Filbert in his customary IoS slot, with a delightful and meticulously constructed puzzle. A wide range of subjects on show too, which made it a pleasure to solve and blog.
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 Eagerly buy something worthless on back of tin
SNAP UP
A charade of SN and A PUP. Element number 50 plus a slang term for something worthless. ‘He was sold a pup’ means that the person was swindled. Its origin is from old market trading practices, where a buyer would be sold a bag purportedly containing a piglet, but which actually contained a puppy.
5 New tipi soon standing
POSITION
(TIPI SOON)* with ‘new’ as the anagrind. ‘Tipi’ is an alternative spelling for ‘teepee’.
9 Holes beginning to grow naturally around lake
GOLF COURSE
A charade of G for the initial letter of ‘grow’ and an insertion of L in OF COURSE. The insertion indicator is ‘around’.
10 Want massage from lecturer?
NEED
Aural wordplay (‘for lecturer’) for KNEAD.
11 Elasticated foot warmers from chemist on King’s Road?
CHELSEA BOOTS
Boots is the Nottingham chemist; The King’s Road is in Chelsea; Chelsea boots were first seen on the King’s Road in the London Borough of Chelsea, according to the wondrous thing that is the internet.
13 Cold plain fish sandwiches outside for docker
TUNDRA
An insertion of DR for the outer letters of ‘docker’ in TUNA. The insertion indicator is ‘sandwiches’.
14 Writer’s arty novel rarely containing sex?
LITERARY
An insertion of IT for ‘sex’ in (RARELY)*. The insertion indicator is ‘containing’ and the anagrind is ‘novel’.
16 Joey’s father’s packing large knickers
BLOOMERS
An insertion of L in BOOMERS. The reference is to baby and daddy kangaroos. The insertion indicator is ‘packing’.
19 Lots love line in poetry
OODLES
A charade of O and L inserted into ODES. The insertion indicator is ‘in’.
21 Show disapproval of wobbly thingies on German porn film
BOOGIE NIGHTS
A charade of BOO, G and (THINGIES)* with ‘wobbly’ as the anagrind. BOOGIE NIGHTS is a 1997 movie about the porn business, rather than a porn film as such. Its protagonist had the screen name Dirk Diggler, since you ask.
24 Princess up against a woman that acts like one
DIVA
A charade of DI, the famous but dead princess, V for versus or ‘against’ and A.
25 Free of sin, one’s fit to be kissed in audience
IMPECCABLE
Aural wordplay (‘in audience’) for I’M PECKABLE. IMPECCABLE in modern usage usually signifies excellence or flawlessness. ‘Her manners are impeccable.’ But (and I only learned this from the clue) its original meaning is theological and related to sin. Which I should have twigged, having learnt at school that the Latin peccare means ‘to sin’, and having suffered Roman Catholic mass in my early years and thus heard multiple times
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us …
26 Bum numb? Perhaps cane …
DEADBEAT
A charade of DEAD and BEAT.
27 … mark remains on bottom
EN DASH
A charade of END and ASH. The ellipses are there just to join the two clues together for surface reading (not a particularly pleasant one). The EM DASH, the EN DASH and the HYPHEN are the three dashes used in punctuation, getting progressively shorter in that order.
Down
2 Turning point for the sun going up and down
NOON
Filbert is referencing the fact that NOON – the high point of the sun during the day – is a palindrome, and this is a down clue.
3 Not amused picking up work after ineffective coffee
PO-FACED
A reversal (‘picking up’) of DECAF and OP for opus.
4 Walk before comprehending warning notice
PROMENADE
An insertion of OMEN and AD in PRE. The insertion indicator is ‘comprehending’.
5 Painter really in friend’s shade
PARASOL
An insertion of RA and SO in PAL. The insertion indicator is ‘in’.
6 Insane jockeys having no end of fun here?
SIENA
(I[N]SANE)* or (INSA[N]E)* as you prefer. The anagrind is ‘jockeys’ and the letter removal indicator is ‘having no end of …’ It’s a cad, since SIENA is home twice a year to a historical, and frankly insanely dangerous, horse race.
7 Oven with duck in to roast, initially
TANDOOR
An insertion of AND for ‘with’ and O FOR ‘duck’ in TO and R for the initial letter of ‘roast’. The insertion indicator is ‘in’.
8 Upset voter rattled ballot box – Lib Dem leader?
OVERTURNED
A charade of (VOTER)*, URN and ED [Davey]. The anagrind is ‘upset’. Historically, the ballot box was an urn.
12 Cunning to take group on board chopper
GUILLOTINE
An insertion of LOT and IN in GUILE. The insertion indicator is ‘to take’.
15 Something nasty in your mug as well – husband cutting facial hair?
TOOTHACHE
A charade of TOO and H inserted into TACHE. The insertion indicator is ‘cutting’.
17 Suspicious article covered with ground nuts
ON GUARD
An insertion of A in (GROUND)*. The insertion indicator is ‘covered with’ and the anagrind is ‘nuts’.
18 Bite dog, perhaps after son bit
SNIPPET
A charade of S, NIP and PET.
20 Reject managed to conceal stigma
DISCARD
An insertion of SCAR in DID. The insertion indicator is ‘to conceal’.
22 Cream filling for her diet
ELITE
A charade of E for the central letter of ‘her’ and LITE.
23 That stinks in a similar way to sulphur
ALAS
A charade of A LA and S. Not entirely convinced that ALAS is a great synonym for ‘that stinks’, but you can’t deny the surface is excellent.
Many thanks to Filbert for this Sunday’s puzzle.
Gotta love Filbert’s wonderfully economical cluing style. DEADBEAT and EN DASH were brilliant. Thanks both.
Impeccable, in the first of Pierre’s senses. DEADBEAT, my loi, one of many examples of why. Sunday morning treat. Thanks both.
Loved the CHELSEA BOOTS, and the ‘peckable’ person. I moved on too quickly from sorting out the SIENA anagram to notice the lovely surface reading. Good Sunday morning fun all round!
Thanks to F & P
Another enjoyable one from Filbert. Faves were TOOTHACHE and IMPECCABLE which I too struggled with for a short while before getting it from the Spanish pecado (sin). I was quite sure it was supposed to be “immaculate” when I had the M and E, but of course couldn’t make it parse!
Thanks both
Stared at _U_L_O_I_E for ages before resorting to a word search. Guile was about the only synonym for cunning that I didn’t think of. With hindsight one more break might have done the trick. Or I might still be staring at it now. I’ll never know. And I was also briefly in the IMMACULATE blind alley. All good fun.
Great stuff, as always from Filbert. I parsed NOON as on=going, both up and down.
There aren’t many better than Filbert