Peto is today's FT compiler
On my first scan, I had about half of the answers in place, so I thought this would be a quick solve, but actually, it became a bit of a slog. I got there in the end and I think I've parsed everything.
There were some really good clues, including FOR KEEPS, my favourite. I did have a few quibbles though. In 1ac, the crossword grammar isn't quite right (Peto has used "join" as it makes the surface read better, but it needs to be "joins" or "joining"). At 16ac, QUEEN is an example of a piece, so I think the clue needs e.g. or "say", but that would again ruin the surface. Also, Daniel Ortega is still a Nicaraguan leader, so "former" is not required.
Thanks, Peto.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | FAMISH |
Make very hungry fellow join Mennonite sect (6)
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F (fellow) joins AMISH ("Mennonite sect") |
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| 4 | ACTS UPON |
Affects things done about boxing at university (4,4)
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ACTS ("things done") + ON ("about") boxing UP ("at university") |
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| 10 | RESPITE |
Repeat from memory in conversation about pressure causing temporary delay (7)
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Homophone [in conversation] of RECITE ("repeat from memory") about P (pressure) |
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| 11 | TRACING |
Tracking down Bill boarding somewhere in Hertfordshire (7)
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AC. (account, so "bill") boarding TRING ("somewhere in Hertfordshire") |
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| 12 | EATS |
Uses up mutton and veal mum initially discarded (4)
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(m)EATS ("mutton nad veal") with M(um) [initially] discarded |
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| 13 | SETTLEMENT |
Formal arrangement reached in time with people from Yorkshire town (10)
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T (time) with SETTLE MEN ("people from" Settle, a "Yorkshire town") |
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| 16 | PIECES |
Queen finding son in bits (6)
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PIECE ("queen") finding S (son) It would ruin the surface, but I think that the clue needs an "e.g." or a "say" after Queen, as it's a definition by example. |
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| 17 | FINANCE |
Intended to accept knight’s monetary support (7)
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FIANCÉ ("intended") to accept N (knight, in chess notation) |
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| 20 | CONCEAL |
Formerly wearing Crockett’s original animal skin as disguise (7)
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ONCE ("formerly") wearing C(rockett) ['s original] + A(nima)L [skin] |
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| 21 | TEMPER |
Kind of paint girl’s binned in fit of rage (6)
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DI'S ("girl's") binned in (dis)TEMPER ("kind of paint") |
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| 24 | ATTAINABLE |
That may be achieved with a Latin beat? Not exactly (10)
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*(a latin beat) [anag:not exactly] |
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| 25 | GRIP |
Have a strong effect on member of camera crew (4)
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Double definition, the grip being the member of a camera crew responsible for moving the camera around. |
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| 27 | CORTEGE |
Former Nicaraguan leader clipped during church procession (7)
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(Daniel) ORTEG(a) ("Nicaraguan leader") [clipped] during CE ("Church" of England) As Ortega is still the president of Nicaragua, I don't think "former" is required. |
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| 29 | TRIBUTE |
Work out true bit in statement of approbation (7)
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*(true bit) [anag:work out] |
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| 30 | PEDESTAL |
Penny getting thanks embraced by injured Leeds supporter (8)
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P (penny) getting TA ("thanks") embraced by *(leeds) [anag:injured] |
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| 31 | HERESY |
At this point speak dismissing amateur’s unconventional opinion (6)
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HERE ("at this point") + S(a)Y ("speak", dismissing A (amateur)) |
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| DOWN | ||
| 1 | FOR KEEPS |
Always splits into two bags to go climbing (3,5)
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FORKS ("splits into two") bags <=PEE ("to go", climbing) |
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| 2 | MISS THE BOAT |
Lose an opportunity with atheist mobs in revolt (4,3,4)
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*(atheist mobs) [anag:in revolt] |
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| 3 | SKIP |
Omit captain (4)
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Double definition |
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| 5 | CAT’S-TAIL |
Last act set around front of industrial plant (4-4)
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*(last act) [anag:set] around [front of] I(ndustrial) Cat's-tail is another name for a catkin or Timothy-grass. |
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| 6 | SHAMEFACED |
Henry entered unchanged having resisted feeling embarrassment (10)
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H (Henry) entered SAME ("unchanged") having FACED ("resisted") |
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| 7 | POI |
Mario prepared sandwiches served up in a Hawaiian dish (3)
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HIdden backwards [sandwiches served up] in "marIO Prepared" Poi is a staple dish in Hawaii and Polynesia It is a starchy viscous liquid made from taro. |
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| 8 | NEGATE |
Deny the existence of information about return of Basque separatists (6)
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<=GEN ("information", about) + [return of] <=ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna, so "Basque separatists") |
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| 9 | YEMEN |
Country squire at the outset abandoning sycophants (5)
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S(quire) [at the outset] abandoning YE(s)MEN ("sycophants") |
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| 14 | ESCAPE ROUTE |
Means of distraction for Native American after issue with Republican over nothing (6,5)
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UTE ("Native American") after ESCAPE ("issue") with R (Republican) over O (nothing) |
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| 15 | TETCHINESS |
Offensive letter leading to head’s irritability (10)
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TET (Offensive) + CHI (Greek "letter") leading to NESS ("head") The Tet Offensive was a military campaign during the Vietnam War that happened around the Vietnamese New Year holiday (Tet being the Vietnamese name for this holiday). |
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| 18 | HABANERA |
Catch answer about stabbing goddess of dance (8)
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<=(NAB ("catch") + A, about) stabbing HERA ("goddess") |
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| 19 | PROPHESY |
Foresee ambassador getting extremely shifty in pursuit of support (8)
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HE (His Excellency) getting [extremely] S(hift)Y in pursuit of PROP ("support") |
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| 22 | MADCAP |
Reckless plan to involve aide-de-camp (6)
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MAP ("plan") to involve ADC (aide-de-camp) |
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| 23 | SLATE |
Departed after second censure (5)
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LATE ("departed") after S (second) |
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| 26 | PIKE |
Body position when diving for fish (4)
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Double definition |
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| 28 | RED |
Essential to discredit revolutionary (3)
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Hidden in [essential to] "discREDit" |
I didn’t know that distemper was a kind of paint. And who knows? One day my newfound knowledge that Settle is in Yorkshire and Tring is in Herefordshire might prove useful. 🙂
Quite approachable, and plenty to like. Thanks Peto & Loonapick.
Goodness, Peter, I didn’t think my curt remark deserved such a detailed response! I’ve not visited the UK since 2006, and may well spend another month there one day, especially now that doing cryptic crosswords has broadened my general knowledge ever so slightly.
I filled the grid OK, but there were a few I couldn’t parse and I found this quite hard. I didn’t know of (DIS)TEMPER as a ‘Kind of paint’ either; I was thinking of TEMPER(A) but of course A for ‘girl’s’ wouldn’t work. I’d also forgotten UTE for ‘Native American’ and POI for ‘Hawaiian dish’, both of which I think we have had before. Missed the parsing of FOR KEEPS, which I should have seen.
Thanks to Peter @2 for the extra info about TRING which is my knee-jerk reaction to seeing ‘somewhere in Hertfordshire’; yet another sign of having done too many crosswords!
Thanks to loonapick and Peto
I agree that Queen is only an example of a “piece” and, equally, “mutton and veal” are only examples of “meats” which should really be indicated as such. I don’t agree with the comment on 1a though. ‘Join’ is fine. The idea of the surface is to make (a) very hungry fellow join etc (so ‘make join’ as it were). Not sure I’ve phrased that very well. Struggled a lot with the NE but the rest fell quite quickly.
Hovis@5
FAMISH
The surface grammar seems to work all right. The cryptic grammar doesn’t seem to work okay. If you make one work the other won’t work, I think. No. No. There must be a way.
Spent a while trying to parse MACARENA before twigging 18d HABANERA.
Thanks P&l
GDU & WordPlodder!
TEMPER
What do you call the water-based emulsions you use on your walls? Or do you use oil-paints?
Not sure I agree with you on ‘join’ Hovis. I fear the cryptic grammar is being tweaked to fit the surface. Surely your solution is requiring ‘Make’ to do double duty as it is certainly serving as a key part of the definition. On the quibbles front, I would add a raised eyebrow for the ‘in’ in POI which certainly reads awkwardly at the cryptic level. I didn’t quite understand why an ESCAPE ROUTE is a means of distraction rather than extraction. And it did seem slightly odd to see TRACING defined partly by TRAC(k)ING.
YEMEN, MADCAP and the excellent FOR KEEPS were my favourites.
Thanks Peto and Loonapick
ESCAPE ROUTE
Collins has this:
a means of distraction or relief, esp from reality or boredom
an escape route from the boring, routine aspects of our lives
Thanks Peto and Loonapick
1ac: I think it just about works as “(start with) Fellow (and) join AMISH”.
[11ac: For GDU@1: Hertfordshire is just north of London; Herefordshire is on the border with Wales. They are two very different counties with unfortunately similar names.]
12ac and 16ac: I agree that both of these contain unsignalled definitions by example.
[21ac for KVa@8: I have lived in rented accommodation all of my adult life, so I never paint my own walls.]
Or Fellow! Join AMISH!?
@7:
C for catch, A for answer, RE for about; stabbing MANA – a goddess of sorts – google it! 🙂
Thanks to all involved
AGN@13 c is a recognised abbreviation for “caught (by)”, not “catch”.
Me @5. I should first apologise for not reading loonapick’s comment on 1a properly. Yes, “join” works for the surface. As for the cryptic reading – personally I’m not too bothered about reading verbs such as “join” as being in the imperative. Ok, the punctuation doesn’t work (no exclamation mark) but that is never considered as necessary. It’s maybe a bit of a stretch, so I understand others’ reluctance.
I wasn’t sure where the “of” fitted in for HABANERA.
I did not know distemper, so thanks for explaining. I was also stuck at “temper(a)”???
Like Postmark, I enjoyed MADCAP and FOR KEEPS most of all.
I did know ‘distemper’ as a form of paint but like Wordplodder, I was thinking more of ‘tempera’ (given my handle, I’m a little SHAMEFACED at not working that out sooner!)
And I couldn’t get past MACARENA for 18d.
All the same, it was fun working steadily through this grid.
Thanks to Peto and Loonapick.
Like FrankieG@7 I tried to make MACARENA work & did consider whether C could be ‘catch’, before successfully refocusing. I only know TRING because I used to live on that train line – not particularly famous otherwise! New to me: POI, (dis)TEMPER, CAT’S-TAIL.
Agree with previous eyebrows about ‘of’, ‘in’, and ‘join’, although all non-fatal.
FOR KEEPS and MADCAP were very good.
Thanks both.
Same comment from me as the last Aardvark – this type of crossword really makes me question the widsom of doing the crossword through the week when time is short. I never felt on Peto’s wavelength. There were so many fiddly or verbose (or problematic) clues that this took quite some time, with
a few still unparsed at the end. And, not being on his wavelength, I do not really have any favourites.
I shared the experience of many who wrote above – from being highly grateful for the opportunity to learn Settle, Tring and distemper to trying to make macarena work.
Thanks Peto and thanks Loonapick
Generally I do well with Peto but I found this a bit of a slog and left a half dozen unsolved. I did like RESPITE, CONCEAL, PEDESTAL, and YEMEN. I agree with PostMark @9 on the word “in” in 7d; a comma after sandwiches would eliminate the need for it. Thanks to both.
Peter, what a small world – I used to live in Essendon in the 60s. A village near Hatfield.