Independent 8867 / Crosophile

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An interesting twist to this puzzle from Crosophile – at first sight, a rather odd reference in 1AC to seven other clues.

It took us a while to solve this clue, and the reference to the seven other solutions was therefore something of a mystery. However, when we had a few crossing letters, the solution was clear and we then realised how the seven other solutions were connected. All good stuff – the ‘theme’ is almost a by-product, so it should suit those who, unlike us, are not fans of themed puzzles.

 

Across
1   Sweet, thrifty gal ignored what the midwife might say (9, 17, 18, 19A, 25, 27 and 32?)
FRUIT SALAD FRUgal (thrifty) with ‘gal’ omitted or ‘ignored” + IT’S A LAD (what the midwife might say). The ‘salad’ is an anagrind for the other seven solutions (in green below)
6   Dirk’s nuts passed round
STAB BATS (nuts) reversed or ‘passed round’. We had come across ‘dirk’ as a dagger before, but had not realised that it can also be a verb
10   A chap going round endlessly grumpy – there’s no place for it
ALSO-RAN ALAN (a chap) round SORe (grumpy) without the last letter or ‘endless’
11   With origin unseen, age old record’s unknown? Not in this field
GEOLOGY aGE with the first letter omitted, or ‘with origin unseen’ + O (old) + LOG (record) + Y (unknown, as in algebra)
12   Domain’s master giving us a small sign
COMMA COM (internet suffix for a domain name) + MA (master)
14   Pitch originally has man batting to cover
TARPAULIN TAR (pitch originally) + PAUL (man) + IN (batting)
15   I dozed, second dropping off in very long film – it might be fitting for me
EPILEPTIC I sLEPT (dozed) with the ‘s’ (second) ‘dropped off’ in EPIC (very long film)
17   Remaining bit of sangria to diminish gradually
SPARE S (first letter or ‘bit’ of Sangria) + PARE (diminish gradually) – an anagram of PEARS – see 1ac
19   Discounted old icon aide’s returned
CHEAP CHE (Guevara – old icon) + PA (personal assistant – aide) reversed or ‘returned’ – an anagram of PEACH – see 1ac
21   Once again makes use of mere rehashed stratagems
RE-EMPLOYS An anagram of MERE (anagrind is ‘rehashed’) + PLOYS (stratagems)
24   I gather together burning coal left inside by idiot
ASSEMBLER EMBER (burning coal) with L (left) inside by ASS (idiot)
27   It relays message about vacant space for reversing
PAGER RE (about) GAP (vacant space) reversed – an anagram of GRAPE – see 1ac
28   I’ll leave distraught peacenik, one guarding a joint
KNEE-CAP An anagram of PEACENiK without ‘I’ – anagrind is ‘distraught’
29   Happy place’s become a bed of roses
PLEASED PL (place) + EASED (become a bed of roses)
31   Ill-bred prig with no power
RUDE pRUDE (prig) without ‘p’ (power)
32   South Americans: a right gallant chap and Spanish lady
ARGENTINES A + R (right) + GENT (gallant chap) + INES (Spanish lady) – an anagram of TANGERINES – see 1ac
Down
1   Bill includes a chap (Charlie) one’s engaged
FIANCEE FEE (bill) round or ‘including’ IAN (a chap) C (Charlie, in the Nato phonetic alphabet)
2   Youngsters heading off for better times
UPS pUPS (youngsters) without the first letter or ’heading off’
3   Sprinter’s three from the end before competition raised level
TERRACE TER (last three letters, or ‘three from the end’ of sprinter) + RACE (competition)
4   Girl with nothing on’s rubbish – or does she add gloss?
ANNOTATOR ANN (girl) + O (nothing) + TAT (rubbish) + OR
5   Paddy shows this nativity scene after missing mass
ANGER mANGER (nativity scene) without or ‘missing’ ‘m’ (mass)
7   He winds up meeting in the middle to make progress
TROLL T (middle letter of meeTing) + ROLL (make progress)
8   Out of love, follow former pop star
BEYONCE oBEY (follow) without O (love) + ONCE (former)
9   We travel with bananas in small numbers
NOMADS MAD (bananas) in NOS (small numbers) – an anagram of DAMSON – see 1ac
13   I sat where the minotaur was and I have large ears
MAIZE I ‘sitting’ in MAZE (where the minotaur was)
16   Mr German has yen to be in epic at sea – an alternative to 1A?
CHERRY PIE HERR (mister in German) + Y (yen) in an anagram of EPIC (anagrind is ‘at sea’)
18   A garden ornament with bit chipped off is put back in the middle
AMONG A + GNOMe (garden ornament) with the last letter missing, or ‘a bit chipped off’ reversed or ‘put back’ – an anagram of MANGO – see 1ac
19   A really good joke perhaps? Unlikely in this!
CRACKER A reference to the fact that jokes in CRACKERs are rarely very funny
20   Fruit’s not left by stuff that’s cold as stone
PUMICE PlUM (fruit) without the ‘l’ (left) + ICE (stuff that’s cold)
22   Basic camping equipment is put up – shut up about it
PUP TENT An anagram of PUT (anagrind is ‘up’) in PENT (shut up)
23   Tired running about on board ship with steps like these?
STRIDES An anagram of TIRED (anagrind is ‘running about’) in or ‘on board’ SS (ship)
25   Sorry about the empty place
STEAD SAD (sorry) round ThE (middle letter missing or ‘empty’) – an anagram of DATES – see 1ac
26   Undesirable to drive back to the North
LEPER REPEL (drive back) reversed or ‘to the North’
30   A tabloid mired in misunderstandings
SUN Hidden or ‘mired’ in miSUNderstanding

 

11 comments on “Independent 8867 / Crosophile”

  1. How clever of you to see the theme! I never did work it out, despite solving the whole puzzle.

    The words in this puzzle were all very familiar, but the clues had me stuck for a while. There are three clues – 10A, 14A and 4D – where a general “chap”, “man” or “girl” has to be guessed to be a specific “Alan”, “Paul” or “Ann”. I always find these clues hard and a bit dispiriting, because there are so many possible names that could fit. Three in one puzzle was a bit of a struggle for me. But I did get there in the end, and I did like “There’s no place for it” for “also-ran”.

  2. Very hard going and I too missed the theme. Lots of difficult clues, with the use of specific names making clues such as 4 even harder as pointed out by Emrys above. COD for me was 12 with 6 not far behind. I hadn’t heard of ‘dirk’ as a verb before either, but had a er… (I won’t use the obvious word here) at it which turned out to be correct.

    Thanks to bloggers (and well done for picking up the full significance of the 1a wordplay) and setter.

  4. Sorry K’s D but for once I have to disagree. I don’t see any obscurity, because it was never necessary to understand the references in 1ac in order to solve the puzzle.

    I’ll buy you a drink and you can tell me why you are right and I am wrong.

  5. I didn’t find this particularly obscure either, although I did struggle to see SPARE, AMONG and PAGER despite having sussed the theme quite early on, and it was only after I got the last of those three that I was able to get my LOI, the previously unknown PUP TENT.

  6. Thanks Crosophile and Bertandjoyce.

    There were quite a lot of fruity references in the clues as well as the CHERRY PIE at 16d, but I had to search a while to find the significance of FRUIT SALAD. As others have said, knowing the theme was not necessary for solving the clues. I did like ALSO-RAN and MAIZE.

  7. Thanks Crosophile and B&J a nice fruity puzzle, bit bemused as to the 1a hint as really it was little more help than nothing to actually solve the puzzle. Almost inquisitor like asking the the solver to name the puzzle from various solutions. Didn’t think it that hard k’sd if you just ignored the extra stuff in 1a.

  8. Just extra grumpy today, sorry. Not something that Crosophile can factor in when he’s setting this stuff.

  9. I persevered with this and finished it, although for a long time I couldn’t seem to get even one clue in the top half. Eventually I worked out the fruit idea and it helped in getting 17 and 18. Pup tent was my LOI, being a completely unfamiliar Americanism. I agree about the use of too many first names – it was one of the things which made the top left corner very difficult to get into.

  10. I certainly didn’t think it was at all obscure, and not the hardest daily I’ve seen by a long chalk. In the end I finished it without any aids, although I couldn’t quite parse 22dn and I did have to look up the answer when I got it to double check that that the term existed.

    As it happened 1ac was on of my last ones in and I only had one of the fruit anagrams left to find when I got it, but it helped

  11. Hi. Thanks for the blog and all comments. It wasn’t supposed to be any trickier than normal so I apologise if it turned out too tricky. (And hope you’ve recovered, K’s Dad! 🙂 ]
    By the way, there’s a hidden orange and apple running across the middle of two of the rows [appel not being much of an anagram and onager being a bit obscure for everyday use 🙂 ]

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