Monday Prize Crossword / Oct 31, 2016
A bit of falconry to start the FT week.
All smooth and simple.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | DIATRIBE | Bitter speech from US attorney about island race (8) |
| DA (US attorney) around I (island), then + TRIBE (race) | ||
| 5 | MADCAP | Foolish better, impulsive (6) |
| MAD (foolish) + CAP (better) | ||
| 10 | BORACIC | Penniless bachelor caught in Cairo, embarrassed (7) |
| B (bachelor) + {C (caught) inside (CAIRO)*} [* = embarrassed] | ||
| 11 | ORIGAMI | Ring French friend about fake Japanese art (7) |
| O (ring) + AMI (friend, in French), together around RIG (fake) | ||
| 12 | TWEET | Showing time for son in delightful message (5) |
| SWEET (delightful) with S (son) replaced by T (time) | ||
| 13 | ESTATE CAR | Dash back across country in station wagon (6,3) |
| Reversal [back] of RACE (dart) around STATE (country) | ||
| 14 | EAT ONE’S WORDS | Retract what was said in quarrelsome conversation after European makes amends (3,4,5) |
| WORDS (quarrelsome conversation) coming after {E (European) + ATONES (makes amends)} | ||
| 18 | SPEAK VOLUMES | Convey much significant information in address books (5,7) |
| SPEAK (address) + VOLUMES (books) | ||
| 21 | IN ARREARS | Rain’s rare for resort, but overdue (2,7) |
| (RAIN’S RARE)* [* = for resort] | ||
| 23 | THEME | Subject of article: Middle East (5) |
| THE (article) + M.E. (Middle East) | ||
| 24 | AT HEART | Really try in a bike racing event (2,5) |
| HEAR (try) inside A TT (bike racing event – motorbikes, that is) | ||
| 25 | IMITATE | Mimic one Italian introduced to pal (7) |
| I (one) + {IT (Italian) inside MATE (pal)} | ||
| 26 | EARTHY | Crude burrow close to shrubbery (6) |
| EARTH (burrow) + [shrubber]Y | ||
| 27 | KNIGHTED | Hold that back about good editor given an honour (8) |
| Reversal [back] of THINK (hold (that)) around G (good), + ED (editor) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | DEBATE | Talk about girl coming out at end of June (6) |
| DEB (girl coming out, short for ‘debutante’) + AT + [Jun]E | ||
| 2 | AGREED | A deadly sin all right (6) |
| A GREED (deadly sin) | ||
| 3 | RACETRACK | People on line for Belmont Park, perhaps (9) |
| RACE (people) + TRACK (line) | ||
| 4 | BACHELOR OF ARTS | Graduate in robe, fat scholar, ungainly (8,2,4) |
| (ROBE FAT SCHOLAR)* [* = ungainly] | ||
| 6 | A-LIST | Top celebrities included by journalists? (1-4) |
| Hidden solution [included by]: journalists | ||
| 7 | CHANCERY | Opening lines in court (8) |
| CHANCE (opening, an opportunity) + RY (lines, short for ‘railway’) | ||
| 8 | PRIMROSE | Priggish girl in pale yellow (8) |
| PRIM (priggish) + ROSE (girl) | ||
| 9 | POP THE QUESTION | Propose father, male on mission, breaks into supply (3,3,8) |
| POP (father) + {HE (male) + QUEST (mission), together inside (INTO)*} [* = supply] | ||
| 15 | WRESTLING | Pulling across lake in sport (9) |
| WRESTING (pulling) around L (lake) | ||
| 16 | ESTIMATE | I’m dividing possessions for valuation (8) |
| I’M inside ESTATE (possessions) | ||
| 17 | METAPHOR | A figure of speech to hamper translation (8) |
| (TO HAMPER)* [* = translation] | ||
| 19 | REPAST | Meal’s about over (6) |
| RE (about) + PAST (over) | ||
| 20 | LEGEND | On completion produces key (6) |
| LEG (on, cricket side) + END (completion) | ||
| 22 | REACH | To get there some hire a charabanc (5) |
| Hidden solution [some]: hire a charabanc | ||
*anagram
Bit surprised at 10a getting past the editor as it’s rhyming slang though I’ve always known it as borassic lint
Thanks Falcon and Sil
Found this relatively hard for this setter, taking more than an hour to crack it for some reason – looking back over the answers it is difficult to see why that was. Anyway enjoyed the challenge and eventually it all fell out.
Didn’t know the rhyming slang, BORACIC, so had to look up the different combinations of the anagram to get to the right one. Noticed a couple of RACEs and a couple of ESTATEs in the solutions.
Finished in the NW corner with DIATRIBE, that BORACIC and TWEET the last few in.
Failed to get 24ac. Why does really = at heart? Thanks Falcon and Sil.