Hello everyone. A cracking puzzle from Luxor!
The preamble:
Seven answers are shorter than the space available and must be entered with a gap of several consecutive cells. Each gap indicates the location of an item which has been MISLAID. Solvers must complete the entries by adding the missing items, always making real words or names. Numbers in brackets refer to grid spaces and Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.
I didn’t start this puzzle until a week after it was published, so I wasn’t on high alert for a theme related to the date. It was at the intersection of 21a and 13d where I first realised we were on an Easter EGG hunt, EGG neatly fitting into the gaps to form new words. I then returned to 34a where I had the answer and the last four letters in place, and was able to straight away insert the “mislaid” (nice!) EGG.
After this there wasn’t much to scramble the brain and it all went down as smoothly as a chocolate confection. Eggcellent – thanks Luxor!
| # | ANSWER ENTRY |
Clue with definition underlined |
| Explanation, with quoted indicators in italics and ANSWER letters in bold caps | ||
| Across | ||
| 1a | SIJO | Jack is reflecting with love poem from Korea (4) |
| J (jack) and IS reversed (reflecting) + O (love) | ||
| 4a | YELLOW | Unknown chap scrapping fine gold perhaps? (6) |
| Y (unknown) + [f]ELLOW (chap) scrapping F (fine) | ||
| 8a | ORB | Sore uncovered black eye (3) |
| sORe without outer letters (uncovered) + B (black) | ||
| 11a | CNIDA | Stinger’s electric current piercing peace protesters by entrance to airbase (5) |
| I (electric current) going into (piercing) CND (peace protesters) by the first letter of (entrance to) Airbase | ||
| 15a | PIN-UP | Security figures informed idol (5) |
| PIN (security figures) + UP (informed) | ||
| 16a | GREENS | Agrees to ignore anonymous note enclosed and leaves (6) |
| [a]GREES without (to ignore) A (anonymous); N (note) inserted (enclosed) | ||
| 17a | ZINCO | Engraved plate incorporated in cross (5) |
| INC (incorporated) in ZO (cross) | ||
| 18a | SPAS | Brief period spending money in health resorts (4) |
| SPAS[m] (brief period) removing (spending) M (money) | ||
| 19a | OXFAM | Over half of relatives being fed by charity (5) |
| O (over) and half of FAMily (relatives) having inserted (being fed) X (by) | ||
| 21a | HONER HONEGGER |
Person in human resources produces sharpener (8) |
| ONE (person) in HR (human resources) | ||
| 22a | ALBARELLI | Majolica medicine jars – all fifty-one empty inside (9) |
| ALL and LI (fifty-one) with BARE (empty) inside | ||
| 25a | ARE | Exist somewhat carelessly (3) |
| Somewhat cARElessly | ||
| 26a | CLEOME | Flowers come with litre base included (6) |
| COME with L (litre) and E (base) included | ||
| 28a | SEE RED | Prophet ended vacuous thirst for blood (6, two words) |
| SEER (prophet) + EndeD empty (vacuous) | ||
| 29a | ERG | Measure of work trimming edges of verge (3) |
| Removing outer letters (trimming edges) of vERGe | ||
| 31a | BOWLED BOWLEGGED |
Delivered guided missile launcher to front (9) |
| LED (guided); BOW (missile launcher) to front | ||
| 34a | PINGS PEGGINGS |
Pressure in Grammar School computing tests (8) |
| P (pressure) + IN + GS (Grammar School) | ||
| 37a | GADUS | Fishy group roam about America (5) |
| GAD (roam about) + US (America) | ||
| 38a | BEEN | Taken place in vacant bike space (4) |
| Empty (vacant) BikE + EN (space) | ||
| 40a | IVORY | Cream of Welsh engine yard (5) |
| IVOR (Welsh engine) + Y (yard) | ||
| 42a | GINNEL | Local detained by upper class girl in alleyway, some say (6) |
| INN (local) inside (detained by) GEL (upper class girl) | ||
| 43a | NONET | No difficulty making composition for nine (5) |
| NO + NET (difficulty) | ||
| 44a | GLIAL | Revolutionary trouble in confines of gaol regarding specialist cells (5) |
| Reversal of (revolutionary) AIL (trouble) in the outer letter (confines) of GaoL | ||
| 45a | SEA | Main leaders in auditorium expected soon to return (3) |
| Initial letters of (leaders in) Auditorium Expected Soon reversing (to return) | ||
| 46a | TISWAS | Foolishly swats round first of insects in frenzy (6) |
| An anagram of (foolishly) SWATS surrounding (round) the first of Insects | ||
| 47a | DONA | Signal approval about American sweetheart (4) |
| NOD (signal approval) backwards (about) + A (American) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1d | SCAZON | Line of verse to scrutinise, circling last letter with ring (6) |
| SCAN (to scrutinise) around (circling) Z (last letter) with O (ring) | ||
| 2d | IN RIXA | In Latvian capital vote for head of government in heat of the moment (6, two words) |
| IN + RI[g]A (Latvian capital) with X (vote) in place of (for) G, the first letter (head) of Government | ||
| 3d | ODIC | Goldfinch oddly devoid of elaborate song (4) |
| gOlDfInCh lacking odd letters (oddly devoid) | ||
| 4d | YANOMAMO | A moon may upset South American forest dwellers (8) |
| A MOON MAY anagrammed (upset) | ||
| 5d | LAPP | Luxembourg acting by proxy for north European (4) |
| L (Luxembourg) + A (acting) + PP (by proxy) | ||
| 6d | LAGAN | Sunken wreckage in lake once more after leaving island (5) |
| L (lake) + AGA[i]N (once more) having removed (after leaving) I (island) | ||
| 7d | OURS | What we have is some time for listeners (4) |
| Sounds like (… for listeners) HOURS (some time) | ||
| 9d | RANTER | OTT preacher or errant rogue? (6) |
| An anagram of (… rogue) ERRANT | ||
| 10d | BISTRED | Brown coloured bedsit decor finally revamped (7) |
| BEDSIT and the last letter of (… finally) decoR anagrammed (revamped) | ||
| 12d | LUSH | Juicy drink (4) |
| Two definitions | ||
| 13d | VIE VEGGIE |
Challenge violence expelling unruly lone conservative (6) |
| VI[olen][c]E removing (expelling) an anagram of (unruly) LONE and C (conservative) | ||
| 14d | BARED BEGGARED |
Uncovered plot to capture a king (8) |
| BED (plot) around (to capture) A and R (king) | ||
| 20d | FLING FLEGGING |
Feel hollow during grand affair (8) |
| FeeL without inner letters (hollow) + IN (during) + G (grand) | ||
| 23d | EEL | Evasive type in topsy-turvy shelter (3) |
| Upside down (topsy-turvy) LEE (shelter) | ||
| 24d | LINGS LEGGINGS |
Swimmers sploshing about, not posh (8) |
| S[p]L[osh]ING anagrammed (about) without (not) POSH | ||
| 26d | CÉPAGES | Fungi coating mature grape varieties (7) |
| CEPS (fungi) surrounding (coating) AGE (mature) | ||
| 27d | OB-GYNS | New boys and girls initially struggling as medical workers in US (6) |
| An anagram of (… struggling) N (new), BOYS and Girls initially | ||
| 30d | RELINE | Replace contents of deserted refuge before occupation (6) |
| Without inner letters (deserted) RefugE before LINE (occupation) | ||
| 32d | DURIAN | In the course of reducing, eating a fruit (6) |
| DURINg (in the course of) without the last letter (reducing), taking in (eating) A | ||
| 33d | PSYLLA | Insects really speeding up shelters (6) |
| ReALLY SPeeding up holds (shelters) the answer | ||
| 35d | NELIS | Winter-ripening pear priest consumed in Nova Scotia (5) |
| ELI (priest) consumed in NS (Nova Scotia) | ||
| 36d | SNOW | Senators finally present in Washington mislead with insincere data (4) |
| SenatorS finally + NOW (present) | ||
| 38d | BENI | Independent Scottish bill backing oil producing plant (4) |
| I (Independent) and NEB (Scottish bill) all reversed (backing) | ||
| 39d | ENEW | English amphibian cutting tail in plunge into water (4) |
| E (English) + NEWt (amphibian) removing the last letter (cutting tail) | ||
| 41d | VELD | Lived precariously after first person goes missing in African grassland (4) |
| An anagram of (… precariously) L[i]VED without I (after first person goes missing) | ||
This was a very pleasant solve, most enjoyable. Fair clueing with a nice PDM. Thank you Luxor and Kitty.
Always a pleasure to encounter a topical theme. Some new words for me – ‘in rixa’ was particularly nice – but I think all fairly clued. Many thanks to Luxor and Kitty.
Fun puzzle with a great theme, but possibly the easiest EV / Inquisitor I have ever done.
Very nice puzzle. Thanks Luxor and Kitty.