Wednesday amusement (though not for the easily offended) from a regular Independent setter.
As usual Hoskins has given us clues with a fair amount of drink and sex, and I wasn’t too surprised to see the solution to 18d which is typical of his puzzles. But it’s all good clean-ish fun. Some very neat anagrams, and good surfaces (though I hope any German or Caribbean readers won’t take 19a or 23a personally). I didn’t know the singer at 15a or the tree at 3d, but both were guessable. Thanks Hoskins as always.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | BABYLON |
Labour follower: “Half of London is a corrupt place” (7)
|
| BABY (what follows after a woman is in labour) + half of LON[don].
Ancient city, in Biblical tradition (especially the book of Revelation) a symbol of moral corruption in the world. |
||
| 5 | SLAMMER |
Can of fizzy cocktail (7)
|
| Double definition. Can = slammer = slang for prison; or a slammer is a type of cocktail drink, with various ingredients but usually including some kind of carbonated soft drink or fizzy beer. | ||
| 9 | EARTH |
Want to bump off daughter … what are you on? (5)
|
| [d]EARTH (want, as a noun = shortage) without the D (abbreviation for daughter).
The planet we’re on. |
||
| 10 | TELEPATHS |
Those in two minds about ultimately clumsy heel taps (9)
|
| Last letter (ultimately) of [abou]T, then an anagram (clumsy) of HEEL TAPS.
A sneaky definition: two or more people who can understand each other’s minds. |
||
| 11 | ITERATION |
Sex drug helping to get a repeated performance (9)
|
| IT (slang for sex) + E (abbreviation for the drug ecstasy) + RATION (helping, as a noun = an allocated portion). | ||
| 12 | AIOLI |
A drop of IPA and I look around for a saucy type (5)
|
| A (from clue text) + first letter (a drop) of I[pa], then I + LO (lo! = look! = a call for attention) reversed (around).
A sauce made from garlic and oil, or a garlic-flavoured mayonnaise. |
||
| 13 | HADES |
Headless disembodied souls in hell (5)
|
| [s]HADES (disembodied souls or ghosts) without the first letter (head).
The Ancient Greek underworld of the dead. |
||
| 15 | KISSINGER |
Nixon aide stealing a dollar from Paul Stanley? (9)
|
| Paul Stanley is the lead vocalist in the US rock band Kiss (no, me neither, but that’s what Wikipedia is for) = KISS SINGER. Then we need to remove one S ($ = abbreviation for dollar).
Henry Kissinger, US politician who served during Richard Nixon’s presidency. |
||
| 18 | CARTHORSE |
One drawing loads of craft in cold bay, say (9)
|
| ART (craft), inserted into C (abbreviation for cold) + HORSE (definition by example: a bay is a brown or red-brown horse with black mane and tail).
A horse that pulls a loaded cart. |
||
| 19 | GRASP |
Understand German? Speak with harsh and grating tone! (5)
|
| G (abbreviation for German) + RASP (to speak with a rough voice). | ||
| 21 | SPOIL |
Cause damage to 9 houses close to Sidcup (5)
|
| SOIL (9 = reference to 9a EARTH), containing (housing) the closing letter of [sidcu]P. | ||
| 23 | BARBADIAN |
Islander jiggled about in a bad bra (9)
|
| Anagram (jiggled about) of IN A BAD BRA.
Someone from the Caribbean island of Barbados. The climate allows the locals to dance in fairly skimpy clothing, especially as part of carnival and music festivals, but I wouldn’t pass judgement on the quality of such clothing. |
||
| 25 | PLATITUDE |
“Freedom requires power first” is a trite remark (9)
|
| LATITUDE (freedom to make one’s own decisions), with P (abbreviation for power) first. | ||
| 26 | TUTSI |
African expression of disapproval one’s rebuffed (5)
|
| TUT (a sound expressing disapproval), then I’S (one’s) reversed (rebuffed).
A mamber of an African ethnic group associated mainly with Rwanda and Burundi. |
||
| 27 | TRIGGER |
Provoke first of revellers to punch bouncer? (7)
|
| First letter of R[evellers], inserted into (punching) TIGGER (a character in A A Milne’s Winnie the Pooh stories, known for being bouncy). For the surface, has Hoskins been reading recent stories about the England men’s cricket team?
Trigger, as a verb = provoke = cause an adverse reaction. |
||
| 28 | DEPARTS |
Bed-bound types holding record for splits (7)
|
| DARTS (objects that are aimed towards a bed = a specific scoring area surrounded by wires on a dartboard), holding EP (abbreviation for extended-play record).
Split, as a verb = slang for leave a group = depart. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | BLEMISH |
Mark from Flanders leaving France for Britain (7)
|
| [f]LEMISH (from the Flanders area of Belgium), with the F (abbreviation for France) removed and replaced by B (abbreviation for Britain). | ||
| 2 | BARTENDER |
A worker present ultimately during boozy sesh (9)
|
| A (from clue text) + last letters (ultimately) of [worke]R [presen]T, inserted into BENDER (boozy sesh = a long drinking session).
Clue-as-definition: a bender typically takes place in a bar, or often multiple bars one after another, staffed by bartenders. |
||
| 3 | LEHUA |
Tree line eventually hides unit attacking at front (5)
|
| First letters (at front) of L[ine] E[ventually] H[ides] U[nit] A[ttacking].
A Hawaiian tree, Metrosideros polymorpha. Never heard of it, but Wikipedia has. |
||
| 4 | NIT-PICKER |
Silly trick in PE leaves one in critical condition (3-6)
|
| Anagram (silly) of TRICK IN PE.
Slang for someone being critical by disputing or correcting minor details. |
||
| 5 | SALON |
Boy seen around a large Barnet establishment? (5)
|
| SON (boy = male child), around A (from clue text) + L (abbreviation for large).
Barnet = Cockney rhyming slang for hair, from Barnet Fair; salon = a hairdressing establishment. |
||
| 6 | APPEALING |
A reverberating of bells on radio is pleasing (9)
|
| A (from clue text) + sound-alike (on radio) of PEALING = reverberating of bells. | ||
| 7 | METRO |
French underground force soldiers repelled (5)
|
| MET (abbreviation for the Metropolitan Police Force in London), then OR (abbreviation for other ranks = soldiers who aren’t officers) reversed (repelled).
The underground railway system in Paris: in French it’s Métro, short for Métropolitain. |
||
| 8 | RISKIER |
Being extra-playful when topless is more perilous (7)
|
| [f]RISKIER (more frisky = extra-playful), without the first letter (top, in a down clue). | ||
| 14 | SCHILLING |
Soprano taking time out in old foreign capital (9)
|
| S (abbreviation for soprano) + CHILLING (slang for taking a rest = taking time out).
Former currency (capital = money) of Austria, now replaced by the euro. |
||
| 16 | SPEARHEAD |
He parades around foremost of army units (9)
|
| Anagram (around) of HE PARADES.
The leading group in a military attack. |
||
| 17 | GLADIATOR |
One who fought a dog trial unrestrainedly (9)
|
| Anagram (unrestrainedly) of A DOG TRIAL.
In the Roman empire (hence the past tense), an arena fighter. |
||
| 18 | CESSPIT |
Success pitilessly stymies one full of crap (7)
|
| Hidden answer (. . . stymies = obstructs = contains?) in [suc]CESS PIT[ilessly]. | ||
| 20 | PANTIES |
Moneypenny is one first to notice Bond’s undies (7)
|
| PA (abbreviation for personal assistant, for example Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond books and films) + first letter of N[otice] + TIE’S (tie is = bond is = connection is).
Undies = slang shortening of “underwear”, such as women’s panties. |
||
| 22 | OMANI |
I love to gyrate around fellow from Muscat (5)
|
| I (from clue text) + O (zero = love in tennis scoring), reversed (to gyrate = to spin round), around MAN (fellow).
From Muscat, the capital city of Oman. |
||
| 23 | BLUER |
Obscure cut by European is more melancholy (5)
|
| BLUR (obscure, as a verb = to make indistinct) containing E (abbreviation for European).
Blue = slang for melancholy. |
||
| 24 | ACT UP |
Carry On performers perhaps appearing in court (3,2)
|
| ACT (two or more people who perform together in entertainment, as in “double-act” or “supporting act”) + UP (slang for appearing in court, as in “up before the magistrate”). I’m not sure what “perhaps” adds to the meaning.
Carry on = act up = behave in an annoying way. |
I thoroughly enjoyed this, although with the same two nho as Quirister. DEPARTS could have been nothing else but I had never come across ‘bed’ as being the target area on a dartboard before, seems counterintuitive for something that’s hung vertically.
Thank you to both setter and blogger
I didn’t think the definition in 4d quite worked 😉
Thanks both. I had equally no idea about Paul Stanley as the source for Kissinger, and have never seen the Dollar symbol regarded purely as an S. I actually quite liked the definition for NIT PICKER, and eventually grasped DEPARTS having maybe recalled Jim Bowen on the addictively terrible Bullseye instructing that you get nothing for two in a bed.
Typical Hoskins – irreverent and great fun. I am definitely a 4d and I’m very happy with the definition!
Doofs @1. Three in a bed is a common darts expression when you get all three darts in the same segment, e.g. triple twenty or double one.
Many thanks to Hoskins and to Quirister.