Another pleasing puzzle from Everyman for our Sunday morning entertainment.
Abbreviations
cd cryptic definition
dd double definition
cad clue as definition
(xxxx)* anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x] letter(s) removed
definitions are underlined
Across
1 The person in charge is a knob
BOSS
That is often the case. A dd.
4 A system? Not at home
AWAY
A charade of A and WAY.
8 In Athens, fat people edited film
PLANET OF THE APES
(ATHENS FAT PEOPLE)* with ‘edited’ as the anagrind. Referring to the original 1968 film, which spawned many others.
11 Detailed photo? Stop talking!
CLOSE-UP
A dd.
12 Pharaoh perhaps included in symposium on archaeology
MONARCH
Hidden in symposiuM ON ARCHaeology.
13 Inaccurately describe importers’ bananas
MISREPORT
(IMPOSTERS)* with ‘bananas’ as the anagrind.
14 Regressive ‘topless’ wordplay, not entirely new: Everyman prompting weariness
ENNUI
A charade of [P]UN and NE[W] reversed, followed by I.
15 C17-18 satirist who penned Shake It Off
SWIFT
Far too much modern stuff in crossies these days. Not being a Swiftie, I had to phone a friend about this one. It’s a dd: the references are to Jonathan and Taylor SWIFT.
16 Underarm’s faltering: beat this!
SNARE DRUM
(UNDERARMS)* with ‘faltering’ as the anagrind.
19 Party to unwind, so Rolfing a kind of knot
WINDSOR
Hidden in unWIND SO Rolfing. For the surface, Rolfing is a a technique of deep tissue manipulation aimed at the release and realignment of the body, and the reduction of muscular and psychic tension (including knots). No, I hadn’t either.
21 After a party, journalist shamefaced
ABASHED
A charade of A, BASH and ED.
22 Dance, and unsettle sundry squares?
THROW SOME SHAPES
A charade of THROW and SOME SHAPES. Not a phrase I’d heard of (dancing is not my bag) but given that it had to be the rhyming couplet along with PLANET OF THE APES, it wasn’t too hard to figure out.
23 Goods cart, just under 1m in length, rejected
DRAY
A reversal of YARD.
24 Ornamental band showing RIP – LEFT – DEPARTED
SASH
S[L]ASH
Down
2 Cause excessive strain to old, old monarch: that’s clear all round
OVEREXERT
An insertion of EX for ‘old’ and ER for Elizabeth Regina or ‘old monarch’ in OVERT. The inclusion indicator is ‘that [ha]s clear all round’.
3 Small business held up by No 10? It’s a sign
SCORPIO
A charade of S, CORP and IO for the number ’10’.
4 Australian, a little tease, to prove alluring – or try
ATTEMPT
A charade of A, T for the first letter of ‘tease’ and TEMPT.
5 Dined at home from single can, reportedly
ATE IN
Aural wordplay (‘reportedly’) of A TIN.
6 Pretty vacant, taken in by hoax surveillance kit
SPYCAM
An insertion of PY for the outside letters of ‘pretty’ in SCAM. The insertion indicator is ‘taken in by’.
7 Islands separated? These hairlines might interlink, primarily!
ISTHMI
The initial letters of the first six words of the clue, and a cad.
9 Terrible mess, perhaps, setter’s table
DOG’S DINNER
A charade of DOG’S (of which a ‘setter’ is a variety) and DINNER.
10 Business bending paper-thin, vacuous regulations
PARTNERSHIP
(PAPER THIN R[EGULATION]S)* with ‘bending’ as the anagrind.
14 What remains of razed supermarket, you say: a few small hairs
EYELASHES
Aural wordplay (‘you say’) of AISLE ASHES, which is what might be left if a supermarket caught fire and was razed to the ground.
15 Very rainy – I’m surprised – somewhere in S Africa
SOWETO
A charade of SO, WET and O.
16 Ex-president, leader of Zimbabwe okays reforms adopting rand
SARKOZY
An insertion of R for the rand currency in (Z OKAYS)* The anagrind is ‘reforms’ and the insertion indicator is ‘adopting’. The disgraced ex-president of France.
17 American made American biopic
AMADEUS
A charade of A, MADE and US, referencing the 1984 film about the famous composer.
18 American backing school for doctors, one wanting decapitation
MEDUSA
A charade of MED and USA. In Greek mythology, the hero Perseus decapitated Medusa while she slept.
20 Channel, one doing some embroidery
SEWER
Another dd to finish.
Many thanks to Everyman for this week’s puzzle.
All agreed, thanks Pierre.
Thanks for the blog , pretty good overall with some neat anagrams .
I agree that SWIFT is a bit modern , I prefer Juvenal .
Not keen on AMADEUS , made is in the clue and answer .
Thanks for the blog and explaining SASH. The RIP-LEFT-DEPARTED was a brilliant deception.
Good crossword. Got held up for ages on 14d even after I’d got all crossers and was 99% sure that it ended with ‘ashes’. I didn’t manage to parse 14a, so it was very helpful to see the explanation for that one. Quite a lot of moving parts, as it were, in 14a. And I did have to ask Jeeves if there was a Taylor Swift song called ‘Shake It Off’ – was very pleased to find that there was. Many thanks.
Kicking myself for not having thought of Taylor Swift at 15a – which is so obvious now!
I liked the WINDSOR party, although I didn’t know Rolfing, the old monarch having to OVEREXERT, and A DOG’S DINNER for the setter. I, like some others, failed to parse ENNUI.
Thanks Everyman and Pierre
I am familiar with the phrase 22A but many won’t be. I only got it because it rhymes with 8A.
Naive question: how did you know 22A had to rhyme with 8A?
Jake@#8. A traditional feature of Everyman is that a pair of answers rhyme; usually but not essentially either the two longest across or two longest down. So 22a didn’t have to rhyme with 8a but with all other suspects eliminated it was very likely it did. As I too had NHO throwing shapes before, like Pierre this feature assisted me with solving it.
Thanks Everyman & Pierre for the blog and explanation of 14d which I am happy to say had eluded me! “Aisle Ashes” Indeed!
Enjoyed Sarkozy, Medusa & Soweto! The penny dropped for aisle ashes eventually!
Thanks!
@GrahamInSydney Thanks! I didn’t know about that feature, good to know!
Great crossword thank you! Especially after last week’s debacle by Granny Herald. Favourites today were EYELASHES; THROW SOME SHAPES.
Thanks Everyman!
Throw some shapes? Really?
I liked this one, guessed SWIFT, thinking Jonathan, (sorry Taylor), can someone please explain “C17-18”?
Hi
HI Maurice
It means 17th to 18th century. Sometimes it’s abbreviated to a 17 with a big C wrapped around it.I think “Throw some shapes” may go back to the days of Jive but I thought it was a terrible clue.
I didn’t like WINDSOR either.
Liked MEDUSA ,PLANET OF THE APES, AMADEUS
P.s.
TAYLOR WHO?
In 3d Is it always ok for an UC O to take the role of a zero
And v.v ? I suppose I hv seen this before
Never heard of throw some shapes
Def had a degree of difficulty about my level
I love the fact that many have never heard of Miss Swift
She maybe not that fameuse after all
In 3d Is it always ok for an UC O to take the role of a zero
And v.v ? I suppose I hv seen this before
Never heard of throw some shapes but lots to like this week, dray? sewer and dogs dinner my faves
A degree of difficulty about my level
I love the fact that many have never heard of Miss Swift
She maybe not that fameuse after all !
Thanks PS@16
Comment #21
Comment #22