An interesting crossword from Aardvark as usual.
The online version of the puzzle had some clues with letters counts missing and others containing words of zero length. I presume that this is just a typesetting error and I have not overlooked some subtle meaning to all of this.
I can’t fully explain 11 across, any help appreciated. Thanks Aardvark.
| Across | ||
| 1 | NOVA SCOTIA | Necktie one’s found in river going over province (4,6) |
| I (one) has ASCOT (necktie) in AVON (river) reversed (going over) | ||
| 7 | SASH | Frame Mike leaving accident (4) |
| SmASH (accident) missing M (mike, phonetic alphabet) – definition is ‘frame’, as in a sash window | ||
| 9 | ITCH | Long receipt, second half seen first (4) |
| CHIT (receipt) with IT (the second half) moved to the front (seen first) | ||
| 10 | PIED-A-TERRE | Two food items go astray when returning to accommodation (4-1-5) |
| PIE DATE (two food items) ERR (go astray) reversed (returning) | ||
| 11 | COGNAC | Spirit that’s seen in half of French dance clubs knocked back? (6) |
| GO (spirit) that is seen in CAN-can (French dance, half of) |
||
| 12 | ANECDOTE | Short story regularly haunted Dorothy in church (8) |
| hAuNtEd (regularly, every other letter) then DOT (Dorothy) in CE (Church, of England) | ||
| 13 | REDBRICK | Type of academic institution associated with mortarboards? (8) |
| cryptic definition | ||
| 15 | ALSO | Some cargo slavishly taken back to boot (4) |
| found in (some of) cargO SLAvishly reversed (taken back) – definition is ‘to boot’ | ||
| 17 | SWOT | Studious type draws when retired (4) |
| TOWS (draws) reversed (when retied) | ||
| 19 | FLORENCE | City criminal penetrates centre for solid gold? On the contrary (8) |
| soLid (centre of) OR (gold) in (penetrates) FENCE (criminal) – definition is ‘city’ | ||
| 22 | PLIOCENE | Period building incomplete without medieval tapestries, principally (8) |
| (INCOMPLETE)* anagram=building missing MT (principal, first, letters of medieval tapestries) – a geological period | ||
| 23 | LUSTRE | Brightness from bait attracts sprat at both ends (6) |
| LURE (bait) contains (attracts, catches) SpraT (both ends of) | ||
| 25 | LOCH LOMOND | Look repeatedly around Switzerland by day, always missing lake (4,6) |
| LO LO (look, repeatedly) contains (around) CH (Switzerland, IVR code) by MONDay (day) missing AY (always) | ||
| 26 | LIEN | Extend student’s penultimate term in law (4) |
| LIE (extend, stretch out) studeNt (penultimate letter of) – a legal term denoting a form of security (on a debt) | ||
| 27 | BELL | Fifty pounds given with notes for ring (4) |
| L (fifty, Roman numeral) L (pounds) following (given with) B E (two notes of the scale) – definition is ‘ring’ | ||
| 28 | LEDERHOSEN | Extremely lame horse struggling in sanctuary, pants (10) |
| LamE (extremes of) then HORSE* anagram=struggling in DEN (sanctuary) – leather trousers, pants | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | OUTSOLE | Asleep alone in part of Oxford? (7) |
| OUT (asleep) SOLE (alone) – an Oxford is a type of shoe | ||
| 3 | ASHEN | Sickly-looking ’otpot Edwin emptied (5) |
| ‘ASH (hash, hotpot) and EdwiN (emptied, missing middle) | ||
| 4 | CAPUCHIN | Religious person beat scamp flouting rule (8) |
| CAP (beat) UrCHIN (scamp) missing (flouting) R=rule – a Franciscan monk | ||
| 5 | THE BACK OF BEYOND | Finding this remote area might need a plan D? (3,4,2,6) |
| D is the final (back) letter of ‘beyond’ – definition is ‘finding this area might need plan’. This is the reversal of the norm where the construction would be longer than the definition. Here the definition is very long and the construction is only a single letter! | ||
| 6 | AMAZED | Surprised river’s bypassed on vacation in England (6) |
| AMAZon (river) missing (bypassed) ON then EnglanD (with middle letters evacuated, in vacation) | ||
| 7 | SHELDRAKE | Bird did some gardening presumably with son (9) |
| HELD RAKE (did some gardening presumeably) following (with) S (son) – a type of duck | ||
| 8 | STRATUS | Street shoppers maybe interrupted by opening of umbrellas – sign of rain? (7) |
| ST (street) RATS (shoppers maybe, informers) containing (interrupted by) U (opening of umbrella) – clouds that might bring rain | ||
| 14 | BETROTHAL | Rector with religious text joins Elizabeth and Henry after this? (9) |
| R (rector) with OT (religious text) inside (joins together) BET (Elizabeth) and HAL (Henry) – the marriage follows the betrothal | ||
| 16 | COLLUDER | Olympic athlete runs around flat from the back – his plot? (8) |
| COE (Olympic athelete) R (runs) containing (around) DULL (flat) reversed (from the back) – definition is ‘his plot’. I can’t figure out the definition, maybe I have a mistake here? | ||
| 18 | WELCOME | Hail clearly heard on plane, as temperature dropped (7) |
| WEL sounds like (heard) “well” (clearly) on COMEt (De Havilland Comet, plane) missing T (temperature) – definition is ‘hail’ | ||
| 20 | CORTEGE | Fabulous bird returning, say, splits case in tube train (7) |
| ROC (fabulous bird) reversed (returning) then EG (say) contains (splits) TubE (case in, end letters of) – definition is ‘train’ | ||
| 21 | RECOIL | Stagger back from Red Cow ill, repeating “one too many” (6) |
| REd COw ILl where each word has one too many letters (omissions repeating) – definition is ‘stagger back’ | ||
| 24 | SALTO | Daring leap from seaman second in command (5) |
| SALT (seaman) cOmmand (second letter of) – definition is ‘daring leap’, a somersault | ||
*anagram
Good stuff from Aardwark and PeeDee.
At 11a could it be an og (own goal) that is one that is “knocked back”
Thanks PeeDee
I had a similar problem with 11ac until I decided that it was intended to be an &lit using spirit=GO to give CAN GO C reversed.
I have the same answer for 16dn and assumed that ‘his plot’ was used to suit the surface and that it was an indirect indication towards someone who conspires or plots.
paulweaver – if “knocked back” is OG then you will need to find another reversal indicator
I surrender.
Thanks for the explanation of 11ac Gaufrid.
For 16dn I still can’t get how ‘his plot’ becomes ‘colluder’. Can you explain in some more detail?
Hi PeeDee
“Can you explain in some more detail?”
Not easily 😉 . My thoughts revolved around the fact that a [ground floor] flat might have a [garden] ‘plot’ associated with it and that a COLLUDER would have a ‘plot’.
That’s about as far as I got too!
If I merely sit at home twiddling my thumbs, I am not conspiring with anyone. I don’t have any plot.
OTOH, a colluder has a plot.
After writing “Olympic athlete runs around flat from the back” for wordplay, Aardvark seems to have hit upon the nearness of the terms ‘flat’ and ‘plot’. The runner is not running around anybody’s flat but his own. It is his flat – his plot – he is the one with the plot – he is COLLUDER.
Hi Rishi, collusion requires two or more participants. Who or what is the Olympic athlete colluding with?
As far as I can see this clue is just nonsense.
Thanks PeeDee and Aardvark. I thought 16d was OK-ish but I agree that it’s a bit loose. Thanks for the explanation of COGNAC, which escaped me. A neat clue 😉
I managed to persuade myself that 27a was “peal” (p for pound, two notes, l for fifty). Should have checked my abbreviations!