Serpent has unleashed his cruciverbal venom on us this Thursday, although I am more used to seeing his work on Tuesdays.
I found this to be a thoroughly entertaining and very challenging puzzle, towards the top end of the Indy difficulty spectrum, and I needed to have two stabs at it to solve it. That said, I was ultimately able to complete the grid unaided, needing to check one or two things in Chambers for the benefit of this blog.
I realised only once I was writing up the blog that the word “cross” is the first word of three (across) clues and provides their definition, and that the completed grid contains a number of types of cross, at 9, 10, 28 … and a number of words that can be prefixed by “cross”, at 4, 12, 13, 22, 23 … There are probably even more references that I just haven’t spotted. Of course, the solver can complete the puzzle and be wholly unaware of this theme.
My favourite clues today are the interlinking clues around 10, 20, 22, for adding an extra layer of interest to the puzzle; 1A, for its “case of” device; 1D and 26, both for surface; and 5, for making me smirk.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
Across | ||
01 | HAMPER | Basket concealing case of sparkling wine
<c>HAMPER<s> (=sparkling wine); “concealing case of” means first and last letters are dropped |
04 | PURPOSES | Uses model to encourage cycling outside
MODEL (=pose, as verb) in PURS (SPUR=encourage; “cycling” means first letter is moved to end of word) |
09 | NORMAN | Someone who’s not British and not male
NOR (=and not) + MAN (=(a) male) |
10 | VICTORIA | State through with initial expansion according to NATO
VIA (=through, as preposition); “with initial expansion according to NATO” means that the first letter – i.e. V, which is Victor in the NATO alphabet – is written out in full; Victoria is one of the states in Australia |
12 | EXAMINED | Tested revolutionary fabric cutter
DENIM (=fabric) + AXE (=fabric); “revolutionary” indicates (here full) reversal |
13 | WIND | Snake scared off everybody in the end
WIND<y> (=scared, edgy); “off everybody in the end” means that the last letter of “everybody“, i.e. Y, is dropped |
16 | CANTANKEROUS | Cross three-quarters of river on tin vessel
CAN (=tin) + TANKER (=vessel, e.g. for oil) + OUS<e> (=river; “three-quarters of” means 3 of 4 letters are used) |
19 | ESOTERICALLY | Reality close to collapse in a mysterious way
*(REALITY CLOSE); “to collapse” is anagram indicator |
22 | BEAM | Broadcast live in the morning
BE (=live, exist) + A.M. (=in the morning); cf. The satellite beams back images to Earth |
23 | QUESTION | Doubt nothing will stop search happening
O (=nothing, pictorially) in [QUEST (=search) + IN (=happening, fashionable)] |
26 | TRAVERSE | Cross with partygoers in centre of Cheltenham
RAVERS (=partygoers) in <chel>TE<nham> (“centre of” means middle letters only) |
27 | GIBBET | Where suspension took place having rejected substantial stake
GIB (BIG=substantial; “rejected” indicates reversal) + BET (=stake); the “suspension” of the definition refers to hanging (by the neck) |
28 | MILITARY | Services settled on being included in year end retrospectively
LIT (=settled on, landed) in MIARY [YR (=year, i.e. abbreviation) + AIM (=end, goal); “retrospectively” indicates reversal] |
29 | HYBRID | Cross letters from grouchy bridegroom
Hidden (“letters from”) in “groucHY BRIDegroom” |
Down | ||
01 | HINDER | Rubbish in derelict housing block
Hidden (“housing”) in “rubbisH IN DERelict” |
02 | MORTAL | Very drunk // person // liable to die
Triple definition |
03 | ERADICATED | Energy emitted around the speed of light is annihilated
E (=energy) + [C (=speed of light, in physics) in RADIATED (=emitted)] |
05 | URIC | Heard you are in charge of number one
Homophone (“heard of”) of “you are” + I<n> C<harge>: “of (a) number one” refers to urine, as in uric acid |
06 | PITY | Snobbish, but not winning sympathy
<up>PITY (=snobbish); “not winning (=up, e.g. in match)” means letters “up” are dropped |
07 | SURVIVOR | One continuing to live with zero resistance against virus surprisingly
*(O (=zero, pictorially) + R (=resistance, in physics) + V (=against, i.e. versus) + VIRUS); “surprisingly” is anagram indicator |
08 | SLAPDASH | American cops belt around carelessly
LAPD (=American cops, i.e. Los Angeles Police Department) in SASH (=belt) |
11 | CERTAIN | Decided church school has to promote reading
CE (=church, i.e. Church of England) + RTAIN (TRAIN=(to) school; “has to promote reading (=R, as in the three R’s)” means letter “r” is moved to an earlier position in the word) |
14 | IN VACUO | Cook large quantity of coq au vin amid empty space
*(CO<q> + AU VIN); “large quantity of” means last letter is dropped; “cook” is anagram indicator |
15 | RECLASSIFY | Update assignment to groups of engineers providing stylish shelters
RE (=engineers, i.e. Royal Engineers) + [IF (=providing) in CLASSY (=stylish)] |
17 | VERBATIM | Ends of 10 and 20 could be rendered identically
*(V<ictori>A (=entry at 10; “ends of” means first and last letter only) + TIMBER (=entry at 20)); “could be rendered” is anagram indicator |
18 | NOT AT ALL | Write down almost everything and forget it
NOTAT<e> (=write down; “almost” means last letter only) + ALL (=everything); cf. forget it, not at all, think nothing of it, you’re welcome |
20 | TIMBER | 22 million stolen by Italian banker
M (=million) in TIBER (=Italian “banker”, i.e. river); a (wooden) beam (=entry at 22) is a form of timber |
21 | UNITED | One set free following slight drop in temperature
UNTIED (=set free); “slight drop in temperature (=T)” means letter “t” is moved to the next position in the word |
24 | FELT | Was aware of being left out
*(LEFT); “out” is anagram indicator |
25 | USER | One taking advantage of scheme right to the end
RUSE (=scheme); “right (=R) to the end” means letter “r” moves to the end of the word |
Excellent stuff. I was looking for the usual but I do notice that the grid has 6 “crosses” of blank squares-one for each of the “cross”answers-and of course accurately placed. How else?
Thanks Serpent and RR.
The total has just gone up since I posted.(crosses)
Wow! Serpent remains my favourite setter and this is him at his best. Just superb.
Loved the way the 3 clues beginning with ‘Cross’ use three different meanings but missed the other links to “cross” as detailed in the blog. Did spot the 6 + signs in the grid though, as mentioned by copmus.
As always, Serpent produces masterful surfaces. The clever inclusion at 1d, playing on different meanings of ‘block’ ; the nice anagram at 19a ; and the clever cross-reference and use of ‘banker’ in 20d to name a few favourites.
Haven’t met MORTAL for very drunk before but guessed it at first reading and checked in Chambers.
Got stuck several times but resisted the urge to cheat. Getting SLAPDASH opened up the NE and getting MILITARY opened up the SW allowing me to complete without aids.
Thanks to Serpent and RatkojaRiku.
Very good, even though I missed the theme and ended up as a DNF with ‘unit’ for URIC. I didn’t know MORTAL for ‘drunk’ either.
Plenty to pick from but I’ll go for NORMAN and the ‘American cops’ as my favourites.
Thanks to Serpent and RR.
In 23 across I parsed it the same way as you but logically “happening” must be IN rather than ON, which I’m a bit doubtful about.
“The in thing” is the fashionable/happening thing; so also e.g. “flared trousers are really in, this winter”.
This has kept me company on and off all morning (well I am supposed to be working) but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I’m also delighted to report that I’ve spotted my second theme today
Thanks very much to Serpent and RR
Excellent CROSSword with accurate cluing. I found it tough but solved at the end, missing the theme though, doh!
I particularly liked the CHAMPERS among others.
Thanks very much to Serpent and RR
There’s a Norman Cross I think!
Thanks Serpent and RR
As far as I can tell, with the exception of 19 & 27, *all* the across clues have a connection with ‘cross’. It being Serpent, I suspect that those two may as well, and I’m too dim to spot it.
The crosses on which Jesus and others died were also called gibbets. And three crosses feature significantly in esoteric astrology – is that good enough?
Simon S @10
I cannot find/think of a connection for 19ac but 27ac is certainly related. The first definition in Chambers under ‘cross’ is “a gibbet on which the Romans exposed criminals, typically consisting of two pieces of timber, one placed transversely to the other”.
Beat you to it! What do you think of my mooted astrological reference?
Thanks to RatkojaRiku and Serpent
A cracker. I can’t see the HAMPER/CROSS connection or am I missing something ? If you cross somebody you could be said to hamper them, but that is a little vague.
At 17d I took rendered to be part of the anagrind.
Chambers: ‘cross” – ‘to obstruct, thwart’ – surely close enough to ‘hamper’? Oi’ll get me coat now.
I did this on squared paper, thus resisting the temptation to check or reveal. All correct, but failed to parse 10 and 17 (my excuse here was I was looking at 21 rather than 20).
As per usual with Serpent, once you complete the crossword, there is still some work to do. And as per usual, I failed miserably.
Many thanks to RatkojaRiku for the excellent blog and to everyone who has been kind enough to comment on the puzzle.
Every across entry, except ESOTERICALLY, is indeed related to the word “cross”. (I’m happy to accept the tenuous connection proposed by Geoff@11 for ESOTERICALLY!) Geoff@6 is also correct about the intended parsing of QUESTION.
One other minor point: MORTAL was intended to be a triple definition – very drunk / person / liable to die.
Defeated me, I’m afraid. Got about just over half of it through the day.
Almost got there last night, with only 13 and 23 remaining; this morning 23 was so glaringly obvious we wondered how we didn’t get it at once but we were still mystified by 13, and now we’ve seen the blog that’s pretty obvious too. Doh!
Failed to see the theme, but that’s nothing unusual.
Thanks, Serpent and RatkojaRiku.
I have now amended the blog to take account of the clarification provided by Serpent at 17.