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Hoskins has produced the first Indy puzzle published since the Easter break. Tuesday also happens to be our theme day.
I did not spot today’s theme until I had completed the grid and was blogging the puzzle. Various entries can be strung together to form works by the Irish author and playwright Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), albeit not always the full names of those works: 3, 19, 20; 14, 15, 5; 7, 30; and 10, 18D. I don’t think that I have overlooked any, but you never know.
As for my parsing, I would appreciate confirmation of how I have parsed 8, since I may be missing a trick in respect of the duchess. The entry at 4 was unfamiliar to me, but it was confirmed by Chambers. My favourite clues today were 4, 15, and 21, all for making me smirk; the clever & lit. at 23; and 24, for smoothness of surface.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | PASS BY | Disregard dope times on bit of phencyclidine
P<hecyclidine> (“bit of” means first letter only) + ASS (=dope, idiot) + BY (=times, as 6 x 3) |
| 04 | OFFISHLY | Old fellow adjusted his fly in a cool way
O (=old, as in OT) + F (=fellow) + *(HIS FLY); “adjusted” is anagram indicator; offish is aloof, standoffish |
| 10 | IDEAL | I sell drugs, but just exactly what is needed
I + DEAL (=sell drugs) |
| 11 | MUNICIPAL | Having been in a crash, I clam up in Civic
*(I CLAM UP IN); “having been in a crash” is anagram indicator |
| 12 | RAMPARTS | Animal droppings found around river embankments
RAM (=animal) + [R (=river, on maps) in PATS (=droppings, as in cowpats)] |
| 13 | STAY IN | Don’t go out and do naughties around river
TAY (=river, in Scotland) in SIN (=do naughties, transgress) |
| 14 | LADY | Noble song written about departed leader
D<eparted> (“leader” means first letter only) in LAY (=song, narrative poem to be sung) |
| 15 | WINDERMERE | Flatus that Bow woman gets with Hoskins on lake
WIND (=flatus, flatulence) + ˈER (=Bow woman, i.e. her in Cockney) + ME (=Hoskins, today’s setter) + RE (=on, regarding) |
| 18 | HYPERDRIVE | Future propulsion device very hip Red redrafted
*(VERY HIP RED); “redrafted” is anagram indicator; in science fiction, a hyperdrive is an engine or power source that enables matter to be transported through hyperspace |
| 20 | GAOL | Contrary convict cut by head of offender here?
O<ffender> (“head of” means first letter only) in GAL (LAG=convict, prisoner; “contrary” indicates reversal); semi- & lit. |
| 23 | STREAK | Run out of kit at a sporting event, perhaps
Cryptic definition: “out of kit” is to be read as naked here! |
| 25 | BAR CHART | Lawyers tense after daily display of statistics
BAR (=lawyers) + CHAR (=daily, cleaner) + T (=tense, in grammar) |
| 26 | ABOMINATE | Intensely dislike a smell minister had
A + BO (=smell, i.e. body odour) + MIN (=minister) + ATE (=had (to eat)); to abominate is to abhor, detest |
| 28 | ALIBI | One might help you get off a party island
A + LIB (=party, i.e. the Liberals) + I (=island, on maps); an alibi might help you get off a criminal charge |
| 29 | DESIGNED | Fabricated autograph found in legal document
SIGN (=autograph, as verb) in DEED (=legal document) |
| 30 | PRINCE | Old singer worth around million ultimately
<millio>N (“ultimately” means last letter only) in PRICE (=worth, value); the reference is to the American singer-songwriter Prince (1958-2016) |
| Down | ||
| 01 | POITREL | Piece of armour over in mine soldiers left
[O (=over, on cricket scorecard) in PIT (=mine)] + RE (=soldiers, i.e. Royal Engineers) + L (=left); a poitrel is armour for a horse’s breast |
| 02 | STEAMED UP | You must stop frenzied stampede … excited?
U (=you, in textspeak) in *(STAMPEDE); “frenzied” is anagram indicator |
| 03 | BALLAD | A bit of didgeridoo at the end of dance song
BALL (=dance) + A + D<idgeridoo> (“a bit of” means first letter only) |
| 05 | FAN | Nothing on close to noon? That’ll cool you down!
FA (=nothing, as in (sweet) Fanny Adams) + <noo>N (“close to” means last letter only) |
| 06 | INCITER | Cretin I kicked ten bells out of is a troll, perhaps
*(CRETIN I); “kicked ten bells out of” is anagram indicator; a troll is someone who incites controversy and conflict through internet posts |
| 07 | HAPPY | Slightly drunk pair of priests getting into bed?
[P (=priest) + P (=priest)] in HAY (=bed, i.e. as in lying on a bed of hay); happy means mildly drunk, merry |
| 08 | YOLANDE | Old duchess and American greeting earl outside grounds
LAND (=grounds, around a house) in [YO (=American greeting) + E (earl)]; the reference appears to be to Yolande, Duchess of Lorraine (1428-83) |
| 09 | SMUTTIER | S&M, say, around lunchtime is more indecent
I (=lunchtime, i.e. one (o’clock)) in [S + M + UTTER (=say, speak)] |
| 16 | DEVIATES | Having chewed sedative, goes off on a tangent
*(SEDATIVE); “having chewed” is anagram indicator |
| 17 | EMANATION | Discharge English master that sits on people
E (=English) + MA (=master, i.e. Master of Arts) + NATION (=people); an emanation is a discharge, emission |
| 18 | HUSBAND | Heroin American beat combo use thriftily
H (=heroin, colloquially) + US (=American) + BAND (=beat combo, pop group); to husband e.g. resources is to use them thriftily, manage them with economy |
| 19 | READING | Town in front having taken off Lambert for King
LEADING (=in front, of race); “taken off Lambert (=L, i.e. unit of brightness) for King (=R)” means letter “r” is replaced by “l” |
| 21 | LATRINE | Queue seen around a vacant two-seater toilet
[A + T<wo-seate>R (“vacant” means all but outside letters are dropped)] in LINE (=queue) |
| 22 | ECLAIR | Tasty treat found in city retreat?
EC (=city, of London) + LAIR (=retreat, den) |
| 24 | RIOTS | Scream and head for shelter in public disturbances
RIOT (=scream, hoot) + S<helter> (“head for” means first letter only) |
| 27 | APE | Primate keeping quiet in A&E
P (=quiet, i.e. piano, in music) in [A + E] |
“The Happy Prince and Other Stories (1888, fairy stories) — Lady Windermere‘s Fan (1892, play)
An Ideal Husband (performed 1895, published 1898; play) — The Ballad of Reading Gaol (1898, poem)” … And the Oscar goes to …
For 8d YOLANDE Wikipedia has 3 possible Duchesses:
Duchess of Lorraine (1428–1483); of Valois (1434–1478), Duchess of Savoy; and de Polastron (1749-1793) Duchess of Polignac, favourite of Marie Antoinette.
Liked STREAK and HUSBAND.
Parsed YOLANDE as the blogger did (I don’t see any issues there).
Thanks Hoskins and RR.
Well I didn’t realise it was Tuesday, let alone spot any theme!
This was good fun as ever from Hoskins, although my repetition radar bleeped with “bit of” twice (in crossing answers), and personally I think “You” = U needs either a homophone or text indicator.
I had lots of ticks with STREAK, HAPPY and LATRINE my top picks.
Many thanks to Harry and to RR.
I was pleased to see you=U, as I was only saying the other day that this would be a useful addition to the setter’s toolbox. Everyone understands a While U Wait sign at a locksmiths or whatever, so it’s far more intuitive than a lot of Chambers-approved obscurities and I don’t see that it requires a textspeak indicator cluttering up the clue.
GAOL, ALIBI and LATRINE were my favourites today, and I was pleased to find POITREL was a word after following the wordplay. Thanks Hoskins & RR
…and U = you is much better than an obsolete Mitford usage IMO. Enjoyed this as always with Hoskins, very ingenious, I don’t know how he can keep it up (read that literally please).
You can always rely on Hoskins not to be Earnest. Great stuff. Thanks, both.
For once I did spot some of the themed references, it was Lady Windermere and the Ideal Husband that gave the game away. Plenty of typical Harry on display here and my favourite has to be the flatulent lady on the lake.
Thanks to Hoskins and to RR for the review.
I knew it was theme day, but then totally forgot to look when I was done.
I was curious about YOLANDE and googling I found that Peter Finch played Wilde in The Trials of Oscar Wilde and was married to Yolande Turner.
Thanks Hoskins for the fun. I looked for a theme but didn’t find one; I’m not familiar with the Wilde titles so no amount of searching would have helped. In any event I enjoyed this due to clues like OFFISHLY, BAR CHART, ABOMINATE, ALIBI, HAPPY, and SMUTTIER. Thanks RR for the blog.