The FT’s Sunday series reaches a landmark with its 100th puzzle, which as ever can be found to solve online or download and print at ft.com/crossword. For those unfamiliar with the geographically-themed World puzzle, which appears regularly on the first Sunday of every month, I would recommend this one from Gozo as a very enjoyable entry point…
In January 2023, new FT crossword editor Roger Blitz launched the monthly News puzzle, a current affairs-themed cryptic crossword published on the last Sunday of every month. A few months later, the Sunday offering was expanded to include – in rotation – a US-style crossword and the World puzzle, which is always themed around a particular country or city. Later, the maths-based Numbers puzzle was added to the series. I’m sure I’m not alone in welcoming this initiative and pleased to see it has become an established part of the crossword cycle. The News puzzle is always popular and while the World puzzle doesn’t seem to attract as many solvers (judging purely on the number of comments the blogs get), it’s one I always find enjoyable, especially when it’s the turn of Gozo to treat us to his quirky and fun clueing style.
The World puzzle always includes the same preamble:
A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular place in the world. Its name should be inserted at 9 across. Work out the place by solving the * asterisked clues. Their solutions have some relevance to the place, such as famous people, locations and culture
My way in today was 12/17 – and getting the theme early helped with several other clues, as I was looking out for many of the things for which I know Birmingham to be famous. It’s a slight shame that Gozo wasn’t able to find space to include Ozzy Osbourne or Black Sabbath – would have been very timely after the Brummie natives played their last ever gig yesterday at Villa Park – but he has managed to fit in plenty of other thematic solutions across the grid. As you’d expect from this setter, there’s lots to raise a smile in the clueing – particular favourites for me today were 33 across and 18 down.
Thanks, Gozo!
Definitions are underlined in the clues. Thematic clues, marked with an asterisk, lack further definition.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | LONGBRIDGE |
* Yearn for game (10)
|
| LONG (yearn) + BRIDGE (game)
A suburb of Birmingham, best known for the Longbridge Plant, where various makes of cars were built from 1906 until it closed in 2017 |
||
| 6 | PIER |
No nonsense seaside entertainer on here (4)
|
| PIERROT (seaside entertainer) less ROT (no ‘nonsense’)
Originally a stock character in Italian commedia dell’arte, the name Pierrot was later adopted by troupes of clowns who performed on the piers at British seaside resorts from the late 19th century until the 1950s |
||
| 9 | BIRMINGHAM |
[See Setter Notes] (10)
|
| The place that links all the asterisked clues | ||
| 10 | UNIT |
Platoon, out of condition, losing heart (4)
|
| UNFIT (out of condition) losing its ‘heart’, ie middle letter | ||
| 11 | ROAD |
Travelled, reportedly, the thoroughfare (4)
|
| Sounds like (reportedly) ‘RODE’ (travelled) | ||
| 12/17 | ASTON VILLA |
* Basset hound regularly at holiday home (5,5)
|
| Alternate letters (regularly) of bAsSeT hOuNd + VILLA (holiday home)
Birmingham’s most successful football club, based in the city’s Aston suburb |
||
| 13 | ZEAL |
Enthusiasm at the heart of the Maoris’ home (4)
|
| Middle letters (at the heart) of new ZEALand (the Maoris’ home) | ||
| 16 | THE BLUES |
* Leeds United initially appearing in ancient city of Boeotia (3,5)
|
| LU (Leeds United initially) appearing in THEBES (ancient city of Boeotia)
Birmingham City FC, known as The Blues, are the second most successful football club in the city |
||
| 20 | START |
A frightening beginning (5)
|
| Cryptic/double definition – a start is a beginning and is also a frightened reaction (eg to a loud noise) | ||
| 22 | LABOURER |
Sailor breaking rule or disturbing worker (8)
|
| AB (sailor) inserted in (breaking) an anagram (disturbing) of RULE OR | ||
| 26/32 | BULL RING |
* Darts score gets O (4,4)
|
| BULL (darts score) + RING (O)
The main shopping area of central Birmingham, famous for its open-air market that has been running since the Middle Ages and a modern indoor shopping centre that opened in 2003 |
||
| 27 | DERBY |
PM’s bowler in East Midland county town (5)
|
| Three definitions – Lord Stanley, the Earl of Derby, was British Prime Minister in the 1860s; Derby is also the American name for a bowler hat; and they’re both named after the East Midland county town | ||
| 28 | CBSO |
* Heads of cauliflower, broccoli, spinach overcooked (1,1,1,1)
|
| First letters (heads) of Cauliflower, Broccoli, Spinach, Overcooked
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, formed in 1920, has had several famous directors/conductors over the years, including the one named at 15/8 |
||
| 30 | TRIO |
Chamber composition for a crowd? (4)
|
| Double definition, the second playing on the phrase ‘Two’s company, three’s a crowd’ | ||
| 31 | BOURNVILLE |
* 26 in 29 restored (10)
|
| Anagram (restored) of BULL IN OVER
Model village in Birmingham founded in the 19th century by the Cadbury family to house workers at their chocolate factory |
||
| 33 | CROSSROADS |
* Chickens do so, it’s said (10)
|
| As in the old playground joke ‘Why did the chicken cross the road?’
Set in a Birmingham motel, Crossroads was a British TV soap opera that ran from 1964 to 1988 with a brief revival in the early 2000s |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | LIBERATE |
Deliver one rebuke after start of lesson (8)
|
| I (one) + BERATE (rebuke) after L (start of Lesson) | ||
| 2 | NARRATE |
Ran up at speed to tell a tale (7)
|
| Reversal (up) of RAN + RATE (speed) | ||
| 3 | BRIE |
Short set of instructions to make cheese (4)
|
| BRIEF (set of instructions) less its last letter (short) | ||
| 4 | INGESTED |
Whinges tediously, having eaten (8)
|
| Hidden in whINGES TEDiously | ||
| 5 | GOAD ON |
Urge travel to a Russian river (4,2)
|
| GO (travel) + A + DON (Russian river) | ||
| 7 | IAN BELL |
* Removed net from crumpled table linen (3,4)
|
| Anagram (crumpled) of TABLE LINEN with NET removed
England cricketer Ian Bell played at county level for Warwickshire, whose home is the Edgbaston ground in Birmingham |
||
| 14 | FLIRT |
Trifle endlessly — in a way (5)
|
| Anagram (in a way) of TRIFLE less the last letter (endlessly) | ||
| 15/8 | SIMON RATTLE |
* 30 Laments arranged (5,6)
|
| Anagram (arranged) of TRIO + LAMENTS
British conductor who rose to prominence in the 1980s when he was musical director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra |
||
| 18 | CADBURY’S |
* Reprobates hanging round conurbation in Greater Manchester (8)
|
| CADS (reprobates) ‘hanging round’ BURY (conurbation in Greater Manchester)
Chocolate maker founded in 1824 in Birmingham by the eponymous family, currently owned by the Mondelez International global food giant |
||
| 19 | TROOPERS |
Old reports about those who swear, it’s said (8)
|
| Anagram (about) of O (old) + REPORTS | ||
| 21 | TOLKIEN |
* Like turning round — that’s in fashion (7)
|
| Anagram (turning round) of LIKE in TON (fashion)
I would associate JRR Tolkien more with Oxford, where he was a professor, and he was born in South Africa, but his family were from Birmingham and he grew up there from the age of three |
||
| 23 | RUBELLA |
Complaint as French fellow leaves umbrella unfurled (7)
|
| Anagram (unfurled) of UMBRELLA less M (abbreviation for monsieur = French fellow) | ||
| 24 | OBITER |
Lawyer’s incidentally with new robe, drinking vermouth (6)
|
| Anagram (new) of ROBE containing (drinking) IT (vermouth)
As in the legal phrase ‘obiter dicta’ – meaning ‘other things said’ |
||
| 25 | RENOIR |
French artist showing rouge outside and his black (6)
|
| ‘Outside’ letters of RougE + NOIR (black in French) | ||
| 29 | OVER |
Completed deliveries (4)
|
| Two definitions, the second being the cricketing sense of deliveries |
I got into this with ASTON VILLA too, so realised I might actually know something about BIRMINGHAM. I’ve come to realise that Gozo is a cricket fan, as IAN BELL I only worked out with enough crossers and spotting the anagram fodder.
A fun puzzle, thank you to Gozo and Widdersbel.
My entry point was CBSO after which it was fairly plain sailing. I agree with Widdersbel about the new crosswords which are all most enjoyable although the American puzzles are not for me. Never saw CROSSROADS so was unaware of the Birmingham link although I loved the clue.
Ps Thanks to Gozo and Widdersbel
SM – yes, the FT’s US crossword is not for me either – it invariably exposes the lack of depth to my knowledge of US culture. It is good though. It’s set by Oliver Roeder, who is their US-based senior data journalist – and by all accounts a very clever fellow (PhD from Harvard). And its inclusion is fair enough given the paper’s international readership.
Main reason we don’t blog the US puzzle here is that it’s mostly definition-only – though it often has lots of witty Rufus-style cryptic definitions, making it a nice halfway house between a plain ‘quick’ crossword and a full cryptic. Maybe it could be added to the blogging schedule if there were enough call for it and someone with the requisite general knowledge were willing to take it on…
The Numbers puzzle doesn’t lend itself to being blogged as it is all pretty self-explanatory.
For those who like the US style, the Telegraph does an anglocentric US-style crossword (or used to – not had a look at the Telegraph for a while so don’t know if it’s still going).
I love the maths, world and news puzzles, don’t bother with the US style either, but I did the Microsoft word games for a bit, which also have US style crosswords as part of a suite of games. I gave up because I didn’t enjoy the crosswords specifically – because of the US culture knowledge.
This ‘Miss Doyan’ certainly enjoyed the CROSSWORDS clue in both of its senses, along with TROOPERS. Like Shanne and Widdersbel, ASTON VILLA was my way into (which would appal my Blues fan cousin)! This would not have been complete without the BULL RING, BOURNVILLE and CADBURYS but Jeff Lynne or Jasper Carrott would also have ticked boxes for me!
Thanks to Gozo and Widdersbell.
My first go at the FT on Sunday, and “themes” are not my pigeon…..but saw GOZO, zo go on, then.
Loved it. Clever stuff.
Now then…..like Marks & Spencer[s], isn’t it just ” CADBURY” ? But then, it’s Colman’s Mustard; but not Heinz’s baked beans. Rowntree, was just Rowntree, but now it’s Rowntree Mackintosh, it’s Rowntree’s.
I must get a life.
Brilliant puzzle, equally brilliant blog, just right for a lazy Sunday afternoon, with Columbo on loop, and lots of ouzo.
Thanks, Gouzo & Widdersbell.
Cadbury now but in the 1970s, I ate enough Cadbury’s Flakes to know! When the logo lost the ‘s, it lost its distinctive taste!
I enjoy the World puzzles because they make you focus on the wordplay. I thought I was onto a winner when I got LONGBRIDGE straight away but then got snarled up with TOLKIEN. These puzzles may get harder to set as the obvious locations get used up.