It’s Wednesday, so I have my 4-weekly blog of an Eccles puzzle to prepare.
As usual with Eccles, there isn’t a theme, but there is a good mix of words from across the spectrum of arts, sciences, food & drink, employment and leisure. Recently, Eccles has slipped one or two obscure words into his grids. Today we have OBSCURE as an actual entry, with a couple of other entries that I wasn’t familiar with (PARIS GREEN and NANOMATERIAL).
There were some excellent clues today. I liked the clues for APOSTROPHE and ROCKY, in particular.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Gasping about first piece of incredible work of art (8)
PAINTING (work of art) PANTING (gasping) containing (about) I (initial letter of [first piece of] Incredible) PA (I) NTING |
| 5 | Like to take grandma fruit (6)
ANANAS (pineapple; fruit) AS (like) containing (to take) NANA (informal term for grandma) A (NANA) S |
| 9 | Wine and fish with chips following shot (8)
RIESLING (type of dry white wine made from a grape of the same name) fRIES (chips) excluding (shot) F (following) + LING (fish of the cod family) RIES LING |
| 10 | Shocked military commanders and leader in Turkey (6)
AGHAST (shocked) AGHAS (Turkish commanders; military officers) + T (first letter of [leader in] Turkey) AGHAS T |
| 12 | Smug cosmonaut is in base (13)
SANCTIMONIOUS (holier-than-thou; smug) Anagram of (base) COSMONAUT IS IN SANCTIMONIOUS* |
| 15 | Precipitous shooting in Philadelphia that led to a spate of similar shootings (5)
ROCKY (precipitous) The first film in the ROCKY series, starring Sylvester Stallone [born 1946], was shot in Philadelphia. Parts of subsequent films in the series were also shot there. ROCKY |
| 16 | Improving the appearance of dog, ass and rodent in the mirror (7,2)
TARTING UP (improving the appearance of) (PUG [breed of dog] + NIT [idiot; ass] + RAT [rodent]) all reversed (in the mirror) (TAR TIN G UP)< |
| 17 | Demeanour changes in love (9)
ENAMOURED (in love) Anagram of (changes) DEMEANOUR ENAMOURED* |
| 19 | Make disapproving noise at American skirts (5)
TUTUS (skirts for ballerinas) TUT (express a rebuke; make disapproving noise) + US (United States; American) TUT US |
| 20 | Courier predicts hair dryer’s cap is broken (8,5)
DISPATCH RIDER (courier, usually on a motorcycle) Anagram of (is broken) PREDICTS HAIR and D (first letter of [cap] Dryer) DISPATCH RIDER* |
| 22 | Fizzy drink losing bit of sparkle in Settle (4,2)
EVEN UP (settle or balance) sEVEN UP (reference 7 Up, an American brand of lemon-lime–flavoured non-caffeinated soft drink) excluding (losing) S (first letter of [a bit of] Sparkle) EVEN UP |
| 23 | Got rid of electronic device producing dangerous gas (8)
FIREDAMP (a combustible gas given off by coal, etc, chiefly methane; dangerous gas) FIRED (terminated the employment of; got rid of) + AMP (AMPlifier; electronic device) FIRED AMP |
| 25 | American taking year off allowed ornament (6)
ANKLET (ornamental or supporting ring or chain for the ankle; ornament) yANK (slang word for an American) excluding (taking … off) Y + LET (allowed) ANK LET |
| 26 | Ready to receive delivery, for example (8)
INSTANCE (example) IN STANCE (in a position ready to receive a cricket ball, for example) IN STANCE |
| Down | |
| 1 | Old insecticide is put in two targets for golfer (5,5)
PARIS GREEN (copper arsenite and acetate, a pigment and insecticide) IS contained in (put in) (PAR [target score for a hole in golf] + GREEN [target the golfer is aiming for before putting the ball into the hole]) PAR (IS) GREEN |
| 2 | Fish‘s brainwave cut short (3)
IDE (fish of the carp family) IDEa (brainwave) excluding the final letter A (cut short) IDE |
| 3 | Vacancy retracted by play’s writer (7)
TOLSTOY (reference Leo TOLSTOY [1828 – 1910], Russian writer) SLOT (informal term for an unfilled place[vacancy] in an organisation, or a place in a schedule) reversed (retracted) + TOY (to play) TOLS< TOY |
| 4 | Surprisingly rational men stealing a substance with tiny particles (12)
NANOMATERIAL (any MATERIAL whose particles are of dimensions less than a NANOmetre; substance with tiny particles) Anagram of (surprisingly) RATIONAL MEN containing A NANOMATERI (A) L* |
| 6 | Drink gin or generic drinks from the south (7)
NEGRONI (cocktail made with gin, vermouth and Campari) NEGRONI (reversed [from the south; down entry] hidden word [drinks] gIN OR GENeric) NEGRONI< |
| 7 | Myopic Spooner’s fortune teller given honour (4-7)
NEAR-SIGHTED (myopic) Reverend Spooner would pronounce NEAR-SIGHTED as SEER [fortune teller] KNIGHTED (given an honour) NEAR-SIGHTED |
| 8 | What I do, reportedly, in burrow (4)
SETT (badger’s burrow) SET (sounds like [reportedly] SET, which is what Eccles does while creating a crossword) SETT |
| 11 | Opening lesson about overdose’s not succeeded (12)
INTRODUCTION (opening) INsTRUCTION (a lesson) excluding (not) S (succeeded) containing (about) OD (overdose) INTR (OD) UCTION |
| 13 | Tied down? Then kiss (4,3,4)
NECK AND NECK (tied) NECK (slang term meaning to down a drink) + AND (then) + NECK (informal term meaning to kiss amorously) NECK AND NECK |
| 14 | Sign seen in grocers’ apropos the bananas (10)
APOSTROPHE (a sign of the modern English genitive or possessive case) APOSTROPHE (the clue refers to the stereotype of grocers describing bananas, apples and pears as banana’s, apple’s and pear’s on their displays) – &Lit clue Also an anagram of (bananas) APROPOS and THE APOSTROPHE* |
| 18 | Former pupil’s treatment is not widely known (7)
OBSCURE (secret; not widely known) OB’S (old boy’s; former pupil’s) + CURE (treatment) OBSCURE |
| 19 | Barrage of suffering when Republican displaces millions (7)
TORRENT (barrage) TORmENT (suffering) with R (Republican) replacing (displaces) M (millions) TORRENT |
| 21 | Cheese fondue, primarily with Greek character (4)
FETA (type of cheese) F (first letter of [primarily] Fondue + ETA (character in the Grfeek alphabet) F ETA |
| 24 | Bristle, as lake disappearing from grassy area (3)
AWN (bristly growth or bristle) lAWN (grassy area) excluding (disappearing from) L (lake) AWN |
NANOMATERIAL
RATIONALMEN* stealing A
APOSTROPHE
anagram (bananas) of APROPOS THE
Thanks Eccles and duncan
NANOMATERIAL is an anagram of RATIONAL, OR (men) and A
The usual very enjoyable puzzle from this setter whose ingenuity appears to know no bounds. I found this one at the less hard end of his spectrum with only PARIS GREEN a NHO for me.
I am mystified how “base” qualifies as an anagram indicator, but it seems that anything goes now.
APOSTROPHE was my favourite.
Many thanks to Eccles and to Duncan.
RD @3: Chambers defines ‘base’, amongst other things, as ‘debased’ which is, in turn, ‘adulterated’ which suggests the necessary alteration of letters?
Some neat definitions in here as well as clever wordplay. RIESLING, ROCKY, PARIS GREEN and NECK AND NECK my faves today.
Thanks both
KVa @ 1 Hounddog @ 2
Thanks for pointing out the omissions – I was trying to do too many other things whilst writing the blog. I had noticed the correct anagrams when solving the puzzle, but that’s no excuse.
The blog is now updated to show the correct parsings of both NANOMATERIAL and APOSTROPHE
Thanks Eccles and DS
Hounddog @ 2 your anagrist gives two Os and no M or E.
I liked TARTING UP, FIREDAMP and ROCKY. I failed to parse RIESLING.
Thanks both – that was enjoyable!
With just the first and last letter in I spent far too long trying to make RAINY work for 15a, mainly because “precipitous” would be an outrageous definition for that answer
More excellence from our setter, most of which fell into place nicely although I had to investigate the old insecticide and was very grateful that nanomaterial was an anagram. Top clues here were those for TARTING UP & NECK AND NECK with a mention for the cosmonaut and the Spoonerism.
Many thanks to Eccles and to Duncan for the review.
I like the fact that Eccles’ clues are never (that I’ve seen) too convoluted to eventually work out, if you’re patient enough. I’m not always patient enough, so I usually kick myself when I have to check or reveal. Today’s impatient moment was PARIS GREEN.
PARIS GREEN defeated me but NANOMATERIAL was my first one in. As an ex-subeditor, loved APOSTROPHE. Thanks both.
Thanks for puzzle and blog. Generally enjoyed but have to disagree with those who liked the clue for Rocky. That seemed very weak (and obscure, who notices where a film is shot?) to me. But we got there so only a small moan.
I didn’t like the ROCKY clue either tbh.
re ROCKY: the scene on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art is so famous that they actually have a statue of Rocky there.
So that would be a ‘Rocky’ statue…