The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/29893.
A splendid puzzle, with sometimes elaborate parsing couched mostly in meaningful surfaces. I think there is a slip in 19D SIERRA, but that hardly mars the overall effect.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | DRESSED |
Journalist on pills, doctors wrapped and prepared (7)
|
| A charade of DRESS, an envelope (‘wrapped’) of ES (‘pills’) in DRS (‘doctors’); plus ED (‘journalist’). | ||
| 5 | POLYGON |
No doctor around to begin with – on location, you must get into shape (7)
|
| An envelope (‘must get into’) of OLY (‘to begin with On Location You’) in PGON, a reversal (‘around’) of ‘no’ plus GP (‘doctor’). | ||
| 9 | ARTIC |
E.g. oils winch occasionally for little lorry (5)
|
| A charade of ART (‘E.g. oils’) plus IC (‘wInCh occasionally’). ‘Little’ for the abbreviation. | ||
| 10 | AFTERGLOW |
Residual radiance of surrealist art we flog (9)
|
| An anagram (‘surrealist’) of ‘art we flog’. | ||
| 11 | TIE THE KNOT |
Get married in Windsor – possibly circumventing terms of it with divorce (3,3,4)
|
| An envelope (‘circumventing’) of THE, final letters (‘terms’) of ‘iT witH divorcE’ in TIE KNOT (‘Windsor possibly’). | ||
| 12 | FAD |
This writer’s article for European Vogue (3)
|
| A substitution: FED (‘this writer’) with the E replaced by A (‘article for European’). | ||
| 14 | PRECARIOUSLY |
Faithfully taking on Park Run – straining Achilles at the start in a hazardous manner (12)
|
| A double envelope (‘taking on’ and ‘straining’ – the latter I feel a strain) of A (‘Achilles at the start’) in REC (‘park’) plus R (run’), to give RECAR, in PIOUSLY (‘faithfully’). | ||
| 18 | INCANTATIONS |
Leaders of certain African countries checking temperature after hot spells (12)
|
| A charade of IN (‘hot’) plus CANTATIONS, an envelope (‘checking’) of T (‘temperature’) in CA (‘Leaders of Certain African’) plus NATIONS (‘countries’). | ||
| 21 | NUN |
Sister removing bits from kitchen units (3)
|
| A hidden answer (‘removing bits from’) in ‘kitcheN UNits’ | ||
| 22 | SANATORIUM |
Awful trauma – so in hospital (10)
|
| An anagram (‘awful’) of ‘trauma so in’. | ||
| 25 | IMMEDIATE |
I’m referee next (9)
|
| A charade of ‘I’m’ plus MEDIATE (‘referee’, verb). | ||
| 26 | SURGE |
Get material in audition and well up (5)
|
| Sounds like (‘in audition’) SERGE (‘material’). | ||
| 27 | LACONIC |
Brief initially taking legal advice concerning our negligence in court (7)
|
| First letters of (‘initially taking’) ‘Legal Advice Concerning Our Negligence In Court’. | ||
| 28 | ASSUAGE |
Diminish link, say, bringing sons together (7)
|
| A transposition: SAUSAGE (‘link, say’) with the two letters S moved together (‘bringing sons together’). A novel device. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | DEARTH |
Want daughter to join our home (6)
|
| A charade of D (‘daughter’) plus EARTH (‘our home’). | ||
| 2 | EITHER |
One of two that is reared by the King (6)
|
| A charade of EI, a reversal (‘reared’ in a down light) of I.E. (‘that is’) plus ‘the’ plus R (Rex, ‘King’). | ||
| 3 | SACCHARINE |
Criminal in car chase looking for sweetener (10)
|
| An anagram (‘criminal’) of ‘in car chase’. ‘Looking for is just connective tissue. | ||
| 4 | DRANK |
Had coffee for one day on order (5)
|
| A charade of D (‘day’) plus RANK (‘order’). ‘For one’ as the indication by example. | ||
| 5 | POTPOURRI |
Tip and pour or spread mixture (9)
|
| An anagram (‘spread’) of ‘tip’ plus ‘pour or’. | ||
| 6 | LARD |
It might be Hollywood Boulevard for Grease (4)
|
| LA RD (Los Angeles road, ‘it might be Hollywood Boulevard’)’ | ||
| 7 | GOLDFISH |
Or try to get fairground prize? (8)
|
| A charade of GOLD (‘or’ in heraldry) plus FISH (‘try to get’ – generally in the form “fish for”). | ||
| 8 | NOWADAYS |
A Dyson Airblade was primarily designed for the current time (8)
|
| An anagram (‘designed’) of ‘a Dyson’ plus AW (‘Airblade Was primarily’). | ||
| 13 | TOWN HOUSES |
Sandwich maybe hot – nothing goes through connected properties (4,6)
|
| A charade of TOWN (‘Sandwich maybe’) plus H (‘hot’) plus O (‘nothing’) plus USES (‘goes through’). | ||
| 15 | CHARABANC |
Coach horse cutting almost all risk (9)
|
| An envelope (‘cutting’) of ARAB (‘horse’) in CHANC[e] (‘risk’) minus its last letter (‘almost all’). | ||
| 16 | BIENNIAL |
Perhaps honesty box is originally in lane for change (8)
|
| An anagram (‘for change’) of BI (‘Box Is originally’) plus ‘in lane’. Despite the botanical name Lunaria annua, honesty or the money plant is often grown as a biennial. | ||
| 17 | ECONOMIC |
English funny about working to be profitable (8)
|
| An envelope (‘about’) of ON (‘working’) in E (‘English’) plus COMIC (‘funny’). | ||
| 19 | SIERRA |
Dossier parties surrendered before, essentially, Gerald Ford made it (6)
|
| A charade of ‘[dos]sier’ minus DOS (‘parties surrendered’) plus RA (‘essentially GeRAld’). The definition is puzzling: there are films entitled Sierra, High Sierra, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre etc., none of which was directed by John Ford nor starred Harrison Ford or Glenn Ford , nor involve any of them in any way. Unless I am overlooking something, I suspect a slip by Fed – perhaps most likely a confusion of John Ford with John Houston, the director of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. | ||
| 20 | AMPERE |
Current measure of a politician regularly missing debrief (6)
|
| A charade of ‘a’ plus MP (‘politician’) plus ERE (‘regularly missing dEbRiEf’). | ||
| 23 | ARENA |
Ring some Sloane Rangers up (5)
|
| A hidden (‘some’) reversed (‘up’ in a down light) answer in ‘SloANE RAngers’. | ||
| 24 | ADEN |
Loaded without opening port (4)
|
| A subtraction: [l]ADEN (‘loaded’) minus its first letter (‘without opening’). |
SIERRA
A Ford car model
Comment #2
With KVa on Sierra, the Ford model.
Thank you PeterO, especially for ASSUAGE. I should have known/remembered the link/sausage as my father was a butcher.
GOLDFISH. I knew it had to be ”gold” something, and then got it. Not familiar with the history, or the predicament, of that poor little creature, still legal as a prize in some areas, I see.
INCANTATIONS my pick for the surface and wordplay.
I had a different interpretation of DRANK. Definition, had coffee for (link word) one day> D on (in a down clue) RANK (order). I really liked the clue, because so often ”drink” or ”drinking” or ”drank” implies alcohol consumption, without specifying it. I think we had a similar clue recently, not sure if it was Fed.
Tricky in places but fair, once you have the wordplay worked out. Liked GOLDFISH and SANATORIUM – after I’d spelled it correctly!
I was trying to think of a context where IMMEDIATE could be substituted for “next”, but the closest I could get was “immediate neighbour” and “next-door neighbour”. There’s probably something obvious but I just can’t think of it right now.
Tx.
I’m also with KVa #1 for 17, and Paddymelon #6 for 4.
NHO Honesty as a plant so thanks to PeterO for explaining that one.
Thanks also to Fed for a testing puzzle today with many answers requiring a deal of thought to deconstruct.
SIERRA. I agree with KVa#1 and pdm#3, a Ford car model. Clever separation of Gerald and Ford.
DRANK. Agree with pdm#6, I saw the definition just as ‘had coffee’.
I hadn’t been able to parse POLYGON, PRECARIOUSLY, TOWN HOUSES, ASSUAGE. Outclassed by Fed. Thanks PeterO for the explanations.
Loved TIE THE KNOT, INCANTATIONS, the economical ECONOMIC, SIERRA.
Thanks to Fed and PeterO.