Neo is the setter of the FT puzzle this morning.
For me, this was a puzzle of two halves. The top half was almost a write in, helped by my seeing HOSPITALISATION straight away, thus providing crossers for the first few down answers, although the parsing of MACARTHUR held me up a bit. The bottom half was a bit more stubborn, but again a longer answer came to the rescue when I worked out the anagram for DELIRIUM TREMENS. I liked the “expecting trouble” for MORNING SICKNESS and the cryptic definition for NUDIST CAMP.
Thanks, Neo.
| ACROSS | ||
| 9 | HOSPITALISATION |
Ooh! It’s a-alpinist hurt! What might be needed? (15)
|
| *(ooh its a alpinist) [anag:hurt] | ||
| 10 | TRACHEA |
Pain in most of mouth and windpipe (7)
|
| ACHE (“pain”) in [most of] TRA(p) (“mouth”) | ||
| 11 | GHANA |
Country people from China coming into Georgia (5)
|
| HAN (“people from China”) coming into GA (Georgia, the American state) | ||
| 12 | ROTOR |
Turner’s corrupt men (5)
|
| ROT (“corrupt”) + OR (other ranks, so “men”) | ||
| 13 | NEWPORT |
Gwent location’s mint added to drink (7)
|
| NEW (“mint”) added to PORT (“drink”) | ||
| 14 | AUGHT |
Anything at all seized, but no cocaine (5)
|
| (c)AUGHT (“seized”, but no C (cocaine)) | ||
| 17 | DELIRIUM TREMENS |
Symptoms appearing with endless rum? Minister led me astray (8,7)
|
| *(ru minister led me) [anag:astray] where RU is [endless] RU(m) and semi &lit.
Delirium tremens is normally shortened to DTs. |
||
| 19 | SKEIN |
Flying V possibly available at last in Peel (5)
|
| (availabl)E [at last] in SKIN (“peel”) | ||
| 20 | ADORNED |
Cherished houses close to London decorated (7)
|
| ADORED (“cherished”) houses [close to] (Londo)N | ||
| 22 | GLOOM |
Grand tower in partial darkness (5)
|
| G (grand) + LOOM (“tower”) | ||
| 24 | CUBIT |
Young bear it in some measure (5)
|
| CUB (“young bear”) + IT | ||
| 26 | SEAWEED |
River was ebbing around eastern kelp (7)
|
| <=((River) DEE + WAS, ebbing) around E (eastern) | ||
| 28 | MORNING SICKNESS |
Expecting trouble, almost sense battles with Crimson King (7,8)
|
| *(sens crimson king) [anag:battles] where SENS is [almost] SENS(e) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | CHAT |
Bird and French feline in casual conversation (4)
|
| Triple definition, the second being the “French” for cat (“feline”) | ||
| 2 | OSCAR WILDE |
Wit distraught with nothing to panic about? (5,5)
|
| WILD (“distraught”) with O (nothing) + SCARE (“to panic”) about | ||
| 3 | RIGHTO |
Fine having shell removed from Sussex beach (6)
|
| [shell removed from] (b)RIGHTO(n) (“Sussex beach”) | ||
| 4 | MACARTHUR |
Degree day clothing about right in general (9)
|
| MA (Master of Arts, so “degree”) + Thur. (Thursday, so “day”) clothing ca. (circa, os “about”) + R (right)
Douglas MacArthur was a general in the US Army in the Second World War. |
||
| 5 | PILOT |
So-called whale one large casserole contains? (5)
|
| POT (“casserole”) contains I (one) + L (large) | ||
| 6 | MARGRAVE |
German prince to desecrate tomb? (8)
|
| MAR (“to desecrate”) + GRAVE (“tomb”) | ||
| 7 | PISA |
Most famous listed building here? (4)
|
| Cryptic definition, referring to the Leaning Tower. | ||
| 8 | UNBAPTISED |
Drunk in Budapest not christened (10)
|
| *(in budapest) [anag:drunk] | ||
| 13 | NUDIST CAMP |
Take holiday here out of habit? (6,4)
|
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 15 | GREEN BERET |
Commando without experience leading soldiers in punt (5,5)
|
| GREEN (“without experience”) leading RE (Royal Engineers, so “soldiers”) in BET (“punt”) | ||
| 16 | STEAMSHIP |
Cooks in packet (9)
|
| STEAMS (“cooks”) + HIP (“in”, as in trendy) | ||
| 18 | RINGTAIL |
Raccoon’s call to dog (8)
|
| RING (“call”) + TAIL (“to dog”) | ||
| 21 | OZARKS |
Mountains in Australia overlooking flood rescue vessels? (6)
|
| OZ (“Australia”) overlooking ARKS (“flood rescue vehicles”) | ||
| 23 | OSAGE |
Rowe periodically hosting talk about language (5)
|
| (r)O(w)E [periodically] hosting <=GAS (“talk”, about)
Osage was the now extinct language of the Osage Nation, a tribe of Native Americans from the midwest. |
||
| 25 | BURT |
Rounds initially loaded into only Lancaster? (4)
|
| R(ounds) [initially] loaded into BUT (“only”)
Referring to the actor Burt Lancaster. |
||
| 27 | DUSK |
Many a Welsh runner in the gloaming (4)
|
| D (500 in Roman numerals, so “many”) + (River) USK (a river in Wales, so a “Welsh runner”) |
I also found this a mix of easy and difficult clues. I got off to a galloping start then found the last few clues really challenging, partly due to NHOs. For example, not knowing Brighton is in Sussex rather delayed solving RIGHTO. I needed loonapick’s help to parse SEAWEED.
I loved DELIRIUM TREMENS, and also ticked STEAMSHIP, and RING TAIL.
Thanks Neo and loonapick
Only two thirds finished. Too many unknowns (seven).
Good fun with some excellent anagrams, notably DTs, morning sickness, unbaptised. Thanks both.
Another here who romped through a lot of it before hitting a wall. I’m sure I’ve seen “right on” clued with reference to “Brighton”, linking to its “hip” status, which helped with 3dn. I thought “Osage” a bit of a stretch, it being a people first and a language second but it is there in the dictionary so fair game. I struggled to justify “D” + “usk” at first but parsed it as loonapick did and I suspect it is simply a case of not having seen the device before rather there being any inherent problem with it.
I like clues like 17ac where there is a hint of the definition in the wordplay (in this case the “endless rum”) – they always feel much more satisfying as the setter has had to go one step further than normal clue-setting.
Many thanks to loonapick for unravelling it all and to Neo.