Filbert back in his usual Sunday slot, with a puzzle that took a bit of teasing out, for this solver at least.
Abbreviations
cd cryptic definition
dd double definition
cad clue as definition
(xxxx)* anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x] letter(s) removed
definitions are underlined
Across
1 Fighter provided hints from behind rope on each side
SPITFIRE
A charade of IF and TIPS reversed, followed by RE for the outer letters of RopE.
6 Increase already high level of canine dedication?
TOP UP
This seems to be a play on the fact that TO PUP would be an indication of dedication to a dog, but I’m not sure I’m fully seeing this one.
Edit: see comments #1 and #2
9 God’s gift, guy already taken?
MANNA
A charade of MAN and NA for Not Available or ‘already taken’.
10 Display article and essay on piece of paper
PAGEANTRY
A charade of PAGE, AN and TRY.
11 You shouldn’t have left going into town without saying anything
TACITLY
A charade of TA and L inserted into CITY. The insertion indicator is ‘going into’.
13 Send the ball long on smash
OVERHIT
A charade of OVER and HIT.
14 Silence grunting player getting in top seed’s head
NOISELESSNESS
An insertion of [Monica] SELES in NO IS (number one’s, or ‘top seed’s’) and NESS. The insertion indicator is ‘getting in’. Seles was the first female player to gain a reputation for grunting loudly when delivering her serve; seems like it’s de rigueur these days.
17 Two things you get from overpaid butcher show inconsistency
CHOP AND CHANGE
A cd.
21 Venezuelan water company started by several stars switching on
ORINOCO
A charade of ORINO and CO. For the first particle, Filbert is inviting you to reverse the ON in ORION.
22 Free running stream swamps shelter during flood
PARKOUR
An insertion of ARK in POUR. The insertion indicator is ‘swamps’.
23 Garden shelter made for Carol’s outside being reassembled
COLD FRAME
(MADE FOR C[ARO]L)* with ‘being reassembled’ as the anagrind.
24 Hearing trouser measurement, lose a lot of weight
WASTE
Aural wordplay (‘hearing’) for WAIST.
26 Mize reportedly back on Tour? He’s unlikely to chip in
MISER
A charade of MISE (aural wordplay (‘reportedly’) for ‘Mize’) and R for the final letter of ‘Tour’. Larry Mize is a US golfer, hence the reference to the ‘chip’.
27 Risk outrage putting finale first
ENDANGER
A charade of END and ANGER.
Down
2/25 Shut up and learn, Parisian thought
PENSÉE
A charade of PEN and SEE. My sense is that unless you are a competent French speaker, the word for ‘thought’ would not immediately come to mind; but with crossers, you only need the middle letters of the two words, they have to be vowels, so maybe not too unfair a clue.
3 Sandwich sample filled with bits separately
TOASTIE
An insertion of O and I, separately, in TASTE. The ‘bits’ are of the computer variety, with the binary options being 0 and 1.
4 Suggest taking top off only
IMPLY
[S]IMPLY
5 Dogs seen swimming across river caught up
ENGROSSED
An insertion of R in (DOGS SEEN)* The insertion indicator is ‘across’ and the anagrind is ‘swimming’.
6 Catch close to fence after American’s easy swing
TRAPEZE
A charade of TRAP, EZ and E for the final letter of ‘fence’. The clue relies on the fact that US English speakers pronounce the final letter of the alphabet as ZEE.
7 Deep hole revolutionary digs for attacks
PITCHES INTO
A charade of PIT, CHE’S INTO.
8 Cactus is sort of ecotype that avoids cold
PEYOTE
(E[C]OTYPE)* with ‘sort of’ as the anagrind.
9 US entreés including tip for table service
MATINS
An insertion of T for the first letter of ‘table’ in MAINS. The insertion indicator is ‘including’. For the French (logically enough) une entrée is a first course; but for our friends across the pond, it’s the main event (le plat principal in France). There is a typo in the clue: the acute accent should be on the first ‘e’ and not the second.
12 Pets Charles keeps at home have a relaxed time
CHINCHILLAS
An insertion of IN and CHILL in CHAS. The insertion indicator is ‘keeps’.
15 Old judge under cover with flags raised is dry
EVAPORATE
A charade of PAVE reversed, O and RATE.
16 Fellow behind vehicle causing tailback, perhaps
HEARSE
A charade of HE and ARSE.
18 Part-time queen not as expensive
ON OFFER
A charade of ON OFF and ER for the late Queen.
19 Upset since doctor I see is difficult to get hold of
HARD-WON
A charade of NOW, DR and AH, all reversed. ‘Now/since you’re here, we can start.’
20 Internet-based catastrophe stopped by odd bits of tech
DOTCOM
An insertion of T and C for the odd letters of TeCh in DOOM. The insertion indicator is ‘stopped by’.
22 Playing padel, say in court?
PLEAD
(PADEL)* with ‘playing’ as the anagrind.
Many thanks to Filbert for this Sunday’s puzzle.
TOP UP
The def, I think is ‘Increase already high level of’
The rest as mentioned in the blog.
NOISELESSNESS
A minor point: top seed’s=NO 1’s
Enjoyable as ever from Filbert, whose clues are always satisfyingly clean and succinct. In 6ac, I think the definition is probably “Increase already high level”, inasmuch as you wouldn’t top up an already empty glass, you’d refill it. And yes, TO PUP is the canine dedication, which I thought was very sweet! Many thanks, Filbert and Pierre (and well done for spotting the misplaced accent on entrées – completely passed me by!)
[Ah, I see KVa has beaten me to it]
I shared our blogger’s eyebrow raise at PENSEE and was surprised to find it in Chambers which, I guess, legitimises it for a UK crossword. Some lovely constructions today inc PAGEANTRY, NOISELESSNESS, CHOP AND CHANGE (COTD), ORINOCO, PARKOUR, PITCHES INTO, MATINS and ON OFFER.
Thanks Filbert and Pierre for the timely blog
Thank you to KVa and MOH – blog corrected.
PENSÉE has appeared in a cryptic before, so I knew it was in Chambers. I seem to remember somebody commenting on ‘The Pensées’ by Pascal. I’m embarrassed to admit I couldn’t see where the S came from in PITCHES IN. Just never occurred to me to link revolutionary and digs together.
In 22A either ‘stream’ or ‘flood’ seems superfluous. What am I missing? Thanks Filbert and Pierre.
ele@6: In 22A, I think ‘stream’ = POUR and ‘shelter during flood’ = (Noah’s) ARK.
With PENSÉE, I had no trouble because you did get four of the six letters, as stated in the blog, and we do have the word “pensive.” So I didn’t need to know any French. Merriam-Webster defines it as “a thought expressed in literary form,” which makes it good enough in the US, too. Anyway, new word for me.
Thanks both. Not my favourite Filbert, but mostly entirely solid as always. As PENSEE is clued as French for thought, for me it becomes irrelevant that it has a UK dictionary listing; I happened to know it, and all is fair in crosswordland, but some clues are fairer than other animals, so said Orwell.
Thanks Matthew@7 I should have realised that !!!
Too late really but the Larry Mize clue is more appropriate than mentioned here as he actually chipped in from off the green to beat Greg Norman in a play-off for the Masters many years ago…
Absolutely nobody will read this now, but I thought this was a tour de force. Loved NOISELESSNESS, PARKOUR, CHOP AND CHANGE, TOP UP, PENSÉE, “Venezuelan water company”, “revolutionary digs” and the delightfully disguised “cover with flags”.
Thanks both
Absolutely somebody will read this, AP. Thank you for your comment – I agree with you about the quality of the puzzle. Pangakupu/Phi is a skilled and experienced setter and I hope we see more of him in this slot.