Guardian 26,090 by Rufus

by

Good morning, as we start the week with the usual Rufus mix, this blog was delayed by trees on the line.

It was good to meet a few of you fine folks on Saturday for the Enigmatist’s 50th birthday bash.

Across
7 DEFENDANT Protect worker who is accused (9)
  DEFEND & ANT
8 APRON Expert clad in an item of protective clothing (5)
  PRO(fessional) in AN
9 ALMA MATER Old university graduate twice blocks change (4,5)
  2 x MA in ALTER
10 BOOTY Lad about to return stolen property (5)
  TO rev in BOY
12 ORBITS Goes round bistro abroad (6)
  BISTRO*
13 NAIL BOMB Abominable, if not extreme, form of explosive device (4,4)
  No extremes of (a)BOMINABL(e)*
14 BEGGARS They have no choice, poor chaps (7)
  Double definition
17 ERUDITE Learned English and Italian, in short (7)
  E(nglish) & IT(alian) in RUDE
20 REVOLVER Rotor arm? (8)
  Cryptic definition
22 FOSSIL Relic of ship in protective wrapping (6)
  S.S. in FOIL
24 PIETY Goodness is a major point in compassion (5)
  E(ast) in PITY
25 TIMEPIECE Watch, say, for a magazine article (9)
  A TIME (magazine)PIECE (article)
26 STOIC One involved in outrageous cost was philosophical (5)
  1 in COST*
27 CHOCOLATE Bar snack? (9)
  Cryptic/Double Definition
Down
1 TELLER Counter–informant (6)
  Double definition
2 BELAYING Stopping at sea? (8)
  Cryptic definition, belay that order you scurvy knave!
3 IDEALS Models or ladies in fashion (6)
  LADIES*
4 INFERNO Conclude there’s no place for the damned (7)
  INFER & NO
5 APLOMB A quiet look by doctor shows self-possession (6)
  A & P & LO & M.B.
6 CONTEMPT Two things swindlers do and may be found guilty of in court (8)
  CON & TEMPT
11 PIER Support one throughout (4)
  PER (through) out-side 1
15 ELEGISTS Broken leg is set by linesmen (8)
  [LEG IS SET]*
16 ROVE Cruise? Get overexcited! (4)
  OVER* “excited”
18 DISCIPLE One of the following? (8)
  Cryptic definition
19 FREIGHT Charge made by soldiers in battle (7)
  RE in FIGHT
21 OXTAIL Kiss in love story broadcast makes a neat ending (6)
  X (kiss) in 0 (love) & hom of TALE and cryptic def
22 FLEECE Do some asset-stripping to run church (6)
  FLEE & CE
23 INCITE Encourage a sound location for a pub (6)
  Hom of INN SITE

19 comments on “Guardian 26,090 by Rufus”

  1. As flashlight says, a typical curate’s egg from Rufus. While I thought that 2d was in the wrong sort of puzzle, I enjoyed clues like 21d – not difficult, but witty and concise.
    I also enjoyed John Henderson’s Birthday Bash in Sheffield, and was very pleased to have the chance to meet some of the setters and bloggers of whom I stand in awe, but found everyone extremely welcoming, so thanks for that. My brain is still hurting trying to solve the ‘Freedom Pass’ puzzle that was handed out – less than 50% so far.

  4. As flashling said, a typical Rufus puzzle.

    It probably took me as long to solve my last two, BELAYING and BOOTY, as it took me to solve the rest of the puzzle. I’m blaming my struggle with BOOTY on the grid and unhelpful checkers because it should have been a write-in.

  5. Thanks Rufus and flashling,

    First of all, I quite enjoyed this – more than I usually do a Rufus to be honest. Several clues were very neat and while I wasn’t 100% happy with a couple of things they really didn’t detract that much. As George said, 2d simply isn’t cryptic; the “say” in 25 is redundant. Minor quibbles, and stacked up against INFERNO, OXTAIL and several others, insignificant.

    Flashling – it was nice to meet you in Sheffield, if only briefly. George – a genuine pleasure and I hope you didn’t mind my gentle teasing, which was born of genuine respect. Eileen – it was really lovely to meet you and I wish we had talked for longer. You are every bit as glamorous as I expected you to be!

  6. Hello Mitz,
    To avoid straying too far from today’s puzzle, I’m posting a message on the General Discussion page.
    Regards,
    George

  7. Rufus is back in typical style – a mixture of straightforward and head-scratching clues, but all very clever IMHO. I wasn’t really on his wavelength today, but finished all apart from BELAYING, a new word for me. I did enjoy OXTAIL and REVOLVER (if only because it made me think of The Beatles).

  8. Thanks to flashling for the blog. I had ALMA MATER but failed to understand why it is correct – you explained that.

    One man’s meat… I found BOOTY was a write-in 🙂

  9. A late start for me, but a quick finish makes it worthwhile joining the blog.

    Like Mitz @5, one of my favourite Rufuses for some time. And I’d looked at the grid expecting to have a moan about five-letter, two-checker clues.

    BELAYING last in for me too, there are loads of *E*A*ING to choose from. ALMA MATER and INFERNO among several favourites.

    Saturday was good for me too. Clearly should have spent more time working my way round the room as there are people on this thread I didn’t meet! Eileen, I hope the prosaic explanation for my moniker didn’t disappoint you too much …

  10. I enjoyed this, thanks Rufus. I didn’t get 9a because I looked up the definition of belayed and it is make fast, using a cleat – not stop. Which is what I remember from Treasure Island

  12. As ever with a Rufus, I failed on just one solution: this time 2d.
    As Trailman says, there are quite a few options.
    However, BELAYING is the only one referring to the world of boats etc – an area in which Rufus will always beat you.

    Today, I had to do it all by myself as Beth (my PinC) was not around – but she should be around at the next S&B, shouldn’t she?

    This was very enjoyable, also mostly very easy.
    21ac was by a mile my CoD, a splendid clue.
    (strange expression, as a mile is not that far …. 🙂 )

    I would like to echo Eileen in saying that we missed you Rufus, last Saturday!

    Thanks, Flashling, I was sorry to see you arriving so late at the Sheffield Tap – hope you still enjoyed it!

  13. Well Another Monday, another Rufus.

    I personally really didn’t like this as again we have too many CDs and DDs for me.

    What I hate about these clues is that they often have more than one solution so you are never certain that your solution is correct. With nearly every setter I never check the answers as I know they are correct. That is the beauty of a good cryptic clue. One moves, hopefully from complete incomprehension to complete certainty. (Often in an instant)

    By the way 2d could be DELAYING which is in fact more “cryptic” than the solution suggested! (IMHO of course 😉 )

    Thanks to Flashling

  14. Got stuck in NW by entering 2dn as BEACHING (which still doesn’t strike me as totally unreasonable) so I missed 9ac (which in retrospect struck me as totally elegant)

  15. Brendan (not that one) @13, I am not saying that you should not “not like” this puzzle (totally up to you, of course) but there were only 6 cd/dd clues today – a modest number and certainly not “… again we have too many …”.
    Perhaps, for me, this was the reason that I liked this crossword just a bit more than the average Rufus.

  16. Mitz @5

    I have to quibble with your quibble with ‘say’ in 25. Not all timepieces are watches.

    It seems that ‘timepiece’ has an additional, particular use. Collins talks about a device which doesn’t strike. Chambers mentions a device that doesn’t strike but is bigger than a watch. What fun.

    Interesting also the general approval here. And no complaints about the typically unfriendly grid.

  17. Re “Bar snack?”. Back sometime in 2008 he used “Snack bar?”. I bet he’s done the same as Dante. And why not?

  18. Hi Sil @15

    Thanks for letting me “not like” this puzzle 🙂

    Only 6 it seemed like more. I counted 7 until I realised that 16d was a non-Ximenean anagram as well as a DD. (Very clever). However it’s the quality as well as quantity for me and 2d was so bad it counted double 😉

    Totally off subject but I assume from your Id that you are from Nederlands op Belgie. I always wonder why you post so late as I assume you are “at home” and 1 hour ahead anyway. (No criticism but just curious) And are you really “on the corner”? (Depending heavily on my dodgy Nederlands here. (2 years in Antwerp. Very enjoyable!)

    By the way, I’m a fellow “late poster” as I never start the crossword until at least 7:00 p.m.

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