Financial Times 18,197 by ARTEXLEN

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ARTEXLEN kicks off the week…

An enjoyable and not too challenging puzzle with some lovely surfaces.

Thanks ARTEXLEN

picture of the completed grid

ACROSS
1. Commercial yarn bags prone to losing colour (7)
FADABLE

AD (commercial), FABLE (yarn) bags

5. Long sections of wood somewhere in the West Midlands (6)
STAFFS

Double definition (Staffordshire)

8. Bird of prey’s activated trap by den over to the west (9)
RAPTORIAL

(TRAP)* (*activated) by (LAIR (den) + O (over))< (<to the west)

9. Fatigued in rows, expending energy (5)
TIRED

TI[e]RED (in rows, expending E (energy))

11. Turning nibbed utensil penning musical composition (5)
ETUDE

([nibb]ED UTE[nsil] (penning))< (<turning)

12. Relentless princess antagonised hosts (9)
INCESSANT

[pr]INCESS ANT[agonised] (hosts)

13. Person attempting to embrace tip to be less boomerish (8)
TRENDIER

TRIER (person attempting) to embrace END (tip)

15. Start journey from outskirts of Stowe with posh type (3,3)
SET OFF

S[tow]E (outskirts of) with TOFF (posh type)

17. Hero ignoring that male clown, extravagant in style (6)
ROCOCO

[he]RO (ignoring HE (that male)) + COCO (clown)

19. Prisoners love Madame’s soup (8)
CONSOMME

CONS (prisoners) + O (love) + MME (Madame)

22. Unbeatable team no-one will play is such (9)
MATCHLESS

Double (cryptic) definition

23. Daughter in eateries on vacation does this (5)
DINES

D (daughter) + IN + E[aterie]S (on vacation) &lit

24. Name of male journalist to be successful (5)
EDWIN

ED (journalist) + WIN (to be successful)

25. Pubs with ocean around the bend making money on island (5,4)
CUBAN PESO

(PUBS with OCEAN)* (*around the bend)

26. Front of carbuncle corroded, with harsh exterior (6)
CRUSTY

C[arbuncle] (front of) + RUSTY (corroded)

27. Most of team gathering at lift (7)
ELEVATE

ELEVE[n] (team, most of) gathering AT

DOWN
1. I would never fib, former mate is wrong (3,2,2,4,2)
FAR BE IT FROM ME

(FIB FORMER MATE)* (*is wrong)

2. Bird conveyed upwards protecting soft strip of feathers (7)
DEPLUME

(EMU (bird) + LED (conveyed))< (<upwards) protecting P (soft)

3. Chap fine participating in ballet regularly (5)
BLOKE

OK (fine) participating in B[a]L[l]E[t] (regularly)

4. Drew out extremely immoral rogue with deceit (8)
ELICITED

(I[mmora]L (extremely) with DECEIT)* (*rogue)

5. Exclusive group infiltrated by the Parisian (6)
SELECT

SECT (group) infiltrated by LE (the, Parisian)

6. They affirm cheers upset barking setters (9)
ATTESTERS

(TA)< (cheers, <upset) + (SETTERS)* (*barking)

7. Confusion with scrap taking place in Portuguese city (7)
FARRAGO

RAG (scrap) taking place in FARO (Portuguese city)

10. Business releases rent for airport shop, perhaps (4-4,5)
DUTY-FREE STORE

DUTY (business) + FREES (releases) + TORE (rent)

14. Pack mitts for sailors (9)
DECKHANDS

DECK (pack) + HANDS (mitts)

16. Second sibling in post showing potential (8)
POSSIBLE

(S (second) + SIB (sibling)) in POLE (post)

18. One drawing under case in cold storage unit (2,5)
CD TOWER

TOWER (one drawing) under C[ol]D (case in)

20. Fellow not totally put off being President (7)
MANDELA

MAN (felow) + DELA[y] (put off, not totally)

21. Great feeling suitable effects after exercise class (6)
PEACHY

ACHY (suitable effects) after PE (exercise class)

23. Poet died on stake (5)
DANTE

D (died) on ANTE (stake)

10 comments on “Financial Times 18,197 by ARTEXLEN”

  1. A good start to the week. I found suitable effects for ACHY a stretch too far. Is feeling part of the definition?
    Thanks Artexlen and Teacow.

  2. Thanks Artexlen and Teacow.

    21dn further to SM@1: I took “feeling” as part of the indication for ACHY.

  3. My UK knowledge was insufficient to parse STAFFS. I’d have enumerated CD TOWER as (1,1,5). Business/duty I thought a bit loose, but no doubt it’s in Chambers …

    FARRAGO was new to my lexicon.

  4. Very enjoyable. SM @1 one is achy after exercise, I am told.

    Liked Cuban Peso, Mandela, Dante (NOT Donne).

    Didn’t love Fadable (is that a real word?), Staffs (plural of staff is staves in my book), Deplume (is that a real synonym for pluck?), CD tower (had a heyday of, maybe 10 years, not much help from the definition!).

    Nevertheless, I finished and enjoyed it! Thanks both.

  5. Collins 2023 gives the following:

    1ac: fadable adj under fade (p 705)
    5ac: staff or staves as the plural of staff¹ for the relevant sense here (p 1927)
    2dn: deplume vb 1 to deprive of feathers; pluck (p 537)

  6. My faves:
    MATCHLESS, FAR BE IT FROM ME and ELICITED.

    A minor point
    TRENDIER
    I took ‘less boomerish’ as the def.

    PEACHY
    Had the same reading as Pelham Barton@2.

    Thanks Artexlen and Teacow..

  7. Thanks Artexlen and Teacow

    I think in 8 RAPTORIAL the “ ‘s “ needs to be underlined as part of the definition.

  8. Correction to comment 5 re 5ac: Collins has staffs or staves as acceptable plurals for staff¹ in the sense used in this clue. Chambers 2016 p 1514 gives the same choice. ODE 2010 p 1733 gives no special plural for any meaning of staff¹. My apologies for the typing error, and for failing to spot it on several re-readings of the comment.

    While I am back in:

    8ac: I agree with Simon@7 about the definition in this clue.

    10dn further to Geoff@3: Chambers 2016 p 479 has “one’s proper business” as a meaning of duty.

  9. 18dn: ODE 2010 p 1881 has tower as a noun with a modifier “a tall structure used as a receptacle or for storage: a CD tower“. In my view, this usage example fits the enumeration (2,5) for the answer to this clue, but I have no quarrel with anyone who prefers otherwise.

  10. The argument in favour of (2,5) for CD TOWER is that there is no space between the C & D. It could be argued that (1,1,5) would give C D TOWER. But I’m sticking to my guns. 🙂

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