Independent 8784 / Alchemi

1

To paint a verbal  picture diets occasionally get 11 to enter church (8)

DES (letters 1, 3 and 5 [occasionally] of DIETS) + (RIB [BONE;  11 down] contained in [to enter] CE [Church of England])

DES C (RIB) E

DESCRIBE (paint a verbal picture)

5

In the US, prosecute junior reporter’s "topless" smear (6)

(BE DA [District Attorney, a prosecutor in the United States]) + (CUB [junior reporter] excluding the first letter [topless] C)

BEDAUB (smear)

9

John perhaps takes note after one leaves runner a set of 11s (8)

(SKI [runner] excluding [leaves] I [one]) + (ELTON [reference singer / songwriter ELTON John] containing [taking] E {note of the musical scale])

SK EL (E) TON

SKELETON (a set of BONEs [11 across])

10

Betrayed husband swaps rings for old bird (6)

CUCKOLD (a man whose wife has proved unfaithful; betrayed husband) exchanging  the letters  (swaps)OLD for OO (two ring shaped letters)

CUCKOO (bird)

12

Prediction worrying you before mysterious process ends (5)

GUESS (final letters of [ends] each of WORRYING YOU BEFORE MYSTERIOUS PROCESS)

GUESS (conjecture; prediction)

13

Good coke one’s arranged in a curve (9)

Anagram of (arranged) G (good) COKE ONES

GOOSENECK (hook; curve shape)

14

Expert journalist bowed (6)

ARCH (accomplished; expert) + ED (editor; journalist)

ARCHED (bowed)

16

I agree old cat is disturbed by empty litter-tray (7)

EX (as a prefix, former; old) + an anagram of (is disturbed) CAT + LY (the letters remaining of LITTER-TRAY when all but the first and last are removed [empty])

EX ACT* LY

EXACTLY (absolutely correct; I agree)

19

11’s bad smell certain to return (7)

HUM (bad smell) + (SURE [certain] reversed [to return])

HUM ERUS<

HUMERUS (BONE of the arm; 11 down)

21

Jenny and Henry in the water by the ship (3-3)

(H [Henry; SI unit of inductance] contained in [in] SEA [water]) + SS (steamship)

S (H) EA SS

SHE-ASS (female ASS; Jenny)

23

Revealing the identity of a French male making demands (9)

UN (French for ‘a’) + M (male) + ASKING (making demands)

UNMASKING (revealing the identity of)

25

Perhaps Persian children have a little song (5)

CAT (a Persian is a breed of CAT) + CH (children)

CATCH (a round for three or more voices  more voices, often deriving comic effect from the interweaving of the words; a little song)

26

TV presenter’s drawback is fakery (6)

DEC (reference ANT & DEC, light entertainment presenters on television, probably most recently seen on I’m a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here) + (TIE [draw] reversed [back])

DEC EIT<

DECEIT (fraud; fakery)

27

11 injected nuts with nitrogen – one nearly exploded! (8)

(MAD [nuts] containing [injected with] N [nitrogen]) + I [one] + (BLEW [exploded] excluding the final letter [nearly] W)

MA (N) D I BLE

MANDIBLE (BONE, 11 down, the jaw)

28

A fashionable company (bar any  mishap) (3-3)

Anagram of (mishap) BAR ANY

RAY-BAN ( a brand name for fashionable sun glasses,or as the company’s website says, the name of the global leader in the premium eyewear market)

29

11 ways to follow 2’s rival bringing lives together (8)

COE (reference Lord Sebastian COE a rival to STEVE CRAM [2 down] in their heyday) + XI (roman numerals for eleven; nothing to with a bone this time) + STS (streets [ways])

COEXISTS (lives together in peace despite differences)

1

Plan to remove notices (6)

DE (prefix indicating a reversal of process) + SIGN (put up notices) giving a phrase DE SIGN meaning removal of notices

DESIGN (plan)

2

Old runner in shabby cream vest (5,4)

Anagram of (shabby) CREAM VEST

STEVE CRAM (British middle distance athlete in his prime in the 1980s.  Now a  BBC athletics commentator)

3

Force prophet to climb round submerged rocks (5)

SEER (prophet) reversed (to climb; down clue) containing F (force)

REE (F) S<

REEFS (submerged rocks))

4

Commentated online as mob finally felled trees (7)

B (last letter of [finally] MOBBED) + LOGGED (felled trees)

BLOGGED (commentated online)

6

List two points, worried after twice hesitating (9)

(E [East, point of the compass] + N [North, point of the compass] giving two points) + (UM [an expression of hesitation] + ER [another expression of hesitation] twice hesitating) + ATE (worried)

ENUMERATE (list one by one])

7

A group of 11s drank less after removing a couple of layers of clothing (5)

ANKLE (the letters left in the phrase DRANK LESS after excluding the two outer letters [D and S] and then excluding the two outer letters [R and S] of the remainder [removing a couple of layers of clothing)

ANKLE (a group of bones [11 down] forming the ANKLE joint)

8

Beckham is uncomfortable, only OK after emptying bladder (8)

BR (the outer letters of BLADDER that remain after all the other letters have been removed [emptying]) + an anagram of (uncomfortable) ONLY OK

BR OOKLYN

BROOKLYN (reference BROOKLYN Beckham, eldest son of David and Victoria Beckham)

11

Something to pick with someone good in France and Spain (4)

BONE (BON [French for ‘good’] + E [España; International Vehicle Registration for Spain)

BONE  (something to pick; reference the phrase a BONE TO PICK)

15

Greeting Moira, upset about silence at bombsite (9)

HI (a greeting) + (an anagram of [upset] MOIRA containing [about]  SH (be quiet!; silence!])

HI RO (SH) IMA*

HIROSHIMA (Japanese city on which the first atomic bomb was dropped in 1945; bombsite)

17

(BUTTS [barrels] reversed [upside down; down clue) contained in (in) TEES (river in the North East of England)

TE (ST TUB<) ES

TEST TUBES (glass cylinders often used in chemistry experiments in schools in the past.  I am not sure whether health & safety allows such freedom for experimentation these days; experimental vessels)

18

Joint quiet before loud brawl with monarch (8)

SH (quiet!) + an anagram of (brawl) LOUD + ER (Elizabeth Regina; monarch)

SH OULD* ER

SHOULDER (a joint of the body)

20

11 miss final point in Polish (4)

SHINE (polish) excluding (miss) the final letter E (East, point of the compass)

SHIN ( a bone [11 down] of the lower leg)

21

Succulent forms of gold to talk up (7)

([OR {gold}+ AU {chemical symbol for gold} giving {two} forms of gold] + GAS [talk]) all reversed (up; down clue)

(SAG UA RO)<

SAGUARO a giant cactus; a succulent [a plant that stores water in its stems and leaves])

22

Humble character overwhelmed by noxious gas makes piping noises (6)

HEEP (reference Uriah HEEP, a Dickens character who was very humble) contained in (overwhelmed by] CS (reference CS gas, an irritant gas that affects vision and respiration, synthesized in 1928 by Corson and Stoughton and used in riot control; noxious gas)

C (HEEP) S

24

Enterprising XIs rudely try and attract top cricket club’s attention? (5)

The phrase MCC OY could  be used as a coarse (rude) way of attracting the attention of the Marylebone Cricket Club [MCC} one of leading cricket clubs in terms of developing the laws of the game)  

MCCOY (reference Dr MCCOY, also known as BONES [11s {XIs} downs] in the original Star Trek television and film series)

25

First of 11 fish found above unknown old manuscript (5)

COD (fish) + E (first letter of [first of] ELEVEN) + X (letter often used to represent an unknown in mathematical equations)

CODEX (a manuscript volume)