In six-and-a-half years of blogging Azed, this is the first time the luck of the draw has brought me a Christmas puzzle. I was a bit apprehensive at the prospect, as some of them have been quite challenging in recent years. However, this one turned out to very much at the opposite end of the spectrum, despite the rather daunting special instructions, and I was surprised to find that I had finished it (apart from a couple of stragglers that needed some Chambers-searching) by about 9.30 on the morning that it was published.
Azed has used several versions of the overlapping-answers idea in some Christmas puzzles, but I don’t remember seeing the particular one used here before. As is often the case, writing up the blog was considerably more time-consuming than solving the puzzle: for the acrosses, I’ve shown the grid entry, with the overlapping jumbled letters highlighted, followed by the two individual answers, in the order they appear in the colue. I’ve also marked the split in the clue itself: as always in such clues (as also seen in the “Right and Left” specials) it’s worth noticing how seamlessly the two parts are joined together with no superfluous words. In the interests of space I’ve kept the explanations to a minimum, but I think Chambers can confirm all the words used.
Thanks to Azed for this, and all his puzzles this year, and long may he continue.
| Across | ||||||||
| 1. | CHECUKSMROSE CHECKSUM/MUSKROSE |
It detects errors: gold coin with king replacing centre of gap, i.e. a / bloomer — this country’s millions revolted (8, 8) ECU K replacing A in CHASM / UK’S M + ROSE |
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| 10. | HEDONSTIATES HEDONIST/INSTATES |
Male fellows note one pursuing pleasure / installs stone one in seat (8, 8) HE DONS TI / ST I in NATES (buttocks, seat) |
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| 11. | REDWTEARFACT ARTEFACT/REDWATER |
Thing that’s created attention and start of friction in diplomacy drew jagged rent, serious affliction in the herd (8, 8) EAR + F in TACT / DREW* + TEAR |
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| 12. | SCOBREAL SCROBE/BOREAL |
Groove, scratch circling barrels / of northerly old boy, authentic (6, 6) B in SCORE / OB + REAL |
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| 15. | STEAREAGLIST REGALIST/STEARAGE |
Supporter of monarchy, English, in newspaper strip / gets confused about extent government lost? (8, 8) E in RAG LIST / AREA in GETS* |
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| 17. | TASTNIVEERS TASTEVIN/ENVIERS |
Cup for sampling savour, volume in turns imbibed, / I turn, tucking into new series – are they green? (8, 7) (V IN)< in TASTE / I VEER in N S |
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| 19. | PASNGISORIA SIGNORIA/PASSING |
Italian governors imprisoning foreign troops in endless chain, / dying, indicate vital juice is receding (7, 8) GIS in NORIA / (SIGN SAP)< |
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| 23. | ABETRESTLING ABETTERS/STERLING |
Those encouraging sailor to be in French street, / genuine sport when it’s going after women (8, 8) AB + ETRE + ST / [W]RESTLING |
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| 25. | ARBAORDS BOARDS/ARROBA |
Stage circle taken in by poet’s / carriage, gold, variable weight (6, 6) O in BARD’S / ARBA + OR |
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| 28. | DECOARTEDSON TREADS ON/DECORATE |
Crime involving unruly youth squashes / environmental creativity maybe, in Delaware ornament (8, 8) TED (teddy boy) in ARSON / ECO ART in DE |
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| 30. | ADJUTATNIEST ADJUTANT/NATTIEST |
A pop presenter, one including cheap stuff, officer / anti getting corrupted in trial, smarter than the rest (8, 8) A DJ + TAT in UN / ANTI* in TEST |
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| 31. | YESTERNEGIES ENERGIES/YESTREEN |
More than one power supply that is restricted by Greens upset / the old author last night (8, 8) IE in GREENS* / YE + STERNE |
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| Down | ||||||||
| 1. | CHRISTMAS DAY | Church singer, third released, I’m surprised supermarket’s taken in for present occasion (12, 2 words) CH[o]RIST + ASDA in MY (I’m surprised) |
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| 2. | HEELTAP | Bit left at bottom of glass? Tilt faucet (7) HEEL (tilt) + TAP |
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| 3. | COW | Subdue moggy? (3) Double definition (moggy is “a pet name for a cow”) |
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| 4. | UNTORN | Follow ’ounds with ’abitual accompaniment, rent-free? (6) [h]UNT + (hunting) [h]ORN |
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| 5. | STAR | Ling dropped by bird in seaside grass north of the border (4) STAR[ling] |
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| 6. | MIRE | Farming community beginning to evacuate waterlogged ground (4) MIR (peasant commune in pre-revolutionary Russia) + E |
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| 7. | RAFALE | Worrying rattle engulfing a loud drum roll (6) A F in RALE (sound from a diseased lung) |
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| 8. | SECTS | Clubs introduced some tennis parties (5) C[lubs] in SETS (some tennis) |
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| 9. | ESTATE AGENTS | Managers of landed property, form of asset Earl Grey’s gone into? (12, 2 words) TEA GENT (as Earl Grey might be described) in ASSET* |
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| 13. | CAT | It’s lashed trunks afloat (3) Two different definitions using the same words – the cat-o’-nine-tails “lashes trunks” on a ship, and a cat(amaran) was originally “a raft of logs lashed together” |
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| 14. | BEIGE | Undyed woolstuff: rot has enveloped this in gown I acquire (5) If you envelop BEIGE with rot you get ROBE I GET, or “gown I acquire” |
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| 16. | AVISO | Old despatch boat, power in its belly, turned up? (5) VIS in AO – middle letters of bOAt, reversed |
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| 18. | SINUOSE | Windy, i.e. sun so irregularly seen (7) (IE SUN SO) – windy from “wind” rhyming with “kind” |
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| 20. | STROUT | Countrymen’s bulge is what he’s caught in the river? (6) S + TROUT. I think the clue would read better (and work just as well) with “Countryman’s” rather that “..men’s” |
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| 21. | STRENE | Old race concealed in past renewed (6) Hidden in paST RENEwed – old form of “strain”, meaning a race or line of descent |
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| 22. | OLD | Antique Italian coin, not so round (3) [so]LDO |
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| 24. | BREDE | Old embroidery caused a bit of excitement (5) BRED + E |
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| 26. | BATE | Blunt passion? (4) Double definition |
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| 27. | ARAR | Source of varnish important to particular artists (4) Hidden in particulAR ARtists – the Sandarac tree, whose resin is used to make varnish |
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| 29. | DIG | Figure lacking sex appeal produces this taunt (3) DIG[it] |
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Well done, with this comprehensive and clear explanation, Andrew. I’m afraid I got stuck with the Across clues in the middle, and needed some help to finish it. Very enjoyable though.
25 ac
re Bard’s
Knowing that Azed is always correct in his use of apostrophes, and noting that the surface reading of 25ac requires “bard’s” to be a contraction of “bard is” rather than a possessive, leads me to believe that the subsidiary indications for the right hand half give
O in (BARD + S), where S is the contracted form of IS.