Financial Times Sunday 91 – World by Gozo

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More geographical crossword fun from the FT. Find it to solve online at ft.com/crossword

The usual preamble:

A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular place in the world. Its name should be inserted at 30 across. Work out the place by solving the * asterisked clues, all undefined. Their solutions have some relevance to the place, such as famous people, locations and culture

I found this a breezy and fun puzzle with lots of witty wordplay. Not too challenging – it certainly helped that I got the country we were after straight away from 1 across.

Thanks, Gozo!

picture of the completed grid

Definitions are underlined in the clues, except for asterisked clues, which have no further definition.

ACROSS
1 FEDERER
* Had a meal at centre of Limerick, twice (7)
FED (had a meal) + centre of limERick x2

Roger Federer, Swiss tennis player.
5 TICINO
* Spilt one tonic (6)
Anagram (spilt) of I (one) + TONIC

Canton in southern Switzerland, bordering Italy.
9 URI
* Spoon-bender is seen in Turin (3)
Double wordplay – reference to Uri Geller, famous spoon-bender, and hidden in tURIn

Another one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland.
10 SEPP BLATTER
* Revised test-paper about former GB car firm (4,7)
Anagram (revised) of TEST PAPER containing (about) BL (British Leyland – former GB car firm)

Swiss football administrator, head of UEFA 1998-2015.
11 KLEE
* Potter’s medium is spoken of (4)
Sounds like (spoken of) CLAY (potter’s medium)

Paul Klee, 1879-1940, Swiss-German painter.
12 MATTERHORN
* Trouble with instrument (10)
MATTER (trouble) + HORN (instrument)

Mountain in the Pennine Alps in southern Switzerland.
14 GET
Chewing the fat, all finally understand (3)
Last letters (finally) of chewinG thE faT
15 BASEL
* HQ to the left (5)
BASE (HQ) + L (left)

City on the Rhine in NW Switzerland.
17 ANSERMET
* Manchester rebuilt with small church removed (8)
Anagram (rebuilt) of MANCHESTER less CH (small – ie abbreviation for – church)

Ernest Ansermet, 1883-1969, Swiss conductor famous for his recordings of Stravinsky.
21 LAPPED UP
Pup played around dropping toy finally and drank his milk (6,2)
Anagram (around) of PUP PLAYED less the last letter (finally) of toY
22 ROSTI
* Saint in Eire (5)
ST (saint) inserted in ROI (Republic of Ireland – Eire)

Rösti is a Swiss fried potato cake.
23 VAR
Football official analysing videos in department (3)
Two definitions – Video Assistant Referee in football and a département of France
25 THOMAS GRAY
Elegiac poet broke Graham’s toy (6,4)
Anagram (broke) of GRAHAMS TOY
27 UEFA
* Some untrue facts (4)
Hidden in untrUE FActs

Governing body of football in Europe, which was founded in Basel, Switzerland.
30 SWITZERLAND
[See Setter’s Notes] (11)
The country to which all asterisked clues refer.
32 GUT
Corporation that’s thematically good (3)
Two definitions – the second being ‘good’ in German, one of the official languages of Switzerland, hence ‘thematically’
33 AARGAU
* Scream of pain never finished on 1st and 2nd of August (6)
AARG[h] (scream of pain, never finished) + first two letters of AUgust

Another of the 26 cantons of Switzerland.
34 SWEAR IN
Inaugurate usin’ bad language (5,2)
SWEARIN[g] (using bad language) droppin’ the G
DOWN
1 FAULKS
Birdsong author suggests cutlery items (6)
Sounds like (suggests) FORKS (cutlery items)

British author Sebastian Faulks. Close enough pronunciation-wise for me.
2 DRIVE
Forcing stroke along road to imposing home (5)
Two definitions, the first a golfing term
3 RUSE
Fraudster’s regular cunning plan (4)
Regular letters of fRaUdStEr
4 REPEAT
TV programme that’s being reviewed? (6)
Cryptic definition – you have to read it as re-viewed, ie viewed again
5 TIBETANS
Lamas, say, live amongst the Gods (8)
BE (live) among TITANS (the Gods)
6 CHA
Tea dance. Not half! (3)
CHA-CHA (dance) but not half of it
7 NOT SO
Wasted tons on love. Quite wrong (3,2)
Anagram of TONS (wasted) + O (love, zero)
8 GRANITA
Poor rating given to a dessert (7)
Anagram (poor) of RATING + A
12 MEL
Honey for either of two Spice Girls (3)
Two definitions

The Spice Girls being ‘Scary Spice’ Mel B and ‘Sporty Spice’ Mel C. It’s a little known fact that the early line-up of the group included ‘Prototype Spice’ Mel A, but she was rejected when it was discovered that she could both sing and dance.
13 RHETOR
Butler has no time with other ranks and ancient eloquent speaker (6)
RHET(t) (actor Rhett Butler) less T (time) + OR (other ranks)
14 GENEVA
* Gave ground round heart of Kent (6)
Anagram (ground) of GAVE round middle letters of kENt

Second most populous city in Switzerland.
16 ARP
Satraps regularly reveal Dada artist (3)
Regular letters of sAtRaPs

German-French artist Jean Arp.
18 MOT
Check imports on and off (3)
Alternate letters (on and off) of iMpOrTs
19 ELITIST
Highbrow title is affected (7)
Anagram (affected) of TITLE IS
20 JUNGFRAU
* Thematic psychiatrist’s unending deceit (8)
JUNG (thematic, ie Swiss, psychiatrist) + FRAU[d] (unending deceit)

Mountain in the Bernese Alps in northern Switzerland.
22 RAY
Bit of sunshine right before a day’s end (3)
R (right) + A + last letter (end) of daY
23 VALAIS
* Uprooted salvia (6)
Anagram (uprooted) of SALVIA

And another of the 26 cantons of Switzerland.
24 CANTON
* Division of a long poem first noted on division of a shield (6)
Double wordplay – CANTO (division of a long poem) + first [letter of] Noted; also a square in the top left corner of a shield in heraldry

One of the 26 provinces that make up the Swiss federation.
26 OUIJA
Approval from two Europeans on board (5)
OUI + JA (approval from two Europeans – ie yes in French and German)
28 EIGER
* Seeing bears now and then (5)
Alternate letters (now and then) of sEeInG bEaRs

A mountain in the Bernese Alps in northern Switzerland, famous for its notoriously difficult to climb north face.
29 IDLE
In torpid lethargy (4)
Hidden in torpID LEthargy
31 ZUG
* Zermatt, up glacier, firstly (3)
First letters of Zermatt Up Glacier

City in northern Switzerland, not far from Zurich, and famous for its wealthy population. Zermatt is at the other end of the country.

 

7 comments on “Financial Times Sunday 91 – World by Gozo”

  1. I did not know the names of some cantons which were all clearly clued. However,I had to look up AARGAU and never knew URI was a canton.
    All most enjoyable and well blogged.
    Thank you Gozo and Widdersbel.

  2. Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel.
    Though not tough to solve, it was a lot of fun.
    More GK (not sure how long I will remember the new places, persons, etc).

    Liked LAPPED UP, REPEAT and IDLE.

  3. I had the same experience as SM.

    Before I worked it out, I also learned that Uri Geller is from Mandatory Palestine now Israel, which unfortunately did not fit in 30ac. Nice comment on the Spice Girls, Widders

    Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel

  4. Not so hot on canton gk, ie zilch, but I did know Zug (a cousin’s great aunt Margot lived there, charming old lady). More Bach than Stravinsky chez the young ginf, but Ansarmet was quite well known. Rhetor sans -ic was a newy, I thought Cicero, maybe? but there wasn’t a reversal. Enjoyable exercise, ta Gozo and Widdersbel.

  6. Really enjoyed this and like Widdersbel, I got the country straight off from my FOI which was ZUG. Don’t know why I started there but I particularly liked the three-letter answers and sensed this one would be key.
    As others have said, it was full of wit and with the exception of Aargau, it was a country grid where my GK served me well, for a change.
    FEDERER was my favourite in more ways than one.
    Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel for brightening the day!

  7. Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel

    I did this yesterday and it was good fun. The canton names were new to me but the clues were clear. I’ll be back for the next one.

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