Not too easy, not too hard, just right. Thank you Neo.
| Across | ||
| 1 | MISUSE | Is having to reflect about poor treatment (6) |
| IS inside (with…about) MUSE (to reflect) | ||
| 4 | ESOTERIC | Secret drinker last to rise in Morecambe? (8) |
| SOT (drinker) with risE (lest letter of) in ERIC (Eric Morcambe perhaps) | ||
| 9 | NYALA | Gangster in New York area is beast (5) |
| AL (Al Capone, gangster) in NY (New York) and A (area) – a spiral-horned antelope | ||
| 10 | VANCOUVER | Lead shield surrounds Uranium City in 21 (9) |
| VAN (lead) COVER (shield) contains U (Uranium) | ||
| 11 | ROBOTIC | Old boy, in tight trio, cold like mechanical man (7) |
| OB (old boy) in anagram (tight, drunk) of TRIO then C (cold) | ||
| 12 | TORONTO | Lone Ranger’s companion entertains men in state capital (7) |
| TONTO (Lone Ranger’s companion) contains (entertains) OR (men, other ranks) | ||
| 13 | ACID | Sharp Conservative to cut help for developing countries? (4) |
| C (Conservative) inside (to cut) AID (help for developing countries) | ||
| 14 | FORMLESS | Incoherent and lacking class? (8) |
| double/cryptic definition | ||
| 17 | GAS GIANT | Fuel GT carrying Scotsman’s massive body (3,5) |
| GAS (fuel) than GT containing IAN (typical Scottish name) | ||
| 19 | ANTI | Political opponent one seen by social worker (4) |
| I (one) following ANT (social worker) | ||
| 22 | TITANIC | Extremely large attic in for conversion (7) |
| anagram (for conversion) of ATTIC IN | ||
| 24 | ORATION | Formal speech on about relationship (7) |
| ON contains (about) RATIO (relationship) | ||
| 25 | ALBATROSS | Baggage southern family brought back to Scotland (9) |
| S (southern) with SORT (family) reversed (brought back) following (to) ALBA (Scotland) | ||
| 26 | AESOP | Fabulist initially allowed revolutionary attitude (5) |
| Allowed (initial letter of) then POSE (attitude) reversed (revolutionary) – writer of fables | ||
| 27 | AIRBRUSH | Song book with which rockers from 12 improve image (8) |
| AIR (song) B (book) with RUSH (rock band form Toronto) | ||
| 28 | LAPDOG | Sycophant in Californian force taking westbound journey (6) |
| LAPD (Californian police force) with GO (journey) reversed (westbound, right-to-left on a map) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | MONTREAL | Day and time no illusion in city in 21 (8) |
| MON (day) and T (time) with REAL (no illusion) | ||
| 2 | SHAMBLING | Going about clumsily in fake jewellery (9) |
| SHAM (fake) and BLING (jewellery) | ||
| 3 | SPARTA | Constituent in South Africa’s ancient city (6) |
| PART (constituent) in SA (South Africa) | ||
| 5 | SANCTIMONIOUS | No to musicians becoming self- righteous (13) |
| anagram of NO TO MUSICIANS | ||
| 6 | TOO TRUE | Use horn on French street? Yes indeed! (3,4) |
| TOOT (use horn) on RUE (French street) | ||
| 7 | RAVEN | Headless chicken or blackbird? (5) |
| cRAVEN (chicken, headless) – a black bird | ||
| 8 | CARBON | We’re made up with this vehicle, good in Paris (6) |
| CAR (vehicle) then BON (good, as written in Paris) | ||
| 10 | VICTORIA CROSS | Award winner – first clue in the puzzle! (8,5) |
| VICTOR (winner) then I ACROSS (1 across, first clue in the puzzle) | ||
| 15 | SUN-KISSED | Duskiness developing? Here’s why! (3-6) |
| anagram (developing) of DUSKINESS | ||
| 16 | WINNIPEG | Hybrid pig new in state capital (8) |
| anagram (hybrid) of PIG IN NEW – capital city of Manitoba | ||
| 18 | SENATOR | Guy from Barcelona maybe clutching at politician (7) |
| SENOR (guy from Barcelona maybe) contains AT | ||
| 20 | OTTAWA | Ring up a Scottish engineer in 21’s capital (6) |
| O (ring) then A WATT (James Watt, Scottish engineer) | ||
| 21 | CANADA | Country’s miraculous place diaspora vacated (6) |
| CANA (location of Jesus’s first mitacle) and DiasporA (vacated, empty inside) | ||
| 23 | TIBER | Roman banker and bishop involved in row (5) |
| B (bishop) in TIER (row) – the river Tiber, something with banks in Rome | ||
*anagram
definitions are underlined
I write these posts to help people get started with crosswords. If there is something here you do not understand feel to ask questions; chances are there are others wondering the same things.
Thanks to Neo and PeeDee.
I must have been lucky today as this was probably my quickest ever FT solve.
Thanks Neo and PeeDee
Enjoyable puzzle today with its theme around Canada, its major cities and one of it’s progressive rock bands. No major holdups apart from needing to check online to confirm that ALBA somehow meant Scotland. CANA was also unknown to me as the place where Jesus managed to turn water into wine.
Not necessarily hard clues but some fun constructions such as with LAPDOG, OTTAWA and particularly with VICTORIA CROSS.
Finished in the top left with SPARTA, NYALA and SHAMBLING the last few in.
[I did notice Grant’s blog for yesterday’s puzzle momentarily, yesterday, but it seems to have disappeared.]
brucew@aus
“[I did notice Grant’s blog for yesterday’s puzzle momentarily, yesterday, but it seems to have disappeared.]”
Yesterday’s puzzle was a prize one so I rescheduled the blog to appear the day after the closing date for entries
Thanks to Tees for a most enjoyable puzzle, although I could do without the resultant D-I-S-C-O earworm.
Thanks to PeeDee too, of course.
Thanks Neo, and Peedee. Thoroughly enjoyed this puzzle with the many references to my adopted homeland. Minor observation, that Canada has provinces (and territories) but no states. Nonetheless, this was my fastest solve ever.
re my post@4
Thanks to Neo, I should have said. Wrong hat; sorry.