With autumn in full swing and the clocks about to change Dalibor brings some Saturday fun. Quite a rare appearance as a setter for a fellow blogger on this site, I believe.
I did enjoy 2dn (a double Genesis reference in there) and 4dn (very odd one but very fair too). Several other fine clues too.
We’re also in pangram territory too though no hidden messages that I can find anyway.
Thanks Dalibor – a fun solve
Key * anagram; DD double definition; rev. reverse; underline definition
Across
8 Italian musician at last eating a filling local sandwich (or two?) (8)
Panini (local sandwixh) around g (last eating) + a = PAGANINI
9 Daily Star (3,3)
DD THE SUN
10 Palestinians backed by Oxbridge academic make very slow progress (4,2)
PLO (Palestinians) + don (oxford academic) = PLOD ON
11 French tennis icon heading for Channel island in lifeboat? (5,3)
Noah (French tennis player) + Sark (Channel Island) = NOAH’S ARK
12 Parcel company, mostly growing in reputation, causes a revolution (8)
UPS (parcel company) -s + rising (growing in reputation) = UPRISING
13 This bendy motorway’s narrow passages (6)
(This)* + Mi (motorway) = ISTHMI
14 Takeaway at lunchtime? (8,7)
Cryptic definition DAYLIGHT ROBBERY
18 Fuddy-duddy Spurs wingers admitting defeat? On the contrary (6)
ss(spurs wingers) in foil (defeat) = FOSSIL
20 Fans around India excited after king returned the country’s old money (8)
(fans)* around I(india) after Rev. Rex (king) = XERAFINA
23 Bodyguard following group of engineers – this in case you forgot (8)
minder(bodyguard) after re (group of engineers) = REMINDER
24 Dell is put inside suitcase (6)
vale(dell) around is = VALISE
25 Diva half-heartedly drinks one port (6)
Callas (Diva as in Maria) – l (half heartedly) around I(one) = CALAIS
26 Looking fixedly, wasting little time when producing chemical weapon (5,3)
staring(looking fixedly) – t(time) + as(when) = SARIN GAS
Down
1 One captured by the enemy about to invite everyone in for a beer (6)
Rev POW (one captured by the enemy) around all (everyone) = WALLOP
2 Ultimately, Gabriel with Collins, for the listener a load of rubbish (8)
l(ultimately Gabriel) + and(with) + Homonym of Phil (Collins) = LANDFILL
3 Wagner opera: nul points in Paris, almost the same in New York (6)
rien (null points in Paris) + zip(same in New York) – p = RIENZI
4 1978 film generates clue for g, say (8,7)
g is Mid niGht + express(say) = MIDNIGHT EXPRESS
5 Piccolo is one overwhelmed by far too much wine, commonly (8)
a(one) after OTT (far too much) + vino(wine commonly) = OTTAVINO
6 Debt is problematic, finding a place to live (6)
(debt is)* = BEDSIT
7 Students’ Union: first I must leave for it to become more sovereign (8)
su(student’s union) + premier(first) – i = SUPREMER
15 Boy adopted by a rising celebrity in full agreement (2,3,3)
a + Rev. name(celebrity) around son(boy) = AS ONE MAN
16 Former democrat, American, seen in sports car, something difficult to obtain (4,4)
old(former) + d(democrat) + us(american) in GT (sports car) = GOLD DUST
17 Awesome skyward throw that’s perplexing (8)
Rev. fab (awesome) + fling (throw) = BAFFLING
19 Red army invading quiet zone (6)
ira(army) in sh(quiet) + z (zone) = SHIRAZ
21 Right ascending note’s creating sound effect (6)
r(right) + rev. breve (note) = REVERB
22 We hear people waiting by new supermarket for a place to buy and sell securities (6)
q(we hear people waiting) after n (new) +N asda (supermarket) = NASDAQ
Liked DAYLIGHT ROBBERY, LANDFILL and MIGNIGHT EXPRESS.
REMINDER
I think ‘this’ should be part of the def.
SUPREMER
Def: more sovereign
Thanks Dalibor and twencelas.
I wouldn’t say we’re in “pangram territory”. It did look like a possibility but a quick glance showed no J or K and I didn’t look further.
I was happy to complete this and was particularly glad to think of midnight express at first reading. Not sure how my brain went straight to that.
Guessed RIENZI from wordplay. XERAFINA was a jorum. OTTAVINO was almost a jorum, but I guessed OTTIVINO and had to be corrected.
NOAH’S ARK was my loi, not knowing the tennis player.
Good stuff. I failed on RIENZI although I could have looked it up of course; if I’d been looking for a potential pangram – which I should have been – I might have got it! D’oh. (Indeed there’s no J, although the K is in NOAH’S ARK.)
I liked that the setter deftly avoided the panino/PANINI issue, and also particularly enjoyed LANDFILL, NASDAQ, THE SUN, ISTHMI for what was a jorumed plural for me, ditto XERAFINA, VALISE and the two long ones.
Thanks both.
Actually I’ve just twigged that we already had the Z in SHIRAZ (which I also liked) so I wouldn’t have been expecting to use it again. No doubt the pangram would have led me to RIENJI which I’m sure I’d have found a way to justify… 😅
AP. Ah, I forgot I got the K at the last moment. Only J missing.
Lots of fun and clever clues, but too many nho words for us to find it satisfying (rienzi, ottavino, wallop, xerafina). Quite a long way outside our GK!