace of W (Wiggins), cycling, i.e. ORKNE[w]Y)
BUM PINTO (wrong horse)
(CREAT[e]D)* (*fashion, lacking E[lan] (from the outset)) + O (none) shall follow
GG (horse reportedly) pursuing RU[c] (police once mostly, Royal Ulster Constabulary) in DIE (decline)
[pr]OUST (writer who recalled, losing sight of pair)
P[ackag]E (empty); OVER (on top of) + LEAD (metal) boxes
(RAID + NO)* (*form of)
WOLF (howler) + RAM (naturally I’m sheepish)
VIER (two couples in Munich) captivated by AIR< (song, <about)
SCR[a]P (waste) + T (time), replacing A (article) with I (international)
CHURCH (building) on HIGH (euphoria)
H (hydrogen) + ARM (bomb)
KICK [ab]OUT (consider, disposing of sailor)
[l]ETHAL (deadly, tip off) involving I[nformer] C[onsidered] (originally)
[bull]RINGS IDE[al] (in)
Double definition
ORATOR (speaker) + I + O (love)
KITE (plane) + SURFING (flitting from site to site, online)
EWE (first people) to be upset by R (church leader, reverend? rex?)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ewe_people
UNDER (junior) + DOG (boxer?)
(FT CLUE PREP[aration] (briefly))* (*preparation)
Double duty of ‘preparation’
GAN[der]< (half a goose, <from down under)
Double definition
(LOVES)* (*architect)
(CALIPH)* (*to rock) while restricting (ARIAS)* (*performance of)
Cryptic definition
Donkeys have a dark cross on the fur of their backs
IR (tax collectors) + RUE (regret) limiting PT (training) before D (department)
(SIMULT[aneo]US)* (*malfunctioning, could give ONE A jolt)
HAKE (fish) introduced to SR[i lanka] (premier quarter of)
OCT (month) + E[mbellishmen]T (on vacation)
T[roops] O[rder] H[eavy] S[helling]< (leaders of, <in return)
[m]AN makes a fresh start
Very good one from Bobcat. Became completely stuck about half way through and appropriately enough, 9d was one of the ones that got me going again. Couldn’t parse EWER and there were others which needed a lot of thought including OVERLEAPED, the BUM PINTO, WOLFRAM and the parsing of STIMULUS.
Nice to have what appears to be the now customary Nina from Bobcat warning us of the potential dangers of his fellow felines.
Thanks to Bobcat for number four and to Teacow
Bit too hard for me, but not complaining. Didn’t get OUSTand couldn’t parse EWER. Never heard of EWE and, I guess, the Queen or King is head of CE. I reckon 15d is just LATIN (Catholic) + CROSS (mule) with “sacred emblem” as definition. I took “makes” as the anagram indicator in 6d.
Forgot to look for any nina, so thanks for pointing that out WordPlodder.
I thought If first person is I, then first people is WE, reversed in front of ER, the Queen and head of Church of England. Thanks S & B
I prefer your parsing jmac.
What nine?
I meant nina, of course.
Tenerifemiller Down the middle column then along the middle row.
My reading of 15D is that both (a) the whole clue provides a definition, and (b) the clue can be broken down into “sacred emblem” = definition, “of Catholics” = LATIN, “borne by” = juxtaposition indicator, “mule” = CROSS.
I am not familiar enough with Bobcat to go looking for a nina
but this was quite a cheeky little drop
Must keep my eye out for him
I liked the pairs in 12 and 20
Thanks
Too hard for me too – failed on nine clues and looking at the blog I don’t think I would have got most of them however long I stared at them.
For what it’s worth I parsed EWER like jmac@4.
Thanks Bobcat for a tough workout and thanks Teacow for the (much needed) blog.
A good challenge for a Monday, with some excellent clues, but also, I thought, one or two rather dubious ones. Hoy is not in Orkney, it is one of the Orkneys. “Architect” as an anagram indicator? “CAN” was a bit weak, too. Thanks to all for the parsing of EWER, which completely escaped me.
Perplexus: the archipelago is “correctly” known as “Orkney”, or “The Orkney Islands”. “The Orkneys” is regarded by some as a bit of a solecism. The largest island is called “Mainland”.
Perpexus@12 The Oxford Dictionary of English has “Orkney” and “the Orkneys” as alternative forms of the full “Orkney Islands” and that dictionary and Chambers have “architect” as a transitive verb, both including “to design”, but in different contexts.
On my first pass, I got a grand total of one clue each across (30, RINGSIDE) and down (26, SHOT) so I was pleased to finish after a lot of headscratching. Thanks Teacow and Bobcat.
My LOI was 12a, OUST. 11a DRUGGIE went in unparsed, and I hadn’t come across 13a OVERLEAPED before though it was clear from the wordplay. I parsed 3D EWER and 15d LATIN CROSS as jmac @4 and RichardCV22 @9 did. For the latter I first entered ROMAN CROSS but quickly realized my error. I don’t understand what “Naturally” is doing in 17a WOLFRAM, and find the entire clue a bit clunky. 1a ORKNEY, when it finally clicked, was my COD.
You weren’t having an off morning, Teacow, this was utter crap.
3d. “We” is first person plural, or first people, upset it is “ew”. And ER is head of the church
Whilst I cannot deny Chardonnay his/her right to his/her point of view, there really is no need to make it public.
Doesn’t help whatsoever. May discourage setters.
Oh, yes, and whole-heartedly disagree with his verdict. Many interesting words, some ingenious clues, much to like.
Thanks Bobcat and Teacow
This was seriously hard – stayed in the pile with 20a unfinished until early this morning when a word finder found RIVIERA after I suspected that there may be a problem with my PAPAL CROSS (yes there is one) – and with a bit of checking up the German for four, was then able to finally finish with LATIN CROSS.
Still had to work out the word play for ORKNEY (terrific clue with the British Olympian surface), DRUGGIE (very tricky and happy to recall the RUC), KICK OUT and even NAG.
Missed the nina (forgot that he usually plants a feline one in there somewhere) and parsed 3d and 15d as per contributors. Very satisfying to have been able to complete and then fully parse this one – eventually !