Second outing for the FT’s geographically themed puzzle as part of its online-only Sunday series. Find it on the FT website to print or solve interactively, or use the FT’s smartphone app.
The preamble: “A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular country. The name of the country should be inserted at 12 across. Work out the name of the country by solving the *asterisked clues, all undefined – their solutions have some relevance to the country, such as its places, famous people, culture, language”
I enjoyed the first of these World puzzles a few weeks ago, and I enjoyed this one too. Lacking a precise definition, the themed clues are a good test of your ability to solve cold, from the wordplay alone. CORAL REEF and BONDI were the way in for me, from which I deduced the country we were after today had to be AUSTRALIA. Favourite was 3d CARAMEL for the amusingly daft surface.
Thanks, Hamilton!
| ACROSS | ||
| 9 | EVERAGE |
* “This drink hasn’t got a head!” (7)
|
| bEVERAGE (drink) less the first letter (hasn’t got a head)
Dame Edna Everage, Australian housewife and superstar. |
||
| 10 | WALLABY |
* Masquerade returning in practice (7)
|
| BALL (masquerade) reversed (returning) inserted in WAY (practice)
A small to medium-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea. |
||
| 11 | OPERA |
* Love each one (in the House) (5)
|
| O (love) + PER (each) + A (one)
Reference to the famous Opera House in Sydney, Australia. |
||
| 12 | AUSTRALIA |
[See setter notes] (9)
|
| The country that links all the asterisked clues here. | ||
| 13 | NED KELLY |
* Lorraine has come to a sticky end (3,5)
|
| KELLY (Lorraine Kelly, TV presenter) following (has come to) an anagram (sticky) of END
Australian bushranger and outlaw, 1854-1880. |
||
| 14 | CAWLEY |
* All but the ends of cycleway need resurfacing (6)
|
| Anagram (resurfacing) of all but the first and last letters of cYCLEWAy
Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Australian tennis player who was world number one in the 1970s. |
||
| 16 | EMUS |
* Presumed some can be returned (4)
|
| Hidden (some) and reversed (can be returned) in preSUMEd
Large flightless bird native to Australia. |
||
| 18, 27 | CORAL REEF |
* Force earl to reconsider (5,4)
|
| Anagram (reconsider) of FORCE EARL
The Great Barrier Reef, found off the coast of Queensland, Australia, is the world’s largest coral reef. |
||
| 19 | BOAB |
* Open bed and breakfast, assuming nothing (4)
|
| First letters (open) of BAB bed and breakfast) containing (assuming) O (nothing)
A tree native to Western Australia, some specimens of which are over 1500 years old. |
||
| 23 | HOLDEN |
* Under obligation to fire graduate (6)
|
| beHOLDEN (under obligation) less (to fire) BE (graduate – either Bachelor of Education or Bachelor of Engineering, according to Chambers)
Australian car manufacturer. |
||
| 24 | VEGEMITE |
* Meat-free option could be discussed (8)
|
| Sounds like (discussed) “VEGGIE” (meat-free option) “MIGHT” (could be)
Australian yeast extract spread, similar to Marmite. |
||
| 26 | MACQUARIE |
* America torn over question (9)
|
| Anagram (torn) of AMERICA containing (over) QU (question)
Australian financial services company. Edit: …or more likely to be a reference to Lachlan Macquarie, former Governor of New South Wales, a pivotal figure in the early years of Australia – see comment from Geoff Down Under @3 below. |
||
| 28 | BONDI |
* Feature of carbon disulphide (5)
|
| Hidden in (feature of) carBON DIsulphide
Suburb of Sydney, Australia, famous for its beach. |
||
| 29 | GREENIE |
* About to be bathed in spirit (7)
|
| RE (about) contained (bathed) in GENIE (spirit)
Australian slang for an environmentalist. Edit: …or perhaps slang for a dollar note – see comment from FrankieG @5 below. |
||
| 30 | POSSUMS |
* Second thoughts; very large quantity is involved (7)
|
| PS (second thoughts) with OS (very large) SUM (quantity) inserted (is involved)
Any of around 70 species of small to medium-sized arboreal marsupials native to Australia, New Guinea and Sulawesi. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | DENOUNCE |
Criticise weight given to study (8)
|
| OUNCE (weight) “given to” DEN (study) | ||
| 2 | LEGEND |
Explanation, say, in advance (6)
|
| EG (say) inserted in LEND (advance) | ||
| 3 | CARAMEL |
Controversial salad cream ads banned; that’s sweet (7)
|
| Anagram (controversial) of saLAd CREAM less (banned) the letters ADS | ||
| 4 | MEDALLION |
Hamilton told to waste time on decoration (9)
|
| ME (Hamilton) + homophone (told) of “DALLY” (waste time) + ON | ||
| 5 | OWNS |
Has only the first three points (4)
|
| First letter of Only + WNS (points of the compass) | ||
| 6 | GLORIAS |
Hymns for Gaynor and Estefan (7)
|
| Double definition
Gloria Gaynor is best known for singing I Will Survive, Gloria Estefan came to fame as the singer for 80s pop band Miami Sound Machine. |
||
| 7 | CALLALOO |
Send for Indian vegetable stew (8)
|
| CALL (send for) + ALOO (Indian word for potato)
A leafy vegetable used in the Caribbean as the basis of a stew of the same name. |
||
| 8 | MY LADY |
“Goodness me!” First year boy assumed woman’s address (2,4)
|
| MY (goodness me!) + first [letter of] Year containing (assumed) LAD (boy) | ||
| 15 | TAX EXEMPT |
Status that means nothing to HMRC! (3,6)
|
| Cryptic definition
HMRC being His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the UK government department. |
||
| 17 | UNLOCKED |
Open about rugby forward in nude display (8)
|
| LOCK (rugby forward) in an anagram (display) of NUDE | ||
| 20 | BEEFIEST |
Best fee I negotiated, with the most substance (8)
|
| Anagram (negotiated) of BEST FEE I | ||
| 21 | SEQUINS |
Almost catch a lot of siblings with sparklers (7)
|
| SEe (catch) with last letter deleted (almost) + QUINS (a lot of siblings) | ||
| 22 | VERBOSE |
Long-winded piece about covers of the Beano (7)
|
| VERSE (piece) containing (about) the first and last letters (covers of) BeanO | ||
| 23 | HOMAGE |
“Goodness me!” Standing up to magician gets respect (6)
|
| OH (goodness me!) reversed (standing up) + MAGE (magician) | ||
| 25 | IONIUM |
Element of hesitation after one-on-one (6)
|
| UM (hesitation) after I ON I (one-on-one)
Former name of Thorium-230, a radioactive isotope of Thorium. |
||
| 27 |
See 18
|
|
A fun puzzle and an information-packed lovely blog!
Thanks, Hamilton and Widdersbel!
Liked NED KELLY, VEGEMITE, TAX EXEMPT and UNLOCKED.
No need for me to whinge about unknown Britishisms in this — they’re weren’t any! Well, maybe one — HMRC — but that wasn’t hard to work out. Oh, and never having heard of Lorraine Kelly I was unable to parse 13a. Interesting to get a look at some of the things we’re supposedly known for. All pretty much as expected, apart from GREENIE, perhaps. Are we known for them?
I might point out that although Macquarie is a financial services company, the name is associated with Governor Macquarie, whose name is featured all over Australia. One example: our official dictionary is the Macquarie.
Ah! Thanks for the local knowledge, GDU. The name sounded familiar but I couldn’t put my finger on why and the financial company was the one that came up top on Google…
GREENIE gave me this earworm: David Bowie – The Jean Genie – “Poor little GREENIE” (naive person)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMYg_Ra4cr8
The appropriately named Green’s Dictionary of Slang has:
‘greenie n.2 [the colour] 1. (Aus./US/N.Z.) $1 or £1.’
and appropriately cites:
1963–74 [Aus] B. Humphries Barry McKenzie [comic strip] in Complete Barry McKenzie (1988): “I’d need a stack of greenies before I flashed the old feller on TV”
Hello POSSUMS!
Thanks, FrankieG – I know greenback as American slang for money and wondered if it might be something like that, but again I went with what came up as the first hit on Google…
Well, that’s interesting. The $1 note was brown, $2 was green, but I’ve never heard it referred to as a greenie. (Both notes have long since been replaced by coins.) “Greenie” is absolutely used here to mean a conservationist, especially a member of the Greens political party, but I’d have thought that that use was pretty universal internationally, not just a quirk of Australia.
Hi, GDU – Did Australia have green £1 notes before 1966?
This is testing my memory. Yes, they may have been greenish. Only with decimal currency did the hues become rather more vivid. Still I don’t remember ever associating “greenie” with any currency notes.
If not, I think Hamilton meant Widdersbel’s interpretation of GREENIE.
In the UK the Green Party only has one MP…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_Lucas
…who talks a lot of sense, unlike most of the useless shower in the so-called mother of parliaments.
I really like this format. Reminds me of old Araucarias with “Special instructions: …solutions are of a kind and are otherwise undefined”. Here’s one I found:
https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/prize/25945
My foi was VEGEMITE – haha – loi BOAB (had heard of BAOBAB)
Thanks H&W
Thanks Widdersbel
I love Australia – I’ve been several times and seen every major city bar Canberra and Perth, so my first choice world puzzle was a no-brainer.
GDU@3 – my original encounter with the Macquarie name was the “Chair” in Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens, though the financial lot bought Stagecoach bus interests in London a while ago and then sold them a few years later at a loss!
FrankieG@10 – yes, the environmentalist was my take on greenie
Late to this party but the theme went in easily as I’ve just arrived for a driving holiday in Tas. Really enjoyable. GREENIE definitely conjured environmentalists for me as depicted memorably in The Kettering Incident set in this glorious state.
Many thanks for the fun, Hamilton, and Widdersbel for the blog.
I was hoping someone would explain why WNS are first three points in 5d.
Hovis@14. Only first = o , then the compass points, as Widdersbel blogged
Thanks. Don’t know where my mind was at with that one.
I confidently entered Greenies, thinking this was Australian for cans of beer – possibly Victoria Bitter (VB), Maybe I confused this with the Hong Kong term for Carlsberg/Heineken, widely enjoyed by expat Australians (and others!) in HK.
Super puzzle, with lots of Australian memories. Thanks to Hamilton and Widdersbel.