The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/29932.
A gentle offering from Maskarade, with a good sprinkling of simple anagrams for less experienced solvers to get a foothold.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | DOWNING STREET |
Drewsteignton oddly with Whitehall address (7,6)
|
| An anagram (‘oddly’) of ‘Drewsteignton’. DOWNING STREET is a spur off the road Whitehall; in the definition ‘Whitehall’ is the surrounding area (or a metonym for the Government). Drewsteignton is a village in Devon. | ||
| 10 | OUTINGS |
I go nuts arranging day trips (7)
|
| An anagram (‘arranging’ – which would tend to make me think that the anagrist follows) of the preceding ‘I go nuts’. | ||
| 11 | NIAGARA |
Falls again, turning back with artist (7)
|
| A charade of NIAGA, a reversal (‘turning back’) of ‘again’, plus RA (‘artist’). | ||
| 12 | NIGHT |
The dark man on board, it’s said (5)
|
| Sounds like (‘it’s said’) KNIGHT (‘man on board’, chess). | ||
| 13 | SCINTILLA |
Very minor piece composed, it’s all in C (9)
|
| An anagram (‘composed’) of ‘it’s all in C’. | ||
| 14 | TONIC |
Heavyweight in charge of drink (5)
|
| A charade of TON (‘heavyweight’) plus IC (‘in charge’). | ||
| 16 | IN A SECOND |
Newly canonised, very quickly (2,1,6)
|
| An anagram (‘newly’) of ‘canonised’. | ||
| 18 | EGLANTINE |
For instance, worker in business producing plant (9)
|
| A charade of EG (‘for instance’) plus LANTINE, an envelope (‘in’) of ANT (‘worker’) in LINE (‘business’), for the sweetbriar rose. | ||
| 19 | FUDGE |
Ineffectual compromise that a confectioner provides (5)
|
| Double definition. | ||
| 20 | LISTENERS |
Old BBC magazine’s ears? (9)
|
| Double definition, if the apostrophe s is included in the first definition. | ||
| 23 | CARES |
Sweetheart in saloons worries (5)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of E (‘swEerheart’ i.e. the heart of sweet) in CARS (‘saloons’ – an unanounced indication by example). | ||
| 24 | CEDILLA |
Cover turned back in fancy lace – as seen in Façade (7)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of DIL, a reversal (‘turned back’) of LID (‘cover’) in CELA, an anagram (‘fancy’) of ‘lace’. A cedilla is the twiddly bit under the c in ‘Façade’ (and the capital F suggests the poems by Edith Sitwell set by William Walton). | ||
| 25 | SHANNON |
Quiet before long consumes northern river and sea area (7)
|
| A envelope (‘consumes’) of N (‘northern’) in SH (‘quiet’ as an imperative) plus ANON (‘before long’). | ||
| 26 | ARC DE TRIOMPHE |
French landmark damaged car he imported (3,2,8)
|
| An anagram (‘damaged’) of ‘car he imported’. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | OCTAGONAL |
Like a stop sign a lot can go out of shape (9)
|
| An anagram (‘out of shape’) of ‘a lot can go’. | ||
| 3 | NONET |
Group not heartless, embracing individual (5)
|
| An envelope (’embracong’) of ONE (‘individual’) in ‘n[o]t’ without its middle letter (‘heartless’). | ||
| 4 | NOSES |
Pries into one’s new suit first (5)
|
| A charade of NOSE, an anagram (‘new’) of ‘one’s’, plus S (‘Suit first’) | ||
| 5 | SYNDICATE |
Group supplying material to newspapers announces two girls (9)
|
| Sounds like (‘announces’) CINDY KATE (‘two girls’). | ||
| 6 | ROAST BEEF |
Criticise complaint at Sunday lunch (5,4)
|
| A charade of ROAST (‘criticise’) plus BEEF (‘complaint’). ‘at’ might be added to the definition. | ||
| 7 |
Communication of some parliamentary upset (5)
|
|
| A hidden (‘some’) reversed (‘upset’ in a down light) answer in ‘parLIAMEntary’. | ||
| 8 | ROUND THE CLOCK |
How hands move 24/7? (5,3,5)
|
| Double definition. | ||
| 9 | SALAD DRESSING |
South African boy making smoother mayonnaise (5,8)
|
| A charade of S (‘south’) plus A (‘African’) plus LAD (‘boy’) plus DRESSING (‘making smoother’). An indication by example. | ||
| 15 | CANCELLED |
Revoked, when intoxicated in prison room? Quite the opposite (9)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of CELL (‘prison room’) in CANED (‘intoxicated’; I am familiar with canned in this sense, but it seems that CANED is another of the many words and expressions wiith this meaning). | ||
| 16 | ITINERANT |
I can go on about English drifter (9)
|
| An envelope (‘about’) of E (‘English’) in ITINRANT, a charade of ‘I’ plus TIN (‘can’) plus RANT (‘go on’). | ||
| 17 | OLD FRENCH |
Vieux? (3,6)
|
| Cryptic definition, sort of. | ||
| 21 | SEDER |
Meal for Passover some organised erroneously (5)
|
| A hidden answer (‘some’) in ‘organiSED ERroneously’. | ||
| 22 | SUSHI |
Delicacy from his US cooking (5)
|
| An anagram (‘cooking’) of ‘his US’. | ||
| 23 | CHARM |
Goldfinches in a group delight (5)
|
| Double definition, the first being the collective noun. |
Nice puzzle, nothing too contrived or obscure.
I will mention one curious thing, though. While vieux is OLD FRENCH, it isn’t Old French. Old French for “old” is “viel” (see here).
Tx.
Caned? Another to add to the very long list of synonyms for “intoxicated”. Do we need any more?
Unsurprisingly, I’d not heard of the old BBC magazine, but it couldn’t have been anything else.
I learnt a new collective noun. And I’d never heard of SEDER till I looked it up. Of the UK-specific clues, DOWNING STREET was easy, SHANNON less so, but the wordplay was straightforward.
A plesant solve with plenty of smiles, thanks Maskarade.
Thanks PeterO. I thought the anagrist and answer for1 across was a great find. I imagine it’s been done before (but couldn’t find it on 15sq search). I bet the locals know it. (I live in a town spelt with half the letters of the alphabet, none of them repeated, and all of the vowels included, but I bet apart from me and the person I stole that fact from, no one else probably knows.)
I was intrigued and looked up Drewsteignton and found it was recorded in the Domesday Book. Is Maskarade telling us something about Downing Street?
My favourite was SCINTILLA for its musicality. SYNDICATE induced a gruckle. (groan/chuckle) Near enough but good enough (not in my dialect though).
Liked DOWNING STREET, SCINTILLA and ITINERANT.
OLD FRENCH: Agree with the blogger (not quite cryptic).
Thanks Maskarade and PeterO.
Good question, pdm @3. [As it happens, I knew about Drewsteignton as we have friends who live there].
Nice gentle puzzle, ta both.
[Oh and another old mate lived a couple of stops further up from yours ….]
@2 Geoff that made me laugh. There is an excellent skit by the comedian Michael McIntyre where he says the same thing
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O597Bs6LZ7U
Good one, Rats.
I used to think that our longest lists of euphemisms belonged to toilets and sex, but I might think again. 🙂
[gif @6 Let us know if you’re ever coming this way.]
A pb for me.
SEDER unknown, but easily solved.
Thanks M and P
.ssem s’yadnuS naht reisae hcuM
[Ta much pdm, love to but travelling days sadly over]