Independent on Sunday 1,579 by Hoskins

by

Very entertaining. Thank you Hoskins.

image of grid
ACROSS
1 OPTICIANS Might they make one better-looking? (9)
 

cryptic definition
6 ADAPT Change a lawyer gets with pint (5)
 

A DA (lawyer) with PT (pint)
9 TRIMMINGS What usually comes with awfully grim mist shrouding north (9)
 

anagram (awfully) of GRIM MIST contains (shrouding) N (north)
10 TACOS Drunk heading back round a Cafe’s front for food (5)
 

SOT (drunk) reversed (heading back) containing (around) A Cafe (first letter, front)
11 ETHER English chap cuddling tense Republican? Heavens! (5)
 

E (English) HE (a chap) contains (cuddling) T (tense) then R (republican)
12 LOATHSOME Criminal shot a mole – that’s abhorrent (9)
 

anagram (criminal ) of SHOT A MOLE
13 AT FAULT A crack about Tory leader being in the wrong (2,5)
 

A FAULT (crack) contains Tory (first letter, leader)
15 NETBALL Game PM’s address brought round party (7)
 

TEN (10 Downing Street, PM's address) reversed (brought round) then BALL (party)
18 LOURDES Peer over top of unmade beds regularly to see a sacred place! (7)
 

LORD (peer) contains (over) Unmade (first letter, top of) then bEdS (every other letter, regularly)
20 DISCERN Recognise research group after review of small papers (7)
 

CERN (research group) follows S (small) ID (papers) reversed (review of)
21 PERVASION Infusion over pan is steaming (9)
 

anagram (steaming) of OVER PAN IS
23 ALOOF A place to go with female that’s pretty distant (5)
 

A LOO (toilet, place to go) with F (female)
25 PESTO I annoy constantly with bit of obscene sauce (5)
 

PEST (I annoy constantly) with Obscene (first letter, a bit of)
26 TAIL-ENDER Trouble cutting easy to chew batter? (4-5)
 

AIL (trouble) inside (cutting) TENDER (easy to chew) – a batsman in cricket
27 STEIN Mug fools about, having drunk last of wine (5)
 

NITS (fools) reversed (about) containing (having drunk) winE (last letter of)
28 NEGOTIATE I got eaten by mistake in Deal (9)
 

anagram (by mistake) of I GOT EATEN

DOWN
1 ON THE NAIL Exactly where you might beat The Hammers? (2,3,4)
 

definition/cryptic definition
2 THIGH Head of theology on drugs will show bit of leg (5)
 

Theology (first letter, head of) then HIGH (on drugs)
3 COME ROUND Wake up and rue condom bursting (4,5)
 

anagram (bursting) of RUE CONDOM
4 ANNULET Ring nun late in a state (7)
 

anagram (in a state) of NUN LATE
5 SUSTAIN Uphold university mark after end of appeals (7)
 

U (university) STAIN (mark) follows appealS (end of)
6 AITCH A little problem sending off first letter (5)
 

A hITCH (little problem) missing (sending off) first letter
7 ANCHORAGE Ache and groan wandering around city abroad (9)
 

anagram (wandering around) of ACHE with GROAN
8 TASTE Son visiting art gallery shows good judgement (5)
 

S (son) inside TATE (art gallery)
14 FLUORESCE Glow that comes from unstable fuel cores (9)
 

anagram (unstable) of FUEL CORES – what a good surface reading for a clue!
16 TESTAMENT Will trial with a group of chaps lead to trouble? (9)
 

TEST (trial) with MEN (a group of chaps) then Trouble ((first letter, lead to)
17 LANDFORCE What a seaborne invasion will do for the army? (9)
 

double/cryptic definition
19 SMITTEN Struck with top of southpaw’s boxing glove (7)
 

Southpaw (first letter, top of) then MITTEN (boxing glove)
20 DENTING Depressing high toll overwhelms hospital department (7)
 

DING (high toll, of a bell) contains (overwhelms) ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat department)
21 POPES Religious bigwigs take pills and ecstasy tabs (5)
 

POP (take pills) and ES (ecstasy tabs)
22 ADORN Bill navy after installing bit of outside deck (5)
 

AD (bill) RN (Royal Navy) contains (after installing) Outside (first letter, a bit of)
24 OIDIA Fungal spores found in Hanoi diabetic (5)
 

found inside hanOI DIAbetic

10 comments on “Independent on Sunday 1,579 by Hoskins”

  1. This was great fun.  OIDIA was a new word for me. 14d was my favourite.

    Many thanks to Hoskins and to PeeDee.

  2. Thanks Hoskins and PeeDee. Nice quick solve for me compared to my usual all day efforts, in the morning sunshine. All good clues, no gripes whatsoever.

    Second day on the trot(t) or maybe bounce(r) that I’ve been almost stumped by a cricket reference. I missed “on” for “leg” yesterday, and TAIL ENDER was my LOI today. I was looking for something meaning to beat. Turns out (of the rough) that I was wide of the mark.

  3. Part way through this solve, joyce asked who the setter was. She was surprised it was Hoskins as it didn’t ‘feel’ like one of Harry’s. Bert then said, “But what about 3d?” which he solved and Joyce hadn’t read!

    A very enjoyable solve, over too quickly is our only criticism.

    Thanks Hoskins – Hope you are OK.

    Thanks PeeDee for the blog.

  6. Thank goodness OIDIA was a ‘hidden’ – wouldn’t have got it otherwise!   Possibly a ‘setter backed himself into a corner’ type of clue?

    My favourite has to be LANDFORCE, very nicely clued.

    Thanks to Harry for the enjoyment and to PeeDee for the blog.

     

  7. A quick solve in just two passes and very enjoyable.  A few of this setter’s trademark topic references not OTT – just right.  OIDIA was a new word to us (but confirmed in Chambers).

    We liked AITCH for its &lit-ishness (that being the letter ‘sent off’) but weren’t too impressed by DENTING.

    Thanks, Hoskins and B&J

  9. It was all over far too quickly!  A little heavy on the anagrams, I thought.  I would never have suspected a double entendre in the answer to 3D until B&J pointed it out.  Was it intended? Oh it’s Hoskins, of course it was! What would Mary Whitehouse have said?  Thanks Hoskins and B&J.

  10. always great to see Hoskins on sunday. My favourite was the topical DENTING, depressing indeed

    thanks Harry & PeeDee

Comments are closed.