Samuel pits the challenge this week. Six special entries and the rest have an additional answer in the wordplay. These spell three titles and the name of the leader behind all three must be highlighted.
Took a little while to spot what was happening with the special six clues – 33ac was the first I realised and that it needed to be entered twice RAPRAP as in doublespeak or more exactly as TALK TALK. Not I may add the communications company but the UK band of the 1980’s.
The others were JAWJAW, YAKYAK, GASGAS, CHATCHAT and BLABBLAB.
The extra letters in the wordplay revealing 3 songs THE PARTY’S OVER, IT’S MY LIFE and SPIRIT OF EDEN. Not a band I am familiar with – the lead singer however did appear in the diagonal MARK HOLLIS NW to SE.
Thanks Samuel – a fun puzzle and not overly taxing.
Key:
Rev. Reversed; DD Double definition; * anagram; Underline definition
ACROSS
| 1 Script I will leave in surge of water? (6) | |
| Jawi (script) – I = JAW – enter JAWJAW | |
| 6 Afghan volunteers settled by British (5) | |
| T | Ta (volunteers) + lit (settled) + B (British) = TALIB |
| 11 Pilgrimage hoax Iraq exposed (4) | |
| H | Hum (hoax) + ra (Iraq exposed) = UMRA |
| 12 Earl able to shift before a girl (8) | |
| E | (earl + able + a)* = ARABELLA |
| 14 Nothing missing, agree to return animal (6) | |
| Rev. okay (agree) – o (nothing) = YAK enter YAKYAK | |
| 15 At home having knocked back wine? It’s a start (5) | |
| P | In (at home) + Rev. port (wine) = INTRO |
| 16 Defunct car manufacturer principally annoyed old Middle Easterners (4) | |
| A | Saab (defunct car manufacturer) + a (principally destroyed) = SABA |
| 17 Repeat task shifting earth to the other side (4) | |
| R | Chore (task) moving e (earth to front) = ECHO |
| 20 Resistance shown by moths flying around black whirling things (6) | |
| T | R (resistance) + (moths)* around b (black) = RHOMBS |
| 22 Very emotional with moving house, yet going outside (8) | |
| Y | (with)* + ho (house) in yet = WHITEHOT |
| 24 Cross, works with Solicitor at Law on animal pathology? (8) | |
| S | Zo (cross) + opera(works) + SL (Solicitor at Law) = ZOOPERAL |
| 26 Dodgy money to Root (6) | |
| O | (money to)* = ETYMON |
| 27 Authorized Version Bible regularly dismissed priest (4) | |
| V | AV (authorised version) + BiBlE (regularly) = ABBE |
| 28 Reach poet (4) | |
| E | DD Scope (reach) = SCOP |
| 31 Recover desire when eliminating unknowns – it could be key? (5) | |
| R | Rally (recover) + yen (desire) – y’s (unknowns) = ALLEN |
| 33 Knock artist beginning to paint (6) | |
| Ra (artist) + p (beginning to paint) = RAP enter RAPRAP | |
| 35 Possibly impressive drink by one store in Auckland (8) | |
| I | Lap (drink) + I (one) + dairy (store in Auckland) = LAPIDARY |
| 36 Old entertainers occupying innocents abroad (4) | |
| T | Hidden innocENTS Abroad = ENSA |
| 37 Novice in Seoul on vacation finding somewhere to get high? (5) | |
| S | Tyro (novice) + sl (Seoul on vacation) = TYROL |
| 38 He perhaps could be hideous when on heroin (6) | |
| Gash (hideous) – h (heroin) = GAS (Helium) |
DOWN
| 2 Ratify Guatemalan nurse (4) | |
| M | Mam (Guatemalan) + en (nurse) = AMEN |
| 3 Confused why laity will surround rector in an angry manner (8) | |
| Y | (why laity)* round r (rector) = WRATHILY |
| 4 Judge hit press (3) | |
| L | J (judge) + lam(hit) = JAM |
| 5 Welsh couple promoted snack (4) | |
| I | W (welsh) + Rev. pair (couple) = WRAP |
| 6 Become established cricketer, supporting ultimately incompetent attack (8, two words) | |
| F | Root (cricketer) t (ultimately incompetent) + fake (attack) = TAKE ROOT |
| 7 Continue each farewell (4) | |
| E | Ea (each) + bye (farewell) = ABYE |
| 8 Almost rent pig pasture (6) | |
| S | Leas – e (almost rent) + sow = LEASOW |
| 9 Bosun initially left sailor’s blister (8) | |
| B (bosun initially) + l (initially left) + ab (sailor) = BLAB enter BLABBLAB | |
| 10 Airborne troops peel off north-east to find mock satellite (10) | |
| P | Paras (airborne troops) + (peel)* = ne (north-east) = PARASELENE |
| 13 Criminal wisely lives invisibly (10) | |
| I | (wiselylives)* = VIEWLESSLY |
| 14 Northern city, base for slavery (4) | |
| R | York (Northern city) + e (base) = YOKE |
| 18 Murphy’s century by bowler? (8) | |
| C (century) + hat (bowler) = CHAT enter CHATCHAT | |
| 19 Round in Chinese, served up fat like gristle? (8) | |
| I | O (round) in Chin (Chinese) + Rev. lard (fat) = CHONDRAL |
| 21 Place to sell jewellery giving a mottled appearance (8) | |
| T | Mart(Place to sell) + bling (jewellery) = MARBLING |
| 23 I grimace and display damage (6) | |
| O | I + mop (grimace) + air (display) = IMPAIR |
| 25 Flat sound? Quietly panic (4) | |
| F | P (quietly) + flap (panic) = PLAP |
| 29 Posh dope ruined shock arrangement (4) | |
| E | U (posh) + (dope)* = UPDO |
| 30 Spread Ed’s damaged – grand! (4) | |
| D | Mard (Ed’s damaged) + g (grand) = MARG |
| 32 Frozen character slippery characters accepted (4) | |
| E | Eels (slippery characters) + a (accepted) = ELSA |
| 34 Writer’s foot (3) | |
| N | DD Pen’s (Writer’s) = PES |
I think this was possibly a tribute puzzle. Mark Hollis died a month ago.
Thanks Skinny – I must admit a band that completely passed my listening by.
Ingenious puzzle, and a nice tribute. As usual some vocabulary unknown to me, but a bit embarrassing that I hadn’t come across AMEN as a verb before.
On Twitter last month the setter said he was a long-time fan of the band when he posted the sad news about Mark Hollis.