Wednesday entertainment from the ever-reliable Eccles.
Lots of good clues here but I’ll single out the two neat anagrams at 13a and 8d, and the unexpected but logical construction of 18a. I also laughed at 25a – bad puns are part of the territory in crosswords. Thanks Eccles as always.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 5 | TEEPEE |
Picked up tips from tramp in tent (6)
|
| Sound-alike (picked up = heard) of T + P, which are the end letters (tips) of T[ram]P.
A traditional tent used by Native Americans. |
||
| 6 | WALRUS |
Thick-skinned individual left during fight with America (6)
|
| L (abbreviation for left) inserted into WAR (fight) + US (America).
Marine mammal with a thick leathery hide. |
||
| 9 | OYSTER |
English Tory’s desperate for aphrodisiac (6)
|
| Anagram (desperate) of E (abbreviation for English) + TORY’S.
Traditionally considered an aphrodisiac; according to Wikipedia, eating them may boost production of some sex hormones. |
||
| 10 | NOBLE ART |
Boxing in Jack and King with lead of ten (5,3)
|
| NOB (name for a Jack in some card games) + LEAR (Shakespearean King Lear) + leading letter of T[en].
The noble art = nickname for the sport of boxing. |
||
| 11 | BURN |
Desire back massage before noon (4)
|
| RUB (massage) reversed (back), before N (abbreviation for noon).
Burn, as a verb = to desire something very strongly. |
||
| 12 | GUNFIGHTER |
Wyatt Earp, perhaps, following in darkness to stop urge evolving (10)
|
| F (abbreviation for following) inserted into NIGHT (darkness), all inserted into (stopping) an anagram (evolving) of URGE.
As in the Gunfight at the OK Corral. |
||
| 13 | PERSIAN GULF |
Figures plan to develop oil rich area (7,4)
|
| Anagram (to develop) of FIGURES PLAN.
Body of water bordering several oil-producing countries. |
||
| 18 | RELEGATION |
On and on and on, railing at international banishment (10)
|
| RE (on = on the subject of) + LEG (on = in cricket terminology, the side of the wicket where the batter stands) + ON, surrounding (railing) AT + I (abbreviation for international). | ||
| 21 | THUS |
Change ends in bar, therefore (4)
|
| SHUT (bar, as a verb = prevent access to), with the end letters S and T changing places. | ||
| 22 | ELSINORE |
English stories about crime location in Hamlet (8)
|
| E (abbreviation for English) + LORE (stories = legends), around SIN (crime).
Shakespeare’s English name for Helsingør in Denmark, location of the castle where Hamlet is set. |
||
| 23 | RWANDA |
Land fish on film next to river (6)
|
| WANDA (fish on film, as in the 1988 film A Fish Called Wanda) next to R (abbreviation for river). | ||
| 24 | GRAVEL |
Stones German composer (6)
|
| G (abbreviation for German) + RAVEL (Maurice Ravel, French composer). | ||
| 25 | PARITY |
Quits on the phone like Polly? (6)
|
| Sound-alike (on the phone = heard) of PARROTY (like a parrot = like Polly). I’m sure some will say that they pronounce the I and O in these two words differently, but it’s close enough for me.
As in “call it quits” = no advantage to either side = parity. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | SENTENCE |
Pass judgement on several words, appropriately structured (8)
|
| Double definition. Sentence as a verb, in a court of law; or as a noun, in grammar. | ||
| 2 | RED RAG |
Pull again, an inflammatory action (3,3)
|
| RE-DRAG (pull again).
As in “a red rag to a bull” = something deliberately used to cause annoyance. Though in fact bulls are colourblind, and react to the movement of the bullfighter’s cape rather than its colour. |
||
| 3 | MARBLING |
Ruin ostentatious jewellery’s mottled appearance (8)
|
| MAR (ruin, as a verb = spoil or damage) + BLING (slang for ostentatious jewellery). | ||
| 4 | BREECH |
Tail of rook found in tree (6)
|
| R (abbreviation for rook, in chess notation) in BEECH (a type of tree).
Breech = tail = buttocks. |
||
| 5 | TRY OUT |
Blossoming after score in rugby test (3,3)
|
| OUT (of a plant = showing blossom) after TRY (a score in rugby). | ||
| 7 | SERIES |
Steamship touring Great Lake for regularly broadcast shows (6)
|
| SS (abbreviation for screw-powered steamship, as opposed to a paddle steamer) around ERIE (one of the Great Lakes in North America). | ||
| 8 | UNINHABITED |
Die in Bhutan, horribly, having had liver removed? (11)
|
| Anagram (horribly) of DIE IN BHUTAN.
A house is uninhabited if the person who lived there (liver) has been removed. |
||
| 14 | SEASONED |
Experienced a child punching others (8)
|
| A SON (a child) inserted into SEED (descendants in general = other children).
As in “a seasoned performer” = someone with a lot of experience of doing something. |
||
| 15 | LOTHARIO |
Libertine‘s destiny with many wives and concubines curtailed by love (8)
|
| LOT (destiny = fate) + HARI[m] (otherwise spelled harem or hareem = many wives and concubines) without the last letter (curtailed) + O (zero – love in tennis scoring). | ||
| 16 | JET LAG |
Exhaustion from travelling in spring with convict (3,3)
|
| JET (spring = a spurt of water) + LAG (slang for a convict). | ||
| 17 | SUNDAY |
Delivered ice cream for start of week? (6)
|
| Sound-alike (delivered = spoken) of SUNDAE (ice cream served with toppings). | ||
| 19 | ELIJAH |
Upstanding chap claiming jail reformed prophet (6)
|
| HE (chap = a man), reversed (upstanding = upwards in a down clue), containing an anagram (reformed) of JAIL.
Old Testament prophet. |
||
| 20 | NORMAL |
Opera lover’s head is not unusual (6)
|
| NORMA (opera by Bellini) + first letter (head) of L[over]. |
Great fun as always from this setter with RELEGATION my favourite of very many ticked clues.
Having never come across the spelling HARIM, I was puzzled by the parsing of LOTHARIO for a while.
Many thanks to Eccles and to Quirister.
First-rate puzzle, really enjoyable. Agree that 8d is particularly good for the anagram and punning definition. 18a was my LOI and took a bit of thought but was one of my faves once I got it. I also laughed at 25a.
With 6a and 9a being my first two in, I was looking for a theme but the expected carpenter never appeared – so typical of tradespeople these days! 😉
Very unlikely to have such a horrible end in Bhutan, where they put Gross National Happiness ahead of GNProduct. (Quite a few Bhutanese students here — our home help for the elderly is one, lovely young chap). But yes, entertaining puzzle, ta E and Q.