Enigmatic Variations No. 1557 Or Do They? by POAT

My first blog since the EV left the telegraph puzzle’s site – as did I, though still with several months of paid subscription left. Straight clues, an un-clued entry then a series of swaps to be made to reveal eight entries with something in common or do they?

First up – some fun clues and on completing the grid MUCH ADO was the obvious choice for the un-clued entry. Some good examples of compound anagram clues here e.g. 9, 27 and 29 down.

Then for the swaps:

“by swapping the unchecked letters in 5, then swapping one of them with an unchecked letter in 25”

• NICHER becomes CINHER and then CIPHER and NIGSNIE

“swapping another in 25 with the one in 22”

• NIGSNIE becomes NIKSNIE and KIDDY becomes GIDDY

“swapping single letters (checked or otherwise) between 12/13, 16ac/23, 18/30, and 4/26”

• CULL to NULL and ENTOPIC to ECTOPIC
• NOTHUNG to NOTHING and INSOUL to UNSOUL
• LOPE to LOVE and VITA to PITA
• ZENO to ZERO and RADA to NADA

Giving eight entries meaning nothing, fulfilling the cryptic something in common as being NOTHING in common giving the title Or do they? and following MUCH ADO about NOTHING.

Thanks Poat – great fun. Thanks also to mc_rapper67 for reducing my need to type everything in.

Key: * anagram; DD double definition; underline definition; rev. reversed

ACROSS

1 Note suspirations in audience, and blow up? (6)
Re (note) + homonym of sighs (suspirations) = RESIZE
5 After recess, teacher finally gets laugh in parts (6)
niche (recess) + r (teacher finally) = NICHER
10 Learned what PC did to criminal (11)
DD APPREHENDED
12 Gather X-Files protagonist needs no tips (4)
Scully (X-files protagonist) – tips = CULL
13 Editing tone, photo developed as expected (7)
(tone)* + pic (photo) = ENTOPIC
15 Receiving low grades in French to have one shirking homework? (7)
avoir (French to have) around DE (low grades) = AVOIDER
16 Sword in The Ring omitted from display? (7)
DD as in sword in the Ring of the Nibelung and not hung = NOTHUNG
18 Bound to quash first hint of inclination (4)
slope (inclination) – s = LOPE
20 Getting runaround in frosty climate, U-turn cheers Tories (6)
Rev. ta (cheers) + cons (Tories) = SNOCAT
21 Carrying tons, put it around skip (6)
(put it)* around t (tons) = TITTUP
24 Top member of staff must be relocated (4)
m (member) in mace (staff) moved = ACME
25 Confusion surrounds strange sign in historian’s eye (7)
pie (confusion) around (sign)* = PIGSNIE
28 Actress regularly covering skin for Shakespearean disputants (7)
aCtReSs around hide(skin) = CHIDERS
31 Skilful performer rejected bum deal (7, two words)
Rev. bad (bum) + hand (deal) = DAB HAND
32 Turning tail, traitor makes this bread with skill (4)
(traitor)* – art = ROTI
33 Zippo left in tiny rent-free accommodation (11)
l(left) in diddy (tiny) + squat(rent-free accommodation) = DIDDLY-SQUAT
34 Mature lady‘s rug beside right leg (6)
mat(rug) + r(right) + on (leg) = MATRON
35 Gibbons perhaps trapped in hostel lavatory (6)
Hidden hoSTEL LAvatory = STELLA

DOWN

1 Obama perhaps skipping UK airline stretch (4)
Barack (Obama perhaps) – BA (UK airline) = RACK
2 Form of poultice that promotes tissue growth (8)
(poultice)* = EPULOTIC
3 Using her initial, poet’s avoiding hard and soft sounds (6)
Sylvia initial Plath (Poet) – h(hard) = SPLAT
4 Philosopher buried in Brize Norton (4)
Hidden briZE NOrton = ZENO
6 Milan team needing new English trainee (7)
inter (Milan team) + n(new) + E (English) = INTERNE
7 Spenser’s stacked up half seven-sider (4)
half of heptagon (seven-sider) = HEPT
8 Better writing of educated Italian (4)
ed(educaed) + It (Italian) = EDIT
9 Cook up latest recipe for pies with this cheese, possibly (8)
(latest recipe)* – pies = RACLETTE
11 That man in centre of Pforzheim? (5)
he (that man) + in + z (centre of Pforzheim) = HEINZ
14 On vacation, opener cuts decks down under (6)
opener – pene (on vacation) + lops(cuts) = ORLOPS
16 Collapsed ant mound is something worth seeing (8)
(ant mound)* = NOTANDUM
17 Industrial design base gets into difficulty (6, two words)
e (base) in hitch(difficulty) = HI-TECH
19 Close to the bone with capital running short – and the rest (8)
paris (capital) – s + et al (and the rest) = PARIETAL
22 Flashy type who‘ steal kitty, as Uncle Sam might say (5)
How US person might say kitty = KIDDY
23 Join with Psyche slathering sun oil (6)
(sun oil)* = INSOUL
26 Wicked start for actor here (4)
rad (wicked) + a (start for actor) = RADA (the abbreviation)
27 Pry about such passing remarks? That would show honesty (4)
probity (honesty) – pry = OBIT
29 Taking this direction, running shoe’s used as tea-strainer (4)
(tea-straine) – trainer (running shoe) = EAST
30 Existence of musical in which leader is deposed (4)
Evita (musical) – e (leader) = VITA