Gemelo is now well into his series of Observer puzzles.
There seemed to be fewer obscure words in the grid this week, but even the more well-known entries had tricky but fair clues.
CUP FINAL and CANDID CAMERA fell quickly, which gave me a good start along the top and down the left-hand side. Other early entries were BIG TREE, DEN, MEH, NEW BLOOD and CAPEX. The rest of the grid built up steadily after that.
I liked the ‘Clay later’ part of the clue for QUALIA.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Centre-forward netting with vigour in a league match that’s decisive (8, 2 words)
CUP FINAL (a decisive match that determines the overall winner of the competition) (CF [Centre Forward] containing [netting] UP [with vigour]) + IN + A + L (league) C (UP) F IN A L |
| 6 | Storm shield remaining incomplete (4)
PELT (storm) PELTa (a small light shield) excluding the final letter A (remaining incomplete) PELT |
| 9 | Mary sheared pet lamb in place of amusement (6)
ARCADE (place of amusement) AR (letters remaining in mARy when the outer letters M and Y are removed [sheared]) + CADE (a lamb or colt left by its mother and brought up by hand) AR CADE |
| 10 | Clay later packed into most of court properties (6)
QUALIA (qualities of properties of something) ALI (reference Muhammad ALI [1942 – 2016], American heavyweight boxer, born Cassius Clay. He changed his name in 1964) contained in (packed into) QUAd (QUAdrangle; court or open space) excluding the final letter D (most of) QU (ALI) A |
| 11 | In winter, say, bank secured over 500 rupees through close examination (9)
SNOWDRIFT (a bank [of SNOW} that is most likely seen in winter) (WON [secured] reversed [over] + D [Roman numeral for 500] + R [rupees]) contained in (through) SIFT (a close examination) S (NOW< D R) IFT |
| 13 | Fact you shouldn’t have included in abuse flung back (5)
DATUM (a singular piece of data; a fact) (TA [thankyou; you shouldn’t have] contained in [included in] MUD [abuse]) all reversed (flung back) (D (AT) UM)< |
| 14 | Wild tiger sheltered by live redwood in California (7, 2 words)
BIG TREE (a redwood in California is a giant tree; big tree) Anagram of (wild) TIGER contained in (sheltered by) BE (exist; live) B (IG TRE*) E |
| 18 | Prime Minister’s not opening private office (3)
DEN (private office) eDEN (reference the 1st Earl of Avon [formerly Sir Anthony Eden {1897 – 1977}, UK Prime Minister from 1955 – 1977]) excluding the first letter E (not opening) DEN |
| 19 | Stop tossing around one of 50 poisons? (9)
PTOMAINES (poisonous chemicals) Anagram of (tossing) STOP containing (around) MAINE (one of the 50 States forming the United States of America) PTO (MAINE) S* |
| 20 | Originally Condoleezza Rice cracked on, in command of oratorial style (9)
CICERONIC (descriptive of the oratorial style of Cicero [106 – 43BC] C (first letter of [originally] Condoleeza) + an anagram of (cracked) RICE + ON + I/C (in charge) C ICER* ON IC |
| 22 | Whatever is found in pantomime horse? (3)
MEH (interjection expressing indifference or boredom; whatever) MEH (hidden word in [found in] pantomiME Horse) MEH |
| 26 | May’s constituents in time for work (7)
MAN-DAYS (a number of DAY‘S work by one person) The word MAYS is composed of M AND AYS (May’s constituents) M AND AYS |
| 27 | Genetic element that’s first removed from sheep (5)
MUTON (the smallest element of a gene capable of giving rise to a new form by mutation; genetic element) MUtTON (obsolete term for a sheep) excluding (removed from) T (initial letter of [‘s first] That) MUTON – either T could be the one omitted |
| 28 | Smooth-talking after a fashion label is up (9)
PLAUSIBLE (of a person, smooth-tongued and ingratiating) Anagram of (a fashion) LABEL IS UP PLAUSIBLE* |
| 30 | Marry again? How unlikely (6)
REALLY? (expressing doubt and implying how unlikely, if expressed in a questioning tone) RE– (again) + ALLY (unite; marry) RE ALLY |
| 31 | European broaching tax, unfavourable to the old? (6)
AGEIST (discriminating against the elderly; unfavourable to the old) E (European) contained in (broaching) AGIST (charge with a public burden; tax) AG (E) IST |
| 32 | Law Associate overturned action on blades (4)
AXEL (a jump from one skate to the other, incorporating one and a half or [double axel] two and a half turns in the air; action on blades) (LEX [law] + A [associate]) all reversed (overturned) (A XEL)< |
| 33 | Cult attracting men, primarily, about man’s way of doing things? (8)
MACHISMO (the cult of male virility; cult attracting men) CAM (initial letters of [primarily] each of Cult, Attracting and Men) reversed (about) + HIS (man’s) + MO (modus operandi; way of doing things) – &Lit clue MAC< HIS MO |
| Down | |
| 1 | Jackal, perhaps seizing day, arrived with artillery, shooting without warning (12, 2 words)
CANDID CAMERA (a camera used for taking unposed photographs or films of people, usually without their knowledge, engaged in the normal activities of their daily life; shooting pictures without warning) CANID (a jackal is a member of the genus Canis) containing (seizing) D (day) + CAME (arrived) + RA ([Royal] Artillery) CAN (D) ID CAME RA |
| 2 | Cosmopolitan is original cause of sorrow (6)
URBANE (cultured; sophisticated; cosmopolitan) UR (primitive, original) + BANE (cause of sorrow) UR BANE |
| 3 | Poet’s glad to lose one admirer (3)
FAN (admirer) FAiN (poetic word for glad) excluding (to lose) I (Roman numeral for one) FAN |
| 4 | Recent members bowled with no bats (8, 2 words)
NEW BLOOD (recent members) Anagram of (bats) BOWLED and (with) NO NEW BLOOD* |
| 5 | Service form saving opponent of children’s disease (5)
LURGY (non-specific disease) LitURGY (form of service of a church) excluding (saving) IT (opponent in a child’s game) LURGY |
| 6 | Irish patron bagging one game bird at Balmoral (8)
PAITRICK (Scots [Balmoral] form of partridge [a game bird]) PATRICK (patron saint of Ireland) containing (bagging) I (Roman numeral for one) PA (I) TRICK |
| 7 | Healthier amount of water in Mississippi? (5)
LITER (more LITE [lower in calories, alcoholic content etc]; healthier) LITER (American spelling of LITRE [volume of liquid, such as water) double definition LITER |
| 8 | Fancy steak and onion ruined with heat not on (12, 4 words)
TAKE A SHINE TO (fancy) Anagram of (ruined) STEAK onION and (with) HEAT excluding (not) ON TAKE A SHINE TO |
| 11 | Mary’s mother dropping second name for college position (6)
STANCE (position) ST ANnE (reckoned by Christian tradition to be the mother of the Virgin Mary) replacing the second N (name) with C (college) (dropping second name for college) ST ANCE |
| 12 | Fail – lacking literary style – Open University (4)
OMIT (to fail) Open excluding (lacking) PEN (literary style) + MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology; American private research university) O MIT |
| 15 | Prodigal son to stop wearing religious mantle (8)
SPENDALL (prodigal) S (son) + (END [stop] contained in [wearing] PALL [a religious mantle]) S P (END) ALL |
| 16 | Northern part of Africa is, en masse, failing in recollection (8)
AMNESIAC (failing in memory or recollection) AMNESIAC (reversed [northern; down entry] hidden word [part of] afriCA IS EN MAss) AMNESIAC< |
| 17 | Alexandre Manette possibly involved with threat to king (6)
INMATE (Alexandre Manette was a prisoner [INMATE] in Dickens’ novel A Tale of Two Cities) IN MATE (checkmate – a fatal threat to the King in chess) IN MATE |
| 21 | Measure of size put back about a foot (4)
IAMB (a foot of two syllables) BMI (Body Mass Index, a measure of obesity or size) reversed (put back) and containing (about) A I (A) MB< |
| 23 | Say I’m so excited, being number one lover? (6)
EGOISM (over-concern for one’s own well-being; being number one lover) E.G. (for example; say) + an anagram of (excited) I’M SO EG OISM* |
| 24 | Spending limit supported by partner once (5)
CAPEX (Capital Expenditure; spending) CAP (limit) + EX (former [once] partner) – this being a down entry, the letters CAP are ‘supported’ by the letters EX CAP EX |
| 25 | Straw man initially underpinning load of drag artists? (5)
HAULM (straw) HAUL (a load transported [dragged] by people [drag artists?]) + M (first letter of [initially] Man) – this is a down entry, the letter M is underpinning the letters HAUL HAUL M |
| 29 |
Maybe down to wear what’s necessary in Bucharest (3) LEI (garland or wreath, esp[ecially of flowers, sheels or feathers [down]) LEI (standard monetary unit [ready] of Romania [Bucharest is the capital city]) double definition LEI |
25
haul should be a load of fishers when they drag nets
I was bound and determined to make these clues harder than they actually were. It all fell into place eventually. Good job on the blog.
I didn’t think this was the hardest Gemelo puzzle and I think I solved more clues in my first pass through than I usually do, but there were a few places where I got a bit stuck like seeing the 500 rupees in SNOWDRIFT but not the rest, thinking 5d must be LURGY or LURGI but not being able to enter it until I worked out the wordplay, and taking a while to see MAN-DAYS even with all of the checking letters.
I particularly liked ‘Clay later’ for ALI, the &lit clue for MACHISMO, the anagram of TAKE A SHINE TO where I didn’t expect the definition ‘Fancy’ to be a verb, having to separate ‘Prodigal son’, and the reversed hidden AMNESIAC that had me thinking of Northern parts of Africa like Sahara or Maghreb for a while.
When I first read 29d I couldn’t remember what the currency was and then I ended up entering the answer by solving the crossing across clues, so I only appreciated ‘Maybe down to wear’ when I was checking everything after completing the grid.
Based on the clear explanations of each clue, I assume you intended to underline ‘of’ in 20a and not underline ‘lacking literary style’ in 12d.
Thanks, duncanshiell and Gemelo.
Thanks for the blog , some neat clues but I thought too much was given away for this one , it must be hard to get the balance right for these puzzles .
CAPEX is not in Chambers93 but seemed obvious .
MANDAYS an old Azed trick , the clue does read as – constituents of may – but I suppose the apostrophe can be ignored .
LURGY , I thought IT was the Psammead from Five Children and It , not so sure now .
Roz @4, I’ve just tigged you, you’re it. I bet Psammead isn’t in Chambers 93.
My first Gemelo (newbie to “advanced” puzzles – did my first Azed the week before). Slightly tougher than Azed, I felt and needed a bit more help from Chambers. Super impressed by MACHISMO – which is eerily close to the Chambers definition of the word.
Failed to get MAN DAYS (had May Days and was unsure), otherwise all correct. Thanks Duncan and Gemelo
Like Matthew@3, I thought this was mainly straightforward, but had to pause here and there (I too hesitated over LURGY/LURGI until I twigged it was L[IT]URGY). I spent some time trying to work out the parsing of AMNESIAC before realising it was simply a reversal. I see Chambers does offer “[being] in the direction toward [north]” as a definition of northern, but I think “northerly” would have been better.
I’m either getting used to Gemelo or he’s getting he’s getting easier. I nearly finished. I guessed MONDAYS for 26ac which stopped me getting 24dn and I couldn’t decide between LURGI and LURGI and didn’t see liturgy.
Matthew @ 3
I have updated the underlining now. I tend to insert the underlining when I just have the skeleton blog with the clues. Sometimes I forget to update the underlining when I spot something more detailed in the clue while I am describing the detailed wordplay.
Great to speak to Gemelo in person at The Observer office in town yesterday (celebrating 100 years of Observer crosswords). A worthy successor to Azed (Jonathan was also present) and I thanked him for the continuing challenges. I mentioned that I was struggling with some of the parsing on the current Gemelo 27, he gave a wry smile – I’m looking forward to the blog!
Incidentally he cleared up the pronunciation of his pseudonym – he was told by a Spanish speaker that it’s pronounced Hemelo