Klingsor provides the Thursday puzzle this week.
You can usually expect some classical music references from Klingsor and today we were right in there at 1 across with Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH
I liked the clue for WASHOUT as it took me a while to realise that boxing was the containment indicator. For me, that was a successful bit of misdirection for a time.
I realised that 3 down was going to relate to the hair but I had something based on TRICHOSIS in my mind for a while. Note the musical allusion in the clue.
There was a good surface on 10 down leading to THERE AND THEN
I didn’t see a theme but there again, I haven’t seen one for a while even when there is one.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
| 1 | Six secured by running has to shock scorer (12) |
VI (Roman numerals for six) contained in (secured by) an anagram of (running) HAS TO SHOCK SHOSTAKO (VI) CH* |
SHOSTAKOVICH (reference Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH [1906 – 1975], Russian composer [{musical} scorer]) |
| 8 | Wind up colossus on the phone (7) |
TIGHTEN (sounds like [on the phone] TITAN [colossus]) TIGHTEN |
TIGHTEN (wind up)
|
| 9 | Relation needs relaxation having seized muscle (7) |
REST (relaxation) containing (having seized) PEC (PECtoral muscle) RES (PEC) T |
RESPECT (relation) |
| 11 | Restless film-maker returns, having gone outside (7) |
AGO (in the past; gone) containing (outside) TATI (reference Jacques TATI [1907 – 1982], French film-maker, actor and screenwriter) reversed (returns) AG (ITAT<) O |
AGITATO (restless and wild) |
| 12 | One goddess or another imprisoning Pollux? (7) |
ATE (Greek goddess of mischief and of all rash actions and their results) containing (imprisoning) STAR (twin brother of Castor, a star in the constellation of the Twins. [ Gemini]) A (STAR) TE |
ASTARTE (Phoenician goddess of love) |
| 13 | What cooks use in healthy meals? (5) |
THYME (hidden word in [in] HEALTHY MEALS) THYME |
THYME (herb used in cooking) – probably an &Lit clue |
| 14 | One can nurse wound, giving protection against injury, say (9) |
I [Roman numeral for one] + an anagram of (wound) CAN NURSE I NSURANCE* |
INSURANCE (protection against various risks, such as injury) |
| 16 | I do all out on a limb for American native (9) |
ARM (limb) + anagram of (out) I DO ALL ARM ADILLO* |
ARMADILLO (American mammal)
|
| 19 | Wine prepared for wet weather? (5) |
MAC (waterproof clothing) + ON (being worn) together indicating that the wearer is prepared for wet weather MAC ON |
MACON (heavy red or white burgundy from the Macon district of central France) |
| 21 | Reader is given introduction to sports fans (7) |
KINDLE (reference the KINDLE electronic reader device) + S (first letter of [introduction to] SPORTS KINDLE S |
KINDLES (fans)
|
|
23
|
Women call boxing amateur a complete failure (7)
|
(W [woman] + SHOUT [call]) containing (boxing) A (amateur) W (A) SHOUT |
WASHOUT (complete failure)
|
| 24 | Almost every individual stops to eat some food (7) |
EACH (every individual) excluding the final letter (almost) H contained in (stops) TAKE (eat) T (EAC) AKE |
TEACAKE (example of food) |
| 25 |
Independent publication ditches centre picture (7)
|
I (independent) + MAGAZINE (publication) excludng the middle letters (centre) AZ I MAGINE |
IMAGINE (picture)
|
| 26 | Guitar session leads to minor accident in America (6,6) |
FENDER (brand of guitar) + BENDER (drunken spree; session) FENDER BENDER |
FENDER BENDER (a American term for a collision between motor vehicles in which little damage is cause) |
|
Down |
|||
| No | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
1
|
Special honour denied old copper? That’s mean (7)
|
S (special) + DIGNIFY (invest with honour) excluding (denied) D (denarius; symbol for penny before decimal coinage) S IGNIFY |
SIGNIFY (mean)
|
| 2 | Power cut around middle of afternoon creates fury (7) |
OUTAGE (power cut) containing (around) R (central letter of [middle of] AFTERNOON) OUT (R) AGE |
OUTRAGE (fury) |
| 3 | Relating to Barber‘s Adagio finally after many endless attempts (9) |
TONS (lots of; many) + O (last letter of [finally] ADAGIO) + TRIALS excluding the first and last letters (endless) T and S TONS O RIAL |
TONSORIAL (of or relating to hairdressing or barbering)
|
| 4 | Degenerate cut up over mother’s fate (5) |
RAKE (debauched or dissolute person; degenerate) excluding the final letter (cut) E reversed (up; down clue) + MA (mother) KAR< MA |
KARMA (destiny; fate)
|
| 5 | Person who’s dropped in it is in a flap (7) |
IT contained in (is in) VISOR (movable flap on a motor-car windscreen, used as a shade against the sun) VIS (IT) OR |
VISITOR (one who drops in) |
| 6 | What’s displayed by her NCO, "V" shaped? (7) |
Anagram of (shaped) HER NCO V CHEVRON* |
CHEVRON ( V-shaped band on the sleeve, a mark of non-commissioned rank; what’s displayed by her NCO) |
| 7 | Seaman in fix possesses characteristic restraint (12) |
(JACK [seaman] contained in SET) all containing (possessing) TRAIT (characteristic) S (TRAIT) (JACK) ET |
STRAITJACKET ( garment for restraining a person with violent tendencies)
|
| 10 | Need that mobile number to get hold of her immediately (5,3,4) |
(Anagram of [mobile] NEED THAT + N [number]) containing (to get hold of) HER T (HER) E AND THE* N |
THERE AND THEN (immediately) |
| 15 | Pure freak we won this (4-5) |
Anagram of (freak) WE WON THIS SNOW–WHITE |
SNOW-WHITE (pure)
|
| 17 | Authority of bishop perhaps, over see (7) |
MAN (a bishop is an example of a man in chess) + DATE (see) MAN DATE |
MANDATE (authority)
|
| 18 | Law lord upset fat imbecile (7) |
LUD (form of lord [used when addressing a judge or facetiously]) reversed (upset; down clue) + LARD (fat). DUL< LARD |
DULLARD (stupid person; imbecile) |
| 19 | Lost rings turned up under motorway (7) |
MI (M1 Motorway) + DIALS (rings) reversed (turned up; down clue) MI SLAID< |
MISLAID (lost)
|
| 20 | College needs brighter staff (7) |
C (college) + ROSIER (brighter) C ROSIER |
CROSIER (pastoral staff or crook of a bishop or abbot)
|
| 22 | Son, taking to sport, shows promise (5) |
S (son) + WEAR (sport) S WEAR |
SWEAR (promise)
|
Nowt wrong wi this
Curious to have had ARMADILLO as a solution on consecutive days.
It’s world armadillo week. Doesn’t everyone know that? Actually, I switched Klingsor in to avoid a repeated answer from the puzzle originally scheduled for today and didn’t spot the repeated word in this one. Mea culpa.
World ARMADILLO Week. Of course. You’re excused then.
After a struggle, I eventually remembered the ‘goddess’ and the only one I was otherwise unsure of was MACON. Liked the ‘scorer’, TONSORIAL and TEACAKE (For Two perhaps).
Thanks to Klingsor and Duncan (and eimi)
A good ‘un. We needed to consult a list of wine varieties for MACON, and to confirm one or two other guesses in Chambers but apart from that it was all straightforward. We were alert to ‘boxing’ being a containment indicator, having encountered it as such twice recently, not sure where.
We weren’t too sure about ‘kindle’ as a synonym for ‘fan’ in 21ac. To fan a flame one has to kindle it first. We did look up ‘kindle’ in Chambers, though, and as we read it it does seem to imply some sort of equivalence, so we’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.
Thanks, Klingsor and Duncan.
allan_c@5
Extract from Chambers Thesaurus
kindle
v
1IGNITE, light, set alight, set on fire, set fire to
2INFLAME, fire, stir, thrill, stimulate, rouse, arouse, awaken, excite, FAN, incite, inspire, induce, provoke