Guardian Prize 29,883 / Philistine

It’s Philistine in the Prize slot for the Saturday before Christmas.

Our crossword editor has kept us guessing all week, one way or another. The Prize puzzle on the Saturday before Christmas (and other Bank Holidays) has traditionally, for a number of years, been a Maskarade Jumbo crossword. At the August Bank Holiday this year, we were surprised to find an Enigmatist puzzle in the Prize slot, with a Jumbo in the printed paper, which was not available online. There was no explanation for this and it was unclear whether this was a temporary departure from the usual pattern – or even a mistake – and so I wasn’t at all sure what to expect last Saturday.

It turned out to be a puzzle from one of my favourite setters – so no complaints from me – along with, in a special Puzzles Supplement to the paper, a cryptic puzzle from Ludwig, which was not available online and not scheduled to be blogged here.

During the week, there was unofficial word that there would be a Jumbo puzzle in the paper on Saturday 27th, which, as I write, on Friday 26th evening, is obviously not available yet. Meanwhile, this morning, we had a surprise appearance by Enigmatist (who had also provided the Independent and FT puzzles, on a common theme) which should have gone some way to satisfying those who had been disappointed at not finding a stiffer challenge last weekend.

Back to the job in hand: I thoroughly enjoyed, as expected, Philistine’s puzzle last Saturday, mostly straightforward, apart from, for me, the parsing of the pesky 10ac, which I had to keep returning to and nibbling away at throughout the week, ending in near despair by yesterday evening. After a very enjoyable and lively family day on Christmas Day, I had a quiet day today to turn my thoughts back to this clue that had been left hanging all week, as I tried various ways of interpreting the wordplay – lower case l or upper case I? – or perhaps different lengths of dashes? – or even (I’m sorry to say this) always the possibility of a Guardian typographical error, mumbling possibilities to myself and rejecting them all in turn. From the beginning, I suspected a ‘lift and separate’, one of Philistine’s favourite devices (mine, too) but I just couldn’t see the wood for the trees. I woke up this morning saying to myself, for the umpteenth time, ‘Why the capital O?’ and then the crash of pennies dropping could surely be heard throughout Crosswordland. (As so often, so obvious when light finally dawns.)

Lots of lovely clues, with great surfaces, especially 9ac OVERWHELM, 14ac CURMUDGEON, 24ac NO LET-UP, the two splendid anagrams at 1dn TOTALITARIANISM and 8dn MORNING SICKNESS, the characteristic misdirection in 2dn HELPLESS, 5dn EMBLEM, 7dn IMPEDE, 15dn GESTATING, and 17dn VALHALLA.

There’s also a Nina – THE NEW IMMIGRANTS – in the top and bottom rows, which I found as a band but I’m not sure of the significance.

My thanks to Philistine for the puzzle and best wishes for a very happy (better) new year to all.

Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

9 Whoever confused sources of lake, marsh or swamp (9)
OVERWHELM
An anagram (confused) of WHOEVER + L[ake] + M[arsh]

10 Lover – or lOver? (5)
ROMEO
See above: of course, it’s ‘lover with a capital O’ : ROME  (capital) + O – Oh!! 🙁

11 Like a range of medicine (7)
ASPIRIN
AS (like) + PIRIN (a mountain range in Bulgaria)

12 Learnt about the origin of neon light (7)
LANTERN
An anagram (about) of LEARNT + N[eon]

13 Inside of Tibet, ten species of goat (4)
IBEX
Inside letters of tIBE]t + X (ten)

14 Cantankerous person’s dog gone berserk round wet ground (10)
CURMUDGEON
CUR (dog) + an anagram (berserk) of GONE round MUD (wet ground) – an excellent construction and surface (and a lovely word, as is ‘cantankerous’, too)

16 Harsh return of historical period eating suet pudding (7)
AUSTERE
A reversal (return) of ERA (historical period) round an anagram (pudding) of SUET

17 6 + 3 spectators (7)
VIEWERS
VI (6) + EWERS (answer to 3dn)

19 Voracious in a bestial way (10)
INSATIABLE
An anagram (way) of IN A BESTIAL

22 Some of Homer’s work is in the picture (4)
EPIC
Contained in thE PICture

24 With this, endlessly opulent style (2,3-2)
NO LET-UP
An anagram (style) of OPULENT

25 Where to find lots of uniform-wearing action (7)
AUCTION
U (uniform) in ACTION

26 One’s simple transgression over a short time (5)
SIMON
SIN (transgression) round MO[ment (a short time)
The simple lad who met a pieman going to the fair, in the nursery rhyme

27 Sensitive reactions when showrooms demoted chief (9)
ALLERGIES
gALLERIES (showrooms, with the g moved further along the answer – demoted )

Down

1 To talk endlessly with a martini is cocktail tyranny (15)
TOTALITARAIANISM
TO + TAL[k] + an anagram (cocktail) of A MARTINI IS

2 Please lash out, as going weak (8)
HELPLESS
A typically Philistine clue: an anagram (out) of PLE[as]E LASH minus as (a + a, i.e. the letter a twice – not ‘as’!)

3 Drain top to bottom pitchers (5)
EWERS
[s]EWER (drain) with the first letter moved to the end

4 Light switched in principle, but no entry! (4,4)
NEON TUBE
A neatly hidden reversal (switched) in principlE BUT NO ENtry

5 Sign of new mobile home leaving Ohio (6)
EMBLEM
An anagram (new) of MoBiLE heME minus ohio

6 Redo clue for ‘perpetrator’ (9)
WRONGDOER
A reverse anagram: REDO is an anagram (wrong) of DOER

7 Peed off with writer’s block (6)
IMPEDE
I’M (writer’s) + an anagram (off) of PEED

8 Spoilt men rinsing socks? That’s expecting trouble (7,8)
MORNING SICKNESS
An anagram (spoilt) of MEN RINSING SOCKS) – great surface and definition (top favourite – but ugh!)

15 Developing cholesterol treatment in scrambled egg (9)
GESTATING
STATIN (cholesterol treatment) in an anagram (scrambled) of EGG – I can identify, much more recently, with this one, too!

17 Now and then viable God rises to welcome fallen warriors here (8)
VALHALLA
Alternate letters (now and then) of ViAble + a reversal (rises, in a down clue) of ALLAH

18 Graphic and sexy chapter, essentially legal (8)
EXPLICIT
Middle letters (essentially) of sEXy chaPter + LICIT (legal)

20 I am sadly returning this sausage (6)
SALAMI
A reversal (returning) of I’M (I am) + ALAS (sadly)

21 Turn up with listener in support of computer programme (6)
APPEAR
APP (computer programme) + EAR (listener)

23 My foray into Sierra Nevada at first produced disdain (5)
SCORN
COR (my) in Sierra Nevada