Independent 11,973 by Quince

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A puzzle by Quince a new setter for me. Not a new setter though just my first opportunity to blog one.

Great punchy short clues and such smooth surfaces. Very impressive. Not massively difficult but a work of art. 1ac set the scene marvellously with the whole clue providing the definition including the cryptic indication. 15ac I liked for its use of start of month; 9dn for its humour was probably my top one – a masterpiece and 19dn deserves a mention for its surface. 24ac for managing to make sailor the definition.

Many thanks Quince – very enjoyable.

Key * anagram; DD double definition; Rev. reversed;

Across
1 Badenoch waits to form this (6,7)
(Badenoch waits to)* = SHADOW CABINET

10 Cable, inspired by Davey, perhaps did show (7)
ed(As in Davey) around Vince(as in cable) = EVINCED

11 Half of army once more retreats and falls (7)
Rev. again (and more) + ar(half of army) = NIAGARA

12 In a cryptic crossword, gets hints (6)
in in (gets)* = TINGES

13 Group of countries raced, having dropped like flies?(8)
UN(group of countries) + zipped(raced) = UNZIPPED

15 They clean larks around start of month (11)
antics(larks) around sept 1 (start of month) = ANTISEPTICS

17 First person in The Aeneid, for example, to get close to Dido (3)
eg(for example) + o (close to Dido) = EGO

18 Cut The Wrong Trousers (3)
hidden tHE Wrong = HEW

20 Code for one not quite in the habit of business (5,6)
Cryptic definition SMART CASUAL

22 Unearth old note about wine (8)
ex te (old note) around cava (wine) = EXCAVATE

24 Sailor’s wrong in a couple of ways (6)
sin + bad (couple of wrongs) = SINBAD

26 Pub in that place not wholly solvent (7)
inn (pub) in there (that place) – e = THINNER

27 Constant suffering (7)
DD ABIDING

28 Planning ahead, clean up inside before sex (13)
pre-mating (before sex) around edit(clean up) = PREMEDITATING

Down
2 The rain flustered lock keeper (7)
(the rain)* = HAIRNET

3 Shrinks like breaking laws (9)
decrees(laws) around as = DECREASES

4 Auditor’s considered move offshore? (4)
Homophone of weighed = WADE

5 An awfully nice aunt, say (10)
an + (aunt nice)* = ANNUNCIATE

6 I almost directed TV show from Asian country (5)
I + ran(directed) – n + QI(TV show) = IRAQI

7 Exile making one a politician, for instance (7)
exile swapping I(one) for a MP (politician) = EXAMPLE

8 Doctor treats men with chat in surgeries (13)
(treats men chat)* = REATTACHMENTS

9 Snack unsuitable for soldiers (4-6,3)
Cryptic definition = HARD BOILED EGG (no runny yolk)

14 Raced, lapping second, and made a splash (10)
sped(raced) around latter (second) = SPLATTERED

16 Revolutionary ways to collar boxer in upset (9)
st + st (ways) around Ali (boxer) + Rev. in = STALINIST

19 Stranger set up call with Starmer, say, after internal reshuffle (7)
Rev caw(call) + Keir (starmer) swapping e and i = WACKIER

21 I’m not sure about that false Messiah from part of Italy (7)
um(I’m not sure) + Brian (false Messiah) = UMBRIAN

23 Some have no money, leaving bit of a sting (5)
Hidden haVE NO Money = VENOM

25 Rave is focus for Sabrina Carpenter, perhaps (4)
r(focus for Sabrina) + ant (carpenter, perhaps) = RANT

14 comments on “Independent 11,973 by Quince”

  1. I had 12A slightly differently as “t in ges” which I think works better as your version doesn’t have any anagram indicator.

  2. What a wonderful crossword. Loved it. Such a brilliant anagram at 1a. Always like a cryptic clue like GETS, parsed as Hounddog @1. Liked the humour in UNZIPPED & HARD-BOILED EGG. The clue for ANNUNCIATE was top-class. Even the simple inclusion for HEW works so well.
    I have a vague recollection of seeing a boat called ‘Sail Bad the Sinner’, which 24a reminded me of.

  3. Loved this. Great fun! Parsed 12a as T IN GES as Hounddog@1 & Hovis@2.
    [Google tells me that 25a’s Sabrina Carpenter is a US singer, niece of Nancy Cartwright (the voice of Bart Simpson {et al.} since 1987).]

  4. Could somebody spell out the wordplay of 12a for me? I can’t work out how to parse “a cryptic crossword”. Thanks!

  9. Excellent. Lovely, economic clueing. Favourites UNZIPPED, WADE And HEW, which took me far too long. Many thanks to Quince and to all who parsed TINGES

  11. Methuselah, Raider and Quince in the same week – what a treat! I thought this was brilliant with my pick being HARD-BOILED EGG.

    Thanks Quince and twencelas

  12. Loved this! Try as I might, I couldn’t spot the parse of SPLATTERED (I was too fixated on the S), and it certainly wasn’t a write-in for me, but I enjoyed pretty much every clue. My faves have been mentioned already: SHADOW CABINET (as James@8 said, I couldn’t quite believe that that anagram could work!), HARD-BOILED EGG and ANNUNCIATE.

    Thanks both

  13. Thanks Quince and twencelas. Very enjoyable, though I’m with Orwell in considering STALIN more reactionary than revolutionary. See Homage to Catalonia and Animal Farm. S dissolved the Comintern in 1943 — so much for the world revolutionary struggle as far as he was concerned. So Lenin si, Stalin no.

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