Azed No. 2,778

Not a typical Azed plain this week.

In my opinion, this was not up to the usual standards of an Azed. It was still an excellent puzzle for the most part, but there were too many anagrams, and STENO and STENOTYPIST in the same puzzle that JE (I in French) appears twice? There were also a few missing indicators, such as “old” to let us know that we are looking for an old word for “court” in the clue for SUJEE, but as I say, the puzzle still had some cracking clues such as the ones for FRIES, SCORRENDO and ASSASSIN BUG.

Thanks, Azed.

ACROSS
1 ACROTISM
Non-U music, rota played displaying lack of beat (8)
*(misc rota) [anag:played] where MISC is [non-U] M(u)SIC
8 JOSS
He avoids hoaxes – it’s just luck (4)
HE avoids JOS(he)S (“hoaxes”)
13 ANTIRIOT
Keeping the peace, police ration it possibly (8)
*(ration it) [anag:possibly]
14 SUJEE
The first person in Paris to enter court? One’ll clear the decks (5)
JE (French for I, so “the first person in Paris”) to enter SUE (archaic term for “to court”)
15 IDLE
Edges, outsides trimmed, useless (4)
(s)IDLE(s) (“edges”, with its outsides trimmed)
16 SCORRENDO
Where music appears mostly to tear away with love, gliding (9)
SCOR(e) (“where music appears”, mostly) + REND (“to tear”) with O (love, in tennis)

In music, “scorrendo” means “gliding”.

18 MOCKADO
Scoff attached to bustle, old Flemish cloth (7)
MOCK (“scoff”) attached to ADO (“bustle”)
19 SIENNA
It may be insane in pudding, raw or burnt possibly (6)
*(insane) [anag:it may be]

Raw and burnst sienna are paint colours, while Sienna pudding is another name for Panforte di Siena.

20 MUDCAT
US fish, male beside a duct, swimming (6)
M (male) beside *(a duct) [anag:swimming]
24 STOTTY
Bread loaf, square, very small (6)
S (square) + TOTTY (“very small”)
25 DREARY
What often leads me round centre of garth, doleful? (6)
DEARY (“what often leads “me””) round [centre of] (ga)R(th)
26 INSERTS
Gathered tress in loose sheets (7)
*(tress in) [anag:gathered]
31 GARIBALDI
Loose blouse, cheerful, French, low inside (9)
GAI (“cheerful” in “French”) with RIBALD (“low”) inside
32 BRAW
Well-dressed Scottish bachelor, unrefined (4)
B (bachelor) + RAW (“unrefined”)

“Braw” means “fine” or “well-dressed” in Scots.

33 FRIES
What may accompany French ladies’ underwear badly cut? (5)
FR(ill)IES (“ladies’ underwear”) with ILL (“badly”) cut
34 UNDULATE
Excessive round pillar, wavy (8)
UNDUE (“excessive”) round LAT (“pillar” in India)
35 GAEA
Earth left out of helmet-like structure (4)
L (left) out of GA(l)EA (“helmet-like structure”)
36 SLAPSHOT
Catching line wild pass, powerful? Puck is dispatched with it (8)
*(pass) [anag:wild] catching L (line) + HOT (“powerful”)
DOWN
2 CHUCK IT
Tuck I cooked after church? Stop (7, 2 words)
*(tuck i) [anag:cooked] after Ch. (church)
3 REJONEO
It’s played out in the ring? Copy in France I turned up within (7)
<=JE (“I in France”, turned up) within RONEO (“copy” using an old copying machine)

“Rejoneo” is the art of bullfighting using lances known as rejones.

4 OPERANT
Active worshipper absorbing potential energy (7)
ORANT (“worshipper”) absorbing PE (potential energy)
5 IN REM
What’s contained in certain remarks against everyone (5, 2 words)
Hidden in [what’s contained in] “certaIN REMarks”

“In rem” is a legal term.

6 STENO
One maybe scribbling notes (5)
*(notes) [anag:scribbling] and &lit.
7 MINDCURE
This could make medic run couch treatment? (8)
*(medic run) [anag:this could make]
9 OIDIA
Fungal phases? One’s twice penetrated gynaeceum (5)
I + I (“one”) twice penetrated ODA (“gynaeceum”, a room for women, especially in a brothel)
10 SOLID
Reliable in second rank (5)
S (second) + OLID (“rank”)
11 STENOTYPIST
One often typing? Totty (not the first) steps in, excited (11)
*(otty steps in) [anag:excited] where OTTY is (t)OTTY [not the first (letter)]
12 ASSASSIN BUG
Like impertinence in US big’un put about, irritating non-person? (11, 2 words)
AS (“like”) + SASS (“impertinence in the US”) + *(big un) [anag:put about]
17 ENTRAILS
Tripe as before requires involving recipe (8)
ENTAILS (“requires”) involving R (recipe)
21 DEPARTS
Leaves spread about round start of tornado (7)
*(spread) [anag:about] round [start of] T(ornado)
22 CARLISH
Liar’s misbehaving in clubhouse like an old clown (7)
*(liars) [anag:misbehaving] in CH (clubhouse)
23 ART DECO
Ornamental style traced out on centre of baroque (7, 2 words)
*(traced) [anag:out] on [centre of] (bar)O(que)
27 NORNA
Fate coming up around end of fever (5)
ANON (“coming up”, around) [end of] (feve)R
28 SPADE
What slices blubber without ovaries, we hear (5)
Homophone/pun/aural wordplay [we hear] of SPAYED (“without ovaries”)
29 TRIAL
Comic tenor, a nuisance (5)
Double definition, the first referring to a tenor who specialises in comic parts, named after Antoine Trial, an 18th century singer at the Opéra-Comique in Paris.
30 SITTA
Tit’s damaged bit of ash – it hacks at seeds (5)
*(tits) [anag:damaged] + [bit of] A(sh)

Sitta is the nuthatch genus.

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