My second go at a Velia puzzle.
I blogged a Velia puzzle last August and remember thinking it was quite fun. This one was also an enjoyable solve, with a few (possibly puerile) giggles at things like HOW'S YOUR FATHER and HAEMORRHOIDS cheering me up on a Thursday morning before I face the drudgery of work. I also liked NUTSHELL and the innovation of INNUENDO ("reverse polarity") and BRINGS UP THE REAR.
Thanks, Velia.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | FLIGHT |
Exodus left in dispute (6)
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L (left) in FIGHT ("dispute") |
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| 4 | THE BLUES |
Feeling sad and glum at heart in old city (3,5)
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(g)LU(m) [at heart] in THEBES ("old city") |
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| 9 | RENOWN |
Finally wear the crown and have fame (6)
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[finally] (wea)R (th)E (crow)N and OWN ("have") |
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| 10 | MEDIOCRE |
Ordinary aunt’s letters do not feature in moving documentaries (8)
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*(docmerie) [anag:moving] where DOCMERIE is DOC(u)ME(nta)RIE(s) with the letters of AUNT'S not featuring |
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| 12/22 | USED CARS |
Drove to get bangers? (4,4)
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Double definition |
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| 13 | LEMONGRASS |
Herb for stupid mongrel donkey (10)
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*(mongrel) [anag:stupid] + ASS ("donkey") |
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| 15 | HYDROTHERAPY |
Dry atrophy he treated thus? (12)
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*(dry atrophy he) [anag:treated] |
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| 18 | FRANCOPHONES |
Fascist calls some Canadians and Belgians (12)
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(General Francisco) FRANCO ("fascist") + PHONES ("calls") |
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| 21 | A MORAL CODE |
Politicians need one before midday, with firm in terrible ordeal (1,5,4)
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A.M. (ante meridiem, so "before midday") with Co. (company, so "firm") in *(ordeal) [anag:terrible] |
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| 22 |
See 12
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| 24 | NUTSHELL |
Brief that says Brazil may be a most unpleasant place (8)
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NUT ("Brazil") + 'S HELL (is "a most unpleasant place") |
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| 25 | PESTLE |
Use this to crush and void prime suspect license (6)
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[void] P(rim)E S(uspec)T L(icens)E |
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| 26 | PORTRAYS |
Harbour light shows (8)
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PORT ("harbour") + RAYS ("light") |
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| 27 | CREDIT |
Brownie points for loan (6)
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Double definition |
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| DOWN | ||
| 1 | FAROUCHE |
Sullen as a result of food that hurts inside (8)
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FARE ("food") with OUCH ("that hurts") inside |
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| 2 | INNUENDO |
Reverse polarity issues — party suggestion (8)
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ISSUES with it's "poles reversed" becomes INNUEN (i.e. S (south) becomes N (north) + DO ("party") |
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| 3/14 | HOW’S YOUR FATHER |
Is your dad OK for it? (4,4,6)
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HOW'S YOUR FATHER ("is your dad OK") is a euphemism for sex, as is IT |
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| 5 | HAEMORRHOIDS |
As horrid home cooking gives rise to complaint (12)
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*(as horrid home) [anag:cooking] |
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| 6/23 | BRING UP THE REAR |
Be last to raise both sides of article (5,2,3,4)
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BRING UP and REAR ("to raise") both sides of THE ("article") |
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| 7 | UNCLAD |
Young man after lunch stripped bare (6)
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LAD ("young man") after (l)UNC(h) [stripped] |
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| 8 | SHEESH |
We are annoyed to be involved in banshee shrieking (6)
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Hidden [to be involved] in "banSHEE SHrieking" |
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| 11 | MECHANICALLY |
Chic name coined by friend without much thought (12)
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*(chic name) [anag:coined] by ALLY ("friend") |
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| 14 |
See 3
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| 16 | UNWANTED |
Single about worker made redundant (8)
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UNWED ("single") about ANT ("worker") |
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| 17 | AS I SEE IT |
Easiest cryptic about Velia, in her opinion (2,1,3,2)
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*(easiest) [anag:cryptic] about I ("Velia") |
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| 19 | CATNIP |
Queen goes for this ultimately acrylic fresh paint (6)
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[ultimately] (acryli)C + *(paint) [anag:fresh] |
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| 20 | MORTAR |
Artillery for 25’s partner (6)
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Double definition, the second being the partner to PESTLE (the solution to "25" across) |
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| 23 |
See 6
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Despite a measly first pass, the longer answers eventually came to the rescue.
Liked 3d’s 2d but my pick was 5d’s ‘Nobby Stiles’ (with apologies to Roz and her least favourite subject!)
Couldn’t parse INNUENDO so thanks to Loonapick.
Was surprised at the ‘sullen’ definition of ‘farouche’ which in French is ‘timid; wild’.
Thanks to Velia and Loonapick.
“Farouche” is welcomed to my lexicon. The only one I didn’t parse was INNUENDO. A most enjoyable experience at Goldilocks difficulty level, with no ridiculous obscurities and nothing that we Antipodeans wouldn’t have heard of. Thanks Velia & loonapick.
INNUENDO is excellent.
“if you want an innuendo I can give you one” – No, that’s a double entendre.
Did not know FAROUCHE, but easily gettable.
Diane@1: Your mention of the French meaning intrigued me – timid and wild, so I looked it up in the Wiktionary:
“1 (of animals) wild, shy of humans
2 shy, unsociable, retiring, hesitant
3 (of women) distant, unapproachable
4 stubborn, intransigent
5 (of things) savage, dangerous, fierce
6 (of supporters) staunch”
It’s a very versatile word.
Also loved THE BLUES, USED CARS, FRANCOPHONES, PESTLE & MORTAR, BRING UP THE REAR.
And agree with 21a that “Politicians need” A MORAL CODE.
Thanks V&l
That’s interesting, Frankie, and versatile as you say. I always thought ‘sullen’ was moody/sulky and perhaps 3 comes close…ish.
Meanwhile, in the shorter Harraps, there is:
1 fierce; unflinching
2 unshakable (iron will)
3 wild, coy (of animal)
4 cruel; savage (fight)
5 someone who is ‘peu farouche’ is no model of virtue
The nuances often change from French to English but timid/shy seems constant.
Lovely sounding word, anyway.
Thanks Velia and Loonapick
10ac: I think this would have been better with the apostrophe after the S of “aunts”, giving the direct meaning “letters of AUNTS”.
Pleasantly accessible with FAROUCHE being the only word I didn’t know. Nothing wrong with a puerile giggle or two and I liked HOW’S YOUR FATHER, HAEMORRHOIDS and the related adjacent BRING UP THE REAR.
Favourite was the HYDROTHERAPY semi-&lit.
Thanks to Velia and loonapick
PB @6. I thought the same.
Thanks, Velia and loonapick. Found this surprisingly tricky to get started on but it all seems quite straightforward with hindsight. Clever and inventive wordplay trick for INNUENDO, very neat.
PB/Hovis – Yes, I was slightly misled by 10a at first into only subtracting AUNT, but then I realised I had a spare S…
Good blog and fun puzzle. I parsed “says” in the first half of NUTSHELL as an indication that this should be read as a homophone: “Brazil, maybe” = NUTS, a slightly different approach.
3/14 Didn’t like YOUR being in both the clue and answer
Thanks Velia for the fun. Like Diane the longer answers got me going but my favourites were the shorter ones like FLIGHT, PORTRAYS, and NUTSHELL. I could not parse the clever INNUENDO. Thanks loonapick for the blog.
Diane@5:
I think you may have misunderstood me @3 – those were the French definitions from the wiktionary. I meant it’s a versatile word in French. In English there’s just:
“1 Sullen or recalcitrant.”
Why is it that the online version does not show 12,22 across as linked clues? but the paper version does? am I missing something or can this be corrected?
TIA
Worworcrossol
Like Widdersbel, we found this surprisingly tricky to get started on but it all seems quite straightforward with hindsight. We liked RENOWN, MEDIOCRE, FRANCOPHONES and UNWANTED.
Thanks, Velia and loonapick.
Worworcrossol@14:
Do you mean this?
“https://app.ft.com/crossword/…”
Mine has:
12 Drove to get bangers? (4,4)
&
22 See 12
Put in uber eats for used cars but got on ok otherwise.
FrankieG @16 the paper version has 12/22.
Worworcrossol@18: I can’t see the problem. Either way, you enter USED at 12, then CARS at 22.
The FT doesn’t link clues the way the Guardian does.
Or am I missing something?
No it’s me thank you for your reply
Thanks Loonapick.
I came here to check out 1 down – would never have got it as not familiar with it as an English word.
Inexplicably today’s crosswork (online) has the solution to a totally different crossword.
27a raises the old argument about what Brownie Points actually were. Many believe they were actually demerits, more than one or two and you were sacked!
Fine puzzle. Was getting drunk with the likes of Velia (she was definitely not as drunk as some of us 😀 )at Colin Inman’s retirement bash at the time, but glad to have seen this today.