The puzzle may be found at https://observer.co.uk/puzzles/everyman/article/everyman-no-4139 in the interactive form, or at https://cdn.slowdownwiseup.co.uk/media/documents/obs.everyman.20260215.pdf as a pdf.
All present and correct, with the usual Everyman trademarks: the rhyming pair (2D BENJAMIN BRITTEN and 7D AS WEAK AS A KITTEN), the one word anagram (4D LIONESSES), the geographical reference (24A TIRANA), the Everyman reference (20A NAIVE) and the ‘primarily’ clue (12A CLARO). These are all highlighted in the grid. In the blog, “sounds like” may not apply to all idiolects, and likewise the rhyming pair.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | ABSEIL |
Quickly go down aisle, tipsily grasping bride’s head (6)
|
| An envelope (‘grasping’) of B (‘Bride’s head’) in ASEIL, an anagram (‘tipsily’) of ‘aisle’. | ||
| 5 | APPEAR |
Seem to be one that’s noble on a podcast (6)
|
| Sounds like (‘on a podcast’) A PEER (‘one that’s noble’). | ||
| 8 | NO-SCORE DRAW |
Number to etch, but use pencil to depict football result (2-5,4)
|
| A charade of NO (‘number’) plus SCORE (‘etch’) plus DRAW (‘use pencil’). | ||
| 11 | ABASEMENT |
See Batman writhing in shame (9)
|
| An anagram (‘writhing’) of ‘see Batman’. | ||
| 12 | CLARO |
Cigar: light and refined one, primarily! (5)
|
| Everyman’s ‘primarily’ clue this week: the first letters of ‘Cigar Light And Refined One’. It is indeed a kind of cigar. | ||
| 13 | FRIENDS |
Runs into baddies in sitcom (7)
|
| An envelope (‘into’) of R (‘runs’) in FIENDS (‘baddies’). | ||
| 14 | SEEPAGE |
Look at bit of document that’s a leak (7)
|
| A charade of SEE (‘look at’) plus PAGE (‘bit of document’). | ||
| 15 | DUBIOUS |
Term ‘promises to pay’ questionable (7)
|
| A charade of DUB (‘term’, verb, as name) plus IOUS (‘promises to pay’). | ||
| 17 | ENCHANT |
Preference: absence of piano in entrance (7)
|
| A subtraction: [p]ENCHANT (‘preference’) minus the P (‘absence of piano’). | ||
| 20 | NAIVE |
Starts to narrate anecdote – Everyman’s simplistic (5)
|
| A charade of NA (‘starts to Narrate Anecdote’) plus I’VE (‘Everyman’s’ with the ‘s for has). | ||
| 21 | ON THIN ICE |
In nice hot resort that’s unsafe (2,4,3)
|
| An anagram (‘re-sort’) of ‘in nice hot’. | ||
| 22 | TEACHER’S PET |
Cheat, and pester horrid swot (8,3)
|
| An anagram (‘horrid’) of ‘cheat’ plus ‘pester’. | ||
| 23 | IN-JOKE |
Call upon Juliet to replace Victor: not everyone gets it (2-4)
|
| A substitution: IN[v]OKE (‘call upon’) with the V repolaced by J (‘Juliet to replace Victor’, with reference to the NATO alphabet, although the correct rendering of the letter J is Juliett). | ||
| 24 | TIRANA |
Time I governed a European capital (6)
|
| A charade of T (‘time’) plus ‘I’ plus RAN (‘governed’) plus ‘a’, for the capital of Albania. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | BENJAMIN BRITTEN |
Music maker Franklin’s sung of country? (8,7)
|
| A charade of BENJAMIN (‘Franklin’, another famous person with that forename) plus BRITTEN, sounding like (‘sung of’) BRITAIN (‘country’). | ||
| 3 | EASTERN |
Oriental festival, the start of Naadam (7)
|
| A charade of EASTER (‘festival’) plus N (‘the start of Naadam’, a Mongolian festival). | ||
| 4 | LIONESSES |
Oddly noiseless footballers (9)
|
| An anagram (‘oddly’) of ‘noiseless’, for the nickname of the England women’s soccer team. | ||
| 5 | AGENT |
Singular fellow, sales rep perhaps (5)
|
| A charade of A (‘singular’) plus GENT (‘fellow’). | ||
| 6 | PORSCHE |
A little map (or schema) depicting transportation option (7)
|
| A hidden answer (‘a little’) in ‘maP OR SCHEma’. In the original, schema is in italics. | ||
| 7 | AS WEAK AS A KITTEN |
Frail Saint Kate: a wake’s arranged (2,4,2,1,6)
|
| An anagram (‘arranged’) of ‘Saint Kate a wake’s’. | ||
| 9 | GAFF |
What you may do to salmon in your home (4)
|
| Double definition, with neither one being common: to use a gaff, a hook to land large fish; and a house. | ||
| 10 | NOTE |
NB: school’s upwardly mobile (4)
|
| A reversal (‘upwardly mobile’ in a down light) of ETON (‘school’). | ||
| 14 | SMELT A RAT |
‘Fish flipping so long’ was suspicious (5,1,3)
|
| A charade of SMELT (‘fish’) plus A RAT, a reversal (‘flipping’) of TARA (or tata, ‘so long’ or goodbye). | ||
| 15 | DONS |
Puts on academics (4)
|
| Double definition. | ||
| 16 | OREGANO |
Lear’s daughter, beset by ducks, leaves (7)
|
| An envelope (‘beset by’) of REGAN (‘Lear’s daughter’ in Shakespeare’s King Lear) in O O (‘ducks’). | ||
| 18 | CHIPPER |
Fit a device making sawdust (7)
|
| Double definition. I would have thought that a chipper made chips rather than sawdist. | ||
| 19 | TOED |
Kicked warty amphibian that can be heard (4)
|
| Sounds like (‘that can be heard’) TOAD (‘warty amphibian’). | ||
| 21 | OCHRE |
Loch Restil hiding brownish colour (5)
|
| A hidden answer (‘hiding’) in ‘LOCH REstil’. |
Didn’t know GAFF in either meaning, so failed on that; same with CHIPPER. Otherwise, fine; I liked SEEPAGE and BENJAMIN BRITTEN. Thanks Everyman and PeterO
Thanks for the blog , I thought this was generally very good with neat and concise clues .
NB = NOTE is a bit too obvious .
I could not find CHIPPER as a device , is it what you use to make larger branches suitable for composting ? They do make a lot of sawdust ( and noise ) .
Exactly that, Roz@2 – I have one that minces up the moh family Christmas tree each year. And yes, they do make a lot of sawdust!
Thanks to E for a nicely pliable puzzle – I especially enjoyed Lear’s daughter being beset by ducks – and to PeterO for the ever-excellent blog (and for wisely avoiding any homophonic commentary!)
Thanks MOH , it is not in Chambers93 but perhaps they are quite modern . Our Christmas trees go to make new sand dunes .
What a lot of meanings GAFF has. I’m surprised that we don’t see it more often given that.
The meaning for a house, pile, building etc. seemed to fall out of use, but like some first names, is making a comeback among the younger.
As for CHIPPER, what’s the difference between sand and gravel to a giant anyway?
Thanks all.
Thanks for parsing 2D. I thought there was an error because of the grammar. I put BENJAMIN BRITTEN in but couldn’t fully parse it. Never heard of WEAK AS A KITTEN but figured it out.
Like Layman @1 failed on gaff and chipper (also on enchant). What work is “Fit a” doing in the clue for “chipper”?
Toby@7 – Fit means chipper , upbeat , healthy etc . Then A device ….
I think it’s mainly used of older people as in ‘Old Joe had a fall but I saw him recently and he looked quite chipper.’
I have reached the age of being chipper and sprightly, rather than fit and active. Chambers says Chipper is for making chips, so the clue at first read like a harsh comment on the quality of fast food.
This week I learned new meanings of gaff and smelt. The only one I struggled with this week was the parsing of 5a – I completely missed the homophone indicator and got caught up with ‘one that’s noble’ being a noble gas, in this case Argon (AR) and podcast being something cryptic about peas and podding them, a sort of casting peas from their pods. Oh dear! I’ve seen 16d clued similarly before, as ‘herb ducks hug ungrateful daughter’. Great crossword though. Thanks Everyman, and thanks PeterO for the blog post.
6d Porsche as a transportation option I found mildly amusing. Reminded me of those old car stickers that read “My other car’s a Porsche”. Thanks PeterO and Everyman.
HumbleTim@12: and the version for Porsche owners: My other car is also a Porsche
I think a chipper can also be a chippie (fish and chip shop), though not relevant here.
Very enjoyable but needed help to get OREGANO as I wasn’t up to date with the names of Lear’s daughters.
I thought this was relatively straightforward and enjoyable. I liked the bride going to ABSEIL, the absence of piano leading to ENCHANT, and the flipping fish giving SMELT A RAT.
Thanks Everyman and PeterO.
Humble Tim 12,
Weren’t car stickers great? The best that attention seekers could do before social media.
My favourite laugh out loud ones were “we slow down for horses” and “show dogs in transit”…
Roz @2
18D CHIPPER: it depends on what you put in. Think Fargo…
… a 1996 film. Apart from that, the ones I have come across are big, and commercially or municipally owned, and the end products are definitely chips, although a closer look (not too close!) probably would show some sawdust as a by-product.
One of those days when they jump out at you.
It helps if you know about football pools for NO SCORE DRAW. I liked ON THIN ICE, IN JOKE & ENCHANT.
40 mins flat.
Thought of Gaff but didn’t put it in as I couldn’t make the rest of the clue work.
Everything else straightforward.
I’m with Mr Singleton from Pakuranga.
The answers just flowed which made this puzzle a pleasure.
Thanks P O and E
Same here – 40 mins flat. A new PB
Got gaff even though the house aspect was not straight in the front door.
Otherwise no guesses but fun on a crusisy Easter Saturday evening.
Great crossword this week, thoroughly enjoyed it. Our top picks: ABSEIL; IN-JOKE; DUBIOUS.
Many thanks Everyman
Funny this gaggle of Aucklanders. (Me Birkenhead.) Almost a write-in, just needed to check GAFF in Green’s slang dictionary.
Found this one a bit more comfortable after 2 weeks of DNF.
Agree with Singleton @ 20. Growing up hearing the phrase no-score draw on a Saturday evening helped with 8A and was somewhat nostalgic.