An enjoyable puzzle which I solved intermittently whilst downloading and installing many Windows updates, having just reset my pc to its factory condition prior to upgrading to Windows 10. I’m therefore finding it difficult to judge the degree of difficulty, certainly there have been a lot of easier ones and perhaps a few that were more difficult.
I solved 1ac quite early on but I was loath to enter it until I had all the checked letters because I didn’t think it matched the definition. However, checking Chambers post solve I found “(formerly, by confusion) a satire or satirist”.
Across
1 Put down your misjudged humorous piece (5)
SATYR – SAT (put down) YR (your) – see preamble
6 Sponsors not providing initial money (6)
ACKERS – [b]ACKERS (sponsors not providing initial)
11 Isolated person really on the skids (6,5)
LONELY HEART – an anagram (skids) of REALLY ON THE
13 Behold church taking two directions (4)
ECCE – CE reversed CE (church taking two directions)
14 Sentimental expression (mostly) for modern correspondent? (7)
TWEETER – TWEE (sentimental) TER[m] (expression (mostly))
15 Man frequently seen around large attic? (8)
COCKLOFT – COCK (man) OFT (frequently) around (seen around) L (large)
16 The best / vegThe best etarian dish (5)
CHAMP – double def.
19 About to abandon closeted cult (4)
SECT – SEC[re]T (about to abandon closeted)
20 Hero of poem greeting a monastery with exclamation (8)
HIAWATHA – HI (greeting) A WAT (a monastery) HA (exclamation)
22 Titleholder suppressing need for magic (5,3)
BLACK ART – BART (titleholder) around (suppressing) LACK (need)
24 A taxi passenger not entirely from a distance (4)
AFAR – A FAR[e] (a taxi passenger not entirely)
26 Southern Islamic ruler, mostly powdered (5)
SEMÉE – S (southern) EMEE[r] (Islamic ruler, mostly)
28 Endlessly flirts in gambling game recalling old-fashioned look (8)
OEILLADE – DALLIE[s] (endlessly flirts) in EO (gambling game) reversed (recalling)
30 European currency business engaging new German mathematician (7)
LEIBNIZ – LEI (European currency) BIZ (business) around (engaging) N (new)
31 One’s left / to bustle about (4)
TROT – double def.
32 Skatepark arranged a week for sporting activity (5,6)
SEPAK TAKRAW – an anagram (arranged) of SKATEPARK plus A W (week)
33 Hostile contents of greeting card? (6)
AVERSE – A VERSE (contents of greeting card)
34 Refusal from France suppressed by Italy and Spain combined (2,3)
IN ONE – NON (refusal from France) in (suppressed by) I (Italy) E (Spain)
Down
1 One needing help to see small volume in Scottish river (6)
SPECCY – CC (small volume) in SPEY (Scottish river)
2 Drunken fool clear he … wasn’t this? (7-4)
ALCOHOL-FREE – an anagram (drunken) of FOOL CLEAR HE with an extended definition
3 Jazz fan in a function turned up piece of music (7)
TOCCATA – CAT (jazz fan) in A COT (a function) reversed (turned up)
4 Genuine and sincere a lot? Not entirely (4)
REAL – hidden in (not entirely) ‘sinceRE A Lot’
5 University lecturer heading off schoolboy from Ulster (8)
ULTONIAN – U (university) L (lecturer) [e]TONIAN (heading off schoolboy)
7 Check ancient letter, one in Hebrew alphabet (5)
CHETH – CH (check) ETH (ancient letter)
8 It helps to recall castle’s former hurt (8)
KEEPSAKE – KEEP (castle) SAKE (former hurt)
9 No longer like falling off a log to ground, losing heart (4)
EATH – EA[r]TH (ground, losing heart)
10 Walk stiffly – track covered by stone (5)
STRUT – ST (stone) RUT (track)
12 Questionable charm: new ode is not new (5-2-4)
REACH-ME-DOWN – an anagram (questionable) of CHARM NEW ODE
17 I’m picking up lever, expressing weak amount of pressure (8)
MICROBAR – I’M reversed (picking up) plus a homophone (expressing) of ‘crowbar’ (lever)
18 It defends a spot up in farm building (8)
BARTIZAN – A ZIT (a spot) reversed (up) in BARN (farm building)
21 Buffalo to spoil area amidst rising cereal (7)
TAMARAO – MAR (to spoil) A (area) in (amidst) OAT (cereal) reversed (rising)
23 Support those people giving up money to develop nippers? (6)
TEETHE – TEE (support) THE[m] (those people giving up money)
24 Girl advanced after troubles (5)
AILSA – AILS (troubles) A (advanced)
25 Year assigned to Kansas? An eternity! (5)
YONKS – Y (year) ON (assigned to) KS (Kansas)
27 No time for offal that’s smelly (4)
RIPE – [t]RIPE (no time for offal)
29 Powerful source of mischief accepted in Long Island (4)
LOKI – OK (accepted) in LI (Long Island)
Thanks G&B. A mixture of write-ins and some real puzzlers. Overall a real pleasure to solve. Just about to settle down to today’s.
Re Windows 10, Gaufrid, I’m sticking to 7 so that I can still run a whole raft of DOS programs I wrote 20 years ago.