Our mid-week cruciverbal challenge has been provided by Filbert today.
For me, this was a tougher test than I am used to tackling on a Wednesday, but it was nonetheless highly enjoyable, and I think that I got there in the end.
My favourite clues today were 18, for its exquisite surface reading; 20, for making me laugh out loud; and 24D, for originality. The word for “seaweed” in 22 was new to me, and I am not sure whether the “possibly” in 14 is part of the definition or the wordplay.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | MASCOT | Son breaking computer given books, lucky thing
[S (=son) in MAC (=computer)] + OT (=books, i.e. Old Testament) |
| 04 | PREACHY | Lecturing before feeling the effects of flu?
PRE- (=before) + ACHY (=feeling the effects of flu) |
| 09 | AVERS | States in America against leaving US
A (=America) + VERS<us> (=against; “leaving US” means that letters “us” are dropped); states is avers, declares |
| 10 | QUADRILLE | As practice, start to execute dance
QUA (=as, in the capacity of) + DRILL (=practice, of e.g. grammar) + E<xecute> (“start to” means first letter only) |
| 11 | WITHERING | Drying out hoop of willow sticks?
WITHE (=willow, a flexible twig thereof) + RING (=hoop) |
| 12 | SPEED | Fly from trenches in retreat
DEEPS (=trenches, i.e. deep places); “in retreat” indicates reversal |
| 13 | ITCH | Long throw needing power
<p>ITCH (=to throw, hurl); “needing (=lacking) power (=P, in physics)” means letter “p” is dropped |
| 14 | CRUSTACEAN | Shrimp, possibly brown one that’s tinned?
[RUST (=brown, of colour) + ACE (=one, in cards)] in CAN (=that’s tinned) |
| 18 | EPISTOLARY | Early post I sorted consisting mainly of letters
*(EARLY POST I); “sorted” is anagram indicator; an epistolary novel is composed mainly of letters |
| 20 | SPIV | Dodgy dealer finally sells tap with drip
<sell>S <ta>P (“finally” means last letters only) + IV (=intravenous drip) |
| 23 | LEHAR | Hungarian composer Franz L___ . What? No not he, another
L + EH (=what?) + A<not he>R (“no not he” means letters “not he” are dropped); the reference is to Hungarian composer Franz Lehár (1870-1948) |
| 24 | DOWNSWING | In recession, director has rooms built on side of mansion
D (=director) + OWNS (=has) + WING (=rooms built on side of mansion) |
| 25 | CABALLERO | Don’s 6 mostly love hosting a dance
[A + BALL (=dance)] in [C (=college) + ERO<s> (=love, “mostly” means last letter is dropped)] |
| 26 | OCTET | Musicians turning to entertaining and so on
ETC (=and so on) in TO; “turning” indicates reversal |
| 27 | MITOSIS | Note to little sibling creates division
MI (=note, in music) + TO + SIS (=sibling; “little” implies abbreviation); mitosis is an elaborate process of cell division |
| 28 | BEARER | Sherpa maybe more exposed to protecting European
E (=European) in BARER (=more exposed); Sherpas are Tibetans known for their role as guides and as carriers of equipment for Himalayan climbers |
| Down | ||
| 01 | MEANWHILE | Excellent trick for the audience in the interval
MEAN (=excellent, skilful) + homophone (“for the audience”) of “wile (=trick)” |
| 02 | SCEPTIC | I doubt Conservative’s bed is full of bugs
C (=Conservative) in SEPTIC (=full of bugs, i.e. bacteria) |
| 03 | OUSTED | Miscreant used to being expelled
*(USED TO); “miscreant” is anagram indicator |
| 04 | PRANG | Crash a new Golf after spin
PR (=spin, i.e. public relations) + A + N (=new) + G (=golf, in radio telecommunications) |
| 05 | EUROSTAR | Express, on reflection, singer’s nothing to regret
RAT’S (=singer’s, i.e. informer, traitor) + O (=nothing, pictorially) + RUE (=to regret); Eurostar is a high-speed star, hence “express”; “on reflection” indicates reversal |
| 06 | COLLEGE | Group of academics pass on a bit of erudition
COL (=pass, between mountains) + LEG (=on, i.e. side in cricket) + E<rudition> (“bit of” means first letter only) |
| 07 | YIELD | Give up drifting idly around Spain
E (=Spain, in IVR) in *(IDLY); “drifting” is anagram indicator; to yield is to surrender, give up |
| 08 | SQUIRREL | Tree dweller runs into landowner on top of ladder
[R (=runs, in cricket) in SQUIRE (=landowner)] + L<adder> (“top of” means first letter only) |
| 15 | SCREWTOP | Small hands best for access to jar?
S (=small, of sizes) + CREW (=hands, e.g. on deck) + TOP (=(the) best) |
| 16 | NAVIGATOR | Guide’s a good leader who was terrible climbing hill
NAVIGA (A + G (=good) + IVAN (=leader who was terrible, i.e. the Russian Ivan the Terrible); “climbing” indicates vertical reversal) + TOR (=hill) |
| 17 | STARTLES | First art lesson with clothing off is astonishing
Hidden (“with clothing off’) in “firST ART LESson” |
| 19 | INHABIT | People finding hotel slightly inferior to home
IN (=(at) home) + H (=hotel, in radio telecommunications) + A BIT (=slightly); to people a territory is to inhabit it |
| 21 | POINTER | Looking glum, bury dog
PO (=looking glum, as in po-faced) + INTER (=(to) bury) |
| 22 | ASHORE | Timber and seaweed on the beach
ASH (=timber) + ORE (=seaweed, oarwood) |
| 23 | LOCUM | Substitute delivered when copper put in large order
CU (=copper, i.e. chemical symbol) in [L (=large, of sizes) + OM (=order, i.e. Order of Merit)] |
| 24 | DREGS | The worst cars from 1986?
Cars from 1986 are D-REGs, i.e. have a number plate beginning with the letter “d” |
Thanks both. Agree this was at times very stretching and enjoyable. CABALLERO still confuses me a little, as I googled (a mistake I know) and found an obscure band called Don Caballero though I suspect the two parts are synonyms provided we are speaking Spanish? The Eros element also escaped me, having seen ‘o’ on its own as love; despite all that I solved thanks to one Willy C being a former Man City goalkeeper! Also, re POINTER I have not before seen ‘po’ acting without ‘faced’
Enjoyed this, although I got several answers without realising how, e.g. 6D ( the onside fielding reference being VERY buried). 22D too, as I didn’t know that reference for seaweed. Also Rat’s for singer was quite an obscure one (to me at least). Good fun though.
Nice use of MEAN in MEANWHILE as in “he plays a mean guitar” rather than its usual opposite sense “he’s no mean guitarist”.
I parsed the ERO in CABALLERO as ZERO without the Z, rather than EROS without the S.
Or does “mostly” have to mean the last letter is dropped?
Yes, po without -faced was a bit naughty but forgivable.
Otherwise nice and chewy. Liked LEHAR & loi DREGS.
I do like Filbert – always a good challenge with reliably sound and inventive clueing, tricky in places but worth persevering with and very satisfying to complete. Like FrankieG, DREGS and LEHAR were my favourites.
Thanks for the blog, RR – on reading through, I realise I hadn’t fully parsed COLLEGE, CABALLERO or SPIV, only enough bits of them to be able to see the answer!
Oh, and CRUSTACEAN for “tinned” and SCEPTIC for using “bed” that way – very clever.
Several unparsed for which I can thank RR on the filling in stakes.
I did get there with a bit of google for double checking a few entries and places where my GK was found wanting.
Thanks to Filbert for the challenge even if it was beyond my unaided capabilties.
DREGS beat me. Thanks for the explanation. Also, couldn’t parse LEHAR but now I can and it is typically top shelf. Favourite was EUROSTAR. A gnarly but delightful challenge very much appreciated. Thanks.
I’m relieved it wasn’t just me! I found this very tricky indeed, full of cunning and misdirection, and confess to using a bit of electronic help here and there in order to get over the finishing line. I don’t think I can pick out highlights as it was all masterly so I’ll just thank Filbert and RR for a top puzzle and blog.
Thanks RatkojaRiku and Filbert.
Fabulous puzzle.
LEHAR top fav and I thought the surface refers to LISZT with the same first name.
SPIV, EUROSTAR, COLLEGE
Tricky in places – we needed two sessions with time in between while our collective subconscious mulled over it. The willow twigs were new to us and we took a while to remember about IV for a drip, but we did know the seaweed. CABALLERO was one of our last in as we originally had ‘screwcap’ for 15dn (thinking of ‘cap’ as a verb in the sense of outdo or best someone).
Lots to like, including CRUSTACEAN, SCEPTIC and SQUIRREL.
Thanks, Filbert and RR.
Really enjoyed this though found it pretty tough. Should it be ‘oarweed’ not ‘oarwood ‘ in the blog at 22? Favs LEHAR and DREGS.
Thanks Filbert for an excellent crossword. Favourites included INHABIT, MITOSIS, and SQUIRREL. There was a lot I couldn’t parse so thanks RR for the blog.
Decided to steel myself and try a Filbert … and did it all! Hooray! Immaculate cluing, as ever. There were a few things I had to look up, like Lehar and withe.