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Unfortunately Shuchi is unable to join us today so here is a substitute analysis. A fairly straightforward puzzle in the main but I have to admit that I had never heard of 12ac or 19ac before today and 27ac was only a very dim memory.
Across
1 WHITE CHRISTMAS WHITE (chess player) CH (check) *(IS SMART) – defn. ‘a standard’
10 CADET *(ACTED)
11 REPROBATE RE (about) PROBATE (proving of will)
12 ROBARDS BAR (pub) in RODS (struts) – Jason Robards Sr, Jason Robards or Sam Robards, take your pick
13 DISMISS DI’S (Diana’s) MISS (escape)
14 BLUNT dd
16 ANCHORMAN CH (church) in A NORMA (girl) N (new)
19 RED PEPPER RED (embarrassed) PEPPER (sergeant, of Beatles fame) – a UK magazine apparently
20 MERIT *(TIMER)
22 CATSUIT A T[o-do] in C (Conservative) SUIT (clubs, say)
25 LIGNITE [mil]L IGNITE (burn)
27 EAST LYNNE LYNN (girl) in EASTE[r] (festival shortened) – a novel by Ellen Wood
28 NERVE hidden in ‘opeNER VErsatile’
29 SHERWOOD FOREST *(HOOD FREES WORST)
Down
2 HIDEBOUND HIDE (cloak) BOUND (spring)
3 TUTOR [augus]T in ROUT (decisive defeat) reversed
4 CARDSHARP CARD (character) SHARP (cutting)
5 RAPID P (power) in RAID (attack)
6 SNOWSTORM NOW (present) in S (small) STORM (controversy)
7 MIAMI M (miles) I *(AIM)
8 STETSON S (sun) in STET (put back) ON
9 SCARAB SCAR[e] (a good deal of alarm) A B (black)
15 THE OUTLAW OUT (in the shops) in *(WEALTH)
17 CORAL REEF ORAL (said) in CREE (Indian) F (fellow)
18 MARDI GRAS MAR (spoil) RA (artist) in DIGS (lodgings)
19 RICKETS [c]RICKETS (insects not initially)
21 THEBES HEBE (goddess) in T[hi]S
23 TASTE S[ecurity] in TATE (gallery)
24 TANGO TAN (beat) G (good) O (disc)
26 GONER GONE (used up) [wate]R
Wasn’t East Lynne famous for the phrase ‘gone – and never called me mother’? (Mind you I always thought that should have been the epitaph of the man who invented the telephone. I’ll get my coat.)
Hi Conrad
According to Wikipedia the phrase does not appear in the original book, quote:
“The much-“quoted” line: “Gone! And never called me mother!” (variant: “Dead! Dead! And never called me mother!”) does not appear in the book version of East Lynne. Both variants come from later stage adaptations.”
Hi Gaufrid – thanks for standing in.
Yes, I found that in Wiki, too. No matter – I remember weeping over this book as a teenager and, if that line is really not in it, there’s something very like it! I certainly never saw a stage version.
I’m disappointed in that I thought as Conrad did re EAST LYNNE. However, I was completely baffled by RED PEPPER(got it but didn’t know why) and THE OUTLAW (never heard of it!).
Like Conrad, must get out more!
I have just downloaded (thanks Gutenberg) and searched the original novel and can confirm that the phrase (nor anything similar, sorry Eileen) does not appear in the text.