CRUX kicks off April…
We found this a bit trickier than the usual Monday morning fare (hence the rather late posting of this blog), and some of the parsing is a little vague.
The “neat” definition in 15a was something we’d never seen before, and 13a doesn’t appear to exist in our Chambers, though the internet confirms that it is a pre-frostbite condition.
Anyway, plenty of fun to be had here, with 5d probably our favourite.
Thanks CRUX!
Across
1 A right-winger firstly famed, strangely, for being insulting (10)
DEFAMATORY
A TORY (a right-winger), firstly (FAMED)* (*strangely)
7 We keep providing for her (4)
WIFE
WE keep IF (providing)
9, 10 Sought by the ambitious celebrity with 28 eg, by one in Paris (4,3,7)
FAME AND FORTUNE
FAME (celebrity) + AND (with) + FORT (28 eg, 28 across = stronghold) by UNE (one in Paris)
11 Standing sculptures that lack energy (6)
STATUS
STATU[e]S (sculptures, that lack E (energy))
12 Pleased with old torn clothes? Yes, presumably! (4,4)
GLAD RAGS
GLAD (pleased) + RAGS (old torn clothes) &lit
13 A bit of friction in sport causes chilblains (8)
FROSTNIP
F[riction] (a bit of) + (IN SPORT)* (*causes)
15 Neat cross put in one, maybe . . . . (4)
OXEN
X (cross) put in (ONE)* (*maybe)
Neat is an archaic word for ox, cow bull etc
17 . . . . or put in one neat cross (4)
VOTE
Cryptic definition
19 Doctor Oscar’s in a stupor (8)
NARCOSIS
(OSCARS IN)* (*doctor)
22 Two fruit mentioned for tropical disease (4-4)
BERI-BERI
“berry berry” (two fruit, mentioned)
23 High-level BMI needs some reversing to be agile (6)
NIMBLE
([high lev]EL BMI N[eeds])< (some, <reversing)
25 Only females go up on points (10)
BALLERINAS
Cryptic definition
26 Bird that was once British (4)
RAIL
Double definition
Referring to British Rail
27 No pressure to answer in bank (4)
RELY
RE[p]LY (answer, no P (pressure))
28 Defence typical of a wrestler (10)
STRONGHOLD
Cryptic definition
Down
2 Blackmailer who used to be on the stage (7)
EXACTOR
EX ACTOR (who used to be on the stage)
3 The French enthralled by skill on the ball (5)
ALERT
LE (the, French) enthralled by ART (skill)
4 A dynasty welcomes clown into gathering (8)
AMASSING
A + MING (dynasty) welcomes ASS (clown)
5 Grandma maybe makes brief appearance in soaps (3,3,9)
OLD AGE PENSIONER
[s]OAP[s] (brief appearance in)
6 The old country farmer with his own land (6)
YEOMAN
YE (the, old) + OMAN (country)
7 Appropriately a game of pool, perhaps (5,4)
WATER POLO
Cryptic definition
Also the POOL/POLO anagram may have some bearing here
8 Swindle revealed by some papers about a horse (7)
FINAGLE
FILE (some papers) about NAG (a horse)
14 It’s also specifically without France in charge (9)
SPECIALLY
SPECI[fic]ALLY (without F (France) + IC (in charge))
16 Large numbers turning up no relative (8)
GRANDSON
GRANDS (large numbers) + (NO)< (<turning up)
18 Too old and mean to change initially (7)
OVERAGE
O replacing the initial letter of [a]VERAGE (mean)
20 Wife in double trouble results in bad blood (7)
ILLWILL
W (wife) in ILL ILL (double trouble)
21 Pines need ages to absorb nitrogen (6)
YEARNS
YEARS (ages) to absorb N (nitrogen)
24 Grammar children grasp to make progress (5)
MARCH
[gram]MAR CH[ildren] (grasp)
Thanks both. Did well except for the two four letter words in the middle 15 1nd 17 across. Guessed ‘OXEN” but could not parse and totally missed ‘VOTE”. Otherwise a lot of fun.
Thanks to Crux and Teacow. Enjoyable. I’m another who did not get VOTE and struggled with FROSTNIP (though I did eventually parse it). I got OLD AGE PENSIONER from the crossers before seeing why.
I don’t follow the VOTE clue.
put in = VOTE, I suppose. And you make a cross on the ballot paper.
But where does neat fit in?
Mikey @3, we agree that the parsing of this is a bit flappy. One supposes that the seemingly unnecessary “neat” is just there to link in with the previous clue. Otherwise it works as a wholly cryptic definition in the way you have described.
Another failure on VOTE here – ?O?E has so many possibilities that I think it’s unfair to give it such a vague clue.
Using FAMED as partial anagram fodder for the closely-related DEFAMATORY is a bit weak too.
Re 17, I thought the cross was neat because on a ballot paper (I think) it has to be within the confines of the box.
Thanks to Crux and Teacow
Re 25d Just an aside, having seen a performance of the Bolshoi a few years ago, they can contradict “only females” going up on points. Only time I’ve seen it done, though, so I wouldn’t disagree with the clue. Thanks.
Thanks Crux and Teacow
Did this one over a short lunch on Tuesday and whipped through it pretty quickly – apparently too quickly as I’ve missed VOTE as well. Put in YOKE, being a wooden crosspiece that is fastened over the necks of two oxen to form a team – obviously a bit too cryptic ! Did mean to come back to it and double check it but forgot to.
Took a bit of time to parse FAME AND FORTUNE.
Finished with the two four-letter across clues in the middle – OXEN and YOKE (no … VOTE).