Two new compilers, or 2 old ones with different names? A long preamble certainly but straight clues apart from 10 answers that must be replaced – somehow – so is it solvable?
It took a while but eventually the grid did fill up. Most of the single word puzzle titles were the later clues I solved and some were certainly obscure to me, anyway. My first thoughts were that this was a going to be a homage to previous EV setters and puzzles but that was certainly not the case.
The phrase to be written below the grid was hinted at by the leading diagonal giving ANAGRAM TITLE making ALL BY OURSELVES.
This also explains the words to be entered for the 10 puzzle titles or as if they were e.g. RULE by TERROR etc. SKETCHES by BOZ was perhaps the best of these, but all could in theory be setter pseudonyms – look out for puzzles also y:
A LONG SHOT
A THREAD
JURY
JOWL
EAR
THE CANDLE
RESERVE
and
DESIRE
I found this quite a slog to get to the end – I suspect this was just my autumnal mood perhaps influenced by the complexity of the preamble and my lack of speed in working out what was going on.
Anyway – thanks Ian and Steve for quite a challenge.
Key:
Underline – definition
Red – Title by clues
Rev. reverse
* anagram
DD Double definition
ACROSS
1 Polled in retrospective fashion for Le Monde? (9, three words)
Rev (Ton – fashion (French)) = NOT BY A LONG SHOT
7 Designs upset cheapskates dismissing appeal regularly at sea (3)
(cheapskates – apa)* = SKETCHES BY BOZ
10 Relax, kid – take time off (4)
Tease (kid) – t (time) = EASE
11 Channel following archive, originally covering Al Jolson’s debut (5)
fa (following archive originally) around Al + j (jolson’s opening) = FALAJ
13 Rash warehouse securing dodgy deal (8)
Hong (warehouse) around (deal)* = HEADLONG
14 Rule to irritate officer (6)
r (rule) + anger(irritate) = RANGER
15 Press used to blacken hopeless no-good king and queen (5)
(king – g)* + er (queen) = INKER
16 Timer failed when embedded in the explosive (8)
(timer + the)* = THERMITE
18 Some wind up being deprived of leg over (3)
annoy (wind up) – Rev(on – leg over) = ANY
19 Extreme characters, perhaps, accepted arable plants (6)
AZ (extreme characters) + a (accepted) + lea (arable) = AZALEA
21 Regret installing liberal government (6)
Rue (regret) around l (liberal) = RULE BY TERROR
23 Bishop’s ready to learn theory for initiation (6)
B (bishop) + apt (ready to learn) + ism (theory) = BAPTISM BY DESIRE
25 Climate’s changing, leaving Alpine Club in bits over fine rain (6)
(climates – ac)* = MISTLE
27 Almost leap stream (3)
Jete (leap) – e = JET
29 Master runs out, in due course coming back covered with dignity (8)
(master – r)* + so (in due course) = MAESTOSO (not sure where the other o comes from?)
31 Maiden who cavorts with this expert could be homeowner (5)
(homeowner – whom)* = ONE-ER
32 Flute’s part is the bass, unexpectedly (6)
(is the b)* = THISBE
34 One of a number that divide clubs owning player? (8)
c(clubs) of (owning) + actor (player) = CO-FACTOR
36 Right to hide oneself in extended retirement (5)
Lien (right) around I (oneself0 = LIE-IN
37 Good-for-nothing mite’s heading back having abandoned primitive urges (4)
Rev(acarus (mite)) – us (primitive urges) = RACA
38 Spread out topless to perform (3)
splay (spread out) – s(topless) = PLAY BY EAR
39 Make acceptable perfume without madam’s contribution (9, two words)
smell (perfume) – m (madam) = SELL BY THE CANDLE
DOWN
1 Meaning’s hard in English (7, two words)
h(hard) + ang (in English) = HANG BY A THREAD
2 Some run amok when going up country (4)
Hidden reversed ruN AMOk = OMAN
3 Troublemaker found what mends fences (3)
(end)* – inside of mends = NED
4 Prisoner stands up before group of people (6)
Rev lag (prisoner) + ere (before) = GALERE
5 Nettle that’s found chucked in the bin (6)
((the bin)* = HENBIT
6 Sunbathers start to tease girl with exposed arse (7)
t (start to tease) + anne (girl) + rs (exposed arse) = TANNERS
7 Sand yachts put learner right into hospital (8)
Barts (hospital) around l (learner) + ok ((right) = BLO-KARTS
8 Woody freaked out on lake having lost Lightyear’s head (5)
(on lake – l)* = OAKEN
9 Finished before final rounds (4)
a(before) in net (final) = NEAT
12 Trying three times (4)
DD TRIAL BY JURY
17 Hustler heading to harass nearest idiot (8)
(h+ nearest)* = HASTENER
20 Love leaving impolite totty in place to treat skin (7)
(impolite – o)* = LIMEPIT
22 Where one finds lots of socially acceptable activity outside (7)
action (activity) around u (socially acceptable) = AUCTION BY RESERVE
24 Owl took his tail – deed uncovered long ago (6)
ee (deed uncovered) + yore (long ago) = EEYORE (as in Winnie the Pooh)
26 Island Homer’s leading character enters thanks about? (6)
i (island) + h (Homer’s leading character) in ta (thanks) + ca (about) = ITHACA
27 Old face trimmed end of steak (bit of rump) … (4)
cheer(old face) – r + k (end of steak) = CHEEK BY JOWL
28 … more than one being essential to sandwich (5)
Hidden essENTIAl = ENTIA
30 Vessel left part of mass in Greece (4)
obo(vessel) + l (left) = OBOL
33 With one bit of nooky, this great lover might become nudist (4)
(nudist – i – n (bit f nooky))* = STUD
35 Record defeat after final blows (3)
Cane (defeat) – e (final) = CAN
Nice puzzle, Twenceslas, and quite difficult considering that most clues were normal ones.
I enjoyed the conceit that a phrase “X by Z” could represent “puzzle by setter”, and the setter (setters?) did well to spot that ALL BY OURSELVES is an anagram of SOLVABLE SURELY. The symmetrical arrangement of the thematic material was rather pleasing.
Given the standard of the puzzle, I suspect this was two established setters rather than two newbies – but I have been wrong with statements like that before. I hope to see more offerings from I & S.
Thanks for the blog twencelas. I found this a fairly tough but enjoyable puzzle. The clues in the bottom right corner were particularly tricky, and I’d never heard of SELL BY THE CANDLE (or BAPTISM BY DESIRE for that matter).
Re 29ac it is MAESTRO – R + SO.
Quite an entertaining preamble! So was the rest, if it comes to that, although for a while I thought we would be treated to grid entries such as Shark, Piccadilly, etc, cropping up in the grid. Perhaps it’s for the best that they didn’t!
I wish I’d persevered with this puzzle but I too thought it was going to be about previous puzzles and their setters. I don’t quite get the bit in the preamble about how the editor rejected puzzles for being too difficult. A clever idea for a puzzle.
I also found this a slog and I’m glad I preserved to the end.
I did waste some time trying to anagram “Steve and Ian” into a known setter but no juy.
On 37A, I parsed “Rev(acarid (mite)) – id (primitive urges) = RACA” Is that better?