“In G&T, clues are given in two groups headed by the two numbered wordplay-only clues. Within each group, the clues are given in the normal order and either the clue (starred), or answer, requires thematic treatment, always involving a single letter. All answers and entries are real words, numbers in brackets refer to entry lengths. Solvers must highlight 11 letters in the completed grid and write two thematic words (10, 8) under the grid. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.”
The first set of clues have to DONATE letters. Indeed, they (or at least the letters removed from clues) CONTRIBUTE them. The second set APPROPRIATE – or PECULATE – letters. The latter of each of these words is to be written under the grid.
The eleven letters that are removed/added to answers are both anagrams of GIVE AND TAKE – the 11 letters to be highlighted.
Notation
(xxx) = definition
[xxx] = (anagram/homophone/container/etc.) indicator
XXX* = anagram
< = reversal
Please post a comment if the explanations are not clear.
| 1 | DONATE | ATE (“EIGHT” (Crew) [audibly]) [supporting] DON (nobleman in Majorca) (6) |
| C | BALSAS | * Crafts [regularly] B |
| O | ABET | * Encourage [characters in] < [capsizing] |
| N | ICECAP | * I (Isle) C (seen) [off] CAPE, polar region (6) |
| G | GOLDER | < {RED (Flaming) LOG (firewood)} [turning] more yellowy (5) |
| E | ADREAD | No longer fear A [silly] DARE* [with] D (date) (5) |
| T | RONDE | * R (Run) < {ED (edition), NOT} [rejected] printing-type (5) |
| R | IDOLUM | * I [drunk] {OLD RUM}* giving wrong impression (6) |
| T | TENFOLD | L often confused with numeral this order of magnitude larger (6) |
| I | WESTER | * Wind from sweet maid beginning to reek (6) |
| B | BLUECOAT | * Puzzling cube held by swell pupil of Christ’s hospital (8) |
| K | LAKIN | LA (Note) [mostly] KIND (generous) old-fashioned woman (4) |
| N | ALONE | Single < {ENOLA GAY} (US bomber), [missing] GAY (camp), [heading north] (4) |
| I | MARINE | I’M A R (SOLDIER [ultimately]) [with] E (English) N (navy) [possibly] (5) |
| U | REDIAE | * Worms from A ([bottom of] EAU) < EIDER (duck)’s [pulling up] [and swallowing] (6) |
| E | STATE | Utter [gross] TASTE* (4) |
| T | EDDA | * DD (Doctor of Divinity) [brought in to] teach Scandinavian literature (4) |
| E | INDOOR | * [Top missing from] FINE < ROOD (cross) [put up] within building (6) |
| V | DUVET | DU (Dutch) VET (inspect) padded jacket (4) |
| A | COPITA | [New] OPTIC* [above] A tulip-shaped glass (5) |
| D | ENDEW | Spenser’s put on ENEW (to drive) [around] D (Germany) (4) |
| A | ARABA | ARAB (Bedouin, perhaps), A (accepted) Asian wheeled carriage (4) |
| 2 | APPROPRIATE | A (Athletic) PROP (rugby player) [embodies] P (power), A (active) [in] RITE (haka say?) (11) |
| P | TIMERS | * Maybe watches {ME STIR}* [phoney] (6) |
| G | GALLOWS | < LA (Legislative Assembly) [backed] LOW (blue) S (special) permits (7) |
| I | UNICOLOURED | White U (upper-class) NCO (corporal, say), LOURED (gave threatening look) (11) |
| E | BANDIT | * Outlaw D (died) IT [after] BAN (embargo) (6) |
| E | CAREER | One helping < ER (Queen) [back] [into] CAR (vehicle) (6) |
| C | ON END | * Upright C (cape) [leaving] ONCE (as soon as) N ([third of] MONKEYS) D (deserted) (5, two words) |
| U | TOUCAN | * Bird ON U ([face of] UTILE) CAT}* [mauled] (6) |
| L | ETUI | * < [Rotating] I (one) LUTE (stringed instrument), [scratching] L ([front of] LASH) case (4) |
| K | BOOBOOK | BOO |
| A | NANSHE | * |
| A | SOLERA | SOLE (Exclusive) R (Republican)’s dusty upper room (6) |
| T | TWO-BIT | * Poor TWIT (taunt) [embraces] OB (old boy) (6) |
| E | NAAN | * Bread’s NAN (relative) [touring] A (Austria) (4) |
| V | VENA | Girl |
| D | CORD | Homer’s expression of surprise (4) |
| E | PREMIERE | Chief’s PRE (before) EMIR*, [getting agitated] (8) |
| T | LOOT | John [taking] N (note) [from] LOON (fool) (4) |
| N | NIPPON | Winning score {IN OPP (DOJO, COMP CHAMP) [finally]}* [resolved] (6) |
| A | NAOS | Votes against NO (number) S (seven) (4) |
| B | A | L | S | A | S | T | I | M | E | R | S |
| L | G | A | L | L | O | W | S | A | B | E | T |
| U | N | I | C | O | L | O | U | R | E | D | A |
| E | A | N | V | E | E | B | A | N | D | I | T |
| C | A | R | E | E | R | I | C | E | C | A | P |
| O | N | E | N | D | A | T | O | L | D | E | R |
| A | D | R | A | D | I | N | R | O | N | D | E |
| T | O | U | C | A | N | I | D | O | L | U | M |
| E | N | F | O | L | D | P | A | T | N | E | I |
| N | A | P | P | R | O | P | R | I | A | T | E |
| E | T | U | I | B | O | O | B | O | O | K | R |
| W | E | S | T | E | R | N | A | N | S | H | E |
CONTRIBUTE PECULATE
Once again the tumbleweeds blow through the EV blog, while a distant bell tolls mournfully…
This was a clever puzzle from a distinguished setter of long standing, but I must confess that I found it more fiddly than a violin concerto and got quite frustrated while struggling with it. That probably says more about me than the setter though.
There seems to be a trend of jigsaw puzzles at the moment. Coincidence perhaps, but I can’t help thinking they should be the exception rather than the rule?
The bloggers don’t seem to take it badly that the EVs get so few comments, but I am one of the lurkers (as one of the bloggers put it recently). The problem is that because the EV comes out weekly, the blogs are delayed until I have already worked another puzzle and committed the former one to the deep recesses of my brain or the trash bin (same thing). Mainly I look at the blogs to refresh my memory and get an idea of how another solver fared. But yes, this did seem like a jigsaw, I remember, which with No. 1411 makes two in succession. That’s because I could not get my mind around what “normal order” was for placement of answers, and when someone explained, I found it helped with only a few across answers and after that it felt like a jigsaw anyway. So, a lot of cold solving of clues made this on the harder end. But an excellent puzzle, for which I thank the setter, and I appreciated the blog as usual.