Lorraine: Good morning happy solvers!
Yet another fine puzzle from Everyman. First in was 14ac., rushed into writing in the answer and put ‘a stab in the dark’ instead of ‘a shot in the dark’ which totally messed things up; luckily it was quickly sorted.
Lots of clever clueing and I enjoyed the solve immensely.
Big thank you to Everyman as always.
Definitions in the clues are coloured green.
| Across | |||
| 1. | Willing to learn from medical man, the Italian head of embryology (6) | ||
| DOCILE | DOC+IL[ital. ‘the’]+E(mbryology) | ||
| 4. | Son, violently attacked crossing Libya’s capital, ran (8) | ||
| SMUGGLED | S+(MUGGED around L(ibya)) | ||
| 9. | Tea is prepared after Sunday afternoon nap (6) | ||
| SIESTA | (TEA IS*) after S | ||
| 10. | Extramarital sex upset true lady (8) | ||
| ADULTERY | (TRUE LADY)* | ||
| 12. | Sash to wrap round body after first of wins (6,5) | ||
| WINDOW FRAME | (WIND+O)+(FRAME after W(ins)) | ||
| 13. | Novelist from district of London close to Pimlico (3) | ||
| ECO | EC(i.e. London EC1)+(pimlic)O | ||
| 14. | Mysterious death in a short, Hitchcock’s last film (1,4,2,3,4) | ||
| A SHOT IN THE DARK | (DEATH IN A SHORT*)+(hitchcoc)K | ||
| 17. | Nervous MP has date with former PM in a London park (9,5) | ||
| HAMPSTEAD HEATH | (MP HAS DATE*)+[ted]HEATH | ||
| 19. | Sky broadcast (3) | ||
| AIR | dd | ||
| 21. | Relatives at sea? (6,5) | ||
| SISTER SHIPS | cd | ||
| 23. | One daughter, Isolde, possibly put on a pedestal (8) | ||
| IDOLISED | I+D+(ISOLDE*) | ||
| 24. | Clever to bring in an English king (6) | ||
| CANUTE | CUTE around AN | ||
| 25. | Tass, long spreading a Gorbachev initiative (8) | ||
| GLASNOST | (TASS, LONG)* | ||
| 26. | Understood about place causing anger (6) | ||
| SPLEEN | SEEN around PL | ||
| … Down |
|||
| 1. | Deny any connection with row about pig (6) | ||
| DISOWN | DIN around SOW | ||
| 2. | Mo changes, changes dress (9) | ||
| CHEONGSAM | (MO CHANGES)* | ||
| 3. | Off the booze during card game and bingo (5) | ||
| LOTTO | TT in LOO | ||
| 5. | Editor, one got hold of by graduate, examines university course (5,7) | ||
| MEDIA STUDIES | ((ED+I) in MA)+STUDIES | ||
| 6. | See supporting information about grey duck (9) | ||
| GOLDENEYE | EYE after[in a down clue, supporting=after i.e. holding up] (GEN around OLD[grey)) | ||
| 7. | Belgian city, for example, in piece of fiction (5) | ||
| LIEGE | E.G. in LIE | ||
| 8. | Cold, plant where a liner may be built (3,4) | ||
| DRY DOCK | DRY+DOCK[plant] | ||
| 11. | Place not catering for private dining? (8,4) | ||
| OFFICERS MESS | cd | ||
| 15. | Ruling passion of old boy sitting (9) | ||
| OBSESSION | OB+SESSION | ||
| 16. | A special characteristic, odd trait, found on Scottish island (9) | ||
| ATTRIBUTE | (TRAIT*)+BUTE | ||
| 17. | Male group welcoming a court case (7) | ||
| HEARING | A in (HE+RING) | ||
| 18. | Behind adult not inclined to leniency (6) | ||
| ASTERN | A+STERN | ||
| 20. | German’s OK after port wine (5) | ||
| RIOJA | JA[Ger. yes] after RIO | ||
| 22. | Pickle‘s fraudulent business scheme – Peregrine’s first (5) | ||
| SCAMP | SCAM+P(eregrine) pickle=a troublesome child |
||
| ……………………………………….. | |||
This was an enjoyable, quick solve. I particularly liked 10a, 17a, 17d & 1a and my favourites were 21a SISTER SHIPS & 14a A SHOT IN THE DARK.
Thanks for the blog, Lorraine.
Got stuck in Kent with 16d,24a & 25a where they all intertwined.
I’m afriad clever =cute was beyond me as was place=pl. Scottish isles always catch me out -there must be thousands.
For 1a, I had gone through life thinking that docile meant tame-but thee is another meaning.
The surfaces for Everyman’s crosswords seem to get better, some of these were sooo good! Thanks for the blog and huge thanks for the crossword.
Great stuff, and as with the IoS a really nice way to put the blog together.
I echo Alan C’s comment @3 – thanks to Everyman and Lorraine.
I hadn’t come across this meaning of docile before and had forgotten, or didn’t know, CHEONGSAM.
My favourites were A SHOT IN THE DARK and the great surface for HAMPSTEAD HEATH.
Thanks for the blog. I particularly enjoyed officers mess, so obvious once you see it but i didn’t get it till quite a few letters were in. In 12 A, does the “O” mean body? I haven’t seen that usage before.
JohnM #6:
to wrap[WIND] round[O]
Nick
I didn’t get docile and had penciled in ‘lotto’ because it fitted. In NZ, lotto is our weekly lottery. I now get the ‘tt’. I got 12a only because of the letters. Went seriously wrong with 24a. I had 22d then thought 24a was astute(even though I couldn’t get the connection with an English king.)I would never have got
‘goldeneye! my favourites 11d,17d and 21a.