A gentle workout from MUDD.
FF: 8 DD: 8
| ACROSS | ||
| 7 | IN UNISON |
One sister and one boy together (2,6)
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I ( one ) NUN ( sister ) I ( one ) SON ( boy ) |
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| 8 | RECOIL |
Winter’s ending, nothing stopping return of insects — spring back! (6)
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R ( winteR, last letter ) [ O ( nothing ) in reverse of LICE ( insects ) ] |
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| 11 | TASTE |
Sample last of paintings framed by patron of the arts (5)
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S ( paintingS, last letter of ) in TATE ( patron of the arts ) |
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| 12 | NORTH STAR |
Brilliant guide, Jack goes past prickly thorns (5,4)
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[ THORNS ]* TAR ( jack ) |
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| 13 | RING OFF |
Stop talking, as prepared for divorce? (4,3)
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cryptic def |
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| 14 | RELIEVO |
Overlie grotesque, outstanding art? (7)
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[ OVERLIE ]* |
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| 15 | AT THE DROP OF A HAT |
When Panama falls quickly? (2,3,4,2,1,3)
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cryptic def |
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| 18 | PIRATES |
Criminals good with taxes (7)
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PI ( good ) RATES ( taxes ) |
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| 20 | APOSTLE |
Job held by bitter missionary (7)
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POST ( job ) in ALE ( bitter ) |
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| 22 | NOCTURNAL |
Acorn and nut lost, left in the dark (9)
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[ ACORN NUT ]* L ( left ) |
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| 23 | HOTEL |
Holiday accommodation — India next? (5)
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cryptic clue; referring to nato alphabet for H and I |
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| 24 | ELAPSE |
Pass first of exams before blunder (6)
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E ( Exams, first letter ) LAPSE ( blunder ) |
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| 25 | STONE AGE |
Very old guru breathing in air (5,3)
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TONE ( air ) in SAGE ( guru ) |
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| DOWN | ||
| 1 | VICTORIA SPONGE |
Light blue line on clean cake (8,6)
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VICTORIA ( light blue line, london underground ) SPONGE ( clean ) |
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| 2 | HUDSON |
Barking hounds bay? (6)
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[ HOUNDS ]* |
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| 3 | TIRESOME |
Uninteresting building is remote (8)
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[ IS REMOTE ]* |
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| 4 | GOING FOR A SONG |
Very reasonable, when off to choir practice? (5,3,1,4)
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cryptic def |
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| 5 | LETHAL |
All the bombs — are so? (6)
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&lit; [ ALL THE ]* |
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| 6 | FORTIETH |
Ruby celebrated throwing male attire into river (8)
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TIE ( male attire ) in FORTH ( river ) ; wonder if the tie is an exclusive male attire? |
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| 9 | LORD OF THE FLIES |
New tiled roof with shelf for book (4,2,3,5)
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[ TILED ROOF SHELF ]* |
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| 10 | PRE-RAPHAELITE |
Husband into creation of a rapper, best artist (3-10)
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{ H ( husband ) in [ A RAPPER ]* } ELITE ( best ) ; i had no idea about this though i could broadly identify the parse |
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| 16 | TURNCOAT |
Make taco for Judas? (8)
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reverse clue; TURNCOAT => [ COAT ]* => TACO |
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| 17 | FROTHING |
Effervescent pond life absorbing light (8)
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FROG ( pond life ) containing THIN ( light ) |
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| 19 | TRUISM |
Obvious fact is concealed by inadequate US president (6)
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IS in TRUMp ( us president, inadequate i.e. without last letter ) |
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| 21 | TITIAN |
Artist, giant touring Italy (6)
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TITAN ( giant ) around I ( italy ) |
A good solid set of solvable and succinct clues. Very enjoyable, with frothing my cotd. Thx both.
Wasted a good deal of time trying to parse VICTORIA SPONGE. Perhaps UK-specific clues should come with a warning? All else was good fun. Never heard of RELIEVO. Is it just a superior person’s word for “relief”?
Liked RECOIL and VICTORIA SPONGE best; though I do sympathize, GDU, it’s tube line I once knew well. Those long entries were very generous in getting going with this grid which was a pleasure, albeit a brief one.
Thanks Mudd and Turbolegs.
GDU.It is just Italian and used in music too.
Good fun today.TRUISM was my loi. When will we stop referring to that man in crosswords?
Thanks to both.
Thank you, SM. As a retired muso, and having been fully acquainted with the standard range of Italian musical terms, I must say I’d never come across this one, and I can’t think of a musical context for it. Perhaps an indication in the clue that it was Italian would have helped.
I think a relievo is just an upmarket alternative word for a relief, in the sense of a sculptural frieze. Hence outstanding art is the defn. I don’t think music is anything to do with it for once.
I did not know it was a musical term but I got it from Wikipedia. It is not in my SOED nor in Groves Concise Dictionary of Music. It seems to be wrong.
In my (messy) mental filing, relievo goes in the general arty whatsit category, along with gesso, gouache and palimpsest, and nearby arcana from other media, like appoggiatura, or spandrel. Hey ho, all part of the rich tapestry …
I enjoyed this but also experienced a surprising degree of deja vu – I’m pretty sure that the Pre-Raphaelites, truism, and turncoat have all been answers in other puzzles in very recent days. It was very disconcerting. Of course, it may all just be a dream.
Thanks Mudd and Turbolegs
14ac: Collins 2023 p 1683 has relief 10 Also called relievo, rilievo sculpture, architect a the projection of forms of figures from a flat ground, so that they are partly or wholly free of it b a piece of work of this kind. Note that by using an anagram for the wordplay, Mudd has ensured that there is no ambiguity in the unchecked second letter of the answer.
I had the same bells ring, Eric E @9, but didn’t like to say, in case ….
Eric E. @9 – Not sure about the others, but PRERAPHAELITES was in Tuesday’s, also in the FT. Some degree of coincidence is inevitable, especially between papers, although I am slightly surprised the crossword editor didn’t jiggle things around to avoid the same long and unusual word in two puzzles in the same week. At least the wordplay was quite different; I remember recently seeing almost identical clues for ORIGAMI within the span of a week (both reversals of I’M A GIRO), though they were in different publications.
Enough chewiness to make it very enjoyable… tried Wisteria for the pale blue to begin with but then some pennies dropped… not that I’ve ever travelled on the Victoria Line, but added to SPONGE, the cake became relevant… tried an anagram of “pond life” with even less success, until I read the clue again… TURNCOAT was a delight, mostly cos I abandoned the “make taco” anagram before I’d even started, when the instruction came clear..
Thanks MUDD n Turbolegs
Straightforward today. I also liked TURNCOAT. Couldn’t parse STONE AGE so thank you, Turbolegs, for that
SM @4 Probably never. These constant digs, such as “inadequate US president” (as opposed to “short card move ” or similar) put a spring in my step.
Very much liked 4D, as a choir member. 😀