The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/29813.
When 1 Across falls out on first reading, I think I am in for an easy ride, and by and large that is how it turned out here. Brummie often has a theme, but I do not see anything – which is far from saying that there is none.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | CAMPUS |
Students here affected America (6)
|
| A charade of CAMP (‘affected’) plus US (‘American’). | ||
| 5 | CATACOMB |
Tom possibly on a search for dead accommodating place (8)
|
| A charade of CAT (‘tom possibly’) plus ‘a’ plus COMB (‘search’, verb). | ||
| 9 | SPURIOUS |
Dodgy football club concealing debt (8)
|
| An envelope (‘concealing’) of IOU (‘debt’) in SPURS (Tottenham Hotspur, ‘football club’). | ||
| 10 | POETRY |
Lines of type or squiggles (6)
|
| An anagram (‘squiggles’) of ‘type or’. | ||
| 11 | STAGE WHISPER |
Before gossip, stand aside (5,7)
|
| A charade of STAGE (‘stand’) plus WHISPER (‘gossip’). | ||
| 13 | SWOT |
Backward Yanks study!? (4)
|
| A reversal (‘backwards’) of TOWS (‘yanks’). | ||
| 14 | IDENTITY |
What makes the real you deny it – twice, brazenly? (8)
|
| An anagram (‘brazenly’) of ‘deny it’ plus another ‘it’ (‘twice’). | ||
| 17 | KNICKERS |
Underwear that’s exasperating (8)
|
| Double definition; the second is a humorous mock expletive. | ||
| 18 | PAWL |
Catch wife in embrace of mate (4)
|
| An envelope (‘in embrace of’) of W (‘wife’) in PAL (‘mate’). | ||
| 20 | GRAND LARCENY |
Crime of old lady: nabbing rocking cradle (5,7)
|
| An envelope (‘nabbing’) of DLARCE, an anagram (‘rocking’) of ‘cradle’ in GRANNY (‘old lady’). | ||
| 23 | MUESLI |
Use milk, almost curdled, for breakfast? (6)
|
| An anagram (‘curdled’) of ‘use mil[k]’ minus the last letter (‘almost’). I’m sure some will want to include ‘for’ in the definition. | ||
| 24 | EMBLAZON |
Display lamb cooked in controlled zone (8)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of MBLA, an anagram (‘cooked’) of ‘lamb’ in EZON, an anagram (‘controlled’) of ‘zone’. | ||
| 25 | ADULTERY |
Mature blend of rye? That’s cheating! (8)
|
| A charade of ADULT (‘mature’) plus ERY, an anabram (‘blend of’) of ‘rye’. | ||
| 26 | GREEDY |
Good as a woodwind section – but insatiable (6)
|
| A charade of G (‘good’) plus REEDY (‘as a woodwind section’). | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | ALPS |
Range of adult records from former times (4)
|
| A charade of A (‘adult’) plus LPS (‘recors from former times’). | ||
| 3 | PARASITIC |
Soldiers, with one jerk clinging on for support (9)
|
| A charade of PARAS (members of the Parachure Regiment, ‘soldiers’) plus I (‘one’) plus TIC (‘jerk’). | ||
| 4 | SLOGAN |
Labour needs a new election catchphrase? (6)
|
| A charade of SLOG (‘labour’) plus ‘a’ plus N (‘new’). | ||
| 5 | COSMETIC SURGERY |
Customer is e.g. about to be covered in blubber as a means of improving looks? (8,7)
|
| An envelope (‘to be covered in’) of OSMETICSURGE, an anagram (‘about’) of ‘customer is eg’ in CRY (‘blubber’). | ||
| 6 | TAP SHOES |
Bugs, garden tools, dance wear (3,5)
|
| A charade of TAPS (‘bugs’ – as in “his phone was tapped”) plus HOES (‘garden tools’). | ||
| 7 | CRESS |
Garnish shows one’s out of touch romantically (5)
|
| A subtraction: C[a]RESS (‘touch romantically’) minus the A (‘one’s out’). | ||
| 8 | MARKET TOWN |
Could be Ludlow’s ATM network needs fixing (6,4)
|
| An anagram (‘needs fixing’) of ‘ATM network’. | ||
| 12 | SWAN AROUND |
Bird needs a shot to move gracefully (4,6)
|
| A charade of SWAN (‘bird’) plus ‘a’ plus ROUND (‘shot’). | ||
| 15 | TIPSY CAKE |
Sort of trifle that produces tight coat! (5,4)
|
| A charade of TIPSY (‘tight’) plus CAKE (‘coat’), plus the suggestion that the cake is fattening. | ||
| 16 | VERLAINE |
French writer’s not entirely over LA – “inexorable!” (8)
|
| A hidden (‘not entirely’) answer in ‘oVER LA INExorable’. | ||
| 19 | BEDBUG |
Sucker’s base program error (6)
|
| A charade of BED (‘base’) plus BUG (‘program error’). | ||
| 21 | NASAL |
Nosy overseer of missions by lake (5)
|
| A charade of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, ‘overseer of missions’) plus L (‘lake’). | ||
| 22 | FOLD |
Pound to go out of business (4)
|
| Double definition. |
Just the right level of difficulty (for me tonight). TIPSY CAKE was an nho, despite the fact that I do add sherry to my trifle.
There were some clues that raised an eyebrow, but I made peace with most of them after a bit of internal debate. The holdout was 13a: Yank implies a jerk to get going, but TOW suggests something much smoother.
Isn’t this the third market town we’ve had in the last 10 days (the other 2 were in clues)?
Tx B&P
Ditto re nhho that trifle name, Dr Wh @1, despite the late mrs ginf, the maker of large trifles for our tribe, soaking the pound cake on the bottom in at least half a bottle of sherry. Agree, too, that while a tic is a jerk, towing is not yanking. Nice breezy fun puzzle though, ta Brum and Peter.
I too wasn’t entirely convinced by tow/yank, for the same reason as Dr. WhatsOn@1. I didn’t know Ludlow was a market town, but I do now. The wordplay was straightforward. I couldn’t parse CRESS, but now see it’s quite a clever clue. Never heard of PAWL or TIPSY CAKE (a British specialty?).
A pleasant solve and not as difficult as I sometimes find Brummie’s.
I also had to look up my last two, 15d TIPSY CAKE, and 18a PAWL, both nho, as well as the second meaning of 17a KNICKERS. Everything else solved and parsed. Delightful puzzle. Favourites? 10a POETRY (“type or squiggles” raised a smile), 11a STAGE WHISPER (my second home), 23a MUESLI (nice surface. I almost took the bait to include “for” in the definition, but though better of it!), 21d NASAL (“overseer of missions”), 22d FOLD (“pound” a good misdirection)
9a I was pleased to know the footbal club for a change (SPURS)!
4d could SLOGAN have worked just as well (or better?) without “election”, both surface and definition?
5d COSMETIC SURGERY tells a wonderful story, but slightly weakened by the stray “e.g.”
I’d forgotten, or never knew tight=drunk (British only?). Coupled with not knowing tipsy cake made that one pretty tough! Otherwise a very enjoyable solve.
Can someone explain in what sense pound = fold? As an enclosure?
Dr @1. Yes market towns do seem to be popular at the moment. But hopefully not another occluded front please!
khayyam@5, yes, enclosure. Chambers:
Pound: “an enclosure in which to keep stray animals”
Fold: “an enclosure for protecting domestic animals”
Not exactly synonymous, I suppose, but close enough to be delightful rather than annoying
Thanks mig@6. I suppose I’d always imagined flock more than enclosure for “return to the fold”. It was close enough to get the clue with a bit of puzzlement. So good to adjust my internal definition a bit!