The usual trademarks of Everyman are in this crossword, which was largely good I think and the one or two places where I am in doubt may be down to me not to Everyman.
Definitions in crimson, underlined. Indicators (homophone, hidden, containment, anagram, juxtaposition, etc) in italics. Anagrams indicated *(like this) or (like this)*. Link-words in green.
I wondered whether to colour the ends of 1ac and 9ac because they are the same, also the ends of 17ac and 19ac for the same reason, but I think it’s just a coincidence. I’ve just noticed that I forgot the last two letters of 11ac. Too late now. I’m sure you can cope.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | GOODNESS ME |
Everyman adhering to decency: that’s surprising (8,2)
|
| If Everyman is adhering to decency then he’s adhering to goodness, and ‘goodness me’ sort of describes this. I think. Anyway we have the self-referential clue immediately. | ||
| 6 | SCAT |
Jazz fans with bit of sax moved to intro? Improvise lyrics (4)
|
| cats (= jazz fans) with the s (bit of sax) moved to the beginning — I’m not absolutely happy with the definition, which seems to me to suggest that the singer is improvising actual words, like the singer of a calypso; Chambers and Collins say that the singer is improvising nonsense sounds | ||
| 9 | MONOCHROME |
Hero – common ground – it’s all black-and-white (10)
|
| (Hero common)* | ||
| 10 | ASTI |
Sparkling wine in course of Lammas-tide (4)
|
| Hidden in LammAS-TIde | ||
| 11 | WALK THE PLANK |
In the main, disembark? (4,3,5)
|
| CD where ‘main’ refers to the sea — I’m not quite comfortable with ‘in’: one is on the main when at sea, and if you walk the plank you drop into the main | ||
| 15 | MATADOR |
Adjusting to drama, I’m a fighter (7)
|
| *(to drama) — Everyman is using the convention that “I” can refer to the answer | ||
| 16 | STRETCH |
Type of jeans – covering expanse? (7)
|
| The expanse might be the stomach, necessitating stretch jeans; not sure what type of clue this is: to me it doesn’t seem very cryptic | ||
| 17 | LEANEST |
Bucolic site, comfy home, minimal in extremis … (7)
|
| lea nest — lea = Bucolic site (a lea is a meadow and bucolic = pastoral or rural), nest = comfy home | ||
| 19 | GAMIEST |
… extremely stinky component of amalgam – i.e., stinkiest (7)
|
| Hidden in amalGAM I.E. STinkiest | ||
| 20 | BREAK THE BANK |
As a flooded river may come at too high a price (5,3,4)
|
| 2 defs | ||
| 23 | UNIT |
Military subdivision incapable: France lost (4)
|
| un[F]it — unfit = incapable, F = France (IVR) | ||
| 24 | OPTIMALISE |
Maximally improve A.I. – almost too simple, dubiously (10)
|
| (A.I. to[o] simple)* | ||
| 25 | TA-TA |
Flipping American junk: I’m off (2-2)
|
| (A tat)rev. | ||
| 26 | ADOLESCENT |
Youngster’s amateur haircut with, after vacation, loathsome cologne (10)
|
| A do l[oathsom]e scent — A = amateur, do = haircut (as in hairdo), scent = cologne | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | GEMS |
Runs away from bugs in stones (4)
|
| ge[r]ms — germs = bugs | ||
| 2 | OINK |
‘Hey you, getting nookie regularly?’ – swinish outburst (4)
|
| “Oi” n[oo]k[ie] — Oi = hey you — swine = pig, and it is making the ‘oink’ sound (yes ‘oink’ really is in the dictionaries!) — an unusual ‘regularly’ clue in that the regularity is not the odd or the even letters but every third one | ||
| 3 | NECK AND NECK |
Even pair of cheeks? (4,3,4)
|
| neck = cheek (as in being rude or lippy or offensive)) | ||
| 4 | STRIKER |
Sportsperson, senior, astride pedalled vehicle (7)
|
| s(trike)r — sr = senior, pedalled vehicle = trike | ||
| 5 | MEMPHIS |
The writer, politician: that man’s ruined city (7)
|
| me MP his — me = The writer, MP = politician, his = that man’s | ||
| 7 | CASUALTIES |
After reshuffle, actualises hospital wards (10)
|
| *(actualises) — I suppose that if a ward is called ‘Casualty’ then more than one of these might be ‘Casualties’, but … | ||
| 8 | TRICK SHOTS |
Short stick in play might effect these? (5,5)
|
| (Short stick)* — referring to golf presumably —’trick shot’ isn’t in either Chambers or Collins but is something well-enough known to golfers to be there I should have thought — &lit. | ||
| 12 | PYROMANIACS |
Those drawn to light? (11)
|
| CD relying on a different sense of light: not light as in a light bulb but light as set fire to, which is something a pyromaniac is keen to do | ||
| 13 | EMILY BLUNT |
My bulletin edited to provide name of English actress (5,5)
|
| (My bulletin)* | ||
| 14 | STRATEGIST |
Tactician gets artist in a lather (10)
|
| (gets artist)* — tactics and strategy are very different in chess, but in a military sense I suppose it’s OK | ||
| 18 | T-SHAPED |
Per Spooner, that woman recorded description of a certain road junction (1-6)
|
| Per Spooner this becomes “she taped” — she = that woman, taped = recorded | ||
| 19 | GABRIEL |
Primarily, God’s archangel bringing reports (I.eleven, Luke)? (7)
|
| The first letters clue, referring to the angel Gabriel | ||
| 21 | TIME |
Upon rising, give out prison sentence (4)
|
| (emit)rev. — emit = give out | ||
| 22 | CENT |
Money posted (we’re told) (4)
|
| “sent” |
I’m with you John in finding 14d dubious as a definition; for mine tactics and strategy are pretty much opposites in planning terms. Otherwise a good, standard Everyman.
Thanks to Everyman & John
STRETCH
Expanse, here, I think, refers to an open area of land or sea.
TRICK SHOTS
Thought of billiards. It could well be golf.
Thanks John for the detailed blog.
Thanks for the blog , I agree with KVa @2 for STRETCH , a double definition .
Partly agree for TRICK SHOTS , but it is surely snooker . Snooker players do a lot of exhibitions with many trick shots and the cue is basically a stick .
I liked PYROMANIACS. (Well in the context of its being a crossword solution.)
Stick = snooker cue is the only thing that satisfies requirements, I think, as Roz says.
Thanks setter, blogger, commenters.
I did not like this crossword. John says of 16a “not very cryptic”, and I would put 11a and 12d in the same category. I was defeated by the Spoonerism. I thought a lot of the clueing was less tight than usual.