Another tricky one from Paul, where I had to look up a couple of unfamiliar references. I nearly gave up hope of explaining 15 across, but it came to me just in time. Thanks to Paul for the fun.
| Across | ||||||||
| 1 | OYSTER | World of possibility unknown in nurse short of capital (6) Y (mathematical unknown) in [f]OSTER; from the expression “the world’s your oyster”, which is a slight misquotation of a line from The Merry Wives of Windsor |
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| 4 | NUTMEG | Spice girl on the ball (6) NUT (testicle, ball) + MEG |
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| 9 | ZERO | Australian’s arrested on backing loser (4) RE (on) in OZ, reversed |
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| 10 | TAIL-ENDERS | Trouble entering bids, those finally going in (4-6) AIL in TENDERS |
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| 11 | GOBLIN | Pooka chowin’ down in the audience? (6) Sounds like gobblin’ – a pooka is a kind of goblin in Irish mythology |
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| 12 | TRINCULO | Fool in cult, or out (8) (IN CULT OR)* – Trinculo is a jester in The Tempest |
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| 13 | INFANTILE | Voguish, cooler hat for a baby (9) IN (fashionable, voguish) + FAN (a cooler) + TILE (hat) |
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| 15 | INCA | Empire builder where 2 is, with 25 at the 25, say? (4) If you put REAR (25d) on the REAR of this, it sounds a bit like “in Korea”, which is where Seoul (2d) is |
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| 17,23 | LAUREL AND HARDY | Couple on trail of solitary tree, perennial also able to survive wintry conditions (6,3,5) LAUREL (a perennial) + AND (also) + HARDY (able to survive wintry conditions) – a reference to L & H’s singing of The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine,, which reached the UK singles chart in November 1975 |
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| 21 | DIRT ROAD | Reversing, run free over old, unpaved track (4,4) O in DART (run) + RID (to free), reversed |
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| 22 | EXHORT | Prompt review of other banking times (6) X (times, as a mathematical symbol) in OTHER* |
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| 24 | DAVID BOWIE | Pop star sees passionate violin player in decline (5,5) AVID (passionate) BOW (violin player) in DIE (to decline) |
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| 25 | REAR | Lift up buttocks (4) Double definition |
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| 26 | HIKING | Good day, man, for outdoor pursuit (6) HI (hello, good day) + KING (chess man) |
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| 27 | ARGYLE | Not all there, unlikely granny will return diamond (6) Hidden in reverse of unlikELY GRAnny. Argyle is a diamond pattern, so maybe the definition is a little loose |
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| Down | ||||||||
| 1 | ONE DOWN | It’s done now, having been worked out (3,4) (DONE NOW)* – “it” refers to the clue itself, so I think this qualifies as an &lit |
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| 2 | SEOUL | Asian capital someone discussed? (5) Sounds like “soul” |
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| 3 | EXTINCT | Dead nice, oddly, poking something akin to a dead parrot? (7) Odd letters of NiCe in EX-TIT (another dead bird) |
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| 5 | URETIC | Sent up, quote on sporting union – leaked? (6) Reverse of CITE + RU (Rugby Union) |
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| 6 | MEDICINAL | Fed narcotics originally, rum I claimed – having similar effect? (9) N[arcotics] in (I CLAIMED)* |
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| 7,16 | GORILLA SUIT | Case against thug in fancy dress? (7,4) A legal case against a thug might be a GORILLA SUIT |
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| 8 | PISTOLS AT DAWN | Spat with in-laws to put right, day breaking – what then? (7,2,4) D[ay] in (SPAT IN-LAWS TO)* |
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| 14 | A BIT THICK | Quite slow, though not cricket? (1,3,5) Double definition |
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| 16 | SPINACH | Drive a coach that’s emptied – then leaves (7) SPIN (a drive) + A C[oac]H |
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| 18 | ROE DEER | Public school short of an emergency room for Eurasian native (3,4) ROEDEAN (girls’ public school) less AN + E.R. |
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| 19 | NARRATE | Describe vermin in trap having lifted lid (7) RAT in [s]NARE |
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| 20 | BONBON | Sweet VIPs on the rise (6) Reverse of two NOBs |
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A very well crafted puzzle, I thought; pretty much quibble free and one which exploited Paul’s signature devices in moderation. I was almost shocked by the lack of cheekiness until I came (late) upon NUTMEG, though there was also REAR.
Despite getting OYSTER right from the get-go, it was slim pickings until I reached the SE corner from where I was able to get moving. 25a REAR was my second one in, yet INCA and SEOUL which depended upon it had to wait until near the end. Paul requires patience!
Faves were ONE DOWN, MEDICINAL and EXHORT. OYSTER was on the verge of being sublime; if only that “in” could somehow have been a “to”!
I confess that TRINCULO was a guess, having fortunately avoided Shakespeare’s comedies at school. And I didn’t know the lonesome pine reference, but I assumed the context. I did think that GORILLA SUIT was a bit tricky (the gorilla bit at least); is it that much of a thing, as opposed to other types of fancy dress suits? But in any cass it was a fair clue, what with the G and A checkers.
Good fun. Thanks both.
As usual Paul takes us from the sublime – LAUREL AND HARDY is just delightful – to the ridiculous – INCA will not be making it into my little black book of fave clues.
Thanks both
[AP @1: I’m not sure how much of a Thing gorilla suits are today but they were immortalised by the Pink Panther movie from the year I was born! This clip is the classic car chase.]
That was quite a buzz – thank you Paul, and thank you Andrew. I just could not get 1A OYSTER, so I cannot claim to have completed it – but previously when I’ve tried a Paul I’ve got nowhere, literally no answers at all, so this is much better. It’s really quite a different style from other setters, some clues/answers are more associations than literal connections, I think – for example, 5D URETIC, I wouldn’t say “uretic” is “leaked” (or even, “leaked?”, really), but I get the association.
Terrific crossword – and I would never have parsed 15 so many thanks, Andrew. V small typo in 4
DNF due to the unknown fool and the dodgy (imho) ‘leaked’. Pity, as the rest was fun. Thanks both.
On 27A, ARGYLE is a kind of diamond, for example the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argyle_Pink_Jubilee
The OYSTER reference is fair enough, given the ubiquity of the “world’s my oyster” expression. However, if one thinks about the phrase it’s simply meaningless – in what sense is the world an oyster? – unless one adds the next line “which I with sword will open”, and realise that the character intends to become a mercenary soldier. At this point it becomes a powerful metaphor, because using a blade to open an oyster would have been very familiar to a late Elizabethan Londoner in days when oysters were more widely eaten than now.
Sagittarius @8: I take it to mean that an oyster can take a bit of grit and turn it into a pearl. In other words, perhaps, where there’s muck, there’s brass.
The bottom half was reasonably straightforward but I struggled for eons in the top half with INCA (groan), loi. I thought that ONE DOWN was brilliant as was LAUREL AND HARDY and PISTOLS AT DAWN. Funny that we have TRINCULO after MIRANDA earlier in the week from Imogen, both Tempest characters and moons of Uranus.
Andrew, you have a slight typo in NUTMEG.
Ta Paul & Andrew.
I must have an overly clean mind. I had NUT as a ball bowled in cricket: ‘a good nut.’
Great fun, and surprisingly straightforward.
Loved DAVID BOWIE, GORILLA SUIT and INCA
Thanks Paul and Andrew
EXTINCT came to mind as soon as I saw dead parrot, it was just a matter of justifying the parsing. “Gone to meet ‘is maker” didn’t fit
Held up by putting AMMAN for SEOUL. Usually, when I get an alternative answer there’s something that gives me an inkling of doubt, but not today. It seemed so right.
EXTINCT made me think of the classic Monty Python dead parrot sketch, although the word was not actually used by John Cleese.
https://youtu.be/4vuW6tQ0218?si=4agyoTUYKx0Qwh7E
Guessed INCA without parsing, and now I see why. This simply doesn’t work for me as IN KOREA sounds nothing like INCA REAR. Usual Paul of course. I also had to reveal OYSTER. ONE DOWN on the other hand raised a smile, so there’s that.
Argyle diamonds are a type of diamond with a pinkish hue, that were mined exclusively from the (recently closed) Argyle Diamond Mine in Western Australia.
I spent ages over 15A, largely because I was convinced that rear at the rear must be Paulesque in some way and tried dodgy homophones for many slang words for buttocks. Eventually my subconscious’s screaming INCA REAR got through to my conscious.