I don’t normally blog the FT but as it was the only free newspaper with a decent crossword available on the Heathrow to Newcastle flight yesterday I gave it a go. At the end of a marathon 24 hour journey that saw me travel from Honolulu to the Durham Dales any UK crossword was welcome. As a non-reader of the FT two things struck me. First, who else is Flimsy? Second, why is the FT grid so tiny?
Anyway, I easily polished off the puzzle on the short flight bar one clue. The puzzle was straightforward with a some very nice clues with good surface readings.
| Across |
| 4 |
STUDENTS — STUD+(SENT)* — good surface reading. |
| 11 |
NACRE — oystER CAN < — very nice &lit |
| 19 |
BESTOW — BES(t)+TO+W |
| 21 |
COMPUTE — PUT in COME — a selection of words that suggests there should be more until the synonyms of deposit and advance are seen. |
| 28 |
OVERNIGHT — (HER VOTING)* — good anagram tied to the surface well. |
| 30 |
ROTATE — RO(t)+TATE — it had to end in TATE! |
|
| Down |
| 1 |
BANKNOTE — (BEN+A KNOT)* mdash; excellent surface with reference to the old children’s TV characters of Bill and Ben hiding the definition well. |
| 3 |
ECHO — H in ECO — ref Umberto Eco who wrote The Name of the Rose among others. |
| 7 |
NACHO — oN A CHOcolate — I’m not sure whether this is quite enough, “Biting on a chocolate chip”. |
| 9 |
?O?P?E — “Crumpet picked up by smooth man with this?(6)” |
| 20 |
WITHOUT — THOU in WIT — lacking is a subtle definition here |
| 24 |
EASEL — EASE+L |
| 26 |
UNDO — (f)UN+DO — ending with anoother excellent surface reading. |
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