Financial Times 15,451 by PETO

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I finished this, but not sure how…

…there were two clues I couldn’t parse.

6ac appeared to me to be a straightforward definition and I was lost on 17dn.  The ever-reliable Gaufrid has come to my rescue – see comment #1 below).

My only excuse was that I was trying to do this while getting ready for work and keeping an eye on the fascinating tennis match between Novak Djokovic and Denis Istomin (and cheering on the ultimately successful underdog!)

The clues were generally very good with neat surfaces (18ac – the recorder is an instrument of torture indeed, and 11ac, 21ac and , for example), but my pet hate of silent Rs appears once more in 15ac.

Thanks, Peto

Across
1 DISALLOW Refuse to sanction girl’s grant (8)
DI’S (“girl’s) + ALLOW
6 CREASE It’s made by folding end over one side (6)
 see comment 1
9 UPTURN Improvement shown by winning act (6)
UP (“winning”) + TURN
10 LORRAINE Girl’s learning to accept what Hugh Capet managed to do by the sound of it (8)
LORE (“learning”) “to accept” RAIN (homophone of REIGN)

Hugh Capet, who had links with the Lorraine region, was the first king of the Franks.
11 FIFTY-FIFTY Equally rebellious at heart? (5-5)
The heart of “rebeLLious” is LL (50-50 in Roman numerals)
12 OVER In preference to being directly above (4)
Double definition
13 GALLIC Something disagreeable about arresting one of the French (6)
GALL (“something disagreeable”) + C (“about”) “arresting” I (“one”)
15 DISPATCH Kill Pole reportedly during scrap (8)
Homophone, supposedly, of SPAR (“pole”) “during” DITCH

I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it, many people promounce the R at the ned of a word like SPAR, so SPA nad SPAR are not necessarily homophones.
18 RECORDER An instrument of torture eventually embraced by Catholic fraternity (8)
(tortur)E “embraced by” R.C. ORDER
20 DREARY Sad for Bottom after hint of doubt at end of play (6)
D(oubt) + REAR + (pla)Y
21 DATA A bit of contrary information (4)
<= A TAD
23 TUMBLEDOWN Wouldn’t be difficult to keep west end of mansion from crumbling (10)
*(wouldnt be) “to keep” M(ansion)
25 AGLITTER Sparkling silver object discovered in Lithuania by soldiers from the east (8)
Ag (“silver”) + IT(“object”) “discovered in” LT (internet domain code for “Lithuania”) + <=R.E.
26 NARKED Annoyed by Rex entering without the usual protection (6)
R(ex) “entering” NAKED
27 STRESS Force small lock (6)
S(mall) + TRESS
28 ENSEMBLE Get together when leaving after being oddly ignored by supporting players (8)
bEiNg (“odd letters of BEING ignored”)+ (as)SEMBLE
Down
2 IN PRIVATE All the rage before admitting Virginia’s overwhelmed by it secretly (2,7)
IN (“all the rage”) + PRE (“before”) “admitting” Va. “overwhelmed by” IT, so  IN PR(I(VA)T)E
3 ADULT A largely sombre time for a grown-up (5)
A + DUL(l) + T(ime)
4 LONG-FACED Dismal-looking fellow achieved high test score after quite a bit of time (4-5)
F(ellow) + ACED (“achieved high test score”) “after” LONG (“quite a bit of”, when referring to time)
5 WELL-FED Plump for fit female newspaper boss (4-3)
WELL (“fit”) + F(emale) ED(itor)
6 CARRY Bear found in vehicle on the outskirts of Rugby (5)
CAR + R(ugb)Y
7 ELABORATE Highly detailed American work on retired soldiers getting into drugs (9)
LABOR (American spelling of “labour”) on <=T.A. “getting into” E and E (“drugs”)
8 SINGE Burn letters from Roisin Geraghty (5)
Hidden in “RoiSIN GEraghty”
14 LOOK ALIKE Double agent’s source for example coming under scrutiny (4-5)
A(gent) + LIKE (“for example”) “under” LOOK (“scrutiny”)
16 SIDELINES Ends lies circulating about Peto’s subsidiary interests (9)
*(ends lies) “circulating about” I (“Peto”)
17 CARTWHEEL Political alliance hedging after falling short as a revolutionary movement (9)
 see comment 1
19 REMORSE Contrition shown by rock band found with heroin? Not at first (7)
R.E.M. (“rock band”) + (h)ORSE
22 ARGOT Slang for unmarried girl (5)
(m)ARGOT
23 TITUS Testimony primarily introduced to fit up emperor (5)
T(estimony) “introduced to” <=SUIT
24 DURUM Wheat from Uruguay originally stored in a cylindrical container (5)
U(ruguay) “stored in” DRUM

Durum wheat is used to make pasta, among other things.

*anagram

8 comments on “Financial Times 15,451 by PETO”

  1. Thanks loonapick
    6ac is CEASE (end) around (over) R (one side)
    17dn is CARTEL (political alliance) around (hedging) WHE[n] (after falling short)

  2. Thanks Peto and loonapick

    Started this on a train ride into the city this afternoon where I made minimal impact, did most of the rest of it on the train ride back and mopped up the last bits when I got home again. Found it pretty tough and although I was able to parse both of the ones that the blog couldn’t, I failed to see the parsing of TUMBLEDOWN (think that I forgot to go back to one that I initially passed on) and AGLITTER (where I thought that LI would be the abbreviation of Lithuania and couldn’t progress from there).

    Many cleverly constructed clues including FIFTY-FIFTY, RECORDER, NARKED and CARTWHEEL.

    Finished in the SE corner with CARTWHEEL, NARKED and DISPATCH the last few in.

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