Independent on Sunday 1,843 by Filbert

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Filbert is fast becoming one of my very favourite setters.

As I’m sure I’ve said before, their economy of cluing is admirable and the surfaces are rarely less than sparkling. In among some fairly tricky bits of parsing today there are many standout clues – I love FIRST AID for the way the surface disguises the definition (“dignified treatment” must surely be part of what the solver is meant to look for in the wordplay?), and likewise YEARLINGS (where “one” and “sort” beg to go together). CARDINAL SIN is simple but satisfying. DOMESDAY BOOK is one of many clues here displaying an expertly worked surface. And SILENT NIGHT deserves a standing ovation as a perfect &lit. Thank you to Filbert for an invigorating Sunday workout.

MOH’s fictional hardness scale rating: Topaz

picture of the completed grid

ACROSS
1 TAILPIPE
Exhaust Caucasian talking like Spooner? (8)
Spoonerism of ‘pale type’
5 HOOP-LA
Large bear coming over, American’s fair game (4-2)
Reversal (‘coming over’) of L POOH (large bear) + A
9 CARDINAL SIN
Maybe envy what the Sistine Chapel has during conclave? (8,3)
As seen recently, during a papal conclave the Sistine Chapel has CARDINALS IN it.
11 ORC
Horrible being stuck in Mallorca (3)
Hidden answer (‘stuck in’) in MallORCa
12 LEAN-TO
Construction needing support, thin brace you’d say (4-2)
Soundalike (‘you’d say’) of ‘lean two’ for ‘thin brace’ [Edit: as KVa @2 points out, the homophone indicator applies only to ‘two’ as ‘lean’ doesn’t need one, being a synonym]
13 FACECARD
In case of feud, one coach for club with two mugs? (4,4)
Insertion of ACE + CAR inside FD (‘case of FeuD‘), the definition referring to the reversible figures on playing cards, with the question mark because it’s a definition by example – it might equally apply to a spade, diamond or heart as a club
15 DOMESDAY BOOK
Celebration permitted after boys made new national record (8,4)
DO (‘celebration’)+ OK (‘permitted’) after anagram (‘new’) of BOYS MADE
19 SPICK AND SPAN
Very neat, smooth bridge broken by sharp hammer (5,3,4)
Insertion (‘broken by’) of PICK (‘sharp hammer’) into SAND SPAN (‘smooth bridge’)
22 OUTRIDER
Motorcyclist worried route keeps clear? (8)
Anagram (‘worried’) of ROUTE around (‘keeps’) RID
24 BLITHE
Carefree British drunk male (6)
B + LIT + HE
26 GET
Irritate chap, forgetting his name? (3)
GEnT minus the N (‘forgetting his name’). Definition as in ‘what really gets me is…’
27 SILENT NIGHT
Tinsel arrayed, almost time for this song? (6,5)
Anagram (‘arrayed’) of TINSEL + NIGH + T, with the whole clue also working as the definition. Lovely clue
28 SERIES
Course ship’s taken across lake (6)
SS around (‘taken across’) ERIE
29 FIRST AID
Tree given dignified treatment after being cut? (5,3)
FIR + STAID
DOWN
1 TACKLE
Deer hunter set up equipment (6)
Reversal (‘set up’ in a down clue) of ELK + CAT
2 INROAD
Irruption from broken drain, nothing to stop it (6)
Anagram (‘broken’) of DRAIN with O inside (‘nothing to stop it’)
3 PAINTWORK
Decorated parts of large garden, fencing apart (9)
Insertion of IN TWO (‘apart’, as in asunder) into PARK
4 PEAK
Max intensity from little dog you can hear (4)
Sounds like (‘you can hear’) ‘peke’
6 OUNCE
Tiny amount of elasticity saving billions (5)
bOUNCE (‘elasticity’) without B (‘saving billions’)
7 PROPANOL
In favour of friend consuming no alcohol (8)
Envelope (‘consuming’) of PRO PAL around NO
8 ARCHDUKE
Emperor’s son expected to embrace king after bow (8)
DUE (‘expected’) around (‘to embrace’) K after ARCH
10 SLAPDASH
Careless make-up daughter has smeared (8)
SLAP + D + anagram (‘smeared’) of HAS
14 MEAN WELL
Want good spring after poor (4,4)
WELL after MEAN
16 YEARLINGS
Animals that are one sort sing early (9)
Anagram (‘sort’) of SING EARLY
17 AS LONG AS
While gas sold regularly, using it? (2,4,2)
Alternate letters of gAs SoLd + ON GAS (‘using it’)
18 DICTATOR
Detective Murphy listened to chief (8)
Soundalike (‘listened to’) of ‘dick’ (detective) ‘tater’ (spud, murphy)
20 STIGMA
Disgraceful mark idiots picked up on degree course (6)
Reversal (‘picked up’ in a down clue) of GITS + MA
21 PENTAD
5 years in prison and losing heart (6)
PENT (‘in prison’) + AD (‘AnD losing heart’)
23 ISSUE
Problem remains with unfinished canal (5)
IS (‘remains’) + SUEz (‘unfinished canal’)
25 ANTI
Opponent learning code bored by books (4)
AI (‘learning code’) around (‘bored by’) NT

7 comments on “Independent on Sunday 1,843 by Filbert”

  1. MOH has said it all. My spirits are always uplifted when I find the setter is Filbert. This one is full of guile and whimsy.
    9(ac), CARDINAL SIN, is simple, yet so satisfying.
    FACE CARD, PAINTWORK, SLAPDASH…. and the list goes on.
    Simply superb, big thanks, FIL & MOH

  2. Liked CARDINAL SIN, FACECARD, SILENT NIGHT, AS LONG AS, DICTATOR and PENTAD.
    Lovely puzzle. Great blog.
    Thanks Filbert and MoH.

    SPICK AND SPAN
    Took smooth as SAND (verb)

    LEAN-TO
    The homophone indicator applies only to brace, I think.

  3. 9A I was also thinking of Cardinal Sin himself, the Archbishop of Manila, who participated in both 1978 conclaves.

  4. Superb misdirection. How many of us thought the son in ARCHDUKE was going to be part of the wordplay and that FIRST AID was going to be some kind of oak, ash or elm. GrahamS@3 Good point!

  5. Thanks KVa @2, you’re quite right about the homophone indicator – blog amended accordingly.
    I too remember Cardinal Sin. Which brings to mind also Cardinal Angelo Scola, who narrowly failed to get elected pontiff in 2013, thus depriving the world of a Pope Scola.

  6. I generally join in here when too few posts for the quality of the crossword, so here I am again! Excellent stuff, too few comments, but agree with all so far and especially with Petert @4. Thanks to Filbert and MOH

  7. Another fan of Filbert and another fan of FIRST AID which had me fooled for ages trying to think of a type of ash. Also a big tick for FACE CARD.

    Third time LEAN-ON has come up this weekend. Are they back in fashion or something?

    Thanks Filbert and MoH

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