Independent 11,562 / Knut

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Knut has set this week’s mid-week teaser. It is quite some time since it last fell to me to blog a puzzle by Knut.

This grid is a slightly amended version of a very old grid, one which I have often found challenging to fill as a solver, since it divides up the grid into four distinct quadrants that are almost self-contained and need solving separately. Despite being able to chip away at this puzzle overall, I found the NW quadrant to be the most stubborn, not helped by the fact that I didn’t know the entry at 7, which was staring me in the face all along, and nor were 1D, 2 or 12 the most familiar of entries.

However, I think that I have negotiated my passage through all the references to popular culture to complete the puzzle and parse all entries to my satisfaction. My favourite clues today were 6, for making me laugh out loud when I twigged the wordplay; 9, for all the carpet-related content and surprising definition; 21, for its original definition; and 25, for smoothness of surface.  I also rather the liked the split entries across the top and bottom rows of the grid, placing Paris in the former and London in the latter.

*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues

Across    
     
01/04 PARIS HILTON Average former England goalie escorting international socialite

I (=international) in [PAR (=average, as in below par) + SHILTON (=former England goalie, i.e. Peter)]; the reference is to the US socialite and model Paris Hilton (1981-)
     
08 UNCLEAN Dirty old man’s brother starts to annoy nurse

UNCLE (=old man’s brother, where “old man” is one’s father) + A<nnoy> N<urse> (“starts to” means first letters only)
     
09 AMATEUR Lay a carpet, English, upper-class, the last from Axminster

A + MAT (=carpet) + E (=English) + U (=upper-class) + <axminste>R (“the last from” means last letter only); as an adjective, lay means amateur, non-professional
     
11 DOR Oscar crashing doctor’s Beetle

O (=Oscar, in NATO alphabet) in DR (=doctor); a dor is a kind of dung-beetle
     
12 BERNINI British rein in unruly Neapolitan master

B (=British) + *(REIN IN); “unruly” is anagram indicator; the reference is to Italian sculptor and architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680)
     
13 DISTAFF To do with women nicking vehicle from capital outside station

STA (=station, i.e. railway station) in <car>DIFF (=capital, of Wales; “nicking vehicle (=car) from” means letters “car” are dropped); the distaff side is the female side of a family
     
14 RETCH Broadcast unfortunate gag

Homophone (“broadcast”) of “wretch (=unfortunate (person))”; to gag is to retch, i.e. to strain as if to vomit
     
15 AERODROME See Mordor easily on the way back circling airfield

Hidden (“circling”) and reversed (“on the way back”) in “seE MORDOR EAsily”
     
17 IMPRUDENT Reckless – independent elected politician, ill-mannered, heartless fool

I (=independent) + MP (=elected politician, i.e. Member of Parliament) + RUDE (=ill-mannered) + N<i>T (=fool; “heartless” means middle letter is dropped)
     
20 MISER Mr T going missing – tightwad!

MIS<t>ER (=Mr); “T going missing” means letter “t” is dropped
     
22 EXCITES Turns on former partner with cocaine, sex and tablets

EX- (=former partner) + C (=cocaine, colloquially) + IT (=sex, as in to do it) + Es (=tablets)
     
24 ELATING Bringing joy, say, embracing classical language

LATIN (=classical language) + E.G. (=say, for example)
     
25 AGA Driver’s club lying around golf range

G (=golf, in NATO alphabet) in AA (=driver’s club, i.e. Automobile Association); an aga is a range in a kitchen
     
26 SUSPECT Questionable American Pastor infiltrating religious group

[US (=American) + P (=pastor)] in SECT (=religious group)
     
27 TWINNED Joined wife at home, beset by recurrent depression

[W (= wife) + IN (=at home)] in TNED (=depression; “recurrent”, i.e. coming back, implies reversal)
     
28/29 LONDONDERRY Drunken orderly entertaining northern lecturer in the city

[N (=northern) + DON (=lecturer)] in *(ORDERLY); “drunken” is anagram indicator
     
Down    
     
01 PACK RAT Rodent seen when Frankie’s chums go cycling

RAT PACK (=Frankie’s chums, i.e. group of entertainers including Frank Sinatra); “go cycling” means two words swap places; a pack rat is a king of long-tailed rat, native to N America
     
02 RHENISH Antacid tablets order by Connery – it’s the wine

Homophone of “Rennies (=antacid tablets)”, as pronounced (“order”) with a lisp by Sean Connery!
     
03 SYNDICATE Group recording Ms Lauper with support from Ms Blanchett?

Homophone (“recording”) of “Cyndi (=Ms Lauper, i.e. US singer) + Cate (=Ms Blanchett, i.e. Australian actress)”
     
04 HOARD Difficult to get hold of ordinary loo rolls during the pandemic!

O (=ordinary, as in O level exam) in HARD (=difficult)
     
05 LIAISED Networked with mafioso regularly – didn’t tell the truth about it

<m>A<f>I<o>S<o> (“regularly” means alternate letters only) in LIED (=didn’t tell the truth)
     
06 OREGANO Herb cookie filled with ganache longing to be eaten!

GAN<ache> (“longing (=ache) to be eaten” means letters “ache” are dropped) in OREO (=cookies, i.e. brand of biscuit)
     
07 LUBBERLINESS Blubber lines seal, having an innate tendency to be clumsy

Hidden (“having”) in “bLUBBER LINES Seal”
     
10 RIFLE BRIGADE Gabriel fired shot – they fired back

*(GABRIEL FIRED); “shot” is anagram indicator
     
16 RETREATED Went back to be in Paris, having graded accommodation

ÊTRE (=to be in Paris, i.e. the French verb to be) in RATED (=graded)
     
18 PICASSO Artist, constant member of The Mamas and the Papas, rounded figure

PI (=constant, in mathematics) + CASS (=member of The Mamas and the Papas, i.e. singer Cass Eliot) + O (=rounded figure, i.e. pictorially)
     
19 UPTREND High time for investors to flip about Turkey?

TR (=Turkey, in IVR) in UPEND (=to flip, turn on end)
     
20 MEATIER More muscular appearance initially feeds one’s strength

A<ppearance> (“initially” means first letter only) in MÉTIER (=one’s strength, forte)
     
21 SPINNEY Cops, reportedly, turn Asian currency over

SPIN (=turn, rotate) + NEY (YEN=Asian currency; “over” indicates vertical reversal); a spinney is a small area of trees and bushes, hence a copse, which is a homophone (“reportedly”) of “cops”!
     
23 SATIN Protested against factory material

SAT IN (=protested against factory, i.e. did a sit in)
     

14 comments on “Independent 11,562 / Knut”

  1. I imagine many of us can remember the ‘rounded figure’ of Mama Cass (Cass Elliot) and the lyrics ‘and no one’s gettin’ fat except Mama Cass’. It has been said that this was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the fact that she was making more money than the rest of the band.
    My Chambers app doesn’t have that particular derivative of ‘lubber’ but it was easy to get once I had a few crossers.

  2. A mini theme of cities?
    PARIS, BERN, ROME, LONDON, BERLIN, RIGA, CARDIFF (tho’ nicked), LIMA (not straightforward), ADEN…

    Loved SPINNEY

  3. I had ticks for all your favourites, RR and I also smiled at the surfaces of 8ac UNCLEAN, 2dn RHENISH, and 4dn HOARD.

    I did note the ‘Tale of two cities’ at the top and bottom but failed to see the others – well spotted, KVa.

    Many thanks to Knut for another lovely puzzle and to RR for a fine blog.

  6. Thanks for the blog, dear RatkojaRiku…re your comment about the grid, once I’d filled it I was a bit struck by the ungainliness of the four separate corners so I added two 3 letter lights at 11and 25A in an effort to moderate it a bit but it’s still not really a thing of beauty I’m afraid.
    Thanks too to those who have commented and a spotter’s badge goes to KVa who identified the city mini-theme.
    I wrote this during the first Covid lockdown (I think it’s been down the back of Eimi’s sofa for a bit) which explains the loo roll hoard gag which looks odd through today’s eyes perhaps.
    Best wishes to all, Rob/Knut

  7. Theme-blind, today. No idea how I missed it as there are quite a few scattered around. But it did not detract in the slightest from the pleasure of a well-constructed puzzle, as always. Faves included UNCLEAN, RETCH, AGA, RIFLE BRIGADE, PICASSO and SPINNEY.

    Thanks Knut and RR

  8. Thanks both. I managed most of the required GK but not all, as I did not know BERNINI nor RHENISH which we are told 007 drinks without his teeth in, though I read it’s typically 9% strength, so no loss there. I feel short-changed by PACK RAT, as Mr Sinatra would always be Frank in my limited experience of him, and calling him otherwise just sent me looking for a goose as wild as I was once the answer eventually dawned

  11. Excellent as ever from this setter.
    I really liked PARIS HILTON, SYNDICATE and HOARD amongst many others.
    Thanks Knut and RR for a top blog.
    Petert @10…quite relieved to see the homophone as definition SPINNEY as I’ve just clued one as such in my latest puzzle.

  12. Nice one Knut! BERNINI led me into a journey of gobsmackery. Amazing work! I liked the juxtaposition of LONDON and PARIS;UNCLEAN was wickedly concealed in plain sight; I loved the reversed MORDOR but missed the embed and couldn’t explain the other letters (!); must remember LUBBERLINESS (luvverly word); I had lots of candidate IMP* words but IMPRUDENT was a perfect fit. Oh, and EXCITES called up a dirty chuckle. Cheers and thank you RR for the blogwork.

  13. Thanks Knut for a well-crafted crossword with my top choices being EXCITED (nice surface), PACK RAT, and OREGANO. I didn’t get RHENISH and AGA (lack of GK on my part) and I didn’t make the cops/copse connection in SPINNEY, thinking the word might be slang for police. Thanks RR for the blog.

  14. For me this was the usual mix of Knut clues: easy, brilliant, groany and I’d-not-get-that-in-a-million-years.

    20 was my favourite, one of those that at first was baffling, then suddenly the light bulb went on.

    Thanks RR and Knit.

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