Mudd is the setter today.
I found this a bit of a mixed bag. Some of the clues, especially that for IDIOM (my favourite) were excellent, but others were a bit meh, in my opinion. I couldn't parse AUSTRALIA as there seems to be an unindicated A, so I'm hoping someone can put me right on that one. I also found THREE-POINT TURN a bit clumsy as nearly half a gallon is "three pintS". In 10ac, HATH doesn't mean HAD, it meant HAS.
Thanks, Mudd.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | STORE DETECTIVE |
A shopper’s shopper? (5,9)
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Cryptic definition |
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| 10 | HEATH |
Old PM had old jackets back in suitcase (5)
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HATH ("had", old) jackets [back in] (suitcas)E I think hath is old form of "has", rather than "had", though? |
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| 11 | SPEARMINT |
Man with ripest bananas, fresh flavour (9)
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*(man ripest) [anag:bananas] |
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| 12 | NOTABLE |
Celebrity hamstrung? (7)
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NOT ABLE ("hamstrung?") |
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| 13 | DUSTMAN |
Council worker in the morning back on street with brownish clothing (7)
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<=AM (ante meridiem, so "in the morning", back) on St. (street) with DUN ("brownish") clothing |
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| 14 | STRAP |
Belt components reversed (5)
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<=PARTS ("components", reversed) |
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| 16 | AUSTRALIA |
United in star-spangled identity originally, a large country (9)
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I can' t parse this. I can see U (united) in *(star) [anag:spangled] and I(dentity) [originally] and A + L (large), but there's still an A missing and I can't find a way of putting the AL in the right pplace from the wording of the clue. |
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| 19 | CRACKDOWN |
Restraint shown when miserable after split (9)
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DOWN ("miserable") after CRACK ("split") |
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| 20 | WEIGH |
Measure direction for the listener? (5)
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Homophone/pun/aural wordplay [for thelistener] of WAY ("direction") |
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| 22 | PIT PROP |
Supporter of mine? (3,4)
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Cryptic definition. Chambers has this as one word, but Oxford has it as two. |
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| 25 | LETTERS |
Learning Latvian and Erse, mostly (7)
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LETT ("Latvian") + ERS(e) [mostly] |
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| 27 | LIKE AS NOT |
Soil taken to be scattered, probably (4,2,3)
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*(soil taken) [anag:to be scattered] |
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| 28 | METRE |
Measure that’s simple saving time (5)
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MERE ("simple") saving T (time) |
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| 29 | THREE-POINT TURN |
Test of driver’s competence ending in fiasco amid theatrical performance after almost half a gallon of beer? (5-5,4)
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[ending in] (fiasc)O amid (TURN ("theatrical performance") after THREE PINT ("almost half a gallon beer?")) |
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| DOWN | ||
| 2 | TRATTORIA |
Restaurant having served pastry up, what does Vic have for afters? (9)
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<=TART ("pastry", served up) + (vic)TORIA ("what does Vic have for afters?") |
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| 3 | REHAB |
Treatment with respect to whaler having lost head (5)
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RE ("with respect to") + (a)HAB ("whaler" (in Moby Dick) having lost head) |
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| 4 | DESPERADO |
Criminal deeds a pro carried out (9)
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*(deeds a pro) [anag:carried out] |
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| 5 | TREAD |
Surface of tyre, look at — that? (5)
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[surface of] T(yre) + READ ("look at") and semi &lit. |
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| 6 | CORKSCREW |
A hundred casual workers claiming minimum of compensation, one’s taken to the bottle (9)
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C ("a hundred") + *(workers) [anag:casual] claiming [minimum of] C(ompensation) |
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| 7 | IDIOM |
Expression is deep in one’s memory, initially (5)
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I(s) D(eep) I(n) O(ne's) M(emory) [initially] |
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| 8 | ESTONIA |
Erection of perfect Roman feature around capital in troubled country (7)
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[erection of] <=A1 NOSE ("perfect Roman feature") around [capital in] T(roubled] |
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| 9 | THANKS |
M. Ryan’s co-star in Sleepless in Seattle cheers (6)
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M(eg) Ryan's co-star in Sleepless in Seattle was T(om) HANKS |
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| 15 | POKER FACE |
Index finger on fine card, player might wish to retain it! (5,4)
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POKER (finger used to prod, so "poker") on F (fine) + ACE ("card") |
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| 17 | SINGLETON |
Insolent rogue entertaining first of girls, lonely heart say? (9)
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*(insolent) [anag:rogue] entertaining [first of] G(irls) |
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| 18 | LEICESTER |
English city re-elects liberal retaining leader of integrity (9)
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*(reelects) [anag:liberal] retaining [leader of] I(ntegrity) |
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| 19 | CO-PILOT |
Assistant on plane bound to go up in flier (2-5)
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<=LIP ("bound", (as in boundary), to go up) in COOT ("flier") |
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| 21 | HOSTEL |
Leases I see up in youth’s accommodation? (6)
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<=(LETS ("leases") + OH ("I see"), up) |
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| 23 | TAKER |
Exchange rate about a thousand, someone accepting offer (5)
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*(rate) [anag:exchange] about K (a thousand) |
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| 24 | PANTO |
Christmas show performed on tap (5)
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*(on tap) [anag:performed] |
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| 26 | TEMPT |
Egg on toast every morning particularly tasty for starters (5)
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T(oast) E(very) M(orning) P(articularly) T(asty) [for starters] |
AUSTRALIA is U in ASTRAL + I(dentity) + A (from clue).
Hovis @1 has it for AUSTRALIA.
I did like TRATTORIA for the “what does Vic have for afters” and TEMPT for the deceptive “egg on toast”.
A fine puzzle from Mudd in the run-up to the holidays.
I had so many ticks: REHAB, THANKS (‘Cheers’ in italics might have been a neat deception here), TEMPT and, as an East Midlander, how could I not love LEICESTER (nice surface)?
There were more but suffice it to say, I was well entertained today.
Thanks to Mudd and Loonapick
Hovis@1 – obvious once it’s pointed out. Ach well, nobody’s perfect, least of all me!
My faves: STORE DETECTIVE, AUSTRALIA, CORKSCREW and TEMPT.
Thanks Mudd and Loonapick.
Being not merely an East Midlander but an actual Leicestrian, I’m even more chuffed than Diane.
My other faves were the same as KVa’s (I loved the ‘egg on toast’).
Thanks Mudd and loonapick.
Thanks loonapick, I agree that “hath” is more likely to mean “has” than “had”. Although Shakespeare used “Cassius HAS a lean and hungry look”, so “hath”, if it ever existed, must predate that.
The most common use of “hath” that I have seen would be in the common phrase “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” but this is incorrect as the original quotation was “Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.” Many people equate it with Shakespeare” but it is from “The Mourning Bride” by William Congreve.
Re 29D: I solved it from the definition and the “(5-5,4)” as I have no idea of what pints and gallons are. It’s time that the US and UK joined the rest of the world and adopted decimals!
Thanks to all who contributed.
As clear as Mudd….by which I mean, a gridful of clean and clever clues.
Nice to see “criminal” as a wrong-footing element in 4(down).
Lots of well-constructed surfaces, in fact, 100% I think.
26(down) is such a lovely clue, TEMPT being ” to entice in” rather than “to urge on” would be a very petty quibble.
Ditto, TREAD in 5(down), where I’m very happy to accept that the grooves in a tyre are an integral part of its surface.
16(ac)…….AUSTRALIA: I went into the same cul-de-sac, loonapick, and it took me ages to see the setter’s crafty play.
A totally enjoyable puzzle, too many winning clues to single one out.
Regards, Mudd & loonapick
I could not parse HEATH and did not think through AUSTRALIA. Is “star-spangled” = “astral,” even cryptically? I guess so. Thanks for the discussion.
Having wrestled with Mudd’s alter ego in the Guardian this morning, I found this a relief in comparison. There is always going to be the odd quibble with this setter but there was a lot of fun, some very neat cluing and some good surfaces. DUSTMAN, AUSTRALIAN, PIT PROP, LETTERS, LIKE AS NOT, DESPERADO, IDIOM, POKER FACE and TEMPT were my faves today.
Thanks Paul and Loonapick
Thanks Mudd and Loonapick
10ac: Looking in the usual dictionaries, I could only find hath as present tense, not past.
16ac in answer to Cineraria@9: Chambers 2016 p 90 has “starry” as a definition of astral, which must be broad enough in meaning to cover “star-spangled adj spangled or studded with stars” (p 1519).
While I am in, did anyone else try (or, will anyone else admit to trying) WAIST at 20ac, as a very approximate soundalike for west?
PostMark@10: forgive my ignorance, I’m a relative newcomer. Are PAUL and MUDD, the Clark Kent and Superman of the setting world?
If so, CHALK and CHEESE come to mind.
And I will feel like a Yoghurt after my postings today.
cheers IanB
ENB @12: yes. Both are pseudonyms of John Halpern.
Thanks Mudd and Loonapick. The whaler had me laughing aloud when I finally saw it. This was decidedly Mudd-y, lots of fun.
A bit of a mixed bag we thought. Some excellent clues such as for REHAB and CORKSCREW but also some that we found hardly cryptic; 22ac and 9dn were almost simple GK clues.
9dn, though, to Mudd and loonapick (and to Hovis for parsing 16ac).
PostMark@13
Thanks for the enlightenment.
Mud in your eye. IB
I found this underwhelming and some clues a bit too much like a general knowledge crossword.
Where is the discussion of the FT of 20th December?
Claudia@18: The site’s FAQ page includes the statement “Our aim is to have a full blog of each daily puzzle published by mid-afternoon.”
Still do not understand LIP for bound in 19D.
19dn replying to christopher@20: I think the intended meaning of lip is the one given in ODE 2010 p 1029 “the edge of a hollow container or an opening: the lip of the cup.” This can be compared to “bound² a boundary”, which is explicitly in ODE p 202.
Probably nobody will see this now, but I made AUSTRALIA U(nited) in (STAR)* with “spangled” as anagrind, plus ALIA(s) for the “identity originally” bit. Don’t think it’s the intended parsing, but it worked for me.
I saw it, Gladys! Good on yer. Cracking solving. Well done everybody.