Financial Times 16,315 by VELIA

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Good fun to start off the week.

Really enjoyed this! Great mix of clues, with some witty surfaces. Some of my favourites today include 16a, 23a, 5d, 14d, 22d. Thank you to the setter, VELIA.

Apologies for the lack of line spacing in this post – there’s a new blogging tool which I have yet to master.
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ACROSS
1 Only setter next to bank (6)
MERELY
ME (setter) next to RELY (bank)
4 I’m auntie, in a flap about details (8)
MINUTIAE
(IM AUNTIE)* (*in a flap)
10 Runs from revenge of emperor (9)
MONTEZUMA
Cryptic definition
(“Montezuma’s revenge” is a name for traveller’s diarrhoea, Montezuma being the name of an emperor)
11 In Barcelona, Irishmen live (2,3)
ON AIR
[Barcel]ONA IR[ishmen] (in)
12 Alcopops as fuel! (4)
COAL
(ALCO)* (*pops)
13 Actually where to put an intramuscular injection (2,3,5)
IN THE FLESH
Double definition
15 He opts out of backing carrot, celery etc (7)
ELECTOR
([ca]ROT CELE[ry] etc)< (out of, <backing)
16 Cut activity with no hesitation (6)
EXCISE
EX[er]CISE (activity, no hesitation)
19 Crack open cellar holding the French (6)
CLEAVE
CAVE (cellar) holding LE (the, French)
21 A scoundrel takes drug next to my school (7)
ACADEMY
A CAD (a scoundrel) takes E (drugs) next to MY
23 Dabbler and aunt in Paris, after flipping lid! (10)
DILETTANTE
ET TANTE (and aunt, in Paris) after (LID)< (<flipping)
25 Here is the altar with primates half turning (4)
APSE
APES (primates, half turning)
27 Groan about end of display (5)
SIGHT
SIGH (groan) + [abou]T (end)
28 One has a last desperate smoke – hear? (9)
SHOEMAKER
(SMOKE HEAR)* (*desperate)
29, 30 For each head of cattle poor noble died – not fair, naturally (8,6)
PEROXIDE BLONDE
PER (for each head) + OXIDE (of cattle) + (NOBLE + D (died))* (*poor)
PER OX (for each head of cattle) + (NOBLE DIED)* (*poor)
Thanks to Sil @2
1 Sent up notes with deck refurbishment (8)
MIMICKED
MI MI (notes) with (DECK)* (*refurbishment)
2 Cyclists may sound familiar? (4,1,4)
RING A BELL
DOUBLE DEFINITION
3 Lascivious look of upcoming film (4)
LEER
(reel)< (film, <upcoming)
5 Ran away from dashing Hanoverian knight (7)
IVANHOE
(HANOVE[r]I[an])* (*dashing, RAN away)
6 Peacemaker, off the record (10)
UNOFFICIAL
UN official (peacemaker)
7 Fearful final two yet to remove clothing (2,3)
IN AWE
[f]INA[l] [t]W[o] [y]E[t] (to remove clothing)
8 Unsophisticated listener needing your support (6)
EARTHY
EAR (listener) needing THY (your) support
9 Boss terribly hungover? Not he! (6)
GUVNOR
([h]UNGOV[e]R)* (*terrible, not HE)
14 Pinch most of the taxi hidden charge (7,3)
STEALTH TAX
STEAL (pinch) + TH[e] TAX[i] (most of)
17 Hide Shaun’s family? (9)
SHEEPSKIN
SHEEP’S (Shaun’s) + KIN (family)
(From the British animated series, Shaun the sheep)
18 Oath uttered when Harrison left The Beatles (2,6)
BY GEORGE
“Bye, George” (“uttered” (i.e. sounds like) when George Harrison left the Beatles)
20 Passed by and led astray about 25 (7)
ELAPSED
(LED)* (*astray) about APSE (25d)
21 Represent Croat, playing around with female (3,3)
ACT FOR
(CROAT + F (female))* (*playing around)
22 Reckons that makes sense (4,2)
ADDS UP
Double definition
24 Both sides swallowed mature fizzy drink (5)
LAGER
L + R (both sides) swallowed AGE (mature)
26 Top barrister sometimes spotted 18 (4)
AMAL
Cryptic definition
(Referring to Amal and George Clooney)

 

8 comments on “Financial Times 16,315 by VELIA”

  1. Yes, thoroughly enjoyable. My LOIN was 26dn for which in desperation I entered EMIL. I’m still little the wiser despite Google. But thanks for a pleasant breakfast, Velia, and Teacow for an early-morning blog.

  2. Nice (and I thought, pretty easy – apart from 26dn) crossword that had a clear Guardian-like feel about it.

    Like e.g. the what many call ‘lift-and-separate’ clue in 12ac, or the use of multiple fodders (in both 7 and 14d).

    I was not so keen on what happened in 27ac (the +T part which left ‘of’ a bit floating in the air).

    The parsing of the one at the bottom should, I think, be different: PER OX (for each head of cattle) + (NOBLE DIED)*.

    Many thanks to Teacow [have yet  to try the new version myself] & Velia.

     

  4. Very enjoyable – although I’m sure the people in the doctor’s waiting room wondered why I laughed out loud when I solved 10a

    I didn’t get AMAL either, just left it blank – a bit too special GK for most I’d have thought

    Thanks to Velia and Teacow

  5. Thanks Velia for an enjoyable crossword and to Teacow for the blog. Missed AMAL who was unfamiliar to me. Favorites include 7d, 24d, and the very humorous 10a.

  6. Thanks to Teacow and Velia

    A pleasant solve as others have said.

    I differ from the blog on a couple of things:

    In 4a I think the whole of “in a flap about” must be the anagrind,

    and in 27a perhaps the whole of “end of” gets us “t” from “about”

    I liked “primates” in 25a – archbishops etc

  7. Enjoyed this with some very cute clues. Didn’t see Amal, though I was vetting Georges. Not really cryptic?

    Many thanks velia, looking forward to next

  8. Thanks Velia and Teacow
    More challenging than normal for a Monday I thought. Very entertaining though – with some clever clues such as the two lift and separate ones and the ‘unclothed fearful’.
    Finished with IVANHOE, the humourous MONTEZUMA and tough AMAL (which involved googling “George and” to find Mrs Clooney and then “Amal barrister” to discover she was one).

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