This was an easy, but enjoyable, start to a wet and windy Bank Holiday Monday, just the thing to relax with whilst having a coffee after breakfast. As usual for a Rufus puzzle, competently clued with good, meaningful surfaces.
Apologies for the tardiness of this post, the scheduled blogger has obviously been unavoidably sidetracked.
Across
1 SHORTAGE SHORT (wanting) AGE (time)
5 HAMMER dd
9 BACHELOR cd
10 ERENOW cd
12 UNITE UNIT (some troops) E[ast]
13 HUE AND CRY d&cd
14 COMMANDMENTS COMMAND (order) *(TEN) in MS (writing) – &lit
18 CLOSE PURSUIT CLOSE (private) PURSUIT (hobby)
21 PHENOMENA *(PHONE) *(NAME)
23 BORNE N (north) in BORE (tidal wave)
24 ENAMEL NAME (title) in EL (the, Spanish style) – so far as I can see ‘style’ is only included to complete the surface Edit: Thanks Petero for putting me straight, see comment #2
25 OKLAHOMA OK (accepted) L[eaving] *(OMAHA)
26 SIESTA cd
27 ETHELRED *(THE ELDER)
Down
1 SUBDUE SUB (vessel) DUE (expected)
2 ORCHID OR CHID (rebuked)
3 THEREFORE OR (alternative) in THE REF (the judge) [sentenc]E
4 GOOD-HUMOURED *(DUO MORE DOUGH)
6 AARON A RA (body of gunmen) reversed ON
7 MENACING MEN (chaps) ACING (giving outstanding service) – a tennis reference
8 ROWDYISM *(DROWSY IM)
11 TENNIS RACKET cd – another tennis reference
15 MAINBRACE cd
16 SCUPPERS dd – ‘runaway affairs’ refers to the drain holes in a ship’s deck
17 TOLERATE *(REAL) in TOTE (better system) – some may quibble about whether this should have been ‘betting system’ but I am happy in view of the improved surface
19 ARBOUR [h]ARBOUR
20 DEMAND dd
22 OVERT REV (minister) reversed in OT (Old Testament)
Thanks, Gaufrid.
As you say, a pleasant puzzle for a dreary day. 9 and 13 across are nice cryptic clues but I’m not so keen on 14ac: Chambers and Collins both define ‘commandment’ as ‘command’, so not very cryptic.
However, I really liked 21ac. and 8dn. Rufus always has such good surfaces for his anagrams!
In 24A, I suspect the intention is ‘the, Spanish-style’ for ‘el’.
Thanks Petero, that makes sense.
I meant to say, of course, that 9 and 13 were good cryptic definitions.
After my comment on his last outing, nice to see a refloating of some Rufusesque nautical clues.
Not many comments on 15^2 today though? Is it because everyone’s away from “work” on the Bank Holiday…?
In the interests of boosting the comment count: I agree with Eileen about 14ac, and I thought 1ac suffered from the same flaw. I confidently put DIVORCEE for 9ac early on, which caused some delays.
My first thought was DIVORCEE, too, Andrew, but I didn’t get as far as putting it in.
Phew, after last Monday this was much more pleasant (a rather nice return to relative ease following Enigmatist on Saturday too!). I’d agree that the &lit element of 14ac makes it a bit too obvious. As always with Rufus the cryptic definitions were fun. I like the idea of a close pursuit as a private hobby too!
Not so keen on 9a myself – just a bit too vague and ambiguous.
The two uses of “service” grated slightly – although they’re used in different ways in the surface readings of the two clues (which is clever), they’re leading to essentially the same cryptic definition.
And I’m not keen on “last sentence” and “better system” for that matter.
I don’t know… maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for Rufus today. Meh.
…although despite the above comment, I thought 7d was a superb cryptic definition clue.
I agree with Smutchin, a fairly desultory affair today.
11d really ought to be “Equipment used in services”; the extra “the” is rather unfairly added to deflect one.
I liked 16d though; initially, I had ___P_E_S, and was convinced elopes was in there somewhere, until the penny dropped.
I found this hard – especially for Rufus. I too, had DIVORCEE for 9a, which I think is a better answer than BACHELOR – how can he ‘lose’ a status he’s never had ?
And 10a ? Why is this cryptic? ERENOW crossed my mind but I discarded it as too literal. Pah!
Mr Beaver: I thought that to begin with but it does work. As a ‘union member’, a bachelor would lose [bachelor] status.
I didn’t realise I hadn’t understood 16d!
But am I really the only one who thinks that’s not how you spell Tennis Racquet? I see now that “racket” is in Chambers, but I resisted it for a long time.