Monday Prize Crossword/Oct 13
Another elegantly clued crossword from Crux. No blog without one or two discussion points, however nothing to be upset about. Smooth start of the week for which thanks to the setter.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | BY THE SCORE | What music lovers may do, we hear, many times (2,3,5) |
| (Partial) homophone (‘we hear’) of: BUY THE SCORE (what music lovers may do) | ||
| 7 | WHAT | Question leaders in Washington, hopefully, about terrorism (4) |
| Starting letters (‘leaders in’) of: W[ashington] H[opefully] A[bout] T[errorism] | ||
| 9 | IRON | Press is in chains, almost (4) |
| IRON[s] (chains, almost) | ||
| 10 | ONE AND ONLY | Any East London redevelopment seen as unique (3,3,4) |
| (ANY + E[ast] + LONDON)* [* = redevelopment] | ||
| 11 | SIMILE | One splits a beam like a hot knife through butter, for example (6) |
| Definition by example | ||
| My last one in. I don’t think I would have got the solution without the crossing letters. | ||
| 12 | VENDETTA | Prolonged hostility from a bureaucrat Ted never returned (8) |
| Hidden (‘from a’) in: [bureaucr]AT TED NEV[er], then reversed (‘returned’) | ||
| 13 | STRANGER | Alien killer shows no end of evil (8) |
| STRANGLER (killer) minus [evi]L | ||
| 15 | OKRA | Fine artist depicting ladies’ fingers (4) |
| OK (fine) + RA (artist) | ||
| 17 | MUSE | Daydream like one of 9 goddesses (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| One of a few number 9s in this puzzle, here actually meaning the number 9. | ||
| 19 | HEAVENLY | It’s hard touring central Greenland, yet wonderful (8) |
| HEAVY (hard) around [gre]ENL[and] | ||
| 22 | QUAYSIDE | Dock area’s leading team, reportedly (8) |
| (Partial) homophone (‘reportedly’) of: KEY (leading) SIDE (team) | ||
| 23 | OOLONG | Excessive time off for making tea (6) |
| TOO LONG (excessive) minus T (time) | ||
| 25 | APPENDAGES | Supplements add on many years (10) |
| APPEND (add on) + AGES (many years) | ||
| Not the strongest of the set. The solution and the ‘append’ part of the fodder have the same origin. | ||
| 26 | SHED | Where you may go to pot in Slough (4) |
| Double definition – the first one a bit cryptic, the second falsely capitalised | ||
| 27 | TRUE | Torture is regularly chosen – honestly! (4) |
| Alternate letters (‘regularly chosen’) of: T[o]R[t]U[r]E | ||
| 28 | NETTLERASH | A painful allergy ruined her talents (10) |
| (HER TALENTS)* [* = ruined] | ||
| Very nice anagram. | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | YORKIST | Dynasty’s version of history, with king for husband (7) |
| Replace H (husband) with K (king) in HISTORY, then (KISTORY)* [* = version of] | ||
| 3 | HINDI | Stern one is heard in India (5) |
| HIND (stern) + I (one) | ||
| 4 | STONE AGE | Single taken by coach when 9 wasn’t available (5,3) |
| ONE (single) inside STAGE (coach) | ||
| Here, 9 refers to clue number 9 (IRON). | ||
| 5 | ONE OVER THE EIGHT | Cause of inebriation in 9, literally (3,4,3,5) |
| Literal interpretation of the solution gives us 9 | ||
| 6 | EL NINO | One-nil could mean trouble for Ecuador, say (2,4) |
| (ONE NIL)* [* = could mean] | ||
| 7 | WHOLESOME | Sound golfers do this, we’re told (9) |
| (Partial) homophone (‘we’re told’) of: HOLE SOME (golfers do this) | ||
| 8 | ALL-STAR | Millwall’s target to create such a team? (3-4) |
| Hidden solution (‘to create’): [millw]ALL’S TAR[get] | ||
| 14 | ACETYLENE | Gas is unstable yet clean energy (9) |
| (YET CLEAN)* + E (energy) [* = unstable] | ||
| 16 | CAROUSEL | Revolutionary Broadway musical (8) |
| Double definition, the first one being ‘something that is revolutionary’ i.e. goes around and around | ||
| 18 | USURPER | Shylock for example grabs power, and so does he (7) |
| USURER (shylock, for example) around P (power) | ||
| 20 | LINNETS | Some birds live primarily where fish are caught (7) |
| L[ive] + IN NETS (where fish are caught) | ||
| Strictly speaking, the clue could have done without ‘primarily’ as Collins gives L as an abbreviation for ‘live’. | ||
| 21 | HIDDEN | A clergyman’s inside layer – that’s cryptic! (6) |
| {I (a) + DD (clergyman)} inside HEN (layer) | ||
| I have seen A = I before but I can’t say I like it very much. One explanation might be A = one = I. | ||
| 24 | LOSER | Sort of roles one plays without success (5) |
| (ROLES)* [* = sort of] | ||
| Simple but elegant clue to finish the puzzle. | ||
4d was hard for me. I was fixated on the last word, could it be ergot (“rust” – something to do with iron)? Maybe when iron gets rusty it’s inebriated by some wild stretch. Finally made a guess, which turned out to correct, of an expression I never heard of till I looked it up. Quaint.
Also missed OKRA, again never heard it called “ladies’ fingers”, just gumbo.
I meant to say 5d.
Should be a rule about numbers in clues being bolded if and when they refer to other answers. My gripe.
Thanks Crux and Sil
Only completed this today and nice elegant puzzle without being too difficult. Finished up in the NW with SIMILE, HINDI and BY THE SCORE the last few in.
A couple of very clever clues in USURPER and the well hidden ALLSTARS.
A couple that I thought were a little sub standard – APPEDAGE (as mentioned by Sil) and IRON.
Hadn’t seen the term ONE OVER THE EIGHT before this week … and this is the second time that it has come up in the week!
Just couldn’t get 11a but having hindu for 3d didn’t help.
Signing in late, as I do the puzzle two weeks after it appears. Thought it a pleasant, if not overly-demanding puzzle for a Monday. My LOI was Yorkist–not difficult, but always hard to make this American think with a non-U.S. focus. No complaint, though, just a good reminder for myself.
My favorite was 11A. It put a smile on my face!
Thanks to setter and blogger!