Phi-day again and another great puzzle to end the week.
We can’t help feeling that there must be something going on here, but we can’t see it. Can anyone out there find anything? There are a few slightly unusual entries, but nothing obviously connected with anything else, as far as we can see.
We’ll be on the road most of today, travelling to Devon, so we may not be able to respond to any comments until this evening.
| Across | ||
| 1 | Row about good aggressive player (5) | |
| TIGER | TIER (row) round G (good) | |
| 4 | Aims often represented in this? (9) | |
| MANIFESTO | Clue as definition – an anagram of AIMS OFTEN – anagrind is ‘represented’ | |
| 9 | Small amount to worry military vehicle (7) | |
| AMTRACK | AMT (abbreviation of ‘amount’) RACK (worry) | |
| 10 | Lived in capsule with electricity? (7) | |
| POWERED | WERE (lived) in POD (capsule) | |
| 11 | Lure of an expectation? (6,4) | |
| GROUND RULE | ‘Lure’ is an anagram of RULE – the anagrind is GROUND | |
| 12 | American’s cautious, not having monarch continuously (4) | |
| AWAY | A (American) WA |
|
| 14 | Complaint as the man tails off (6) | |
| ASTHMA | AS + TH |
|
| 15 | Also directed to involve Mum where Dad likes to retreat? (4,4) | |
| TOOL SHED | TOO (also) LED (directed) round or ‘involving’ SH (mum) | |
| 18 | With a smart look, through occupying place in light (8) | |
| DAPPERLY | PER (through) in or ‘occupying’ PL (place) in DAY (light) | |
| 20 | Pin number written both ways secures money after entering, finally (6) | |
| GNOMON | NO (number) ON (number reversed or ‘both ways’) round or ‘securing’ M (money) all after G (last or ‘final’ letter of ‘entering’) | |
| 22 | Listen to dodgy money man withholding shilling (4) | |
| HARK | ||
| 23 | Entertainment venue where attendees add to the number (7,3) | |
| KARAOKE BAR | A cryptic definition – performers in a KARAOKE BAR sing to the backing track of songs (‘numbers’), ‘adding to them’ | |
| 26 | Head of officials reduced by accepting nothing regarding warning (7) | |
| OMINOUS | O (first letter or ‘head’ of ‘officials’) MINUS (reduced by) round or ‘accepting’ O (nothing) | |
| 27 | Celebratory meal the result of intervention by Aphrodite? (7) | |
| GALATEA | GALA TEA (‘celebratory meal’). We had heard of Galatea, but thought that she was another Greek goddess, and had no idea of the connection between her and Aphrodite. Apparently, Galatea was a marble statue brought to life by Aphrodite – hence the celebration. We learn something every day! | |
| 28 | Part of stable incorporating old and new block (9) | |
| STONEWALL | STALL (part of stable) round or ‘incorporating’ O (old) and NEW | |
| 29 | Promise to retain latitude for globe (5) | |
| WORLD | WORD (promise) round or ‘retaining’ L (latitude) | |
| Down | ||
| 1 | Source of salt water affected great area of country (4,5) | |
| TEAR GLAND | An anagram of GREAT (anagrind is ‘affected’) + LAND (area of country) We’re not sure why Phi has included ‘area of‘ in the clue | |
| 2 | Inherit vast amount, displacing son and leave at once (3,4) | |
| GET LOST | GET (inherit) LOTS (vast amount) with the ‘s’ (son) moved forward or ‘displaced’ | |
| 3 | Learn about pigment – it’s not imaginary (4,6) | |
| REAL NUMBER | An anagram of LEARN (anagrind is ‘about’) UMBER (pigment) | |
| 4 | Former sketcher finally abandoning pen (5) | |
| MAKER | MA |
|
| 5 | French leader accepted staff blocking refusal from Bordeaux (8) | |
| NAPOLEON | A (accepted) POLE (staff) in or ‘blocking’ NON (French for ‘no’ – ‘refusal from Bordeaux’) | |
| 6 | Bird left further down stream? (4) | |
| FOWL | FLOW (stream) with the ‘l’ (left’) moved to the end or ‘further down’ | |
| 7 | Distribute half of this with an oath (7) | |
| STREWTH | STREW (distribute) + TH |
|
| 8 | Religious Cockney accepting the divine, curiously (5) | |
| ODDLY | ‘OLY (how a Cockney might say ‘holy’ – ‘religious’) round or ‘accepting’ DD (Doctor of Divinity). We had to check this as we were not aware that divine as a noun could be a minister or theologian. | |
| 13 | On radio, support salad as a physical principle (7,3) | |
| PLANCKS LAW | A homophone (‘on radio’) of PLANK (support) SLAW (salad) | |
| 16 | It enables someone to take part even though you’re late (5,4) | |
| DONOR CARD | A cryptic definition – referring to the DONOR CARD enabling body ‘parts’ to be used in transplants etc after death (when you’re ‘late’) | |
| 17 | Confused the entire crew (3,2,3) | |
| ALL AT SEA | The ‘entire crew’ would be ALL AT SEA | |
| 19 | Harbour company probed by Independent columns (7) | |
| PORTICO | PORT (harbour) CO (company) round or ‘probed by’ I (Independent) | |
| 21 | Cruel man – British – replacing new gang member (7) | |
| MOBSTER | MO |
|
| 22 | What will cover party turning up in footless tights? (5) | |
| HOODS | DO (party) reversed or ‘turning up’ in HOS |
|
| 24 | A name given to supporter, on reflection (5) | |
| ANGEL | Another clue as definition – A N (name) + LEG (supporter) reversed or ‘on reflection’ | |
| 25 | Individual supporting Government has departed (4) | |
| GONE | ONE (individual) after or ‘supporting’ (in a down clue) G (government) | |
Typical Phi!Come on in, the water’s lovely-yeah 1,4 29 etc bang bang. Then as you expected it turns into a Telegraph Toughie.Scylla and Charybdis.
Wish I’d had either Bert or Joyce with me.
Thanks you two-and Phi.
I found this pretty tough, especially in the SE, as had to take a stab in the end at GNOMON on the basis of wordplay alone (I didn’t know the word existed) to unlock the rest of that corner with ANGEL being LOI. Spent ages trying to work out why it should be APRIL or AVRIL with unsurprisingly little joy.
A really nice puzzle, then – absolutely fair, and I have learnt a couple of things (Galatea’s basis, for one).
I can’t see a theme or Nina either, but then I very rarely do until someone clever points it out to me.
Agreed, that was a toughie! I eventually completed without aids but it kept me busy for the best part of an hour. TIGER, GET LOST and ASTHMA went in quickly enough, but then….. I was fixated on Monet and Manet as sketchers for far too long. Seeing RACK for worry finally got the NW sorted. GALATEA was vaguely known but I couldn’t have told you the story although it does ring a bell now it’s been told, but the celebratory meal was good enough. I liked TOOL SHED and dONOR CARD. Thanks Phi and B&J.
If you enjoy Handel, might I recommend the Boult, Sutherland, Pears recording of his Acis and Galatea, one of the most beautiful pieces I know. The CD version is very good.
Struggled with some bits of this. GALATEA beyond my grasp but the classics was never my strong point, but I was pleased to work out GNOMON and then discover what it was.
Theme? Dunno, but if there is, then of the last four weeks of Indy weekday puzzles (20 of them) 13 will have had themes or ninas. I’m a bit themed out myself, and wouldn’t care if there were fewer, because the Indy setters can produce pleasing and fun puzzles without them. Setters will say it’s harmless fun and helps them populate the grid, and elsewhere this week they have been described as delightfully pointless. Does it matter? Not really, since all this stuff on 225 is about crosswords, which are, as someone famously said, a harmless pastime in a crazy world.
Thanks all three and good weekend to all.
One of my favourite reads of last year was Nick Harkaway’s Gnomon so I thought I’d include that, him and his previous novels Tigerman, Angelmaker and The Gone-Away World.
Definitely on the tough side and I’m embarrassed to say that the one that I couldn’t get without a word search was 13dn, what with me having a degree in physics.
Didn’t know 9ac, but I guessed it from the word play. When I tried to google it, google kept telling me I must mean Amtrak, on which I’ve ridded several times.
Late to the party as we’ve been away and catching up for the last few days. Definitely towards the tougher end of Phi’s spectrum but at least no knowledge of the theme was needed to solve it and we got it all, only needing to check our guesses in Chambers or (for 27ac) Brewer. Held up on 18ac for a while by reading ‘through’ as ‘though’ in the clue.
Favourites were GNOMON, ODDLY and PLANCK’S LAW.
Thanks, Phi and B&J