Puzzle from the Weekend FT of April 26, 2025
Another great puzzle from Rosa. My first-in was 12 (IOTA) and last was 2 (PEEL-TOWER) which is a new term to me. I am unsure about my parsing of 8 (CREATE). My favourite clue has to be the great cryptic definition of 15 (SAWDUST). I also especially like 20 (TAURINE) and 30 (FRIGID). Thank you, Rosa.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | MOPING |
Feeling dejected, cat bites leg (6)
|
| PIN (leg) in (bites) MOG (cat) | ||
| 4 | EPISODIC |
Occasional long film about lawgiver, leader of Israelites (8)
|
| SOD (lawgiver) + I[sraelites] together in (about) EPIC (long film). Sod’s Law, also known as Murphy’s Law, is a British cultural axiom that states if something can go wrong, it will. | ||
| 10 | STEAMSHIP |
Has time at sea aboard special vessel (9)
|
| Anagram (at sea) of HAS TIME in (aboard) SP (special) | ||
| 11 | AMUSE |
Entertain warm Aussie on regular basis (5)
|
| [w]A[r]M [a]U[s]S[i]E | ||
| 12 | IOTA |
Scrap section of Riot Act (4)
|
| Hidden word (section of) | ||
| 13 | PARLIAMENT |
Legislature exercising paternalism, regardless of society (10)
|
| Anagram (exercising) of PATERNALI[s]M | ||
| 15 | SAWDUST |
Result of cutting deal? (7)
|
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 16 | ARTIST |
Perhaps Constable and I start cycling (6)
|
| Anagram (cycling) of I START | ||
| 19 | PROFIT |
Benefit for Paddy (6)
|
| PRO (for) + FIT (paddy) | ||
| 21 | NITRATE |
Can retrospectively tax fertiliser (7)
|
| TIN (can) backwards (retrospectively) + RATE (tax) | ||
| 23 | METALLURGY |
Came across pronounced antipathy for science (10)
|
| MET (came across) + homophone (pronounced) of “allergy” (antipathy) | ||
| 25 | SLUR |
Slight mumble (4)
|
| Double definition | ||
| 27 | ABATE |
American beauties periodically fade (5)
|
| A (American) + B[e]A[u]T[i]E[s] | ||
| 28 | IN THE SWIM |
Au fait with mines exploding (2,3,4)
|
| Anagram (exploding) of WITH MINES | ||
| 29 | REPOTTED |
Performed transplant on Kitty and Edward? (8)
|
| RE (on) + POT (kitty) + TED (Edward) | ||
| 30 | FRIGID |
Returned spade after a day, not wanting it (6)
|
| FRI (a day) + DIG (spade) backwards (returned) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | MESSIEST |
Football legend is French, and most disorganised (8)
|
| MESSI (footbal legend) + EST (is French) | ||
| 2 | PEEL-TOWER |
Spooner’s green energy for strong building (4-5)
|
| Spoonerism of “teal power”. Wikipedia informs me that Peel towers are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English-Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, mainly between the mid-14th century and about 1600. | ||
| 3 | NAME |
Call bloke up on phone at last (4)
|
| MAN (bloke) backwards (up) + [phon]E | ||
| 5 | PAPILLA |
Old man swallowing a tablet for small lump (7)
|
| A (a) + PILL (tablet) in (swallowing) PA (old man) [corrected] | ||
| 6 | STALACTITE |
It hangs in cave and, strangely, it lactates (10)
|
| Anagrram (strangely) of IT LACTATES | ||
| 7 | DRUPE |
Fruit drop picked up (5)
|
| Homophone (picked up) of “droop” (drop) | ||
| 8 | CREATE |
Make councillor take Ecstasy (6)
|
| CREAT (councillor) + E (Ecstasy). I am unsure about this one. ‘Creat’ can refer to someone given a title but not as far as I can determine that of a councillor in particular. | ||
| 9 | THWART |
Flan containing hot whiskey and Scotch (6)
|
| H (hot) + W (whiskey) together in (contained) TART (flan) | ||
| 14 | FULFILMENT |
Some dreadful film entrepreneur’s gratification (10)
|
| Hidden word (some) | ||
| 17 | SCALLYWAG |
Scoundrel caught partner dividing loot (9)
|
| C (caught) + ALLY (partner) together in (dividing) SWAG (loot) | ||
| 18 | BEGRIMED |
Grubby earl, awful in the sack (8)
|
| E (earl) + GRIM (awful) together in (in) BED (the sack) | ||
| 20 | TAURINE |
Writer enthralled by wild nature of bulls (7)
|
| I (writer) in (enthralled by) anagram (wild) of NATURE | ||
| 21 | NEGATE |
Deny springing wife from old London prison (6)
|
| NE[w]GATE (springing W from old London prison) | ||
| 22 | IMPAIR |
Undermine one’s mate (6)
|
| I’M (one’s) + PAIR (mate) | ||
| 24 | TRAMP |
Vehicle initially provided for vagrant (5)
|
| TRAM (vehicle) + P[rovided] | ||
| 26 | HEAR |
Catch them bare, both unclothed (4)
|
| [t]HE[m] [b]AR[e] |
Seems like a long time since the last RK puzzle. Very much enjoyed seeing her back and hope we don’t have to wait so long for the next puzzle.
Favourites included: MOPING, SAWDUST, MESSIEST, THWART, SCALLYWAG, NEGATE
Thanks Rosa Klebb and Pete Maclean (PEEL-TOWER was also my LOI)
For 8d, I believe that the parsing is CR (“councillor”) + EAT (“take”) + E (“Ecstasy”).
Thanks to Rosa and Pete for an excellent puzzle and blog.
I thought that CREATE was CR (Councillor) EAT (take) E (Ecstasy)
A lovely puzzle from RK, very approachable with her trademark pithiness.
My favourites were THWART, CREATE (nice misdirection), STALACTITE (great anagram and surface), SLUR (elegant), and METALLURGY (which took some thought).
I did not parse PROFIT, so thanks Pete. I will try to remember Paddy means fit. (Indeed I will drop it into a few conversations today). Deal wood is new to me, so SAWDUST was LOI
Being an expert on ancient architecture of the England-Scotland border, I am very familiar with PEEL TOWERs. Indeed we considered adding one to our home during a recent renovation.
Thanks Rosa Klebb and Pete
Thanks Rosa for another splendid performance. My picks when I solved this were SAWDUST, FRIGID, STALAGTITE, THWART (like Scotch no matter how you define it), SCALLYWAG, and BEGRIMED. If I solved this anew I might very well pick six others because they were all good. The only fly in this ointment for me was PEEL-TOWER; I dislike most Spoonerisms and this one was no exception. (It was my only ‘reveal’.) Thanks Pete for the blog.
I had never heard of a PEEL TOWER either, but the Spoonerism and the crossing letters got me there. When I looked it up, I was surprised to find that Robert Peel had nothing to do with it.
I put CREATE in without parsing it; so thanks for explaining.
2d PEEL TOWER was my LOi, too. — {16a not (I START*), but (ISTART🚲): -> STARTI -> TARTIS -> ARTIST. — [Or: <- TISTAR <- RTISTA <- ARTIST]}.
I was delighted to see a Rosa Klebb. It’s been too long. Some excellent clues as usual. Please don’t keep us waiting too long for your next puzzle Rosa!
My FOI, IN THE SWIM, was also among my favourites, along with METALLURGY, the witty SAWDUST (‘deal’ in this context always makes me think of Jane Austen) and BEGRIMED, NEGATE, ABATE and THWART.
A delightful puzzle containing Rosa’s customary skill in devising smooth and/or gleeful surfaces.
Thanks to her and Pete for the blog.
Yes the usual elegant succinctity from the spy-spider woman. I say metallurgy with the stress on the urge rather than the -al but I wouldn’t even call that a quibblettino. Much enjoyed, thanks Rosa and Pete.
Pete, I don’t think you have got 5d PAPILLA quite right. It is PA for old man, swallowing A PILL for a tablet. (PAPA gives you too many Ps.) A small slip in an excellent blog of a typically outstanding puzzle from one of my favourite setters. Too many great clues to enumerate, but I especially loved 9d, the tart made with both Irish whiskey and scotch. Yum.
Ginf@10, did you encounter a dread disease instead at 23a?
Hi Cello, yep I do say it like lergy, but with a soft g.
Parsed CREATE as others. Like Frankie, I think it’s important to recognise when a setter is using a cycling of letters rather than any old anagram.
PEEL TOWER new to me also. Perhaps I’m the only one, but I’ve never heard of IN THE SWIM either.
The lawgiver made me laugh. Other favourites were THWART, FULFILMENT, SAWDUST, SCALLYWAG and the neat little HEAR. The tower can also be spelled PELE, so I needed to wait for STEAMSHIP to be sure. Already looking forward to the next RK.
As others have said, always a treat to get a crossword from Rosa and I do hope we don’t have to wait long for the next one
A warm welcome back for Rosa!
Lots of ticks, as usual – I especially liked EPISODIC, for the lawgiver, SAWDUST, for the cycling, METALLURGY, for the reminder of the Goons, THWART, for the Scotch, FULFILMENT, for the clever hiding and negate for the use of ‘springing’.
Many thanks to Rosa for the fun and Pete for the blog.
Thank you all for the comments and especially for the corrections to PAPILLA and CREATE.
Lovely to encounter Rosa Klebb on a Saturday and this was as tightly constructed as ever. I enjoy this setter’s essentially simple constructions that are so well disguised. Parsed CREATE as others and, whilst PEEL TOWER was not unknown, IN THE SWIM was. Faves inc EPISODIC, IOTA, SAWDUST, REPOTTED, FRIGID, MESSIEST, THWART, SCALLYWAG and HEAR.
Thanks Rosa and Pete
Good to see RK on the Saturday slot. Smooth texture, super surfaces. I think I particularly enjoyed the teal power and the grubby earl, but lots to like.
Thanks Pete and Rosa.
It’s all been said but I don’t mind saying again: how nice to see Rosa’s byline. Lots of great clues already listed but I have to say my fave was the cheeky FRIGID.
Great crossword and blog. I’d never heard of Peel Tower either so bunged in Pied Tower instead. Always good to learn something new!
What jvector said@20.
I too had a chuckle in the ”naughty” corner, 30a FRIGID and 18d awful in the sack.
Great puzzle. Needed a bit of help on New Gate and Begrimed (E for Earl!) but all good. Viva Rk!