It’s Wednesday and it’s Ecclesday, so we’re in good hands.
A few tricky references today: if you’re not an expert in East European rivers, architectural terminology and/or Greek mythology you might have to do some guessing and checking, though our setter has been helpful with the wordplay for these trickier solutions. Lots to enjoy here: I liked 25a for its straightforward construction, 2d for sounding like the start of an old joke, and 8d for an unusual but appropriate anagram indicator. Thanks Eccles for the fun.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | BRIGHT AND EARLY |
Prohibition restricting sound a lot in good time? (6,3,5)
|
| BAN (prohibition) around RIGHT (sound = healthy), then DEARLY (a lot, as in “they paid dearly for it”). | ||
| 9 | ODOUR-FREE |
Lacking nose, Tycho ultimately miserable for nothing (5-4)
|
| Last letter (ultimately) of [tych]O + DOUR (miserable) + FREE (for nothing = at no cost).
“Nose” as in wine-speak = scent. The surface suggests the Renaissance astronomer Tycho Brahe, who lost part of his nose in a duel during his student days and wore a metal prosthesis for the rest of his life. |
||
| 10 | PLAYA |
Have fun next to Australian desert basin (5)
|
| PLAY (have fun) + A (abbreviation for Australian).
A dry lake: a depression in desert land, which may temporarily become a lake as a result of heavy rain. |
||
| 11 | DAISY |
Flower stand close to mortuary (5)
|
| DAIS (stand = a platform) + last letter (close) of [mortuar]Y. | ||
| 12 | ROTHERHAM |
Partner scratching left foot in room in Yorkshire town (9)
|
| OTHER HA[lf] (slang for a spouse or partner), without L (abbreviation for left) + F (perhaps an abbreviation for foot, though “ft” is probably more common), all inside RM (abbreviation for room). | ||
| 13 | NAN BREAD |
Grandma reportedly nurtured Indian side (3,5)
|
| NAN (grandma) + sound-alike (reportedly) of BRED (nurtured).
Side = shortening of “side dish” = something served alongside a meal. |
||
| 15 | CADRES |
Revolutionary activists scared to fly (6)
|
| Anagram (to fly) of SCARED.
Confusingly, “cadre” can mean either a group of political / military activists or a single member of such a group. |
||
| 17 | HERESY |
“Here’s Johnny!” in the end, is blasphemy (6)
|
| HERE’S + end letter of [johnn]Y.
I don’t think heresy and blasphemy are quite the same thing: heresy means holding a belief that others consider to be false, blasphemy is saying something that others consider to be offensive. But perhaps if you express your heresy out loud it might be considered blasphemy? |
||
| 19 | SLATTERN |
Poles welcoming second dirty woman (8)
|
| S + N (abbreviations for South and North Poles), containing LATTER (the second of two things).
Disparaging term for a woman who doesn’t care about keeping things clean and tidy. |
||
| 22 | BUCHAREST |
Scorch earth in destroyed capital (9)
|
| CHAR (scorch = damage due to heat) + E (abbreviation for earth, in wiring diagrams), inside BUST (destroyed).
The capital of Romania. |
||
| 23 | THIGH |
Intoxicated after beginning to taste cut of meat (5)
|
| HIGH (slang for intoxicated, usually as a result of drugs rather than alcohol) after the beginning letter of T[aste]. | ||
| 24 | ANTAE |
Columns in Excel are too narrow and initially the wrong way round (5)
|
| Initial letters of E[xcel] A[re] T[oo] N[arrow] A[nd], all reversed (the wrong way round).
Plural of anta: a square pillar (column) at the end of a wall or at the side of a doorway. |
||
| 25 | ALLOTROPE |
Assign guy, perhaps, to get diamond? (9)
|
| ALLOT (to assign) + ROPE (perhaps a guy rope securing a tent).
Definition by example, indicated by the question mark. Allotrope = one of two or more physical forms of the same chemical element, for example diamond and graphite which are allotropes of carbon. |
||
| 26 | GLOSSY MAGAZINE |
Amazingly, society goes berserk for Vogue? (6,8)
|
| Anagram (berserk) of AMAZINGLY S GOES, where S = abbreviation for society.
Definition by example: a publication containing lots of photographs and printed on glossy paper, such as the fashion magazine Vogue. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | BROAD IN THE BEAM |
Overweight ex-cricketer illuminated? (5,2,3,4)
|
| BROAD (former England cricketer Stuart Broad, who retired in 2023, or indeed his father Chris Broad) + IN THE BEAM (illuminated by a spotlight).
Originally a reference to the width of a ship, but now generally a slang term referring to the size of someone’s hips and buttocks. |
||
| 2 | IVORIAN |
A Welshman, a Scotsman and an African (7)
|
| IVOR (a typically Welsh male given name) + IAN (a typically Scottish one).
Someone from the Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) in West Africa. |
||
| 3 | HARRY |
Prince Hector (5)
|
| Double definition. The younger son of King Charles III; or as a verb, hector = talk angrily to = harry. | ||
| 4 | AGRARIAN |
Cultivated city with wondrous mausoleum I drove around (8)
|
| AGRA (city in India containing the mausoleum Taj Mahal), then I with RAN (drove = controlled) around it.
Relating to cultivated land. |
||
| 5 | DNESTR |
End up with some terrible ragout for starters and main course in Moldova (6)
|
| END reversed (up, in a down clue) + starting letters of S[ome] T[errible] R[agout].
Major river (main watercourse) in Moldova, also spelled Dniester. |
||
| 6 | APPLE CART |
One’s upset, metaphorically – appalling claptrap about Spain (5,4)
|
| Anagram (appalling) of CLAPTRAP around E (abbreviation for España = Spain).
Metaphorically, to upset the apple cart = to cause trouble. |
||
| 7 | LEATHER |
Large number claiming answer is to strike (7)
|
| L (abbreviation for large) + ETHER (an anaesthetic = something that makes you numb = number), containing A (abbreviation for answer).
Leather, as a verb = to hit (especially with a whip). |
||
| 8 | PARMESAN CHEESE |
He’s seen a camper melting topping for pasta dish? (8,6)
|
| Anagram (melting) of HE’S SEEN A CAMPER. | ||
| 14 | REST AREAS |
Pointedly look again when in service stations? (4,5)
|
| Stare = to look pointedly at someone or something, so (whimsically) RE-STARE is to do it again; then AS = when.
Mainly US term for motorway service areas. |
||
| 16 | FLOTILLA |
Some boats float off, poorly restrained (8)
|
| Anagram (off) of FLOAT, containing (restraining) ILL (poorly). | ||
| 18 | RECITAL |
One stopping on the Tube for crap musical performance (7)
|
| I (one in Roman numerals), inserted into (stopping) RECTAL (on, or relating to, the rectum = to put it bluntly, a tube through which crap passes). | ||
| 20 | EPIGONI |
Sons of war heroes record one American soldier holding on (7)
|
| EP (abbreviation for extended-play record) + I (one in Roman numerals), then GI (American soldier) holding ON.
In Greek mythology, the “Seven against Thebes” died heroically in battle, and then their sons (known as the Epigoni or “descendants”) started another war a few years later to avenge their fathers. No, I didn’t know that, but the wordplay made a plausible-looking Greek word and Wikipedia confirmed it. |
||
| 21 | LEGACY |
Frilly trousers as an example gift (6)
|
| LACY (frilly) containing (trousers, as a verb = grabs) EG (abbreviation for Latin exempli gratia = as an example).
Somethiing given in a will. |
||
| 23 | TETRA |
Four fish (5)
|
| Double definition. Prefix meaning “four”, from the Greek; or various species of small freshwater fish, including some colourful ones that look pretty in an aquarium. |
Pretty much as we’ve come to expect from Eccles on a Wednesday, inventive clueing, a lot of fun and a few new words to look up.
I’ve never come across the spelling DNESTR before which appears to be a transliteration of the Russian spelling, but it was very fairly clued.
For me, REST AREAS is an American expression and I wasn’t particularly enamoured by the wordplay for RECITAL.
IVORIAN was my favourite.
Many thanks to Eccles and to Qurisiter.
There’s so much that’s interesting and intelligent in this puzzle, I’m in awe of the setter. Not a little gem, more of a Liz Taylor engagement ring. Though probably rarer.
OK, I have a few quibblets: SLATTERN, 19(ac), is a particularly nasty word, but all’s fair in cryptics.
So to….”tube for crap”, in 18(d); like a Carry-on film, dreadful but so entertaining!
9(ac), ODOUR-FREE, has a whiff of green paint about it….is it an idiom? Well, “alcohol-free” seems to be, ( I never touch the stuff, even the mouth-wash!), and they do sell odour-free paint…..other colours are available.
BUCHAREST, 22(ac), “destroyed” (?)/ a bit loose: “ruined” may be? [ A prize for the best clue using ” Book A Rest” ].
Bottom line, one of the best cryptic crosswords I’ve seen, and coupled with Ms.Q’s wonderful analysis, my cup runneth over. Superb, E & Q.
My faves: BRIGHT AND EARLY, ROTHERHAM, NAN BREAD, BROAD IN THE BEAM and RECITAL.
Brilliant puzzle over all. Super blog to match it. Thanks Eccles and Quirister.
I really like the way Eccles introduces you to new words and knowledge with such clear wordplay. I would add FLOTILLA to the list of fine clues chosen by others. Great blog, too with particular thanks for the information about Tycho, which makes ODOUR-FREE a much better clue.
Yep quite a few on the TILT (and WPF, will probably forget) list from today’s Goony cake — the desert basin, the square pillars, the Moldovan river, the war heroes’ sons and the fourfold fish! All pretty well signposted though, so not too much headache, thx Eccles and Quirister.
PS dnk about Tycho Brahe’s nose, but his museum in Copenhagen is pretty cool.
Some tough words in here but fairly clued in retrospect. Eccles clearly enjoying working ‘rectal’ into his puzzles at the moment: I’m sure there are wisecracks waiting to be made of that but I shall refrain. ROTHERHAM, BUCHAREST, GLOSSY MAGAZINE, AGRARIAN, LEATHER, PARMESAN CHEESE and LEGACY my faves today.
Thanks Eccles and Quirister
Thanks both. RECITAL was very entertaining. For me, there was certainly plenty to look up. I’d disagree DNESTR was fairly clued, as it’s an anagram with a highly implausible outcome (I had googled Moldova rivers but that spelling was not listed amongst the first thirty)
Thanks Eccles and Quirister
Very enjoyable, as usual.
TFO @ 7 5D isn’t an anagram, it’s a clearly signposted reversal of the first word in the clue with the equally clearly signposted initial letters of words 4 5 & 6 in sequence.
Simon S @8: given that ‘up’ is a well accepted anagram indicator, it is possible someone might have interpreted the instructions as “END anagrammed with STR” which is [technically] correct if more overwrought than required? I know from my own experience that one can end up being so close to the letters one is trying to tease into position that one does not see that there is an alternative interpretation.
…..which is exactly what I did.
I enjoyed this very much. DNESTR last one in and while the confetti confirmed it was right I felt compelled to check it was what I thought it was. Similar reassurance was needed after entering EPIGONI.
Lots of very good clues – thanks, Eccles.
Well Eccles everyday language far exceeds mine on this, I was stuck for ages on some of the rare words thinking well it could work either way. To paraphrase Eric Morecambe I had all the right letters but not necessarily in the right order