My second chance on the trot to lock horns with Hoskins as part of the Sunday rotation, which is by no means a complaint.
The usual good fun here: lots of very smooth and enjoyable surface readings, and a judicious sprinkling of slightly cheeky moments that might not make it into some of the more 18 across publications.
I was perhaps a little slower off the mark than on some Sundays, though it’s hard to know that if had more to do with with the relative difficulty of the puzzle, or—far more likely—my slowness of brain. No real hold-ups in the end though, apart from my last one in at 14 across where I did need a little help despite everything being perfectly fair.
Hard to pick a favourite when they’re all rather lovely. I’m sure readers will be able to share theirs, all the same. Anyway, thanks once again to Hoskins.
| Across | ||
| 1 | CAN OF WORMS | Mess that an angler might have had a hand in? (3,2,5) |
| Two definitions, the latter slightly whimsical perhaps, and referring to fishing bait. | ||
| 6 | GARB | You could say I am good about clothes (4) |
| BRAG<. Saying “I am good” might be seen as bragging. | ||
| 10 | ANIMATE | A brief dram plus Bud – that’s living (7) |
| A + NI[p] + MATE. | ||
| 11 | CHOLERA | Nasty complaint impeding cavity? Bend over! (7) |
| ARC< containing HOLE. | ||
| 12 | SWORE | Did this, being annoyed about wife (5) |
| W in SORE and I think &lit. | ||
| 13 | AWESTRUCK | Amazed to see One Direction having fight (9) |
| A + WEST + RUCK. | ||
| 14 | BEGONE | Get out of it, perhaps with individual on Bass (6) |
| B + EG + ONE. A new term for me, at least as one word rather than two, but it’s right there in my dictionary. | ||
| 16 | ELAPSES | Slips away from area and sleeps around (7) |
| Anagram of (A and SLEEPS). | ||
| 18 | AUSTERE | Time Her Maj should enter a service sober (7) |
| (T + ER). in (A + USE). | ||
| 21 | EVENTS | Incidents in the 100 and 200 metres? (6) |
| Two definitions. | ||
| 24 | INHERITED | I’d neither gone off or was left (9) |
| Anagram of (I‘D NEITHER). | ||
| 25 | ATTIC | In flagrante, but half-upset (cold room) (5) |
| AT + IT< + C. | ||
| 26 | SHORTIE | Half-pint of cider taken regularly after whisky? (7) |
| [c]I[d]E[r] after SHORT. | ||
| 27 | RED DEER | Beast always chasing after flushed duke (3,4) |
| EER after (RED + D). | ||
| 28 | SUSS | Having changed top, bother to work out? (4) |
| From FUSS, with its top/first letter changed to S. | ||
| 29 | TENDERISED | Cook did entrées, then pounded the meat? (10) |
| Anagram of (DID ENTREES). | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | COARSE | Rough business heading waste disposal unit? (6) |
| CO ahead of ARSE. | ||
| 2 | NOISOME | I’m soon dancing on E and awfully smelly (7) |
| (IM SOON)* on E. | ||
| 3 | FRAME | Stitch up celebrity cut by Republican leader (5) |
| R[epublican] in FAME. | ||
| 4 | OPERATE | Work and work with energy on speed (7) |
| OP + E + RATE. | ||
| 5 | MACHETE | Teach me to fly a chopper in the jungle? (7) |
| Anagram of (TEACH ME). | ||
| 7 | AVENUES | Ways a love goddess will inspire ecstasy (7) |
| E in (A + VENUS). | ||
| 8 | BRACKISH | Salty bishop cut twice is full of anguish (8) |
| RACK in BISH[op]. | ||
| 9 | BOAT RACE | Hint of a strangler in Danny Dyer’s face (4,4) |
| BOA TRACE. Danny Dyer is the ridiculous buffoon who pretends to be a cockney on TV, hence this is rhyming slang for face. | ||
| 15 | OVERRATE | Extra charge to put May in the good PM category? (8) |
| OVER + RATE. | ||
| 17 | MAFIOSOS | What completes Liam of Oasis: wrestling dons? (8) |
| Anagram of ([lia]M OF OASIS). | ||
| 19 | SCHLOSS | German building kitsch, loss-making houses (7) |
| Hidden in [kit]SCH LOSS[-making], and the German word for a castle. | ||
| 20 | EXTREME | Intense, but unopened message about Hoskins (7) |
| [t]EXT + RE + ME. | ||
| 21 | ENDURED | Stop, you ruddy bore (7) |
| END + U + RED. | ||
| 22 | TITTERS | Are they a bit higher than belly laughs? (7) |
| Cryptic definition. | ||
| 23 | SCORED | So lacking in love, my editor bought drugs (6) |
| S[o] + COR + ED. | ||
| 25 | ADDER | Summer days in embrace of a European Romeo (5) |
| (D + D) in (A + E + R). | ||
* = anagram; < = reversed; [] = removed; underlined = definition; Hover to expand abbreviations
Lots to enjoy, as usual. Some cheeky clues such as COARSE and TITTERS, and the usual clue at HM’s expense at 18a. Lots of nicely constructed surfaces, such as those for AWESTRUCK, TENDERISED, MACHETE and SCORED. Used a word fit to finish with MAFIOSO – a tricky one I thought. I felt the surface for 6a would work better without the first two words but others may disagree. Thanks to S&B.
I thought Harry was occupying Paul territory here and thats not a complaint,Veey entertaining all round with SW holding out longest. Particularly liked 21 which raised an eyebrow until I realised past tense. Thanks all-perfect for a Sunday-also liked 23d.
Danny has always spoken very highly of you, Simon.
Another Harry special that would doubtless send many editors apoplectic! 1d heading the field in that regard with several others close on its heels. Not sure whether it’s a good thing but I find that these days they tend to just make me laugh (the risqué clues that is, not the editors!).
Think 1a took the honours for me today.
Thank you for this one, Hoskins – trust that Mrs J is back at her post?
Thanks also to Simon for the blog.
At It, Tits, Arse, Scored… Harry, you’re a very naughty boy! A fun puzzle once I’d restarted it in Firefox after Chrome crashed on me 3 times, tasking out my desktop on one attempt. Grhh. Had to enlist a bit of help on 9d as I had no idea who Danny Dyer was, and was about to put in BOOT LACE in despair. SUSS and MAFIOSOS were my last two in. Took me a while to untangle the parsing for the dons. Keep up the good work. Thanks for the blog Simon.
Mostly good fun, but we needed a wordfinder for MAFIOSOS and (knowing little about Danny Dyer) BOAT RACE. And we thought the clue for CHOLERA a bit odd – surely ‘cavity’ is impeding ‘bend over’, not vice-versa?
Liked CAN OF WORMS and TENDERISED (our first two in).
Thanks, Hoskins and Simon
To Allan_c @ 6
I had the same reservation over CHOLERA. Unless the “bend over” is doing double duty and reversing the containment as well. What say you Harry?
Many thanks to SH for the usual grand blog and to all who solved and especially those who commented and double especially to John who continued in the face of technical difficulties.
I’ve been out all day at a chess tournament (very early start!) and am knackered so will, you all will be glad to hear, be brief in reply today.
Looked like the SW was trickier here than was for test solver so apologies to anyone who got hung up there on their Sunday solve. With regard to the parse of CHOLERA, I wrote it as: ‘containing A is B reversed’ with the punctuation break filling in for the ‘is’. Polly better with a comma, though.
Jane @4 – well! Great to hear the slightly naughty ones are now getting a laugh – just as it should be. More importantly, Mrs J is back at her post, but almost got put out of business after I very happily received a gift box of Babycham the other day! Very many thanks for that, Jane – really put a smile on my face and was a lovely thought that made me day.
Well, I gots to put the feet up now and so it just remains for me to say huge thanks to all who visited today and I hope to see you all next time around. That’ll be on the 19th November with an easy, korma crossword, though more likely I’ll see you on the morrow when Vigo kicks of the Indy week with her usual nicely put together puzzle.
Cheers and chin-chin to all and, for those who can take it, the adventures of Mrs Jalopy will continue next week … 🙂
Struggled in the sw on this too, got there unaided but our was close. Bottle of Sol with lime not babycham from me.