The usual sound crossword from Eccles today.
Eccles frequently inserts a fairly obscure word into the grid. For me today, that word was the entry at 19a, GLEBA (the spore-bearing tissue of various funguses).
I liked the clues for NOISY (for the ‘confusing instruction’) and LOVE POTION (for its construction with the definition away from either end). Having said that about LOVE POTION, there was an Inquisitor by Phi recently, where all the clues for entries with an even number of letters were constructed with the definition in the middle. The wordplay for the first half of the entry was before the definition and the wordplay for the second half was after the definition. Traditionally though, the definition part of a cryptic clue is found at the beginning or end of the clue.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Parents meeting Conservative legend? (4,5)
FOLK STORY (popular story handed down by oral tradition from a more or less remote antiquity; legend) FOLKS (family, especially parents) + TORY (a Conservative) FOLK S TORY |
| 9 | Former partner looks after projects (7)
EXTENDS (protrudes; projects) EX (former partner) + TENDS (looks after) EX TENDS |
| 10 | Chauvinist, perhaps, is able to welcome male bores (7)
CAVEMAN (informal term [perhaps] for a modern male of primitive and chauvinistic attitudes and ways) (AVE [hail!; welcome] + M [male]) contained in (bores) CAN (is able to) C (AVE M) AN |
| 11 | Rat on waste container after party (3,2)
DOB IN (inform against; rat on) DO (party) + BIN (waste container) DO B IN |
| 12 | See revolutionary cycling round Greek island? That’s hush-hush (3-6)
TOP SECRET (classified or confidential information; hush-hush) SPOT (see) reversed (revolutionary) + CRETE (Greek island) with the letters cycled one place to the right and the final letter moving to the front to form ECRET) TOP S ECRET |
| 13 | Appreciative audience member showing tongue (7)
CLAPPER (an appreciative audience member) CLAPPER (the tongue of a bell, or just an informal term for the tongue) double definition CLAPPER |
| 15 | Dance and drink with bachelor (5)
RUMBA (lively Afro-Cuban dance) RUM (a drink) + BA (Bachelor [of Arts]) RUM BA |
| 17 | Loud and confusing instruction when filling in questionnaire (5)
NOISY (loud) NO IS Y (no is yes; a somewhat confusing instruction for filling in a questionnaire) NO IS Y |
| 18 | Join jolly adult for bit of entertainment (5)
MARRY (join) MeRRY (jolly) with A (adult) replacing (for) E (first letter of [bit of] Entertainment) MARRY |
| 19 | Fungal tissue found in single bacterium (5)
GLEBA (the spore-bearing tissue of various fungi – definition in Collins) GLEBA (hidden word in [found in] sinGLE BActerium) GLEBA |
| 20 | Granite rocks forming city (7)
TANGIER (city in Morocco) Anagram of (rocks) GRANITE TANGIER* |
| 23 | Placate PR after upsetting one that it’s important not to upset? (9)
APPLE-CART (reference the phrase ‘don’t upset the APPLE-CART‘, something you shouldn’t do unless you want to throw plans into confusion) Anagram of (after upsetting) PLACATE PR APPLE-CART* |
| 25 | Now and again, favourite American shows something from the heart? (5)
AORTA (main arterial vessel that carries blood from the heart; something from the heart) AORT (letters 2, 4, 6 and 8 [now and again] of fAvOuRiTe) + A (American) A O R T A |
| 27 | Foot of an anthropoid primate found next to stone (7)
ANAPEST (in verse, a foot of two short (or unstressed) syllables followed by a long (or stressed) syllable) AN + APE (an anthropoid primate) + ST (stone) AN APE ST |
| 28 | It is cold in South Africa, no? (7)
CINZANO ([an] Italian [vermoputh]; It) C (cold) + IN + ZA (International Vehicle Registration for South Africa) + NO C IN ZA NO |
| 29 | Assistant, unfeeling, wrote badly (6,3)
NUMBER TWO (second-in-command; assistant) NUMB (without feeling; unfeeling) + an anagram of (badly) WROTE NUMB ER TWO* |
| Down | |
| 1 | Views reality shows primarily encapsulating English (6)
FACETS (aspects or views) (FACT [reality] + S [first letter of {primarily} Shows]) containing (encapsulating) E (English) FAC (E) T S |
| 2 | Shaking this aphrodisiac could result in violent poo (4,6)
LOVE POTION (an aphrodisiac) If you make an anagram of (shaking) LOVE POTION, one result would be VIOLENT POO LOVE POTION* |
| 3 | Attempt to support extremely stroppy Frenchwoman in correspondence (8)
SYMMETRY (exact correspondence of parts on either side of a straight line or plane, or about a centre or axis) SY (outer letters of [extremely] StroppY) + MME (Madame; French lady) + TRY (attempt) SY MME TRY As this is a Down entry, the letters TRY are ‘supporting’ the letters above it in the grid. |
| 4 | Women in Nevadan city upset proprietor (5)
OWNER (proprietor) W (women) contained in (in) RENO (city in the American State of Nevada) reversed (upset; down entry) O (W) NER< |
| 5 | Baking ingredient easy to change with bit of cheese in recipe (5,4)
YEAST CAKE (found chiefly in the USA and Canada, yeast cells compressed with starch into a CAKE, for use in baking or brewing) Anagram of (to change) EASY + C (first letter of [bit of] Cheese) contained in (in) TAKE (recipe is Latin for TAKE back) YEAS* T (C) AKE |
| 6 | Help at small northern arenas (6)
STADIA (arenas) (AID [help] + AT + S [small]) all reversed (northern in a down clue) (S TA DIA) < |
| 7 | Elitist doctor losing drug on the counter (4)
SNOB (person who sets too much value on social standing, wishing to be associated with the upper class and their mores, and treating those viewed as inferior with condescension and contempt; elitist) BONeS (nickname for a doctor) excluding (losing) E (ecstasy tablet; drug) and then reversed (on the counter) SNOB< |
| 8 | Yes, angry crook shows lack of coordination (8)
ASYNERGY (lack of co-ordination in action, e.g. of muscles) Anagram of (crook) YES ANGRY ASYNERGY* |
| 14 | Standard complaint about international political representatives (10)
PARLIAMENT (assemblage of the political representatives) PAR (standard) + (LAMENT [complaint] containing [about] I [international]) PAR L (I) AMENT |
| 16 | How many Russian aircraft are allowed for journey (9)
MIGRATION (journey) MIG (Russian fighter aircraft) + RATION (indication of how much or how many is/are allowed) MIG RATION |
| 17 | Singer is Greek character with thick head of hair (8)
NUTHATCH (bird; singer) NU (Greek letter [character]) + THATCH (thick head of hair) NU THATCH |
| 18 | Staff think highly of Pulp (8)
MACERATE to break up by soaking; to pulp) MACE (ceremonial staff of office) + RATE (think highly of) MACE RATE |
| 21 | Prophet is, I see, welcoming ChatGPT? (6)
ISAIAH (a major Hebrew prophet) (IS + AH [I see]) containing (welcoming) AI (Artificial Intelligence. ChatGPT is an example of an AI program) IS (AI) AH |
| 22 | Ambitious tattooist somewhat obsessive character regarding figures (6)
STATTO (A person who is preoccupied with the facts and figures of a particular subject, especially a sport) STATTO (hidden word in [somewhat] ambitiouS TATTOist) STATTO |
| 24 | Hand around second hymn (5)
PSALM (sacred song or hymn) PALM (hand) containing (around) S (second) P (S) ALM |
| 26 | Powder not good for skin (4)
RIND (skin) gRIND (to powder) excluding (not) G (good) RIND |
The usual excellence from this setter with only one unknown for me today – YEAST CAKE. Many thanks to Eccles.
I would have thought that 23a should be enumerated 5-4 (as I see Duncan has done in his excellent review).
Although enjoyable as always and no problems with completing, I thought the inclusion of no fewer than 4 answers not in a standard reference source (Chambers) was OTT (DOB IN, GLEBA, YEAST CAKE & STATTO).
Additionally, although I don’t have any objections to unindicated American words (I know some do), I do think American spellings should be indicated (27a).
A tad more in the way of unknowns for this solver: add DOB IN and ASYNERGY to the list. ANAPEST, fortunately, I have encountered before. PARLIAMENT, MIGRATION and the amusing LOVE POTION are my podium today.
Thanks both
Hovis @ 2
I believe Collins English Dictionary is the reference for Independent crosswords. All four of the entries you list are in Collins.
Thanks Duncan. Good to know they are in Collins but I still feel the criticism is valid.
It’s always a pleasure to be reminded of expressions one hasn’t used for 50 years, so DOB IN was my favourite today. I once played in The Apple Cart at school (you don’t see many Shaw plays these days). It was two words then, but I am sure there are references to justify “Applecart”.