Lorraine: Good morning one and all.
Very enjoyable crossword this week, smooth surfaces and nothing too taxing.
No particular favourites this week, and as usual enjoyed solving the clues, and was not stymied in any big way.
Big thank you to Everyman as always.
| Across | |||
| 1. | Guitarist, singer, and actor (4,6) | ||
| BASS PLAYER | BASS+PLAYER | ||
| 6. | Miss with something to keep her hands warm (4) | ||
| MUFF | MISS=MUFF | ||
| 9. | Extra charge made by a key teacher at university (3-2) | ||
| ADD-ON | A+D(key)+DON | ||
| 10. | Hotly pursuing filly, run unwisely round foremost of courses (2,4,3) | ||
| IN FULL CRY | (FILLY+RUN*) around C(ourses) | ||
| 12. | Without preparation? Pick a cosmetic (4,5) | ||
| COLD CREAM | COLD+CREAM((the)pick(of the best)) | ||
| 13. | Pound included in bill, for fish (5) | ||
| BLEAK | L in BEAK | ||
| 14. | One to decline being cuddled by a vivacious, sexy-looking girl? (1,3,2,3,5) | ||
| A BIT OF ALL RIGHT | A+BRIGHT(vivacious) around (I TO FALL)(one to decline) | ||
| 18. | Opposing union may cause a financial problem (8,6) | ||
| NEGATIVE EQUITY | NEGATIVE(opposing)+EQUITY(trade union) | ||
| 20. | Commanding Officer taken round state capital (5) | ||
| CAIRO | CO around AIR(state, say) | ||
| 22. | Henley gal adrift in river (9) | ||
| ALLEGHENY | (HENLEY GAL)* tributary of the Ohio River |
||
| 24. | Old boy at meeting with a fixed idea (9) | ||
| OBSESSION | OB+SESSION | ||
| 25. | Hunter – gold one – working (5) | ||
| ORION | OR+I+ON | ||
| 26. | Iron uniform (4) | ||
| EVEN | dd | ||
| 27. | An encumbrance? No more with crew (4,6) | ||
| DEAD WEIGHT | DEAD+W+EIGHT | ||
| Down | |||
| 1. | Offshoot of British cattle farm (6) | ||
| BRANCH | B+RANCH | ||
| 2. | Son’s become confused by talk over bike accessory (9) | ||
| SADDLEBAG | S+ADDLE+(GAB<)(talk) | ||
| 3. | State of alarm, frightful in satanic spot (5,8) | ||
| PANIC STATIONS | (IN SATANIC SPOT)* | ||
| 4. | Turn up a hill (5) | ||
| 5. | Drop of lager during fine meal cooked at home (2,7) | ||
| EN FAMILLE | L(ager) in (FINE MEAL*) | ||
| 7. | Article taken from grubby relative (5) | ||
| UNCLE | UNCLE(an) | ||
| 8. | Being smart, I take off to test opinion (3,1,4) | ||
| FLY A KITE | FLY+(I TAKE*) | ||
| 11. | See tree ahead of group of trees in picture (8,5) | ||
| LABURNUM GROVE | LABURNUM+GROVE this film HERE |
||
| 15. | I’ve to appear in FA team in this form of football (4-1-4) | ||
| FIVE-A-SIDE | (IV’E in FA)+SIDE | ||
| 16. | Crowd, carefree mostly, by the arena (9) | ||
| GATHERING | GA(y)+THE+RING | ||
| 17. | One cadet spinning a yarn (8) | ||
| ANECDOTE | (ONE CADET)* | ||
| 19. | Sound of seal in a small pen? Possibly (6) | ||
| CYGNET | homophone of SIGNET – ‘small pen’=small female swan(possibly)=CYGNET | ||
| 21. | Children – an important subject (5) | ||
| ISSUE | cdd | ||
| 23. | Ruled in Dublin? Edward? (5) | ||
| LINED | hidden: dubLIN EDward | ||
| … | |||
Thanks, Lorraine. You’re right – a fine all round puzzle from Everyman as always (including, as is often the case, the old film). Nice surfaces, good range of devices.
(You have a tiny typo in 2dn, btw – I’m sure you meant to say that it’s a reversal of GAB for ‘talk over’.)
For 13a I had B?e?k and bill in the sense of a beak rather than in a brown envelope just didn’t come to mind. Even with a solver I didn’t know that a bleak was a fish.
For 22a I had a?l?g?e?y and ehln to play with. Without knowing the river there was no way of getting it right. Several anagram solvers denied such a word existed.
Those two were taxing for me.
Smooth surfaces, as ever.
Thanks Lorraine; I dredged up ALLEGHENY from somewhere in my subconscious. I had ‘ARISE’ for 4d, and according to the solution, that is correct.
Thanks. I got 17/28 this week. I knew 22a was an anagram but I just didn’t know the river.
Thanks Lorraine,
I enjoyed this very much and even if it’s allegedly on the easy side, I find it so much more enjoyable than many more difficult crosswords. My best guess for 22a was ALLYGHEEN which was close but not right. I found the correct answeer using Find and Fit but have never heard of the river. Is it famous in any way or was this just Everyman being obscure ?.
The thing with Everyman is that his clues nearly always have good surfaces and never seem contrived.
I’ve ticked the following clues as being worthy of mention and these are ADD-ON, COLD CREAM, A BIT OF ALL RIGHT (mabye sexist in some people’s eyes), NEGATIVE EQUITY, EVEN, EN FAMILLE and UNCLE.
Thanks a lot Everyman.
Thanks Lorraine,
In response to Davy’s question I would have said it is much better known than rivers such as Fal, Exe, Ure and Wear that I have only encountered in crosswordland. The name Allegheny also refers to a county, a mountain range, a college, hospital and a very good Pale Ale. So it is hardly obscure.
But you seem to be in good company based on the other contributors so it appears that none of those uses is well-known in the Guardian’s heartland. So score one for the “foreigners” I suppose.
Last one in for me was 11dn. Now that’s obscure from where I sit, but gettable.
No more obscure rivers please!
Davy @5; I think you have to consider the difficulties of the setter. With A?L?G?E?Y, there really was only ALLEGHENY to fit in, if he left this clue to the end (even without the ‘Y,’ there is the same problem.)
To Tokyo Colin,
From an English perspective, the rivers that you mention are not just in crosswordland and would be familiar to many English people whereas I suspect the Allegheny would not. The river Fal flows into Falmouth which is a famous Cornish resort ; the river Exe flows into Exeter which is a well-known city; the Ure flows into the Ouse in North Yorkshire which is where I live; and the Wear flows through Tyne and Wear which is a well-known metropolitan county.
I’m surprised that I wasn’t aware of Allegheny pale ale though, as I like my beer.