Solving time: not recorded – maybe an hour or so. Chambers used for 3 or 4 answers at the end.
This is in a bit of haste before going to Cheltenham, so I haven’t explained quite as much as I usually might. Geology and Shakespeare, two big sources of barred grid vocab, make at least two appearances each.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 6 | JAM,B,E – another of those bits of armour that keep cropping up |
| 11 | FOR,E(ORDAI=radio*)N |
| 12 | TARRAGON – TAR = to incite to fight = egg on, R=recipe, AGON = struggle. Scrap=rag was a possibility considered for a while. |
| 13 | C,R.O.,O.K. |
| 14 | R(EGG)O – which must be ‘regular’ fuel, without even looking in C. |
| 15 | HAWSE=(washe(d))* |
| 17 | B(Y)ROOM = a side or private room (Shak) |
| 18 | GR(EATF=fate*)EE – which you find under fee in C, not under great. |
| 24 | DACITE – C in volcano, in (a tide)* – it’s an eruptive rock, and this &lit is on a par with the Alpine glaciation one in the last Azed I wrote about. |
| 27 | HEAL,D = heddle = to draw the warp thread through loops designed to receive it. |
| 30 | V(IS)IE |
| 32 | RO(TOT,I)LLER |
| 33 | ‘D=God,RAMA=hero of the Ramayana |
| 34 | LEGLESS – ref. (leg)end. Mortal = v. drunk |
| Down | |
| 1 | WATCH AND WARD – c. in what*, AN=a, (E)dward |
| 2 | I,G(A)RAPE – a canoe waterway in Brazil |
| 4 | S,EGO = a showy plant from the western US. |
| 9 | BINGO – a good double def |
| 10 | ENCO=once*,MEND,EROS = commanders (Sp.) |
| 16 | F(REES=seer rev.)OIL – a new word for me |
| 19 | F,LASER – streakiness in metamorphic rocks. |
| 20 | EYLIADS – rev. hidden – variant spelling of oeillade, a Shak. ogle or wink |
| 23 | BEIGE,L(ox) – nice surface as lox = salmon is a common bagel topping. |
| 29 | VOLE – love with odd letters swapped – winning all the tricks at the card game Ombre. |
I solved this puzzle last night after downloading the competition puzzle from the website some time yesterday. I was confused about the lack of an asterisked clue and competition instructions. I now know why.