Spectator 2748: What’s in a name? – II by Madrigal

by

Apologies for the delay in publication of the blog – enjoy!…

The preamble states that: “The unclued lights are linked to the title, two using the same thematic content.”

Madrigal produced a previous ‘What’s in a name’ puzzle a while back (before we started blogging the Spectator here) where the unclued lights were linked to constituent parts of MAD-RIG-AL.

This is a different treatment – after getting as much solved as I could, and (I am not ashamed to admit) after some liberal use of pattern-matching dictionary functionality, I finally twigged that the unclued lights all seemed to contain a capital city – CA_BERNE-T, JUBA-TE, etc. With BERN and BERNE using the ‘same thematic content‘ from the preamble, as I think they are the Swiss and French versions of the same place(?)

I came unstuck on 30A, originally entering DANDELION before I had solved 30D, and then settling on MANDYLION, and failing to see any capital in there. So a DNF for me, but I spotted, when I was writing up the blog, that there is an alternative spelling of the same word – MANDILION – which contains Dili, the capital of East Timor!

 

 

My thanks (with a grrrrr!) to Madrigal for a ‘capital’ puzzle! And I trust all is clear below…

 

Across
Clue No Solution Clue (definition underlined)

Logic/Parsing
11 COMBATANTS Search volunteer army among workers’ opponents (10)

COMB (search) + A_NTS (workers) around TA (Territorial Army, volunteer army)
13 NUMBS Omitting king from good book stupefies (5)

NUMB(ER)S – the Book of Numbers, from the bible, so a ‘good’ book, omitting ER (Edwardus Rex, King Edward)
14 CLOTH CAP Sails outdo symbol of the working class? (5,3)

CLOTH (sails) + CAP (out do)
17 LEEWARD Entice fish back to the sheltered side (7)

DRAW (entice) + EEL (fish), all back = LEEWARD
18 HORSIER More equine shows after removing a problematic presenter initially from Repair Shop broadcast (7)

subtractive anagram. i.e. broadcast, of RE(PA)IR SHO(P), removing APP (A + PP, initial letters of Problematic Presenter)
19 OSTENSIVE Clearly demonstrating event is so misplaced (9)

anag, i.e. misplaced, of EVENT IS SO
22 HAD Ate fish with head removed (3)

(S)HAD, or (C)HAD, fish, with head removed
23 ORGASM Soldiers’ garrulous talk heading for MOD release? (6)

OR (Other Ranks, soldiers, not officers) + GAS (garrulous talk) + M (heading, or first letter, of MOD)
24 EROTIC Splitting compensation for turning blue (6)

ER_IC (blood fine, compensation) around (split by) OT (to, or for, turning)
26 IFS Institute for Fiscal Studies provides conditions (3)

the Institute for Fiscal Studies is often reduces to IFS, in lower case, ifs, multiple conditions
32 ANISEED Cordial one is found in poverty (7)

A (one) + N_EED (poverty) around IS
33 TUGBOAT One on the water, mammal eats nothing after stomach upset (7)

TUG (gut, stomach, upset) + B_AT (mammal) around (eating) O (zero, nothing)
36 INTENDED At home, nursed fiancé (8)

IN (at home) + TENDED (nursed)
37 KNEES These joints reportedly make a sudden expiration (5)

homophone, i.e. reportedly – KNEES (these joints) can sound like NEESE, or NEEZE (sneeze, or sudden expiration)
39 GOD DAY Edmund’s greeting is merry when rum is drunk (3,3)

G_AY (merry) around (drinking) OD_D (rum)
40 BUSTARDS These birds might lead you to sard? (8)

a cryptic clue for ‘sard’ might be BUST ARDS!
Down
Clue No Solution Clue (definition underlined)

Logic/Parsing
2 ACUTEST Broadcasting a snooker challenge perhaps is most shrewd (7)

homophone, i.e. broadcasting – a snooker challenge might be A CUE TEST, which can sound like ACUTEST, most shrewd
3 EMBOWER Give protection to one in parliament briefly adopted by leaderless MP (7)

(M)EMB_ER (MP, Member of Parliament, without leading letter) around OW(L) (an owl, briefly, or short of a letter, collective noun a parliament)
4 NAMERS They term bad manners heartless (6)

subtractive anagram or MAN(N)ERS, removing heart, or middle letter
5 TALK Peel stems discourse (4)

(S)TALK(S), stems, peeled of outer letters
7 UTTERERS Speakers head off those covering toast perhaps (8)

those covering toast might be (B)UTTERERS!
9 TEASELS Ultimately florist stands display plants (7)

T (ultimate letter of florisT) + EASELS (stands)
10 EXPERIMENTISTS Testers’ questionable premises in text (14)

anag, i.e. questionable, of PREMISES IN TEXT
12 SHASH Former band’s meaty dish lacks taste (5)

SHASH(LICK), meaty dish/kebab, lacking LICK (taste)

[shash being a former spelling of sash, or band]
15 OBOE Stop vessel before terminal (4)

OBO (oil tanker, vessel) + E (terminal letter of beforE)

[oboe being an organ stop, of the same tone as the instrument, oboe…]
16 RETROFITTED Modified Benedetti forte requires sampling on reflection (11)

reversed hidden word, i.e. ‘sampling’ and ‘on reflection’, in ‘beneDETTI FORTE Requires’

[great hiding of word!]
20 IDEA Thought middleman is appearing occasionally (4)

occasional letters of ‘mIdDlEmAn’
21 VEIN Report thoughtless streak (4)

homophone, i.e. reported – VEIN (streak) can sound like VAIN (thoughtless)
25 RUN INTO Two leading members of Trade Union unexpectedly meet (3,4)

anag, i.e. unexpectedly, of TR (two leading letters of TRade) + UNION
27 ALBANIA Country introducing prohibition as German leaves for another? (7)

AL(GER)IA, a country, losing GER (German) for BAN (prohibition) = ALBANIA!
28 GOATEED Vigorously attack returning comedian Jack, bearded (7)

GO AT (vigorously attack) + EED (Jack DEE, comedian, returned)
29 ISLET One’s rent is key (5)

IS (one’s) + LET (rent)
30 MEND Cobble a city lying lost (4)

MEND(ACITY), lying, losing A CITY
31 DUPERS Tricksters upset prudes (6)

anag, i.e. upset, of PRUDES
34 WEBB Cliff’s original name is a fabrication reportedly (4)

homophone, i.e. reportedly – Cliff Richards’ original name is Harry WEBB, which sounds like WEB, or fabrication

3 comments on “Spectator 2748: What’s in a name? – II by Madrigal”

  1. Jay
    #1 - Tue 5th May 26, 17:49

    “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet“.

    Then we have ROMEO in the grid. Haha, clearly a Romeo and Juliet theme! But, no.

    Oh well, that rabbit hole delayed me for a while, but otherwise straightforward with a bit of Googling to confirm DILI, JUBA, LOME and APIA.

    I had BERN and BERN as simple repetition, but BERNE may be the intended thematic content. We will see on Thursday.

    Thanks as always for the blog mc_rapper and to Madrigal for the challenge.

  2. Caran
    #2 - Tue 5th May 26, 17:59

    I enjoyed this., but didn’t find it particularly challenging at any point.I think the title impressed me more – the What’s In A Name being Mad RIGA l.

  3. Jay
    #3 - Tue 5th May 26, 18:04

    Good spot re the title, Caran, completely missed that.

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