Everyman 3,996

by

I always seem to be saying this, but Everyman’s crosswords get better and better. Apart from my doubts over the STRADIVARI clue, which I may well be wrong on, he has produced a set of sound clues with good surfaces and also managed to include all the trademarks seamlessly: the rhyming pairs, the self-referential clue and the first letters clue.

Definitions in crimson, underlined. Indicators (homophone, reversal, missing letters, etc.) in italics. Link-words in green. Anagrams indicated (like this)* or *(like this).

 

picture of the completed grid

ACROSS
1 CONSCIENCE
Once scenic – redeveloped – qualms? (10)
(Once scenic)*
6 APED
Mimicked, initially atrociously, Prince Edward (4)
a[trociously] P[rince] Ed. — Ed = Edward — ‘initially’ could perfectly well just apply to ‘atrociously’, with P for Prince, since that’s a standard abbreviation
9 BROWN BREAD
2000s Prime Minister: money‘s no longer with us (5,5)
Brown bread — Brown = Gordon Brown, who was PM in the 2000s, bread = money — in Cockney Rhyming Slang ‘brown bread’ = ‘dead’
10 KEEN
Eager howl (4)
2 defs — keen = eager in the more usual sense of the word, but it also (just) means howl in a slightly unusual sense — Collins has (noun) a dirge or lament for the dead — I should have thought that ‘Eager howl, perhaps’ might have been sounder
11 PLAIN SAILING
By treeless zones having trouble, like falling off a log? (5,7)
plains ailing — plains = treeless zones, ailing = having trouble — the reference is to the expression ‘as easy as falling off a log’
15 IMPOSER
Everyman‘s puzzle, one that’s unwelcome (7)
I’m poser — I’m = Everyman’s (the usual self-referential clue), poser = puzzle
16 CROATIA
Crescentic republic, one abutting the Illyrian Adriatic, primarily? (7)
The usual first letters &lit. clue
17 ORCHIDS
Showy flowers – or little ones, you say? (7)
“or kids”
19 OFFSIDE
Some toffs identified as unable to score (7)
Hidden in tOFFS IDEntified — football
20 BLACKMAILING
Unjustly demanding, dismal posting (12)
black mailing — black = dismal, mailing = posting
23 ALLY
Friend‘s friendly? Not at first (4)
[p]ally — pally = friendly
24 STRADIVARI
Opera singer, right, surrounded by | swirling sitar and violin (10)
(diva r) in *(sitar) — diva = opera singer — this looks like a mistake since Stradivari was the person who made the Stradivarius violin — I suppose you could just about excuse Everyman by saying that Stradivari was the ‘violin’ in the sense ‘person who plays the violin’, but this wouldn’t be convincing: Stradivari is famous as a maker of violins, not as a violinist [I’m not sure what the weight of opinion is, but it seems that ‘Stradivari’ can refer to a violin just as ‘Amati’ can.]
25 CAST
Company pitched (4)
2 defs, one referring to the cast of for example a play, the other = threw
26 BRASSERIES
Diners‘ cups: I moved two places along (10)
brassieres with the i moved two places to the right — brassieres are cups in a sense; diners here doesn’t refer to the people who are dining, but to the eatery (mainly US) called a diner
DOWN
1 COBS
Bass offered amid lettuce: they’re covered in corn (4)
co(b)s — cos = lettuce, b = bass — corn on the cob
2 NOON
12 down – or up! (4)
‘down — or up!’ indicates that it’s a palindrome; 12.00 is noon, not a reference to another clue
3 CANDLESTICK
Charlie and Les getting credit for wicked thing (11)
C and Les tick — C = Charlie, and = and, Les = les, tick = credit — I think this is a nod to a famous CD by Ximenes, a clue for candle: ‘a wicked thing’ [Paul, Tutukaka@2 correctly points out that a candlestick is not the wicked thing — a candle is, so for me to say that ‘for’ is a link-word is wrong — but I’m not happy with the definition ‘for wicked thing’ = ‘candlestick’; a candlestick is something for wicked thing]
4 EARLIER
Before now, more like a nobleman? (7)
If someone is more like an earl, they could fancifully be said to be earl-ier
5 CLASSIC
Timeless young lady in clinch now and again (7)
lass in c[l]i[n]c[h] — lass = young lady
7 PAEDIATRIC
A patricide – deranged, concerning youth needing treatment (10)
(a patricide)*
8 DENIGRATES
In cosy room, causes irritation: the writer maligns (10)
I in (den grates) — I = the writer, den = cosy room, grates = causes irritation
12 INOFFENSIVE
Regularly ignore Finn’s attack, being pleasant enough (11)
[F]i[n]n offensive — offensive = attack (an army, say, goes on the offensive)
13 PINOT BLANC
No panic! BLT’s toasted: here’s some wine (5,5)
(No panic BLT)*
14 SPECTACLES
Perhaps aviators‘ magnificent displays (10)
2 defs — the first one refers to a type of sunglasses (only vaguely known, I have to admit)
18 SCATTER
Broadcast Ella Fitzgerald? (7)
Ella Fitzgerald no doubt sang scat so could be called a scat-t-er
19 ORLEANS
Slice of inferior lean steak somewhere in France (7)
Hidden in inferiOR LEAN Steak
21 BALI
Institute and experimental facility set up in Indonesian island province (4)
(I lab)rev. — I = institute, lab = experimental facility
22 FIRS
Conifers and gorse, by the sound of it (4)
“furze” — furze = gorse, something that struck me as possibly dodgy, but I see that Collins calls furze another name for gorse.

23 comments on “Everyman 3,996”

  1. One of the best so far IMO. Revealed itself slowly with satisfaction as all good crosswords should. Only the “howl” definition of 10A was new to me. I do think the criticism of violin maker versus violin is probably fair though, but made up with great defs for 26A and 14D.

  2. Great crossword. Held up finding a synonym for gorse other than pest. In3 I think “for” should also be underlined as part of the definition as candlesticks are not themselves wicked. Thanks Everyman & John.

  3. Re violins: The “ius” form is the Latinized version of the name. Stradivari and Guarneri violins for some reason use the Latinized version. But Amati instruments don’t. An Amati violin is an “Amati” not an “Amatius.” Other artist’s works (paintings, etc.) almost always use the artist’s name directly. “That’s a Picasso hanging on the wall.” Stradivari and Guarneri seem to be the rare exceptions.

  4. I see alohanes got in before me. They are the Italian and Latin versions of the family name, so I don’t see STRADIVARI as wrong.
    I think I thought this a little easier than the previous couple of Everymans, but none the worse for that. I have just finished Paul’s Priize this morning, though I have to say the 4 clues in the NE corner that had seemed impenetrable yesterday, fell into place very quickly this morning, and I am looking forward to an enjoyable hour or so with Everyman.

  6. Found this much easier than last week’s puzzle and got all but two quite quickly.

    For 18d I thought homophone because of “broadcast” in the clue but could not see how that worked then wondered if it might refer to sowing seeds and SCATTER fitted the crossers. Since the Prize the day before had had types of music as a theme, I had types of music on my mind and I had a vague memory of SCAT being a type of music and wondered it Ella F had been a proponent. Checked google and there it was. I was quite pleased to get that.

    My LOI was BROWN BREAD. Worked it out but didn’t get the definition “no longer with us” – didn’t know that rhyming slang.

    Loved SCATTER ( of course), PLAIN SAILING, ALLY, CANDLESTICK, DENIGRATES

    Thanks Everyman and John

  7. NICBACH is right, it is perfectly correct to refer to the violin as a Stradivari, but if you are in doubt just call it a Strad.

    And thanks also NICBACH for the Ella link. My favourite is her hilarious version of Mack the Knife, where she forgets the words and makes it up as she goes along.

    Thanks Everyman and John for the fun.

  8. Thanks for the blog, a really good puzzle with double rhyming pairs, APED is the follow on clue from IMPERSONATED . BRASSERIES was a neat idea.
    Alohaned@3 and Nicbach@4 have convinced me that STRADIVARI is fine. I agree with Paul@2 for CANDLESTICK.
    KEEN=howl is fine , both are (to give) a mournful cry , so noun or verb works.

  9. I found this easier than the previous two Everyman crosswords too, and was almost certainly helped towards SCATTER from the previous day’s Prize.

    Furze is West Country dialect for gorse, I hear it in that sort of accent, and had no problem with that clue. Not just me, Stalky & Co had their dens in the furze below the school.

    I was sure I had a different follow on last week when I’d just completed this and then read the blog, but of course I can’t remember it now.

    Thank you to Everyman and John.

  10. Unlike some others, I found this a bit more difficult than some previous ones; horses for courses, I suppose.

    I liked BROWN BREAD, BRASSERIES, CANDLESTICK and SCATTER. STRADIVARI is in Chambers as the violin.

    Thanks Everyman and John.

  11. When I entered STRADIVARI, I assumed it was one of those occasions where riff-raff like me had been calling it the wrong thing all these years. I know my place.

  12. No one has yet mentioned the brilliance of 9a, with the surface reference to the famous note left by Liam Byrne when Gordon Brown’s Labour left government in 2010. That was the highlight of the puzzle for me but it was all good.

    Thanks, Everyman and John.

  13. Favourites: CANDLESTICK, BRASSERIES (loi).

    New for me OFFSIDE = unable to score / (especially in soccer, rugby, or hockey) in a position where playing the ball or puck is not allowed; aviator SPECTACLES; Cockney slang BROWN BREAD = dead; SCATTER = scat singer (for 18d).

    I had the same questions/doubts about STRADIVARI as I always have heard the violin referred to as a Stradivarius as opposed to a Stradivari (name of the maker) but the comments by alohaned@3 make sense to me.

    Thanks, both.

  14. Generally pretty good, but I don’t share the general liking for BRASSERIES – firstly the apostrophe in diners’ makes it possessive, which doesn’t match the answer which is plain plural; secondly to me (in UK) a brasserie has pretensions, justified or not, to being somewhat French in style and a bit upmarket, while a diner is more associated with cheapish fast food. I can see that the clue is arguably OK, but a bit of a stretch for me.
    Liked STRADIVARI (no quibble from me), SCATTER, FIRS (furze was the usual name for the bush in my young days in Scotland).
    Thanks both.

  15. Widdersbel@12, yes indeed, this was a great clue, the extended meaning of which didn’t dawn on me at first. The famous note read “I’m afraid there is no money”. David Cameron carried it around with him for a long time and made great capital from it.

  17. 22d What’s with the first half of “conifers”? Fers is a homophone for furze, but … All I know about gorse is the picture of Pooh all stuck with stickers.

    Overall, though, pleasant puzzle. Thanks to Everyman and John.

  18. It so happens that there’s ‘…fers’ in the clue but that’s just a coincidence I think. The homophone is of ‘furze’.

  19. I too found this to be a very enjoyable Everyman. My only quibble was the definition for 3dn (candlestick): like Paul, Tutukaka @2’s, I don’t think a candlestick is wicked. But this was a minor problem to begin with, and Paul’s proposal to include “for” in the definition resolves it in any case.

    26ac (BRASSERIES) was my favorite clue. I agree with Beaulieu @14 is right that a brasserie is not quite the same as a diner, but I thought the clue was clever enough that I was happy to ignore that. I disagree with Beaulieu that the apostrophe poses a problem: that seems to me like the sort of misleading punctuation we often accept in cryptic clues.

  20. Forgot to time this, but it felt quicker than the last few. COBS was my LOI. Love ‘wicked’ in that sense.

  22. Got it all out, but there were several answers I did not understand. Then when I read the blog, I did a lot of forehead smacking.
    Great puzzle; thanks to Everyman and John.

Comments are closed.