Another sound Sunday offering from Hoskins, who is becoming a regular in the IoS slot.
Abbreviations
cd cryptic definition
dd double definition
cad clue as definition
(xxxx)* anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x] letter(s) removed
definitions are underlined
Across
1 Time messing around with adults did this?
STIMULATED
(TIME ADULTS)* with ‘messing around with’ as the anagrind, and an extended definition.
7 Nipper close to mother in Hackney, perhaps
CRAB
An insertion of R for the final letter of ‘mother’ in CAB. The insertion indicator is ‘in’.
9 Catch rays around excellent Welsh island
TAIWAN
An insertion of AI for A1 and W in TAN. The insertion indicator is ‘around’.
10 Junkie knocked over drug dealer for PC Handle
USERNAME
A charade of USER and E MAN reversed.
11 Bill fit to be split by men as dear
ADORABLE
An insertion of OR for ‘other ranks’ or ‘men’ in AD and ABLE. The insertion indicator is ‘to be split by’.
12 Fancy boat docks by popular area east of ruin
MARINA
A charade of MAR, IN and A.
13 Do we all cry after beating official warning?
YELLOW CARD
(DO WE ALL CRY)* with ‘after beating’ as the anagrind.
16 Brains can get you a chunk of bread
LOAF
A dd.
17 Female swine hoovering up knight’s cocaine
SNOW
An insertion of N for the chesspiece ‘knight’ in SOW. The insertion indicator is ‘hoovering up’.
19 Mooner star fiddled with is one into heavenly bodies
ASTRONOMER
(MOONER STAR)* with ‘fiddled with’ as the anagrind.
22 Clobber a bore for crying out loud!
ATTIRE
Aural wordplay (‘for crying out loud’) of A TIRE.
23 GM opening wine and cigar regularly gets complaint
ASTIGMIA
An insertion of GM in ASTI and IA for the even letters of ‘cigar’. The insertion indicator is ‘opening’.
25 Playing the viola is wasting time aimlessly
FIDDLING
A dd.
26 Some Javan titillating Italian’s forward
AVANTI
Hidden in JAVAN TItillating. AVANTI is the Italian word for ‘forward’.
27 My boss steals flipping silver? Blimey!
EGAD
An insertion of AG reversed in ED, who is the setter’s boss if he is the crossword editor. The insertion indicator is ‘stealing’.
28 Where one might see a diver in the open?
ABOVE BOARD
A dd.
Down
2 Guitarist’s finale duckwalk after break is rubbish!
TWADDLE
A charade of T for the final letter of ‘guitarist’ and WADDLE. ‘After break’ is your invitation to perform a lift-and-separate manoeuvre on ‘duckwalk’.
3 One in on grass crop heads of mafia outfit will eagerly rob
MOWER
The initial letters of the final five words of the clue.
4 Weapon that might give fawning fellow backache?
LONGBOW
Hoskins is whimsically suggesting that someone doing a LONG BOW might end up with backache.
5 Game to enter town church, finding peace for a while?
TRUCE
An insertion of RU for Rugby Union or ‘game’ in T and CE. The insertion indicator is ‘to enter’.
6 Ecstasy-laced shot editor fancied
DREAMED
An insertion of E in DRAM and ED. The insertion indicator is ‘laced’.
7 Criminal lot rat out one who’s known to sing
CONTRALTO
A charade of CON and (LOT RAT)* with ‘out’ as the anagrind.
8 Country song about Hoskins heading to Nashville
ARMENIA
An insertion of ME and N in ARIA. The insertion indicator is ‘about’
14 Wind model let loose, having a vulgar character
LOW-MINDED
(WIND MODEL)* with ‘let loose’ as the anagrind.
15 Work do
ACT
A dd.
18 Love is …
NOTHING
A whimsical cd, since there is NOTHING after the ellipsis.
19 One covered in whipped cream gets adult in a state
AMERICA
An insertion of I in (CREAM)* followed by A. The anagrind is ‘whipped’ and the insertion indicator is ‘covered in’.
20 Power cut around middle of April creates indignation
OUTRAGE
An insertion of R for the central letter of ‘April’ in OUTAGE. The insertion indicator is ‘around’.
21 Online winner is one likely take tenants out
EVICTOR
A charade of E and VICTOR.
23 Old artist upset about Girl Guides’ violent behaviour
AGGRO
An insertion of GG in O and RA reversed. The insertion indicator is ‘about’.
24 Ace loads firearm, primarily overseeing animal release
GUANO
An insertion of A in GUN, followed by O for the initial letter of ‘overseeing’. The insertion indicator is ‘loads’.
Many thanks to Hoskins for this Sunday’s puzzle.
LOVE is NOTHING (0).
There could be more.
There is a NINA (in the first and last columns). Dunno the significance.
Love_Is… is a comic strip, still running since the ’60s.
Another day, another Nina to try to ignore while solving…”Stay Safe” – UK government COVID advice?
“Be afraid. Be very afraid.” – the tagline for David Cronenberg’s film The Fly(1986)?
Liked 2d TWADDLE – “duckwalk after break” explicitly signalling the repunctuation of Chuck Berry’s ‘form of locomotion’
I will as usual award myself the certificate for nina blindness.
FrankieG@3
NOTHING
“Love is…”-the surface is explained by you. Thanks.
On the other hand, ‘Love is NOTHING’ seems hardly cryptic. Or am I missing something?
KVa @6. You didn’t say ‘tennis’. Maybe it was too obvious?
Thanks All
CRAB, TAIWAN, USERNAME, ABOVE BOARD, TWADDLE, CONTRALTO and AGGRO were faves today in a puzzle that seems slightly less drink and drug imbued than normal. And I missed the ninas. The anagram for ASTRONOMER is very close indeed to the (sadly now chestnutty) classic, MOON STARER.
Thanks Hoskins and Pierre
Never thought to look for a nina – no change there!
Harry seemed to be making a bit of an effort to be on his Sunday best behaviour – didn’t quite achieve it but came closer than he often does.
Tops for me were the fellow with backache and the diver out in the open.
Thanks to Hoskins and also to Pierre for the review.
This was good fun and even I spotted the Nina.
I’m not sold on the the all-in-one definition for 1a, and is E MAN in 10a a term invented by the setter?
T = town in 5d is not a recognised abbreviation in Chambers and only in Collins as an American usage.
My top picks were: TAIWAN, ABOVE BOARD, TWADDLE and AGGRO.
Many thanks to Hoskins and to Pierre.
Xmac@7
Love is often clued for O/NIL without any mention of tennis (or badminton, squash, TT etc.,). Similarly, duck is often clued for O/NIL without any mention of cricket.
Thanks both. ABOVE BOARD held out the longest, and AVANTI was the only unknown though guessable perhaps owing to the train company, although I am a little surprised words from foreign languages are considered fair game, whilst grateful at the same time there is no direct translation into Welsh of vacuum cleaner replacement bag.
[TFO@12: I was delighted to learn that an ironing board in Welsh is a ‘board smoothio’ (bwrdd smwddio to be precise). Any chance the household item you seek is a ‘bag suckio’?]
PostMark@13 Thanks, will give it a try and see if security are called.
No wonder I could parse 28 across as I read driver instead of diver.
A nice gentle Sunday puzzle to see out the week. And a bit of a tip of the hat to the setter’s own inimitable style at 14.
Add me to the “didn’t spot it” list for NINA missers.
Thanks to Hoskins and Pierre.
Still can’t work out the Nina, but enjoyed the puzzle! I suppose 21d was quite clever in that ‘to’ was missing from the grammar in the clue?