Financial Times 14,771 by IO

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A really great puzzle from Io, one of the best puzzles I have blogged for a long time. Far too many good clues to single out any particular one so I will leave that up to you.  Thanks Io.

completed grid
Across
1 OUT OF TOUCH
Not au fait with recent developments in play, presumably (3,2,5)
definition/cryptic definition – when a ball is in touch it is out of play
6  
See 23
9 TURING TEST
Anthropomorphic trial gets disrupted by Italian city tenor (6,4)
GETS* anagram=distrupted following (by) TURIN (Italian city) then T (tenor) – a theoretical test devised by Alan Turing to determine if a repondent is human or a computer
10, 1 down UPON OATH
Embarking on university route musical widow’s bound to be truthful (4,4)

ONO (Yoko Ono, musical widow) inside (embarking on … is …) U (university) PATH (route).  I mistakenly read this as 1,10 not 10, 1 so the  answer would have to be OATH UPON.  I was determined not to be defeated by Io and spent the best part of an hour failing to explain why before realising my mistake.
12 STEEPLECHASE
Difficult children covered by termly contract for race (12)
STEEP (difficult) CH (children) inside (covered by) LEASE (termly contract)
15 ALEHOUSES
A nasty piece of work’s casing what beer joints? (9)
A LOUSE (nasty piece of work) containing EH (what?)
17, 18 A TALL ORDER
Is it demanding 1 Burj Khalifa, 2 Tokyo Sky Tree, 3 Abraj Al Bait? (1,4,5)
a list of some very tall things: Burj Khalifa (the tallest building in the world) Tokyo Sky Tree (broadcasting tower, tallest structure in Japan) and Abraj Al Bait (hotel complex in Mecca with the tallest clock tower in the world) – definition is sort of &lit too.
19 OMNIBUSES
Public transport needed, writer boards 09 (9)
NIB (writer) inside (boards) O (zero) MUSES (the nine muses)
20 DOCTOR FOSTER
Wet man who prescribes lace support (6,6)
DOCTOR (lace, a drink perhaps) FOSTER (support) – who travelled to Gloucester in the rain and fell in a puddle
24, 22 MUGS GAME
It’s futile – silent audience finally strangles lousy gags (4,4)
MUM (silent) audiencE (final letter of) contains (strangles) GAGS* anagram=lousy
25 TO CAP IT ALL
In a reversal of fortune, investment is ultimately the worst of the lot (2,3,2,3)
CAPITAL (investment) inside (in … is …) LOT (fortune) reversed
26  
See 2
27 ORANGE ZEST
Fruit extract for many geezers to regularly offload (6,4)
fOR mANy GEeZErS To missing every other pair of letters third letter (to regularly offload)
Down
1  
See 10
2, 26 TYROSINE
Initiate without constituent of protein (8)
TYRO (initiaite, novice) SINE (without) – one of the 22 amino acids used by cells to synthesise proteins
3 FUNCTION ROOM
Area over pub half-full with Tim O’Connor performing (8,4)
FUll (half of) with (TIM OCONNOR)* anagram=performing
4, 16 ON THE SHOP FLOOR
Workers here in ravages of North Pole show details (2,3,4,5)
anagram (ravages) of OF NORTH POLE and SHOw (detailed, no tail letter)
5, 21 CASTLES IN SPAIN
Wild dreams actors are not suffering as much after last of closures delayed (7,2,5)
CAST (actors) LESS IN PAIN (not suffering as much) with closureS (last letter of) moving further down the line (delayed)
7 OOPS-A-DAISY
Winding most of reel up is, in 24 hours, very minor encouragement (4-1-5)
SPOOl (reel, mostly) reversed (winding … up) then IS in A DAY (24 hours)
8 DANGER LIST
After Putin’s agreement, pound sterling critical on this (6,4)
DA (yes, in Russian) then STERLING* anagram=pound
11 SCRABBLE TILE
1 in 100 in the bag, on the rack or on board (8,4)
cryptic definition – there are 100 tiles in the game Scrabble.  Good misdirection as this appears to contain some fiendish wordplay but in fact is just a plainly worded observation on the subject of Scrabble.
13 MAJOR DOMOS
Some interminable traffic block heading north broken by endless line of police stewards (5-5)
SOMe (interminable, no last letter) JAM (traffic block) reversed (heading north, up the grid) containing (broken by) cORDOn (line of police) with end letters missing (endless)
14 HENDECAGON
Baffled, one changed sides (XI on it) (10)
(ONE CHANGED)* anagram=baffled – an 11 sided polygon
16  
See 4
21  
See 5
22  
See 24
23, 6 FLATFORD
You finally moved out of Apartment 4D, The Mill, East Bergholt, Suffolk (8)
FLAT (apartment) FOuR D missing U (final letter of you) – the location of Flatford Mill(Scene on a navigable river) by John Constable.  A superb clue!
*anagram
definitions are underlined

7 comments on “Financial Times 14,771 by IO”

  1. Agree wholeheartedly with the introduction (apart from the blogging bit!).

    Thanks very much to Io and PeeDee too.

  3. Great stuff! Confused myself by putting DANGER LINE for some reason and then reversing the clue numbers for 2,26 and trying to make it some kind of tart for ages till I realised my mistake.

    Thx both.

  6. Thanks Io and PeeDee

    Agree what an excellent puzzle, even done well after the event form my backlog pile (I wonder if I’ll ever catch up !!). This man does make you work for every clue … and so it was until DOCTOR FOSTER eventually surrendered as the last one in.

    Many clever and diverse clueing devices and a pleasure to solve.

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