Ovid supplies this week’s puzzle. Two thematic clues to investigate further, extra letters in the word play of all the across clues affecting seven cells and five down clues with additional words in them affecting 14 cells.
All very precise instructions implying a relatively easy puzzle which was matched by the clues.
The extra letters in the across spell out HIGHLIGHT HERO’S FIRST NAME
Two down clues had 7 cells to be filled but were both of length 6 and both led to POIROT – as in Agatha Christie’s detective. 1dn and 25dn which could be investigated further to give the actors who played Poirot – USTINOV (Peter) and BRANAGH (Kenneth)
The extra words in the downs gave DRAW LINE THROUGH FILM TITLE which starts from 5dn DEATH ON THE NILE (ending in 35dn) roughly looking like the Nile as viewed on a map. Details of each film are at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_on_the_Nile_(2022_film)#Theatrical and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_on_the_Nile_(1978_film).
Thanks Ovid – a pleasing puzzle with a clear end game.
| Across | |
| 1 Hesitant old nomad registered enemy’s close (7) | |
| H | Hun (old nomad) + Read (registered) + y (enemy’s close) = UNREADY |
| 6 Fight sheep disease (6) | |
| I | DD SCRAPIE |
| 10 Look! Openings of seam exposing precious stone (4) | |
| G | Se (openings of seam exposing) + gem (precious stone) = SEEM |
| 11 Onyx berth’s constructed for military shelter (9, two words) | |
| H | (onyx berths)* = SENTRY BOX |
| 12 Layers of cells seen in sagittal petals (6) | |
| L | Hidden sagitTAL PETAls = TAPETA |
| 13 Take heart: curare source Al lost has protective structure around it (7) | |
| I | cage (protective structure) around ourali (curare source) – al = COURAGE |
| 14 Mob schedule put out its light (7, two words) | |
| G | (its light)* = HIT LIST |
| 16 Aberdonian cardinal with hat askew (3) | |
| H | (w hat)* = TWA |
| 17 Describing controller of current national festival holding Paraguay back (5) | |
| T | N(national) + tet (festival) around Rev. py (PARAguay) = N-TYPE |
| 20 Minor route taking more than half of Thailand’s sheep (9) | |
| H | B road (minor route) + thail (more than half of Thailand’s) = BROADTAIL |
| 21 Many a developer suffering reversal hosts celebration of success (4) | |
| E | Rev. hidden manY A DEVeloper = V-DAY |
| 22 Pawnbroker vague when article is missing (5) | |
| R | Unclear(vague) – a (article) = UNCLE |
| 24 Restrain bishop after Chapter concerning us (4) | |
| O | C(chapter) + our (concerning us) + b (bishop) = CURB |
| 26 Jewish king ousts dissipated Greek historian (9) | |
| S | Herod (Jewish king) + (ousts)* = HERODOTUS |
| 32 Fly straight line across ancient Asian kingdom (5) | |
| F | fly + dia (diameter – straight line across) = LYDIA |
| 33 Tulip tree oddly trimmed for native American (3) | |
| I | tUlIp TrEe = UTE |
| 34 Effeminate Troy abandoning earthquake’s focal point (7) | |
| R | Epicentre (earthquake’s focal point) – t(troy) = EPICENE |
| 36 Markets not in use in case Sunday’s beginning (7) | |
| S | Out (not in use) + lest (in case) + s (Sunday’s opening) = OUTLETS |
| 37 Little tablet – mostly calming influence – active in depression (6) | |
| T | Lull(calming influence) – l + a(active) in pit (depression) = PILULA |
| 38 Will’s affected with oedema: pops over with short visit (9) | |
| N | Drops in (pops over) + call – l (short visit) = DROPSICAL |
| 39 Some Jamaican music, for example, feature of early sailing vessels (4) | |
| A | Ska( Jamaican music) + eg (for example) = SKEG |
| 40 Odd characters seen in storm in Mantuan musical offering (6) | |
| M | StOrM iN mAnTuAn = SONATA |
| 41 Distressed eery sigh: quite off-colour (7) | |
| E | (eery sigh)* = GREYISH |
| Down | |
| 1 Investigator (Lutheran) embraces endless hard work | |
| Prot(Lutheran) around toil(hard work) – tl = POIROT [USTINOV] | |
| 2 Minimal changes in main once not suitable before fateful date (9, two words) | |
| Ne(once not) + apt(suitable) + ides (fateful date) = NEAP TIDES | |
| 3 Recompenses to do with French country (6) | |
| Re (to do with) + pays (French country) = REPAYS | |
| DRAW | 4 Draw from the bottom: it’s a fizzy drink (4) |
| Rev (it’s a) = ASTI | |
| 5 Plague in Bavaria that is about to bite (5) | |
| Dh(In Bavaria that is) around eat (to bite) = DEATH | |
| 6 Many returning to receive former care allowance without complaint (7) | |
| Rev. lots (many) around ica (former care allowance) = STOICAL | |
| 7 Romantic undertakings scared us badly (8) | |
| (scared us)* = CRUSADES | |
| 8 Put an end to adult strife for Ed (5) | |
| A(adult) + bate (strife for Ed) = ABATE | |
| LINE | 9 Grant immunity when MP leaves line for a short formal leave (5) |
| Exempt(grant immunity) – mp replaced by a = EXEAT | |
| 13 151-0? Historically inspirational figure! (4) | |
| CLI – 0 = CLIO | |
| 15 Edgy cut in Tory’s wings (6) | |
| Etch(cut) in ty (Tory’s wings) = TETCHY | |
| THROUGH | 18 Wolf drops through Colorado for Peru cactus (6) |
| Coyote (wolf) swapping Pe (Peru) for Co(Colorado) = PEYOTE | |
| 19 Wicked liars fire weapons (9, two words) | |
| (liars fire)* = AIR RIFLES | |
| FILM | 20 Shoot film about terror capital (8) |
| Bud(shoot) + a (about) + pest (terror) = BUDAPEST | |
| 23 Catalogue number of two trees absent (7) | |
| No(Number) + ti + ti (two trees) + a (absent) = NOTITIA | |
| 25 Corruption after poison left by child for detective (6) | |
| Rot(corruption) after poison – son (child) = POIROT [BRANAGH] | |
| TITLE | 27 Staircase title regularly produces twitches (4) |
| sTaIrCaSe = TICS | |
| 28 Bean commercial unknown over UK and Italy (6) | |
| Ad (commercial) + z (unknown) + uk + I (Italy) = ADZUKI | |
| 29 Sound of four-wheelers in Bedford and Reading? (5) | |
| Homophone of quads (four-wheelers) = QUODS | |
| 30 Token stone from Whitby agreed (5) | |
| Jet(stone from Whitby) + on (agreed) = JETON | |
| 31 Stale compounds of sulphur found in Apache park (5) | |
| Hidden apacHE PARk = HEPAR | |
| 35 Belinda grasps this flower wrong way up (4) | |
| Rev, hidden bELINda = NILE |
Very enjoyable – I remember watching the original but haven’t seen the newer one.
Thanks to Ovid, and to twencelas for explaining the Ustinov ‘Poirot’, which I couldn’t parse, so just bunged in USTINOV once I had the theme and crossers…
I could not see the 2 “Poirot” solutions, so just bunged in the actors. Very enjoyable puzzle. Loved the first film, think Branagh is a poor Poirot.
Thanks Ovid and twencelas.