Non-prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of October 30, 2021
I found this puzzle more of a challenge than the last Buccaneer we had. My first-in was 20 (TAPER) and I finished with three tough clues in the bottom-right corner. There are two double definitions that are not completely clear to me, 12 (INSET) and 18 (SQUEEZED MIDDLE). My favourite clues are 11 (ODOURLESS) and 8 (HERITAGE).
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | PRIAPIC |
Not quite proper, an image of an erotic nature (7)
|
| PRI[m] (not quite proper) + A PIC (an image) | ||
| 5 | STAUNCH |
Acanthus hasn’t a twisted stem (7)
|
| Anagram (twisted) of [a]CANTHUS | ||
| 9 | TAPAS |
Knock a special food served in bars (5)
|
| TAP (knock) + A (a) + S (special) | ||
| 10 | LATECOMER |
Maybe fashionable guest left at green sea abroad (9)
|
| L (left) + AT (at) + ECO (green) + MER (sea abroad…in France that is) | ||
| 11 | ODOURLESS |
Escaping detection, having crookedly sold euros (9)
|
| Anagram (crookedly) of SOLD EUROS | ||
| 12 | INSET |
Where pupils may be training in schools (5)
|
| Double definition? I am not certain about how this clue is supposed to work but my best guess is that it is a double definition with the first referring to how pupils of eyes are inset in sockets and the second being an acronym for In-Service Training which denotes a time for the training of staff in schools with pupils not present. Please view the comments below for more… | ||
| 13 | SPRING-CLEANING |
Jump about, having an inclination for housework (6-8)
|
| SPRING (jump) + C (about) + LEANING (an inclination) | ||
| 18 | SQUEEZED MIDDLE |
Group short of funds as result of belt-tightening? (8,6)
|
| Double definition? I do not recall ever hearing the term ‘squeezed middle’ before but am figuring that this clue is a double definition with the first referring to the “squeezed middle class” and the second to squeezed waists. | ||
| 20 | TAPER |
Narrow recorder? (5)
|
| Double definition | ||
| 22 | BARRISTER |
Brief blockade around thoroughfare (9)
|
| ST (thoroughfare, i.e. street) in (around) BARRIER (blockade). ‘Brief’ is a common colloquial term for a barrister in the UK. However, according to Collins dictionary, the proper meaning of ‘brief’ in a legal context is the documentation about a case given to a barrister by a solicitor. | ||
| 24 | PONDEROUS |
Lumbering nude’s poor dances (9)
|
| Anagram (dances) of NUDES POOR | ||
| 25 | BRASS |
Undergarment and smalls for officers (5)
|
| BRA (undergarment) + SS (smalls) | ||
| 26 | SWARTHY |
Nervy around people, hiding blemish that’s dark (7)
|
| WART (blemish) in (hiding) SHY (nervy around people) | ||
| 27 | OVEREAT |
Stuff with zero tax that’s pocketed earlier (7)
|
| O (zero) + (ERE (earlier) in (that’s pocketed) VAT (tax) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | PATHOS |
In more than one way, love is something touching (6)
|
| O (love) in (in) PATHS (more than one way) | ||
| 2 | IMPROMPTU |
After Buccaneer’s cue, you heard piece of music (9)
|
| IM (Buccaneer’s) + PROMPT (cue) + U (you heard) | ||
| 3 | POSER |
Net commenter lacks time for awkward question (5)
|
| POS[t]ER (net commenter lacks time) | ||
| 4 | COLLEAGUE |
Firm with large division, one in the same office (9)
|
| CO (firm) + L (large) + LEAGUE (division) | ||
| 5 | SITES |
Places in India surrounded by places to the north (5)
|
| I (India) in (surrounded by) SETS (places) backwards (to the north) | ||
| 6 | ARCHIBALD |
Man knowing this person like Bruce Willis, say (9)
|
| ARCH (knowing) + I (this person) + BALD (like Bruce Willis, say) | ||
| 7 | NAMES |
Handles sailor leaving area on the way up (5)
|
| SE[a]MAN (sailor leaving area) backwards (on the way up) | ||
| 8 | HERITAGE |
What not to ask a lady about sex? It’s tradition (8)
|
| IT (sex) in (about) HER AGE (what not to ask a lady) | ||
| 14 | IN EARNEST |
Where eggs may be stuffed with corn, seriously? (2,7)
|
| EAR (corn) in (stuffed with) IN NEST (where eggs may be) | ||
| 15 | LAMBRUSCO |
Italian red meat: awfully sour and cold inside (9)
|
| LAMB (meat) + C (cold) in (inside) anagram (awfully) of SOUR | ||
| 16 | ILL AT EASE |
I’m going to answer guy that’s self-conscious (3,2,4)
|
| ILL (I’m going to) + A (answer) + TEASE (guy). ‘Guy’ as a verb can mean to make fun of someone. | ||
| 17 | ISOTOPES |
Big shot regularly has drinks in different forms (8)
|
| [b]I[g] S[h]O[t] + TOPES (drinks) | ||
| 19 | PROSIT |
Driver admitting current wish for good health (6)
|
| I (current) in (admitting) PROST (driver). ‘Driver’ here refers to Alain Prost, a French motor-racing driver and Formula One world champion 1985, 1986, 1989, and 1993. | ||
| 21 | PANDA |
Herbivorous mammal from both ends of Polynesia (5)
|
| P AND A (both ends of Polynesia) | ||
| 22 | BOOTY |
American’s bum is what’s been pinched (5)
|
| Double definition | ||
| 23 | IMBUE |
Soak’s confession of depression, putting away litres (5)
|
| I’M B[l]UE (confession of depression, putting away litres) |
These weekenders from Buccaneer get better and better. The lower half took a while. I too was amused by ODOURLESS and liked 10, 8 and 27 best. TAPER was reminiscent of Mudd.
For INSET, I took it to mean that pupils were ‘in [a particular ] set’ (or stream/band) at school, ie, whether one would be taking ‘O’ Levels or CSEs, as they were then.
I wasn’t sure if BRIEF could be used that way but later, I watched a legal drama which confirmed the use. I was also more familiar with ‘squeezed middle class’ but an online check mentioned this shorter version.
I failed to parse SITES and while I liked I’M BLUE, I thought ‘litres’ would give ‘ll’.
A rewarding solve, anyway.
Thanks to Buccaneer and Pete.
Are there online interactive puzzles (like the ones that Guardian, Indy, Dailymail, etc., have) on the digital edition of FT (as opposed to printing them)?
18 may qualify as a cryptic def, I guess.
12: Can’t think of anything better for the first half, tho’ there should be some better explanation available.
Thanks, B and PM!
Thanks for the blog , for INSET you and Diane @1 have got it I think . Staff training days are always called INSET days and a pupil will be IN(a)SET for maths for example.
SQUEEZED MIDDLE was a term invented by ED MILLIBAND to describe the effects of austerity on people earning average wages , so your idea was right. Common around the 2015 election.
I thought this was really top quality all round , will name a few clues out of many. TAPER is so neat and deceptive, HERITAGE is very clever, ARCHIBALD I like the use of THIS PERSON instead of the usual SETTER, I could go on …..
Ah Roz,
Thanks for the info re Ed Milliband.
I agree with you on the quality of the puzzle – I forgot how much I liked ARCHIBALD!
Thanks Buccaneer and Pete
Got through this one today in a few snatched sessions on a working day. Didn’t have to use a word-finder until coming to the unknown PRIAPIC. The only other unknown term was SQUEEZED MIDDLE which I had to look up to check. Similarly, needed to research to see why INSET was the solution to 12a (after it couldn’t be anything else) and came up with the same reasons as have been outlined by Pete (in part), Diane (the other part) and Roz (in summary). These were my last two in.
Also liked TAPER, ARCHIBALD and the naughty BOOTY.
Another splendid crossword from Buccaneer. Lots to enjoy but my particular favourite was 6d.
The INSET day wasn’t a problem for me although when my ‘boys’ were at school, they were known as Baker Days after the Education Minister who introduced them.
Thanks also to Pete for the blog
Thanks Buccaneer and Pete.
12ac: I think Diane@1 has the explanation here.
18ac: Thanks Roz@4, but Ed Miliband MP only has one L in his surname. (I have checked with his official website.)
Thanks, Pelham. I didn’t know it was Miliband but it’s noted now. (Been out of the UK a long time but that’s no excuse)!
In the US, “squeezed middle” can also refer to adults who are caring for both their own children and their aging parents.
I did get through this puzzle, but I too had questions about 12a, 22a, and 16d. I’d never heard of “brief” for lawyer (rather than a document) nor “guy” for tease. Thanks to Pete for the clarifications and Buccaneer for a fun puzzle.
Pelham@9: You mean Ed Milliband doesn’t know how to spell his own name?? 😉
KVa, Thank you for commenting. As far as I know, there is no publicly available online interactive venue for the FT’s crosswords.
I echo all the prior comments. I knew a few of the new words cited above, but I add PROST and POSER (to mean difficult question) to the list of firsts.
I thought for a while I was not going to finish this puzzle. When IN EARNEST went in, the outstanding clues started to fall into place.
There are a couple of additional things in this crossword I do not understand, and I wonder whether this army of experts can shed light on them.
6 what is the purpose of “say” in the clue? That is usually a homophone indicator (isn’t it?), and there is no homophone here. Is “Like BW” and “Like BW, say” different?
13 Pete wrote that “an inclination” is LEANING. Should it not be A LEANING?
27 I cannot think of a sentence in which OVEREAT can be used in place of “stuff”. Can anyone help?
Thanks to Pete for his fantastic blog of a difficult puzzle, and thanks to Buccaneer for setting it.
Martyn@14
We can all echo compliments on puzzle and blog.
In 6 “say “ is used as” for example”. I will leave Pete to respond to the LEANING point but in my view the A is not needed.
27 One would say “I overate at lunch ; I felt stuffed “,not a precise equivalent but conveys the gist.
All good fun and I was amused by the use of PROST as he is probably not today’s GK.
Pete, I took 18a to be a clue as definition. I am fairly sure that TV shows have led to a “brief” being almost anyone to do with legal representation, so i
Oops, dyslexic fingers cut me off.
I will just finish by saying thanks to Buccaneer and Pete – I enjoyed the exercise.
Thanks Buccaneer — it’s always a welcome sight to see your name on a Saturday puzzle. SPRING-CLEANING, IMPROMPTU, and LAMBRUSCO were a few of the clues I liked best. Thanks Pete for the blog.
Many thanks to Pete for the blog and to everyone commenting. To respond to any remaining queries:
13 across: having an inclination = leaning.
27 across: Stuff = an intransitive verb meaning “to eat great quantities” (see Collins.)
6 down: As SM rightly says, because this is a definition by example, it’s generally considered fairest to use a word like “say”, “e.g.”, “perhaps” or to put a question mark afterwards to indicate this to the solver.
See you all soon!