Thanks to Tramp for the puzzle
| ACROSS | ||
| 9, 21, 17 | AUTOMATIC TELLER MACHINES |
A suit without protection? Michelle Mone attracts free money from these (9,6,8)
|
| Anagram of (free) {A + inside letters of (without protection) [S]UI[T] + MICHELLE MONE ATTRACTS} | ||
| 10 | PIANO |
Soft spot essentially around Scotsman (5)
|
| Inside letters of (essentially) [S]PO[T] around IAN ([stereotypical] Scotsman) | ||
| 11 | HELICON |
That man left one to swindle for large bit of brass (7)
|
| HE (that man) + L (left) + I (one) + CON (to swindle), referring to a tuba | ||
| 12 | RUN INTO |
Career? Enthusiastic about encounter (3,4)
|
| RUN (career) + INTO (enthusiastic about) | ||
| 13 | TOTS |
Joins numbers of illegal sellers without uniform (4)
|
| TO[U]TS (illegal sellers) minus (without) U (uniform), referring somewhat cryptically to addition | ||
| 14 | TAX SHELTER |
Test protection – it might maximise profits (3,7)
|
| TAX (test) + SHELTER (protection) | ||
| 16 | CHOPPED |
Severed company to protect husband: PPE director (7)
|
| {CO. (company) around (to protect) H (husband)} + PPE + D (director) | ||
| 17 | MOANFUL |
Mone reportedly loaded, not quite expressing sorrow (7)
|
| Homophone of (reportedly) MOAN (Mone) + FUL[L] (loaded) minus last letter (not quite) | ||
| 19 | APPRENTICE |
Certain PPE is fake – one should be serving time? (10)
|
| Anagram of (is fake) CERTAIN PPE | ||
| 22 | ICON |
Famous person is one Tory (4)
|
| I (one) + CON (Tory) | ||
| 24 | LOGICAL |
Bar to restrict fighting suit? That’s reasonable (7)
|
| LOCAL (bar) + GI (fighting suit, i.e., a judo or karate outfit) | ||
| 25 | IRON MAN |
Press husband? It’s a tough challenge (4,3)
|
| IRON (press) + MAN (husband) | ||
| 26 | CLOGS |
Blocks opening of Covid records (5)
|
| First letter of (opening of) C[OVID] + LOGS (records) | ||
| 27 | ELEVENSES |
Break even in different business at last (9)
|
| {EVEN inside (in) ELSE (different)} + last letter of (at last) [BUSINES]S | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | PATHETIC FALLACY |
Capital mostly left yacht for sailing – it gives a human feel to things (8,7)
|
| Anagram of (for sailing) {CAPITAL + LEF[T] minus last letter (mostly) + YACHT}, according to Chambers, “the transference of human emotions to inanimate objects,” as in literature | ||
| 2 | STILETTO |
Shoe with too much tripping up after steps (8)
|
| STILE (steps) + OTT (too much) inverted (tripping up) | ||
| 3 | SMOCK |
Start to supply bogus protective garment (5)
|
| First letter of (start to) S[UPPLY] + MOCK (bogus) | ||
| 4 | STANDARD |
Set up firm ignoring hospital guideline (8)
|
| STAND (set up) + [H]ARD (firm) minus (ignoring) H (hospital) | ||
| 5 | SCORES |
Nicks a lot (6)
|
| Double definition | ||
| 6 | SPONGE BAG |
Borrow and steal – one might hold file for woman? (6,3)
|
| SPONGE (borrow) + BAG (steal) | ||
| 7 | MAGNET |
Attractive one, entrepreneur getting caught (6)
|
| Homophone of (getting caught) MAGNATE (entrepreneur) | ||
| 8 | COLOUR BLINDNESS |
Seeing defect in old scrubs online getting flogged (6,9)
|
| Anagram of (getting flogged) OLD SCRUBS ONLINE | ||
| 15 | UPPER-CASE |
As big character in court through trial (5-4)
|
| UP (in court) + PER (through) + CASE (trial), referring to capital letters | ||
| 17 |
See 9 Across
|
|
| 18 | FACE MASK |
Deal with member over request for item of PPE (4,4)
|
| FACE (deal with) + M (member) + ASK (request) | ||
| 20 | PIGEON |
Greedy person: slippery one getting bird (6)
|
| PIG (greedy person) + anagram of (slippery) ONE | ||
| 21 |
See 9 Across
|
|
| 23 | MONEY |
Business woman taking last of Tory cash (5)
|
| [Michelle] MONE (business woman) + last [letter of] [TOR]Y |
Found this a bit easier than usual for a Tramp puzzle. Enjoyed it – though not the subject.
Favourites included: HELICON, IRON MAN, STILETTO, SPONGE BAG, and MONEY – my LOI believe it or not.
Never heard of PATHETIC FALLACY – just as well it was an anagram.
Thanks Tramp and kenmac
On seeing the first clue (9, 21, 17) my two immediate thoughts were “I’m skipping that” and “Who on earth is Michelle Mone?”. I then read the wiki article on her – quite a character, no wonder Tramp decided to feature her – but despite her extraordinary activities, their mention did not reach US shores (at least in my nbhd). Probably because there is no shortage of like-minded or like-behaving people (or worse) here.
Only a handful went in after the first pass, not enough for the domino effect, but after persevering for a while the rest yielded. Fave I think was ELEVENSES. Tx both.
ATM stands for AUTOMATED TELLER MACHINE. But, ‘Automatic’ was clear from the word play – so, no complaints.
Thanks
I have also NHO Mone, which needed research. Tramp certainly managed to include a huge number of clues directly related to the theme. I must admit, I felt at times I was listening in on a private joke to which I was not privy.
Despite not knowing the subject, I made steady progress, which I am sure was the result of skilful setting. I liked STANDARD and COLOUR BLIND best
Thanks for the help parsing LOGICAL and UPPER CASE. both of which contained references that were new to me (GI and UP for in court). I do have a couple of questions: what is a SPONGE BAG? Is it what the rest of the world calls a toiletry bag? Do people really say ELEVENSES? I only know the concept from crosswords, and it seems to be a double plural (and not in my dictionary)? And is a TOUT not just a seller, and could be either legal or illegal?
Thanks Tramp for an enjoyable crossword and kenmac for a great blog
Martyn @4: yes, a spongebag (one word, says Chambers) is a toiletry bag. I haven’t heard anyone say “elevenses” in a long time.
I think it was probably my comment #5 that was deleted or awaiting moderation because of the links, so I’ll try a different way.
Dr Whats.On Re your comment #2 like-behaving people (or worse) in your part of the world. Tramp did set an alternative puzzle, not suitable for the G, but it was tweaked by Cyclops and published in Private Eye. The 15 sq blog of that was posted on Dec 17, and there’s a link to the puzzle there as well.
Top marks to Tramp for the fantastic theme. But they really need to let us know how they feel about Michelle Mone.
Miche@6. My big red Chambers is currently in a box in a warehouse due to moving, so thank you for SPONGEBAG. Thanks too for ELEVENSES
pm@7 tx for the pointer, yes that’s exactly what I meant.
Thanks kenmac. A good workout and a good mix of the fairly straightforward and the rather more devious. I was left wondering about MAGNET and while recognising that GI is a fighting man have never heard of the term in the context of dress. Knew what 9a etc had to be but couldn’t be bothered trying to work out the anagram; it must have taken a lot of creative thought.
Liked ATM, ELEVENSES, P FALLACY, U CASE and FACE MASK.
Thanks Tramp and kenmac.
Gi in LOGICAL means “fighting suit” as set. I had never heard that, and I just realised why. GI in Japanese means nothing more than clothes or wear.
For example, Shitagi is underwear (Shita meaning under, and gi meaning you know what), and uwagi is overcoat or just coat (uwa meaning over). Similarly, keikougi (keikou meaning practice) or dogi (do meaning the way, as in judo or kendo) is what people wear for judo etc.
While thinking GI means “fighting costume” is understandable, to a Japanese speaker it is wrong.
Of course, it may have become a bastardised word in English that means clothes for judo – so people go to a shop and ask for gi. But that is not in my dictionary.
Superb crossword, every single clue brilliantly referencing an aspect of the Michelle Mone scandal. Bravo Tramp!!
My only quibble is that MAGNET and MAGNATE aren’t homophones, having quite distinctly different second vowel sounds.
Always good to see Tramp’s moniker on a puzzle. I managed to complete this one after a few sessions with it. The obvious theme of Michelle Mone (who I had to look up) was brilliantly, deftly, and humorously woven through the puzzle, including loi 3d SMOCK. 9,21,17 ATM was a delight. 13a TOTS great definition (“joins numbers”). 6d SPONGE BAG great wordplay (“Borrow and steal”)
27a ELEVENSES featured in THE LORD OF THE RINGS, with the Hobbits discussing all their many meals through the day. Elevenses came between second breakfast and lunch
Thanks kenmac. I thoroughly enjoyed, and was hugely amused by, this puzzle of Tramp’s. What I found really impressive was that if you look just at the answers, there’s no more than just a hint of a money mini-theme, but almost every clue manages to be a disparaging reference to this, ah, astonishing lady. And very cleverly done too. Well done, Tramp. As soon as I saw 1a I knew I should know who Michelle Mone was, but it took a while for it to click. I never really followed all the PPE scandals – so many scandals, so little time. It also doesn’t help that to me PPE means either Philosophy, Politics and Economics (possibly relevant here, actually) or, Personal Performance Evaluation – a much-disliked process used for a while where I once worked. I did take a while before finally writing in MAGNET; I tried for some time to twist the wordplay enough to turn magnate into magnet, and it simply didn’t occur to me that mag-nayt might sound like mag-nit. Ah well, I’ve learned one shouldn’t quibble about homophones. Oh, and ELEVENSES is a word that just echos down from my childhood. Thanks again to both.
MAC089 @15, yes they aren’t… that why the word “homophone” is not used in the clue.
Mig@16 – Thanks for the elucidation of ELEVENSES. I agree ATM would be a nice clue if the definition were correct. I agree wth WordSDove@3
As Lord of the Ring fans, my friends and I use elevenses a lot. It was fun to find it clued into the puzzle.
I do hope Michelle Mone likes to do the Guardian Crossword!!!
“Business woman taking last of Tory cash” genius!!!
ATM also caught me out at first. But according to Wikipedia the A can mean Automatic in places like the US. I still enjoy my elevenses so I must be old, or a Hobbit.
Thanks Tramp and Kenmac
Mostly a cleverly themed puzzle. However one of my bugbears rears its head twice in the same answer. A STILETTO is a dagger, not a shoe; a stiletto-heel isn’t even a shoe, just part of one.
Frost @22 – that would be “second breakfast”, wouldn’t it?
Thanks, kenmac. You were too tactful to write an intro highlighting the theme, though all must have noticed it. I trust the Guardian got their legal team to approve the puzzle before it was published.
The first few comments above indicate that some big news in 🇬🇧 does not reach 🇺🇸 or 🇦🇺, but these puzzles are aimed mainly at a British audience and I hope they help you keep in touch with the old country.
HELICON was new to me. As for SPONGE BAG, that’s the term I grew up with.
Altogether a nice one, Tramp.
Just splendid. I can imagine the fun Tramp must have had putting this together. Too many good clues to nominate favourites – though MONEY really does do an excellent job in winding the puzzle up.
Talking of winding up, I didn’t realise muffin @23 that you had any bugbears! Chambers seems fairly clear on the matter:
stiletto /sti-letˈō/
noun (pl stilettˈos)
(a shoe with) a stiletto heel
A dagger with a narrow blade
A pointed instrument for making eyelets
Thanks both
PostMark @25
It’s that metonymy again!
Great theme, great crossword.
Ta Tramp & kenmac.
I found this at the easier end of the Tramp scale, and I chuckled at the theme. I enjoyed sorting out ATM early on which then provided a lot of checkers; it does now ring a few bells that the A is really AUTOMATED but I didn’t question it at the time.
Fave was SPONGE BAG for borrow and steal, while ELEVENSES is indeed well known to LOTR fans and I appreciated its presence although it was a pity that EVEN was a lift from the surface.
muffin@26 I don’t think it’s metonymy this time. Stiletto really is the name of a type of shoe, obviously having evolved via “stiletto heel”. I’ll get my stilettos, not I’ll get my shoes that have a stiletto heel.
Thanks both
(…although stiletto-heeled shoes remains natural-sounding to me. Also c.f. training shoes → trainers.)
Enjoyed this having been vaguely aware of the subject matter beforehand. Some quibbles like Automatic in ATM but nothing major. Thought MAG was shorthand for magnate and NET was “to catch” so didn’t see that this was meant to be a homophone. Did not get SCORES at all and had to come here for the answer. And now feel like a fool as it’s so obvious.
Can I ask why only women have sponge bags?
What Hadrian @14 said!
Amazing how many people have NHO Michelle Mone.
From today’s BBC News bulletin:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c80x9gdj159o
Huge thanks to Tramp for a brilliant puzzle and to kenmac for the blog.
I usually skim read news stories about that dreadful lady and her husband. I don’t want to waste too many minutes of my existence thinking about them. However, I did enjoy this puzzle. I had quibbles about just a few clues like some earlier bloggers. Sadly, back to the real world at the end. How are we going to get the money back?
Please don’t anyone set a puzzle about Epstein.
Is ‘for woman’ really needed at all in 6d? I’m very familiar with sponge bags, and elevenses were a big feature of my childhood. I just wish I had never heard of Michelle Mone …
MACO89@15 in British English there are two pronunciations of ‘magnate’, at least according to Collins. The second listed there is the same as the pronunciation of ‘magnet’. Setters surely check dictionaries before setting, maybe solvers should do the same before criticizing their efforts? Sorry to sound a bit snippy but it always amazes me how commenters here rely on their intuition rather than checking whether they’re right first!
JohnJB #33. Your last sentence. Tramp did! Or at least provided the idea for the theme and collaborated with the setting. See me @7.
Redrodney@35 [ Is your moniker borrowed from a certain trumpeter?]
Sponge Bag…one might hold file for a woman? When do only women use sponge bags? Plenty of men use nail files! This clue made me so mad!
Just brilliant. Clever, amusing and a joy to solve.
Redrodney @ 35
I concur wholeheartedly. It cracks me up every time I see hobbyists and amateurs claiming to know better than the consensus of professional lexicographers!
Thanks to Tramp for an excellent puzzle and to kenmac for the blog.
Re 23d, yes it’s a lovely surface, but a pity, that in reality, it was your and my money that she took, and not the Tories’
Have a great weekend all.
Just to say: the Cyclops/Tramp puzzle referred to in postings above is still available, for a short time, at private-eye.co.uk (scroll to bottom and follow link)*
I’ll repeat my thanks to Tramp for his significant contribution, in particular the mini-theme idea and the stand-out clue at 1/4/21.
*I’ll try to give a more direct link in a follow-up posting.
Here’s a direct link to the Cyclops puzzle referred to earlier
I’m staying out of the moany Mone money thing as fortunately I wasn’t subjected to that, but I did admire Tramp’s entertaining clues and comprehensive theme.
Today’s earworm, and no it’s not Abba.
Cyclops #45, great to see you here. Enjoyed your puzzle and collaboration between you and Tramp.
I found it odd that SPONGE BAG was clued as ‘for a woman’. I always carry a toiletry bag when travelling.
Nho of that meaning of GI (24a), and (Chambers) it’s a variant spelling of ‘gie’.
Thanks PaddyMelon#36 and Cyclops#45 for putting me right. I glanced over the Cyclops puzzle. I am sure that it was cleverly-constructed, but it was not one for me. Relieved that Tramp didn’t submit his version it to the Guardian.
If you look at the clue for SPONGEBAG it has a question mark at the end of the definition. This is a simple device to show it’s a definition by example. At no point am I saying that spongebags are only for women. The surface is hinting at a file (not a nail file) for Michelle Mone, who is a woman. Sorry for causing any offence, I hope you can forgive me for assuming solvers understand definition by examples.
Every dictionary I own includes a definition of stiletto as a shoe. Some people just like to try to show how clever they are: they can win such games with me as I have other battles.
Have a good Christmas
Neil
Etu@42, well said. Tiplodocus@8, made me chuckle. Antonknee@21, So do i!
I enjoyed this puzzle enormously, but am curious about some of the comments regarding ‘sponge bag’ and ‘elevenses’. To me the former is much more dated than the latter.
Hi slightly off topic but I hope it’s ok – is there no Christmas special, by maskarade or anyone else, this year? Normally would appear in today’s edition right?
I agree with you, NoryN@51, I haven’t heard the word SPONGEBAG for many years, but I still have ELEVENSES (even if it’s just a biscuit at half-past ten).
Thanks for dropping by, Tramp @50. I think it’s a crying shame that people can be so nit-picky about the clues in such a clever crossword.
Merry Christmas to you all!
Fun, but magnet and magnate are not ‘caught’ the same unless the speaker is pronouncing one, other, or both incorrectly
An impressively worked theme. Unfortunately the news this week was that the firm in question has been formally liquidated and it’s very unlikely that the money owed will ever be repaid.
Thanks to Tramp and kenmac
Thanks Tramp @50 I am a beginner at cryptic crosswords and didn’t realise what the question mark at the end meant! Learning a lot from fifteensquared!
sjshart@24 …or Canada…
For people overseas not to be aware of Michelle Mone is reasonable but for supposed Guardian readers to have missed her seems quite an achievement. She’s best avoided anyway although she photographs well.
This was really strong thematically. I don’t see the point of half-hearted “mini themes” but there was no danger of that here.
I solved it, relatively swiftly I think, but it’s been a weird week and I don’t really remember.
Thanks Tramp and Ken.
Thanks Tramp and kenmac. Sponge bags and elevenses are definitely “things”. On the other hand I didn’t know a helicon was, until now!
magnet /magˈnit/
magnate /magˈnāt, -nit/
I don’t know a lot of things, so, I really on Chambers etc. I did my research when writing the clue and convinced myself that they can sound the same. People love to pick holes.
Mig@57, 🇨🇦. You’re welcome. I enjoyed my visit to you earlier this year.
Matt @52 – I was expecting a Christmas special too.
Thanks Tramp for a remarkable crossword. I was impressed with how many theme related clues and solutions there were. Add me to the list of people who never heard of Michelle Mone but I feel like I got a complete picture from the crossword alone. And yes, Tramp, ‘people love to pick holes’, it’s the nature of the blogosphere where ‘everyone’s a critic.’ Thanks kenmac for the blog.
A big thumbs-up to Tramp for a magnificent put-down of the odious Mone. Each finger-pointing clue adding to up to a massive pile of well-deserved scorn. Also, judging by the number of comments for our overseas friends, well done for getting some visibility for this nasty piece of work outside the UK.
Not only that, it was great crossword in itself and a very enjoyable solve.
No especial standouts, but 23d was a very apposite closer; though as Etu@42 points out, it was our money that got spent on useless PPE, not the Tories’. Maybe now PPE Medpro has conveniently gone bust, we could ask for it back from party funds, or BJ himself?
Thanks also to kenmac for the blog: get well soon!
Thanks Tramp@60, a fun & ingeniously clued crossword. I, for one, have always pronounced magnet & magnate the same. Whether this is ‘correct’ or not, only my betters could tell me 😉
Tramp@60 et al
Some of us only look things up in a dictionary as a last resort which was why I was originally a bit sniffy about magnate/ magnet but I looked it up to check the meaning of magnate and so came across the alternative pronunciation. I looked it up because I wasn’t sure of the definition , having it in mind that an entrepeneur was a not necessarily successful innovator but a magnate had to have lots of business assets as in “Doug Borrowman was a PPE magnate”. I’m now satisfied that an entrepreneur doesn’t have to be an innovator, just someone involved in an enterprise. As I’ve normally seen the word used in connection with someone whose enterprise has been successful enough to become a magnate I won’t complain. Without the homophone I parsed the clue as Entrepreneur MAGazine + NET= caught, but if this had been correct would have complained that it is a US magazine with a limited UK presence, mainly online.
Tramp@60, Simon@54 and many others, re magnet / magnate. I think saying it’s a matter of speaking “incorrectly” if they are (near) homophones is being a bit fierce. These things vary around the country and indeed the world. In my somewhat modified north-midlands accent they sound, in casual speech, pretty much the same. If I’d any need to make a conscious effort to distinguish between the two, then yes, it’s there to be made; but tbh that’s not something I do very often.
Matt@52, Andrew@62.
Maybe there’ll be one later in the week, though presumaby not a Prize, or maybe the Christmas Special by Ludwig in the Saturday Magazine is meant to be a replacement, though it has a standard 15×15 grid.
I would always prefer a Philiistine Prize to a Christmas special.
By way of a contrast, my understanding is that HMRC did get the few thousand quid that Angela Rayner omitted to pay, but which filled the columns in most of the UK press for some time.
I wonder why ever that might be?
TS @ 63
“ ‘people love to pick holes’, it’s the nature of the blogosphere where ‘everyone’s a critic.’ “
That reminds me of a remark by (the great) Richard Thompson on fan websites once the internet became widespread: “They’re worse than critics – they’re amateur critics”.
I’ve said before that “it’s right because it’s in dictionaries” should be replaced by “it’s fair game for compilers as it’s in dictionaries”. Dictionaries are deliberately descriptive, so they contain all sorts of misusages (I wish they would be more prepared to point them out). I’m not saying that shoes are not referred to as “stilettos”; just that it is (doubly) metonymic.
Am trying not to tackle any cryptics at the moment. Just too busy. But this was a sheer delight. Many thanks, Tramp. I kept expecting bra to pop up. But you kept to the PPE theme. What brilliance and dedication.
Muffin @ 71
At what point do ‘misusages’ become acceptable usages?
I’m thinking of words like refute, humanitarian, impact (as verb) where their original meaning has been eroded over time to the degree that no one any longer blinks an eye at the current usage.
Who is to draw the line between unacceptable and acceptable?
Similarly one could argue that neologisms shouldn’t be allowed because they aren’t in dictionaries (yet).
Language has to evolve, otherwise it will ossify.
Simon S @73
Would you accept “epicentre” to mean “absolute centre”? (I’ve been irritated by several examples of “refute” to mean “deny” recently too!)
Further to me @74
The worst examples of “neologisms” are when a word changes its meaning to that of another word that already exists. Refute/deny is one; a long-existing example is aggravate/irritate.
I enjoyed solving this crossword and I was with Tramp every step of the way in his machinegun-like attack on a person who has been described by someone in this thread as “photographing well”, which says something about something but I don’t know what.
I try not to comment on soundalike clues, and my advice to others would be not to comment on soundalike clues. Or metonyms. But in both cases perhaps I should save my breath to cool my porridge.
Thanks to Tramp for the theme and the solve, and thanks to Kenmac for everything.
muffin @ 74
You haven’t addressed, let alone answered, my questions.
Re (epi)centre I believe the meaning is changing even if I don’t like it.
[Simon S @70: As a fan of Fairport Convention in general and of Richard Thompson specifically I agree with your adjective ‘great’.]
[The last time I saw Richard Thompson in concert (at the Bridgewater Hall, with Danny Thompson – no relation) he had been playing for over an hour before there was even a hint of a fluffed note. He played a few songs at a songwriting finale in Burnley that my daughter had participated in a little later – we couldn’t persuade him to play Beeswing!]
Late to the party and don’t usually comment on the prize because my memory is so bad but I remembered really enjoying this. Also not a fan of a certain member of the House of Lords.
As I solved this top to bottom (quite unusual for Tramp where I’m usually darting about getting any scrap I can) I thought the PSSSSSS… along the top row was going to lead to something but was bitterly disappointed.
Thanks Tramp and Kenmac
I finished this last week except for 1 down. Today I bunged in PATHETIC FALLACY as they were the only words I could think of that fitted the crossers. I was amazed to discover it was the right answer, an expression I’d never heard of.
Thanks, Tramp, for the enjoyable solve.
[muffin@79, TS@78: Saw RT a few years back on his “1000 years of popular music” tour. I’d acquired the DVD / CD set previously, so was really looking forward to it. A great evening. Highlights were Trafalgar Square, Whoops, I did it again (sung as if chanelling Hannibal Lecter) and the grand finale, with audience participation, of Sam Hall. What an amazing guitarist; he can sound like an entire band, just playing on his own.]
[DTS @82
I have the “1000 years of popular music” CD!]
muffin passim
You still haven’t addressed, let alone answered, my questions @73.
Simon S @84
I can see only two questions; the answer to the first is “never”; to the second is, obviously, me!
Muffin: you’re on a crossword site moaning about dictionaries. You just like making blogs about you.
Tramp @86
I don’t understand your comment. Are you saying that dictionaries are not descriptive?
OK, gentlemen.
Return to your corners.
@ Admin
Does that mean we can have a Round Two?
😉
Sorry to be late to join the extensive and pointed discussion prompted, in the blogosphere, by Tramp’s well-aimed crossword. On accessing the puzzle, I wrote down COVID and then PPE as the obvious theme. However as we progressed from IRONMAN to CHOPPED, rather swiftly for us, we were disappointed how few answers were clearly related to the theme. Obviously MONE (pronounced MOAN) is a most contentious person and I am surprised that no-one has yet questioned her ‘ladyship’!
There are many wonderful clues with, perhaps the ‘epitomoney’ being 23. We felt that ELEVENSES was quite a usual expression (if dated) and whoever heard of a man with a SPONGEBAG?
Well done Tramp for highlighting this injustice and Kenmac for a thorough, but obviously, downplayed blog.
Came up with CO+W+RY for 23d (though wasn’t sure ‘last of Tory’ could legitimately be two letters) so never figured out 27a. COWRY seemed to be an alternative spelling for COWRIE and was once ‘cash’.
I convinced myself magnet worked as double def: googling told me there was a magazine called “Entrepeneur” (so = MAG) and NET meant getting caught.
This was the first guardian prize I managed to solve in full since taking up cryptics so thank you Tramp.