Independent 11,962 by Skinny

by

Skinny seems to be coinciding with my blog spot fairly regularly now and this was another high quality puzzle.

Favourite clues were 18A for coming up with a different meaning of the TB initialism from tuberculosis and 23 for the clever use of Sprite.

ACROSS
1 TROUPES
Metaphors describing united groups of performers (7)
Tropes(=metaphors) around u{nited}
5 FREEBIE
No charge for this beefier criminal (7)
Beefier*
9 RIPEN
Mature swan from NE USA? (5)
CD/DD, reading ripen as RI(=Rhode Island, a state in North Eastern USA) + pen(=female swan).
10 UNBRIDLES
Releases new version of “Dubliners” (9)
Dubliners*
11 VERSATILE
Flexible base has mostly synthetic contents (9)
Vile(=base) around ersat[z](=synthetic)
12 IDYLL
Yours truly would scream without English pastoral work (5)
I’d(=yours truly would) + y[e]ll
13 DUNG
Waste a lot of time escaping from jail (4)
Dung[eon]
15 IDOLATER
Great admirer of what 27A might say eventually (8)
“I do”(=what bride may say) + later(=eventually).
18 TERABYTE
TB‘s better treated with a suppository, ultimately (8)
(Better a [suppositor]y)*
19 EMUS
They can’t take off some dance music (4)
Hidden in “dance music”. Def refers to emus being flightless birds.
22 MOPED
Minibike was miserable (5)
DD
24 COAGULATE
Cake acquired from cooking catalogue (9)
Catalogue*
26 VOX POPULI
Nothing by dad is amongst first half of vulgar insults, initially that’s what people say (3,6)
(O(=nothing) + X(=by, as in multiplication) + pop(=dad)) in vul[gar] i[nsults]
27 BRIDE
Romeo lying in wait … for her? (5)
Bide(=wait) around R{omeo)(=R in the phonetic alphabet)
28 ELEMENT
He finally allowed chess pieces to be put inside tin, for instance? (7)
([H]e + let) with men(=chess pieces) inside
29 ENRAGED
Gardener almost goes off on the warpath (7)
Gardene[r]*
DOWN
1 THRIVE
In truth, rivers develop and grow (6)
Hidden in “truth rivers”
2 OPPORTUNE
Convenient work left unfinished song (9)
Op(=work) + por[t](=left on a ship) + tune(=song)
3 PANDA
Dad spelled out character of WWF (5)
P and A = spelling of pa(=dad). The panda is the logo of the World Wildlife Fund.
4 STUPIDITY
Madness song appears heartless after author stands up (9)
Di[t]ty after (I puts)<. Put would be a synonym of stand in the sense of put/stand something on a shelf.
5 FIBRE
Story about courage (5)
Fib(=lie, story) + re(=about)
6 ELIMINATE
Extract from novel – “I’m in a terrible murder” (9)
Hidden in “novel I’m in a terrible”
7 BULLY
Cow, or like one? (5)
DD. Cow as a verb meaning to cow someone and a bull being similar to a cow.
8 EASILY
Like one imprisoned in Eastern city? Without a doubt (6)
(As I)(=like one) in Ely(=city in Eastern England)
14 GRANDIOSE
Goes nuts about republican, together with one that’s pretentious (9)
Goes* around (r{epublican} + and(=together with) + i)
16 OPERATIVE
Over private ground with estate’s foremost worker (9)
O{ver}(abbrev used in cricket) + private* + e[state]
17 EDUCATING
Guidance teacher originally organised – that’s their job! (9)
(Guidance t[eacher])*
20 B MOVIE
Beginning to box – second fight – it won’t get top billing (1,5)
B[ox] + mo(=second, short for moment) + vie(=fight)
21 DEFEND
Fed up with close contest (6)
Fed< + close(=end, in the sense of shut)
23 PIXIE
Two Greek characters start to enjoy Sprite (5)
Pi + xi(=Greek alphabet characters) + e[njoy]
24 CRUET
Amateur craftsman holds up a small bottle (5)
Hidden, rev in “amateur craftsman”
25 UMBER
Colour of river in ‘ull (5)
DD/CD. Refers to the River Humber, which flows through Hull and would be ‘umber if spoken in a similar way to ‘ull.

9 comments on “Independent 11,962 by Skinny”

  1. Very enjoyable, approachable Monday puzzle. I agree with our blogger that the alternative use of TB was clever; certainly had me head scratching for a while. Other faves included DUNG which is so simple and FIBRE, similarly so, along with the lovely surface/hidden for CRUET.

    Thanks Skinny and NealH

  2. Fine puzzle. {Don’t think I’d ever seen the anagrams at 10a and 24a before. Checking the archives…
    10a appears unique, though Guardian 25391 by Orlando 30a “Rampant Dubliner recollected Dedalus at first (9)” is close.
    24a appeared in Financial Times 16,096 by GOZO
    (2019) Grant Baynham@3: “Can’t remember seeing ‘coagulate/catalogue’ before but I bet it’s a chestnut & what a splendid anagram anyway.” Eileen@4 agrees.
    I do, (later), too. [Only Phi had it previously, in 2012, so no chestnut.]}

  4. Certainly no write in, but every word was fairly clued and right in my Goldilocks zone. I enjoyed the convoluted construction of VOX POPULI.
    Congratulations to Skinny and thanks to NealH

  5. Yes I also was thrown by the alternative usage of TB.

    I had a problem with Troupes= Tropes as I didn’t get the hononym, until I saw the blog using the U, but didn’t like Describing as an insertion indicator particularly.

    Favourites today were some shorter words, MOPED, BRIDE and RIPEN, love a good, clever succinct surface that makes sense.

  6. Another vote for that use of TB, not seen before. Same favourites as Postmark, with the addition of UMBER, just because it’s local to us (though today, as often, it’s a dirty grey colour, rather than a rich brown). Thanks to Skinny and NealH for the entertainment

  7. Learnt something new today in the shape of the small bottle – live and learn! Top marks here went to RIPEN & MOPED.

    Thanks to Skinny and to Neal for the review.

  8. Thanks both. A nice level of challenge for a Monday. ENRAGED held me up just slightly as I was leaning towards angered but knew it didn’t cross satisfactorily.

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