Hi everybody, and all the best for the festive season.
Phi has provided an enjoyable puzzle as usual, but there is something else going on.
Several grid entries feature in the first couple of verses of WHILE SHEPHERDS EYEBALLED their FLOCKS by NIGHT. Well, ok, that’s with a little synonym switcheroo; no idea if EYEBALLED was intended to be obliquely part of the theme, but I like it. Similarly, I am tempted to say they were all SAT[inet] DOWN on the GROUND. I’ve highlighted what I found in the grid below, and you will no doubt tell me if I have missed or muffed anything.
Clueswise, I did look up one or two things along the way, like where the vowels needed to go in the name of the artist hitherto unknown to me. I didn’t know the opera either, and couldn’t have told you what tourbillon meant. It’s good to learn (even if this does mean more to forget).
My favourite clue was 10a: NIGHT. Cheers Phi!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics, explicit [deletions] are in square brackets, and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER. For clarity, I omit most link words and some juxtaposition indicators.
Across
1a Radio offering of some trickery in a short time (5)
WHILE
A sound-alike of (radio offering of) WILE (some trickery)
4a That woman – head of Purchasing – that woman’s beginning to dismiss special tenders (9)
SHEPHERDS
SHE (that woman) + the first letter of (head of) Purchasing + HER (that woman’s) + the initial letter of (beginning to) Dismiss + S (special)
9a Someone dozing, in drink, or someone alert to the main chance? (7-2)
SNAPPER-UP
NAPPER (someone dozing) in SUP (drink)
10a Most of the drink is knocked back in the dark (5)
NIGHT
Most of THe and GIN (drink) is reversed (knocked back)
11a Ungainly movement, say, in explosion of canine glee (10)
INELEGANCE
An anagram of (explosion of) CANINE GLEE
12a Blue won, getting embraced by lecturer? (4)
DOWN
W (won) enveloped in (getting embraced by) DON (lecturer)
14a Golf: some golf is supplied by sporting venue (6)
GROUND
G (golf) + ROUND (some golf)
16a Listener puzzling? Join the group again (2-6)
RE-ENLIST
An anagram of (… puzzling?) LISTENER
18a Company penalised after beginning to fail – prepared for late service? (8)
COFFINED
CO (company) + FINED (penalised) after the first letter of (beginning to) Fall
19a A lot of sharp taste in booze – problem for the mouth? (3,3)
RED GUM
Most of EDGe (sharp taste) in RUM (booze)
22a Concern that’s blown up, we hear (4)
MIND
This sounds like (… we hear) MINED (blown up)
23a Holiday arranged, having received invoice in a whirl (10)
TOURBILLON
TOUR (holiday) ON (arranged) around (having received) BILL (invoice)
26a Fetch navy aboard ship (5)
BRING
N (navy) in (aboard) BRIG (ship)
27a Opera: you should be engaged by curious pair in it (1,8)
I PURITANI
U (you) needs to go inside (should be engaged by) an anagram of (curious) PAIR IN IT
28a Observed detective, not disguised, according to report (9)
EYEBALLED
EYE (detective) + a homophone of (… according to report) BALD (not disguised)
29a Fear about to be encapsulated in old man (5)
DREAD
RE (about) inside (to be encapsulated in) DAD (old man)
Down
1d Dirty clothes from dust encountered in section of party (7)
WASHING
ASH (dust) is encountered in WING (section of party)
2d Picture that is on the outside of publication (5)
IMAGE
IE (that is) surrounding (on the outside of) MAG (publication)
3d Perennial I replanted outdoors in France (2,5,3)
EN PLEIN AIR
PERENNIAL I anagrammed (replanted)
4d Revolutionary lecturer with impressions about English approach to publication (6)
SERIAL
The reversal of (revolutionary) L (lecturer) and AIRS (impressions) around (about) E (English)
5d Former partner went to involve Court? Not surprising (8)
EXPECTED
EX (former partner) + PEED (went) going around (to involve) CT (court)
6d Suggestion popular during hot temperature (4)
HINT
IN (popular) inside (during) H (hot) and T (temperature)
7d Starting to root for one water sport making a comeback? (9)
REGROWING
The first letter of (starting to) Root + EG (for one) + ROWING (water sport)
8d Fabric was placed to conceal point (7)
SATINET
SAT (was placed) going around (to conceal) TINE (point)
13d Very old Queen seen in one, without confirmation (10)
UNVERIFIED
V (very) and ER (old queen) seen in UNIFIED (one)
15d Nasty old quintet seen around parts of East Anglia (9)
OFFENSIVE
O + FIVE (quintet) seen around FENS (parts of East Anglia)
17d The writer’s doing what’s right about one monument (8)
MEMORIAL
ME (the writer) + MORAL (doing what’s right) around (about) I (one)
18d I’m article depicted in distorted cube from Italian artist (7)
CIMABUE
I’M and A (article) inside (depicted in) an anagram of (distorted) CUBE
20d People in general very keen to adopt new family (7)
MANKIND
MAD (very keen) taking in (to adopt) N (new) and KIN (family)
21d Stranded without leadership in Government? Roughly (6)
AROUND
A[g]ROUND (stranded) without the first letter of (leadership in) Government
24d Make satisfied, removing cap for rental (5)
LEASE
[p]LEASE (make satisfied) deleting the first letter (removing cap)
25d Indian city taking nothing from part of Greek city (4)
AGRA
Subtracting (taking) O (nothing), AG[o]RA (part of Greek city)
The Angel of the Lord came DOWN as well. Great puzzle. Having tried to explain the difference between BRING and FETCH to English as a Second Language speakers, I momentarily baulked at the definition, but it’s fine for crosswords.
Apart from WHILE SHEPHERDS all the theme words seem to be at the end of a line in the carol.
I wondered if WASHING deserved an honourable mention – in acknowledgment of the alternative version in which they’re washing their socks?
An intriguing theme but nice to discover it – and it made up for those three very tricky words noted by Kitty in the preamble.
Thanks Phi and Kitty
I was looking out for socks too, having got WHILE SHEPHERDS WASHING first.
If you want a different earworm, and to remember tourbillon, try this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjJqHF0mb_k
James@4 That’s great, thanks.
I find it strange to see WHILE as “a short time”. I guess it’s not incorrect since it essentially means anyperiod of time but usually a long one, unless preceded by the word “short”. If anybody says “it’ll take a while to fix” for example, you don’t expect it to be done soon. Language, especially English, can be quite quirky in that respect. How did “quite a few” ever come to mean “quite a lot” as an example.
Probably the first time I’m disappointed not to find SOCKS in a Christmas gift. Most entertaining none the less.
Thanks, Phi and Kitty, and Merry Christmas to you both and my fellow solvers.
And thanks for the link, James – who could ever tire of the incomparable Jeanne Moreau? You’ve made me want to watch the film again.
Thanks both. It took me three clues to spot the theme….something as unlikely as peace on earth, so here’s hoping
I’m inclined to think of WHILE as a short time except when someone says “I haven’t seen you in a long while’. I suppose it’s really indeterminate.
WHILE SHEPHERDS being (5,9) made it attractive for the top row, and the first two verses had lines ending in generally short friendly words. I reckon I got the Christmas Eve slot because nobody else submitted a themed puzzle. You can’t see that happening with New Year’s Eve, can you?
Anyway, felicitations for the season this Christmas morning (we’ll, it is, here).
I have to say that for me bring is only half of fetch (the return half).
And is something that’s mined actually blown up?
Probably just me being picky as usual.
Merry Christmas all and thanks to Phi and Kitty
Re ‘fetch’, the first two definitions from Chambers
fetch /fech/
transitive verb
1. To bring
2. To go and get
And ‘mined’ can refer to either before or after the explosion
Thanks Phi and Kitty
In traditional Yorkshire dialect “while” can mean “until”. This caused problems when wig-wag lights were first introduced at railway level crossings accompanied by a sign which originally read:
“Wait while lights flash”.
The wording was later changed to avoid that problem.
I don’t think this impacts on the puzzle as in traditional Yorkshire dialect “while” can also have
the same meaning as in other (ie inferior) parts of the nation, the choice of interpretation
depending (as in French) on context..
JS @ 12
Not just in Yorkshire. ‘While’ can mean the same in Cheshire, obviously another superior part of the nation…
Simon S @11 I did say for me.
Notwithstanding Chambers I have PERSONALLY never come across fetch=bring.
I would never say “Would you like to me to fetch anything with me” – or is it the meaning of bring I’m misconstruing?
Equally can’t think of a sentence where mined = blown up (the ship was mined anyone?) but as I said, that’s probably just me…
Bring us some figgy pudding/fetch us some figgy pudding