Lorraine: Good morning to you all,
nice easy solve this week with nothing too taxing on the brain. Lots of anagrams, always a favourite of mine.
Thank you to Everyman for an excellent puzzle.
| Across | |||
| 1. | At top speed, even in the shops (4,3) | ||
| FLAT OUT | FLAT+OUT(in the shops) | ||
| 5. | Sit near suspect, crying (2,5) | ||
| IN TEARS | (SIT NEAR)* | ||
| 9. | Nuts about English short-story writer (5) | ||
| BATES | BATS around E H.E. Bates, I presume. Nick: Perhaps missed opportunity here – ‘Knife’s tip in mad psycho motel?’ (ref. film ‘psycho’ Bate’s Motel) [etc.] |
||
| 10. | Very simple? Yes, ape, as I set out (4,2,3) | ||
| EASY AS PIE | (YES, APE, AS I)* | ||
| 11. | Habitual convict amongst female employees in a place in Arizona (9) | ||
| FLAGSTAFF | LAG in (F+STAFF) | ||
| 12. | Daggers drawn? (5) | ||
| OBELI | cd: the characters †† | ||
| 13. | Exactly how rent is paid? (2,3,6) | ||
| TO THE LETTER | cd | ||
| 16. | Betray Lorraine, for example (6-5) | ||
| DOUBLE-CROSS | cd The cross of Lorraine 🙂 |
||
| 19. | Derelict carriage broken into by male (5) | ||
| TRAMP | M in TRAP | ||
| 21. | Forked out, defeated at college (7,2) | ||
| STUMPED UP | STUMPED+UP | ||
| 23. | Petersham, perhaps, seen in outstanding film (9) | ||
| GREATCOAT | pun on GREAT+COAT | ||
| 24. | No mixer in Martell one requested (5) | ||
| LONER | hidden: MarteL ONE Requested | ||
| 25. | Quite old, small tree on both banks of Liffey (7) | ||
| ELDERLY | ELDER+L(iffe)Y | ||
| 26. | Crazy, bishop leaving after year in a city on the Hudson River (7) | ||
| YONKERS | (b)ONKERS after Y | ||
| Down | |||
| 1. | Deceitfully appease fellow, old boy on holiday (3,3) | ||
| FOB OFF | F+OB+OFF | ||
| 2. | Pulled political pamphlet showing wrong date on the outside (9) | ||
| ATTRACTED | TRACT in (DATE*) | ||
| 3. | Old unaltered haven (5) | ||
| OASIS | O+(AS IS) | ||
| 4. | She told me a dreadful lie, an often-repeated situation (3,4,3,5) | ||
| THE SAME OLD STORY | (SHE TOLD ME*)+STORY(lie) | ||
| 5. | I can do what I like, Italian secretary of UN snarled (3,1,4,7) | ||
| ITS A FREE COUNTRY | IT(alian)+(SECRETARY OF UN*) | ||
| 6. | A few trot out love song from No, No, Nanette (3,3,3) | ||
| TEA FOR TWO | (A FEW TROT*)+O | ||
| 7. | Member brought in beer, more than enough (5) | ||
| AMPLE | MP in ALE | ||
| 8. | Type, mostly for money (6) | ||
| SPECIE | SPECIE(s) specie is ‘coined money’ |
||
| 14. | Musician, loud-voiced bird (9) | ||
| TRUMPETER | dd | ||
| 15. | Decree nisi after one leaves unhappy home (9) | ||
| RESIDENCE | (DECREE NIS(i))* | ||
| 17. | Cheap cigar egoist smoked (6) | ||
| STOGIE | (EGOIST*) | ||
| 18. | Electrician’s gear on board steamship (6) | ||
| SPARKS | PARK in SS I think this refers to the ‘park’ gear found on automatics (as opposed to the ‘drive’ gear) |
||
| 20. | Alter the last word, sixth letter in ‘regards’ (5) | ||
| AMEND | AMEN+(regar)D(s) | ||
| 22. | Steel structure only demolished under pressure (5) | ||
| PYLON | (ONLY*) after P | ||
| … | |||
Very enjoyable puzzle. I couldn’t understand “sparks” in 18d so thanks, Lorraine, for your explanation. You sounded a bit tentative but I’m sure you’re right.
I have encountered easier
9a Had to check that there was such a person as bates.
8d Didn’t know specie as coined money
17d With ?t?g?e had pt be stogie but had to google that.
23a I knew Petersham as being a place next door to Richmond but g?e?t?o?t didn’t get me home.
18d I got sparks very early but a week later I hadn’t worked out the wordplay
Many thanks, Lorraine. You’ve been Everyman’s faithful blogger for so long now that you’re even getting a name-check!
I too couldn’t parse SPARKS, so thanks for that. Perhaps we don’t comment enough on how Everyman manages such good surfaces and still produces an accessible puzzle. For me, 13ac and 5dn were excellent examples.
BATES reminded me of my favourite novel of his – Fair Stood the Wind for France. It’s beautifully written and very moving.
Thanks Lorraine,
I thought this was mainly very easy but got stuck on the last two. I thought of species but had never heard of specie for money. I have never heard anyone ever use this expression. Also, I didn’t know OBELI so when you have O_E__, the answer could be anything. So it’s the first Everyman that I haven’t finished in a long long time. I did like TO THE LETTER and OASIS.
Thanks Everyman.
Thanks Everyman; the usual smooth surfaces.
Thanks, DOUBLE-CROSS; I had to look that one up (and SPECIE,) although I did manage to remember STOGIE. It took a little while for the penny to drop for TO THE LETTER; amazing how the brain sometimes refuses to break down the obvious meaning.
Slightly more challenging than average, I thought.
Dear Lorraine,
Yes, funny about the Cross of Lorraine, though perhaps not entirely coincidental.
Anyway, this is my first visit to your blog, and may I say it is excellent!
It’s one thing to get all the answers (which I didn’t), quite another to explain them all so clearly and concisely.
You’re a star!
Robert