Aardvark is today’s FT compiler.
I found this one a bit of a curate’s egg. There were some very good clues, which took a little while to parse, and some that required a little bit of lateral thinking (eg VERSION) or general knowledge (SUPPLY DAYS eg), but the first few down clues contained some loose stuff that detracted form the whole. In 3dn, I didn’t like the way that ROO was indicated, and “inner section of” in 7dn is simply too loose. I also didn’t get SUPPLY DAYS as a “time of government debates”, but that was just my ignorance (a quick Google search did not help, but it is in Chambers).
Thanks, Aardvark.
| Across | ||
| 1 | OVERDRESSING | Wearing extravagant clothes on HP, say (12) |
| OVER (“on”) + DRESSING (“HP” sauce, say) | ||
| 10 | TURMOIL | Labour defends supremo regularly ignoring commotion (7) |
| TOIL (“labour”) defends (s)U(p)R(e)M(o) [regularly ignoring] | ||
| 11 | PRETZEL | Parisian’s ready eagerness to polish off a biscuit (7) |
| PRET (“ready” in French, so “Parisian’s ready”) + ZE(a)L (“eagerness” with A polished off) | ||
| 12 | ICIER | Relatively cold island, about one centigrade to the west (5) |
| I (island) + <=(RE (“about”) + 1 C (centigrade) to the west, i.e. to the left or backwards) | ||
| 13 | FLOTILLA | Craft loaf to be shifted around part of checkout (8) |
| *(loaf) [anag:to be shifted] around TILL (“part of checkout”) | ||
| 15 | PINA COLADA | Dash back with company car once, after a cocktail (4,6) |
| <=NIP (“dash”, back) with CO (company) LADA (“car, once”) after A | ||
| 16 | MENU | Central element of restaurants presented by staff? (4) |
| [central element of] (resta)U(rants) presented by MEN (“staff”) and &lit. | ||
| 18 | REIN | Restraint drops when chatting (4) |
| Homophone [when chatting] of RAIN (“drops” | ||
| 20 | BODY DOUBLE | Casually buy old bed, keeping ordinary twin possibly (4,6) |
| *(buy old bed) [anag:casually] keeping O (ordinary) | ||
| 22 | RADIANCE | Dina runs in 200m event perhaps shining (8) |
| *(dina) [anag:runs] in RACE (“200m event perhaps”) | ||
| 24 | IGLOO | Some schoolgirls returned home (5) |
| Hidden backwards [some…returned] in “schOOLGIrls” | ||
| 26 | MAXILLA | Jawbone hurt after summit accident initially (7) |
| ILL (“hurt”) after MAX (“summit”) + A(ccident) [initially] | ||
| 27 | EASYJET | Jays moved into part of golf course rejecting company of flyers (7) |
| *(jays) [anag:moved] into <=TEE (“part of golf course”, rejecting) | ||
| 28 | ROBERT DE NIRO | US actor’s gown oddly tried on by Republican (6,2,4) |
| ROBE (“gown”) + *(tried on) [anag:oddly] by R (Republican) | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | VERSION | Rendering surface of villa, taking ages, brought about injury (7) |
| [surface of] V(illa) taking EON (“ages”) brought about RSI (repetitive strain “injury”) | ||
| 3 | ROOFRACK | Carrier that might get jump start by breakdown service in Falkirk’s outskirts (8) |
| (kanga)ROO (“that might get jump start”) by RAC (Royal Automobile Club, “breakdown service”) in F(alkir)K [‘s outskirts] | ||
| 4 | RULE | Decoy requiring switch of hands to guide (4) |
| (l>R)U(r>L)E (“decoy”, LURE becomes “to guide” RULE when R and L (right and left) hands are switched) | ||
| 5 | SUPPLY DAYS | Time of government debates in a flexible way? Confusion resounded (6,4) |
| SUPPLY (“in a flexible way”) + homophone of [resounded] DAZE (“confusion”) | ||
| 6 | INEPT | During early autumn period, going topless is foolish (5) |
| IN (“during”) + (s)EPT. (“early autumn period”, going topless) | ||
| 7 | GAZELLE | Look fixedly over inner section of ballet for graceful creature (7) |
| GAZE (“look fixedly”) over [inner section of] (ba)LLE(t) | ||
| 8 | STRIPPERGRAMS | Hired messengers who become increasingly exposed (13) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 9 | PLEASURE BOATS | Rent a seaport’s blue pedalos maybe (8,5) |
| *(a seaports blue) [anag:rent] | ||
| 14 | ELBOW CHAIR | Piece of furniture joint curator’s opening with locks (5-5) |
| ELBOW (“joint”) + C(urator) [‘s opening] with HAIR (“locks”) | ||
| 17 | COPIES IN | Gives a duplicate to policeman that is attending crime (6,2) |
| COP (“policeman”) + I.E. (“that is”) attending SIN (“crime”) | ||
| 19 | INDEXER | Person who orders in cattle when temperature dropped (7) |
| IN + DEX(t)ER (breed of “cattle”, with T (temperature) dropped) | ||
| 21 | BELL JAR | Scottish inventor Jack uncovered rare lab equipment? (4,3) |
| (Alexander Graham) BELL (“scottish inventor”) + J (jack) + [uncovered] (r)AR(e) | ||
| 23 | AD-LIB | Impromptu pop-up taken to party once (2-3) |
| AD(vertisement) (“pop-up”) taken to LIB(eral) (“party, once”) | ||
| 25 | MEND | Repair marks on curtains (4) |
| M (marks) on END (“curtains”) | ||
*anagram
Thanks Aardvark & loonapick.
22 across relates to the sprinter, Dina Asher-Smith, the 2019 World Champion at 200 metres.
Where is everybody?
Yes, this was a bit patchy, but worth doing all the same. All solved, although VERSION went in from definition and crossing letters as I couldn’t see the parsing. SUPPLY DAYS and ELBOW CHAIR weren’t actually new to me but needed dragging up from the depths of memory, helped by crossing letters.
But I liked PRETZEL, FLOTILLA, PINA COLADA and INDEXER among others.
And it’s almost a pangram; no Q – so it could be described as a lipogram.
Thanks, Aardvark and loonapick
allan_c @2 I too thought that we would have a pangram and I wasted a few minutes trying to think of words with a “q” that would satisfy the clues I hadn’t yet solved. Thanks Aardvark — – liked PRETZEL, BELL JAR, and RULE in particular. Thanks Loonapick for parsing.
had to remember craft could be plural. I liked 24 for the easy read, and also “company of flyers”. I wondered why 8d was cryptic then i remembered what was happening outside.
Like loonapick, the jump start and inner section put me off. I had not come across elbow chair or supply days before, but wordplay was clear.
Many thanks Aardvark and loonapick
Well I got there in the end. But found it a struggle. Mind elsewhere?
Loi was Strippergrams which I figured from the crossers.
Thanks all
This one was tougher for me than Nutmeg in the Graun. PRETZEL was my fave.
A slog, but nothing here to make me grumpy! ?
For 23d I parsed as Da (dad/pop) up (reversed)
late to the party (WFH is pretty demanding it turns out) — anyway, thanks A and Loona! Might this quite hard… didn’t understand the wp for VERSION until Loona explained. Also I thought that the 200m was overly specific and thought that CCM had to be involved. But got there in the end.
Thanks Aardvark and loonapick
Always a good challenge from this setter which took about the average time to solve. Quite a few tricky clues, including the parsing of ROBERT DE NIRO and VERSION and dealing with the previously unknown SUPPLY DAYS, ELBOW CHAIR and PRET (these puzzles continuing to increase my foreign language words).
‘Carrier that might get jump start’ would be a good definition for a kangaroo (as they carry their young in a pouch) – does that make it a semi-&lit and restore integrity to the clue ? Was aware of a possible pangram, but didn’t get too caught up with it. The surface explanation by psmith@1 makes the RADIANCE clue so much better.
Finished with PINA COLADA, that unknown ELBOW CHAIR and the tricky VERSION as the last one in.