Guardian 26,201 – Tramp

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I’ve just started working a four-day week as part of a gradual progress to retirement: today is my first non-working weekday of this arrangement, and how better to celebrate it than by blogging a Tramp. I found this one rather harder than some of his puzzles (though no doubt others will say the opposite), with some of the clues taking a while to decipher. I can’t detect any particular theme in this one, though there’s a bit of Paul-ish cheekiness around, but it’s quite possible that I’ve missed something obvious.

I wasn’t too keen on the cryptic definitions for the two long downs, but otherwise a great bit of setting, as always. Thanks to Tramp.

 
 
 
Across
1. MASSEUSE Hunk, European, to apply rubber (8)
MASS (hunk) + E + USE (apply)
5. IN SITU Protest the wrong way round? Union not spreading (2,4)
SIT-IN (protest) with its parts “the wrong way round” + U[nion]. Although the answer was fairly obvious when I had the final U, it took me a while to spot the explanation – I was trying to make something out of INSIST
9. WASHBOARD Starts to work out — hard abs form? (9)
(W O HARD ABS)* – a “washboard stomach” (not in Chambers yet), like a “six-pack”, is the look where the abdominal muscles are well developed, so not exactly an &lit, but the definition is embedded in the wordplay
11. KNEAD Skinter and regular instalments for what 1 across might do (5)
Alternate letters of sKiNtEr AnD
12. SWEET-AND-SOUR Something saucy about French and Saunders with old works (5-3-4)
Anagram of ET (“French and”) + SAUNDERS W[ith] O[ld] – another one that was easy to writre in but hard to parse
15. OINK Noise from pen — reason it’s run out? (4)
A pen that’s run out may have “0 INK”, and the OINK comes from a pig’s pen
16. SELL-BY DATE Close to this, flogging belatedly? (4-2,4)
[thi]S + BELATEDLY*, and no doubt there will be arguments about the &littishness of this..
18. BRAZILIANS Waxes lyrical: “incredible Zico”, initially turning Italy — a name supporters embrace (10)
First letters of Lyrical Incredible Zico, reversed + I[taly] + A N[ame] in (embraced by) BRAS (supporters). As a sports ignoramus I’d never heard of him, but there is a former Brazilian footballer known by the nickname Zico.
19. CLUE Set with no level of intelligence, like this? (4)
CLIQUE (set) less IQ
21. PENNY-PINCHER Mean one to restrain singer going after copper (5-7)
PENNY (copper) + PIN (restrain) + CHER
24. IRISH Relating to a country, not one a bit like Iran (5)
“IRANISH” less AN
25. ENDOSCOPY Invention of “Eco-Dyson” covering patent — initially it might feed tube through bottom? (9)
P[atent] in ECO-DYSON*. James Dyson is famous for his vacuum cleaners, among other inventions, so the picture painted by this clue is perhaps rather painful..
26. EGRESS Leaving sergeant without soldier backing section (6)
Reverse of SERGEANT less ANT + S
27. ESPRESSO Push drugs up front — ring for strong stuff (8)
ES (plural of E, an Ecstasy tablet) + PRESS (push) + O (ring)
Down
1. MOWS Cuts kinky sex — ouch! Upside-down (4)
OW in reverse of S[&]M. I think this has to be read as the OW (=ouch) “cutting” the S&M, which is upside-down, and “Cuts” then does double duty as the definition
2. SASH Frame crack troops on heroin (4)
SAS + H, with “frame” as in a sash window
3. ELBOWS Stoop wears golfer’s joints (6)
BOW (stoop) in [Ernie] ELS, the crossword setter’s conveniently-spelt golfer
4. SPACE MEDICINE Health programme on satellite station? (5,8)
Cryptic definition for “the branch of medicine concerned with effects of conditions in space on the human body”. Not a particularly great cd, I think: I would have liked some wordplay here
6. NAKED EYE Unaided viewer‘s kinky 11? Ring for hooker (5,3)
KNEAD* + EYE (as in hook & eye fasteners)
7. INEXORABLE Unstoppable boxer, Ali, and George Foreman ultimately in rumble (10)
Anagram of BOXER ALI [Georg]E [Forema]N
8. UNDERSEXED Needs Durex desperately in this state? Hardly! (10)
(NEEDS DUREX)* – those outside the UK might not know that Durex is a well-known brand of condom. (I believe it refers to sticky tape in Australia and elsewhere, which could lead to some awkward misunderstandings..)
10. DIALLING CODES Exchange numbers (8,5)
Cryptic definition for the codes used to reach numbers on a particular telephone exchange – again I would have liked some wordplay here
13. BOOBY PRIZE Idiot on top with something for bottom (5,5)
BOOBY (idiot) + PRIZE (top), and a booby prize is “won” for coming bottom. I think the elements of the wordplay here are rather too close to their meanings in the answer
14. UNGAINLIER Win following one up North — both sides admitting that is more awkward (10)
UN (dialect form of “one” – not sure if it’s specifically Northern) + GAIN + I.E in L[eft] R[ight]
17. SISYPHUS Legendary Rolling Stone man is unknown power in quiet America (8)
IS + Y + P in SH US. In Greek mythology Sisyphus was condemned to roll a boulder up a hill endlessly
20. GEYSER Picks up cockney fella in spring? (6)
Homophone of “geezer”
22. BOSS Chief designer (4)
Double definition – the designer is Hugo Boss
23. TYPO This contalns one bit of party politics? (4)
Hidden in parTY POlitics, and there’s a deliberate typo in “contalns” (might it have been better if the typo was in “this”?)

34 comments on “Guardian 26,201 – Tramp”

  1. Thanks, Andrew.

    Hard in the South West for me and I agree with your criticisms of the weak CDs but, otherwise, really good fun.

    The Guardian font online is such that I didn’t notice the L in contalns so spent a while at the end searching for the TYPO in “this puzzle”! 🙁

  2. Many very good and entertaining clues (such as 15 and 19a, and 17d), but overall not to my personal taste.

  4. Thanks to Tramp and Andrew.

    Got off to a slow start with this, thanks to deciding 1d was AXES, and to a fruitless search for the Bottom in Midsummer Night’s Dream.

    Other clues yielded satisfactorily to a bit of hard work, (even though I had not heard WASHBOARD) but did not get 4d and had difficulty with 13d – I agree with Andrew that these are poorly clued, compared to the standard of the rest.

    I don’t see a typo in “contains”, either in the on-line version, or in Andrew’s rendering of it – maybe it’s been eliminated by the spell-checker!

  5. Thanks Andrew, I thought this was tricky too. I agree about the cryptic definitions being weak, especially SPACE MEDICINE. I put this in only as a guess and was disappointed to find out that it really was the right answer. Apart from that a very good puzzle.

  6. Thanks Andrew. The mini-theme seemed to be the sauciness of 12a, with the two 1s and linked 11 and plus the Durex one. Lots of good clues including CLUE, my last in. But there were those weak ones, too. All in all it was good fun, so tks Tramp

  7. That’s two on the trot incomplete. Must be getting past it ! Some excellent cluing but if it’s not in Chambers, I’ve had it. How do these compilers keep up with the jargon ? Thanks Tramp.

  8. Thanks Andrew for the super blog.

    For 1d its (SM+OW) viewed upside-down.

    This puzzle, like the last couple, and maybe the next four or so, were written around two years ago and I now look at them and think they contain some decent stuff but maybe I could have done a bit better. I agree about the cryptic definitions and I think the typo clue would have been improved if the misprint was in “This”.

    I spotted Durex in UNDERSEXED a while ago and was pleased with that.

    Thanks for comments

    Neil

  10. Thanks, Andrew, for a great blog, and to Tramp, not least for elucidating 1dn – brilliant! – which I just couldn’t make to work.

    I agree about the cryptic definitions – a clue type which we don’t see very often in Tramp opuzzles – but there was much to admire and smile at in the rest. My favourites were SELL-BY DATE, BRAZILIANS, SISYPHUS [of course], UNDERSEXED [I always felt sorry for that French rugby player] – and, now, MOWS.

    Many thanks, Tramp, as ever, for the fun.

  11. Very amusing puzzle. And crunchy, as well as naughty clues. A high-intensity serve of both.

    I read 1d as SM-OW with the upside (S) down (at the end in a down clue).

    @8d blog comment – like the Australian girl who went into the Earls Court branch of Boots and asked for some with “Merry Christmas” written on.

    Thanks to S&B

  12. Thanks Tramp; good puzzle, I really like 1d now that you have explained it! 🙂

    Thanks Andrew; good blog and hope you enjoy retirement. It’s always said by retirees that they cannot understand how they had any time to work.

    I’ll add to Eileen’s list the simple OINK and WASHBOARD. My abs look a bit more like a one-pack these days.

  13. Thanks for the blog, Andrew. And thanks Tramp for the puzzle and for stopping by.

    I’m another one who found the long cds not terribly cryptic. 4dn was my last one in.

    Lots of other things to enjoy. I particularly liked OINK and the definition ‘legendary Rolling Stone man’ at 17dn!

  14. MOWS! Thanks, Tramp! Strangely, while trying to solve the clue for BRAZILIANS without many crossers in place, I was working on “Zico initially turning” being N, since I couldn’t see a word with Z in it being a likely solution. Shows I have been paying attention in previous classes – just not closely enough. 😉

  15. Thanks, Andrew

    Entertaining puzzle from Tramp with several trademark complex charades (BRAZILIANS is a typical Tramp clue).

    I couldn’t work out how MOWS worked, so thanks for that, Mr Setter.

    Like others, I found 4d and 10d a bit too bland, but there are plenty of ingenious clues in compensation. I particularly liked the &littish 9a and 16a, the self-effacing 19a, the something-for-the-weekend 8d and the Rolling Stone man.

  17. There are days which find me quite a grumpy cryptic crossword addict and days like today when I spend the morning smiling after solving both this lovely Tramp offering and another puzzle ‘elsewhere’.

    Thanks to Tramp for the fun (I do like a puzzle with an OINK in it) and Andrew for the explanations.

  18. The week panned out well. I’m glad, retrospectively, that Chifonie was a bit easier than usual, because both Imogen yesterday and Tramp today were more-than-average challenging.

  19. Another one who missed the typo in contalns (don’t our brains work in strange ways?); who didn’t much care for the cds; and who also found it hard.

    But lots to enjoy: my favourites were UNDERSEXED, ENDOSCOPY and BRAZILIANS, but that’s just my sense of humour.

    Thanks to Tramp, and to Andrew (I’m jealous already of the four-day week).

  20. When I saw that “un” had to be “one up north” in 14d, for some reason I was thinking French. Well, here in North America they DO speak French up north, so I suppose I can be forgiven. Of course, that wasn’t what was intended here.

    More generally, Canada is an untapped market for cryptic obscurities, I think. For example, why does AB always have to be a sailor? Can’t it be Alberta? Clue it as “province,” and everyone has to think again.

  21. Hard work for me. Had to stop and come back to it. But one of the more amusing offerings.

    Maybe they changed it, but the typo is definitely in the on-line version now, 3:54pm GMT.

    With regard to UN, I think it is northern in origin but has crept southwards in phrases such as “a wrong un” (a cricket delivery, or a bad person). I’d give as evidence for that creep the fact that back oop north, un would be used consistently, whereas my friends down here still say things like “a poor one”. There are, of course, those oop there who try to be posh and use the non-native ONE.

  22. I found this slightly easier than yesterday’s Imogen but still challenging and enjoyable. Last to crack was the SW corner, and last in was BRAZILIAN. Liked the TYPO clue but it does raise the slightly paradoxical question of whether a deliberate mistake can count as one. The SWEET AND SOUR clue was nice too, as was UNDERSEXED.

    Thanks to Tramp and Andrew

  23. I found this to be another enjoyable Tramp puzzle. I thought it was going to be a breeze after I completed about half the puzzle very quickly, but then I ground to a halt for a while, and I had to really concentrate on the wordplay for most of the rest of the answers, the exception being SPACE MEDICINE which I entered with a shrug once I had the last checker from the excellent BRAZILIAN. CLUE was my LOI.

    I had entered MOWS unparsed so thanks for the explanation, although I’m going to be picky and say it would have worked better as an across clue.

  24. When I first reviewed the proof of this I had the same thought about MOWS working better as an across clue but then I changed my mind: if you write SMOW as if you were writing it in a down light , then, upside down it reads MOWS so it works

    Neil

  27. Very enjoyable. Many thanks to Tramp. Although a couple of the longer down clues seemed a bit drab there was the marvellous UNDERSEXED and a couple of short gems such as GEYSER and, nearly my last in, OINK.

    There has been some recent discussion on the general blog about “vulgarity” and I was surprised to see no criticisms of the wonderful depilatory clue!

  28. Thanks Tramp and Andrew

    Another who enjoyed this for most of the reasons mentioned above. Favourite was OINK which I’d passed on to a colleague whom I’m trying to move to the Guardian puzzles.

    Noticed that Neil has developed a more risqué style … mainly in the surface readings but sometimes with the whole clue – ENDOSCOPY did present a ewww moment with the visualisation!

    Good end to the working week!

  29. I’m glad others found this hard too.

    I’d been banished (or had I retreated) to the kitchen as my wife has 2 friends staying and my male presence wasn’t welcome in the lounge. The change of scenery and music didn’t help.

    I agree with the majority about the weakish CDs balanced by some superb clues. I looked for and couldn’t see the typo. I blame gestalt. Still very enjoyable. LOI was CLUE although I couldn’t parse it!!!

    Thanks to Andrew and Tramp

  30. @Tramp #24

    Am I reading that correctly?

    Not wishing to labour (nor belabour) the point but rev of SMOW (ie upside -down if a down clue) is WOMS – not MOWS.

    I have to parse it as per the blog or my alternative at #11 above.

    It’s not critical – the answer pops out well enough either of those ways. A third way would only be a bonus.

  32. Thanks to Tramp and Andrew. Very late to the party because of the difficulty I had with this puzzle. Was off to a flying stop by confidently entering Edith HEAD at 22d. 8 Oscars!
    Liked WASHBOARD and MOWS.

    Cheers…

  33. @MW #31 – ah – that upside-down – thanks – penny dropped now.

    I make that three valid parses – my kinda clue.

  34. Two excellent puzzles on the trot: I found this a little harder than Imogen’s, which I didn’t expect.

    I was held up for a time by first writhing in HAMS, cuts (of meat) for 1d. I think it works, though “ah” for “ouch” isn’t arguably used so much.

    Several crackers, e.g. 18a, to offset IRISH and SPACE MEDICINE, where the cryptic meaning seemed the more evident to me at first sight.

    Many thanks one and all.

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