Your monthly dose of current affairs in crossword form. Find it online at ft.com/crossword
Found this quite tricky – quite possibly due to being tired and irritable having lost an hour’s sleep last night with the clocks changing. What didn’t help was various formatting problems with the puzzle that confounded the blogging tool, which I had to fix manually before I could write it up. Normally, I use the FT app to solve the Sunday puzzles but at the time of writing it still hasn’t appeared there. It is however available on the website to download and print to solve the old-fashioned way.
Our setter is an old-hand at this game and his experience shows in a slick crossword with some nice up-to-date references… Internet memes in crosswords? Whatever next! 😂
Thanks for the fun, Neo.
Definitions are underlined in the clues below.
| ACROSS | ||
| 8 | THIN AIR |
Iran hit at sea in rarefied atmosphere? (4,3)
|
| Anagram (at sea) of IRANIAN HIT
The big story this month… |
||
| 10 | TRA-LA-LA |
Refrain from painting over Macron’s articles (3-2-2)
|
| ART (painting) reversed (over) + LA LA (Macron’s articles) | ||
| 11 | ICE |
Why slope is slippery for Trumpian bullies? (3)
|
| Two definitions | ||
| 12 | ALERTED |
So warned, time to stop deranged leader (7)
|
| T (time) inserted in (to stop) an anagram (deranged) of LEADER
Beyond the obvious, there are a few other possibilities this could be referring to |
||
| 13 | APACHES |
Old man in pain first to spot attack helicopters (7)
|
| PA (old man) in ACHE (pain) + first letter of Spot
A10 jets and Apache helicopters have been the main aircraft used in its attacks against Iran |
||
| 14 | ILL |
Camilla somewhat wicked (3)
|
| Hidden in [cam]ILL[a]
To be fair, I don’t think she’s any more morally dubious than any of the other royal parasites |
||
| 15 | TANTRIC |
Sort of sex with Antichrist discarding his pants? (7)
|
| Anagram (pants) of ANTIC[h]R[is]T discarding the letters HIS | ||
| 17 | STARER |
33 sacking Mandelson’s first one taking hard look (6)
|
| STAR[m]ER (solution to 33 across) less (sacking) the first letter of Mandelson | ||
| 20 | DRILLING RIG |
Parade-ground uniform one seen in South Pars? (8,3)
|
| Cryptic definition – RIG being roughly synonymous with uniform and DRILL being what you do on the parade ground
South Pars, one of the world’s largest gas fields, has been a focus of US attacks |
||
| 24 | TATTLER |
For gossip, fight initially lost in Turkey! (7)
|
| [b]ATTLE (fight) less the first letter (initially lost) in TR (Turkey) | ||
| 26 | ELI |
For Maduro, the one priest (3)
|
| EL (for Maduro, the) + I (one)
Father Numa Molina is a socialist priest who is a confidant of the Venezuelan president but I’m not aware of him having done anything particularly newsworthy lately. Maduro seems to have been mostly forgotten by the media with all the other stuff going on |
||
| 27 | REBUILD |
What we might do in ruined cities? (7)
|
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 29 | MAHOMET |
Prayer rug’s kept in for prophet (7)
|
| MAT (prayer rug) containing (has kept) HOME (in) | ||
| 31 | GEE |
Start for Gabbard with English earl? Cripes! (3)
|
| First letter of Gabbard + E (English) + E (earl)
Tulsi Gabbard is current US Director of National Intelligence |
||
| 32 | LA RIOJA |
Great bat circles one old judge in province (2,5)
|
| LARA (great bat) contains (circles) I (one) + O (old) + J (judge) | ||
| 33 | STARMER |
Monsieur Sartre savaged unpopular leader (7)
|
| Anagram (savaged) of M (monsieur) + SARTRE
Labour are currently fourth in the polls |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1/23 across | STRAIT OF HORMUZ |
One into Mozart fourths botched significant passage (6,2,6)
|
| I (one) inserted into an anagram (botched) of MOZART FOURTHS
Very significant for all of us, unfortunately |
||
| 2 | MINE |
Your setter goes around wearing bomb (4)
|
| ME (your setter) goes around IN (wearing) | ||
| 3/28 | CANTERBURY |
See where recent outbreak occurred? (10)
|
| Cryptic definition
Reference to the recent outbreak of meningococcal disease in the city where Dame Sarah Mulally was this week ordained as Archbishop, hence ‘see’ |
||
| 4 | STEAL |
Bargain with 25’s principal in Cork (5)
|
| T (first letter of the solution to 25 down) in SEAL (cork) | ||
| 5 | PALANTIR |
Agent I run cases American data company (8)
|
| PLANT (agent) + I + R (run) containing (cases) A (American)
US company sinking its claws increasingly deeper into the UK government |
||
| 6 | RASH |
Lacking caution: this made Trump a real redneck! (4)
|
| Cryptic definition
Recent press pictures highlighted a nasty looking rash on the President’s neck |
||
| 7 | CAESAR |
No room in arms race designed for dominant ruler (6)
|
| Anagram (designed) of A[rm]S RACE less RM (room) | ||
| 9 | RIDICULE |
Understandable Irish uprising English mock (8)
|
| LUCID (understandable) + IR (Irish) reversed (uprising) + E (English) | ||
| 16 | NADIR |
Drain needing repair in lowest point (5)
|
| Anagram (needing repair) of DRAIN | ||
| 18 | REGAL |
Majestic Greenlander’s head encased in concrete (5)
|
| First letter (head) of Greenlander encased in REAL (concrete) | ||
| 19 | END TIMES |
Last days where sediment becomes dislodged (3,5)
|
| Anagram (becomes dislodged) of SEDIMENT | ||
| 21 | IN UNISON |
Having agreement as public service union members? (2,6)
|
| Cryptic definition
Referring to the UK trade union for public sector workers |
||
| 22 | AKROTIRI |
Become weak in drink in first-rate RAF base (8)
|
| ROT (become weak) in KIR (drink) in AI (A1 = first rate)
RAF base in Cyprus targeted in retaliatory attacks by Iran |
||
| 23 | HAROLD |
A king in control who sailed to Hastings? (6)
|
| A + R (king) in HOLD (control)
New evidence suggests Harold sailed to Hastings from Stamford Bridge rather than forcing his army to march, as was previously believed |
||
| 25 | TEHRAN |
Earth shaking north Iranian location (6)
|
| Anagram (shaking) of EARTH + N (north) | ||
| 26 | EDGAR |
Anglo-Saxon king’s days in escalating fury (5)
|
| D (days) inserted in RAGE (fury) reversed (escalating) | ||
| 30 | MEME |
Selfish clamour in Big Chungus? (4)
|
| “ME ME” (selfish clamour)
Big Chungus is an internet meme that went viral a few years ago, featuring a still of a fat Bugs Bunny from an old Merrie Melodies cartoon |