A pleasant challenge from MUDD today. Thanks Mudd.
FF: 9 DD: 7
I am not sure about the parsing for 1 clue which I have highlighted in the blog.
| Across | ||
| 1 | CODIFIED | Put in symbols, made fishy? (8) |
| cryptic def; referring to transformation to a cod | ||
| 5 | ASKING | Begging on the throne? (6) |
| cryptic def; read as AS KING (~on the throne) | ||
| 10 | COYPU | Large rodent, timid baby dropping tail (5) |
| COY (timid) PUp (baby, dropping tail i.e. without last letter) | ||
| 11 | IGUANODON | Poop deck only starts flooding in for old monster (9) |
| [ GUANO (poop) D O (start of Deck Only) ] in IN | ||
| 12 | OVERDRIVE | Intense state of activity in terms of cricket? (9) |
| OVER DRIVE (first is cricket term for 6 balls bowled, second is a batting stroke) | ||
| 13 | NICER | Conservative kept in check after U-turn, less despicable (5) |
| C (conservative) in reverse of REIN (check) | ||
| 14 | SUMMIT | Top calculation a little bit short (6) |
| SUM (calculation) MITe (a little bit, short) | ||
| 15 | MR RIGHT | Ideal partner the missus left, it’s inferred? (2,5) |
| cryptic def | ||
| 18 | PENANCE | Article confiscated by coppers, as punishment (7) |
| AN (article) in PENCE (coppers) | ||
| 20 | CRABBY | Nipping sideways possibly, cross (6) |
| double def | ||
| 22 | CAPRI | Isle in better state (5) |
| CAP (better) RI (state, Rhode Island) | ||
| 24 | CHAFFINCH | Slowly move beyond something worthless in flier (9) |
| CHAFF (something worthless) INCH (slowly move) | ||
| 25 | BERING SEA | Cold water as beer, gin rum! (6,3) |
| AS BEER GIN* | ||
| 26 | ULNAR | Au naturel on camera, scrawnier backsides bony? (5) |
| last letters (backsides) of “aU natureL oN camerA scrawnieR..” | ||
| 27 | RESULT | Unsuccessful flankers tackled by prop, score (6) |
| UL (flankers i.e. end letters of UnsuccesfuL) in REST (prop) | ||
| 28 | DISTASTE | Test said to bring about a feeling of repugnance (8) |
| TEST SAID* | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | CUCKOO | Bird clocked nuts (6) |
| double def with a crytic touch , referring to cuckoo clocks | ||
| 2 | DAY RETURN | Ready when derailed to change ticket (3,6) |
| READY* TURN (change) | ||
| 3 | FOUR DIMENSIONAL | Round Isle of Man I tripped – in time? (4-11) |
| ROUND ISLE OF MAN I* | ||
| 4 | ELITIST | Merlot regularly passed around, it is not for everyone! (7) |
| ELT (mErLoT, regularly) around IT IS | ||
| 6 | SAN ANDREAS FAULT | Safe and natural cracks under capital in Sacramento, this crack potentially unsafe (3,7,5) |
| SAFE AND NATURAL* after S (capital in Sacramento) | ||
| 7 | INDIC | As Sanskrit and Urdu in mind, I concentrated (5) |
| hidden in “..mIND I Concentrated” | ||
| 8 | GENERATE | Cause adopted by cadet, a renegade going the other way (8) |
| hidden, reversed in “..cadET A RENEGade..” | ||
| 9 | MUSEUM | Milk in baby feeder for Victoria and Albert, perhaps? (6) |
| USE (milk) in MUM (baby feeder) | ||
| 16 | GO BANANAS | Blow a gasket while following West Indian round block (2,7) |
| [ A N (gasket?) AS (while) ] after [ GOAN (west indian, from goa in india) around B (block) ] – not sure if i parsed gasket correctly / See Andrew@1 below | ||
| 17 | SPACE BAR | On counter, room key (5,3) |
| SPACE (room) BAR (counter) | ||
| 19 | EXCESS | Dictation of two letters, superfluity (6) |
| sounds like X S (two letters) | ||
| 20 | CHAPATI | Bit of butter in range, cut for bread (7) |
| PAT (bit of butter) in CHAIn (range, cut) | ||
| 21 | CHARGE | Care to attack (6) |
| double def | ||
| 23 | PARTS | Bits seen as thong pulled up (5) |
| reverse of STRAP (thong) | ||
*anagram
16d: the definition is “blow a gasket”, with wordplay BAN (block) in GOAN + AS (while)
Somebody’s appraisal seems to have been pasted into 26…
Andrew
Thanks for the heads-up. I have removed the extraneous text.
Hi Andrew@1, Gaufrid@2,
Thanks for taking care of this. I have had trouble with frequent disconnects on the blogging tool today – and despite correcting the error for the extraneous text, as well as for the “blow a gasket” clue, it had not been captured.
Regards,
Mahesh
Loved 23d. Very funny.
Thanks to Mudd and Turbolegs. I got off to a slow start but gradually got through. I did parse GO BANANAS after a struggle, got OVERDRIVE thanks to the crossers but did not parse it (cricket terms regularly defeat me), and at first was not sure of range=chain for CHAPATI.
Thanks Mudd and Turbolegs
Always a pleasure to a puzzle by JH and a nice surprise to see it happen on a Friday this time. Some typical clues such as 1a, 1d, 15a and 20a where he mixes the cryptic element with a good dose of wit. 25d was just hilarious by itself.
Finished in the left side with the clever anagram for FOUR DIMENSIONAL, DAY RETURN and RESULT (where it took ages to equate REST and ‘prop’ for some reason) as the last few in.