Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of October 3, 2015
My clue of the week is 15a (SUNDIAL) mostly for its clever definition. I also like Rosa’s Spoonerism clue, 9d (DUNGHILL), 1a (IMPISHLY), 13a (MYRRH) and 27a (DEARTH).
| Across | ||
| 1 | IMPISHLY |
My lips melted with his, briefly and naughtily (8)
Anagram of MY LIPS HI[s] |
| 5 | CURSED |
Hateful hounds eviscerating eland (6)
CURS (hounds) + E[lan]D |
| 10 | HAIKU |
Lofty success announced in 17 syllables (5)
Homophone (“high coup”) |
| 11 | UP AND DOWN |
Volatile, tailless panda hampered by nasty wound (2,3,4)
PAND[a] in anagram of WOUND |
| 12 | MAIL ORDER |
Chap reportedly given degree by post (4-5)
MAIL (homophone “male”) + ORDER (degree) |
| 13 | MYRRH |
Gum sticking hard to back of one’s car (5)
MY (one’s) + RR (car, i.e. Rolls Royce) + H (hard) |
| 14 | SPOTTY |
Small, daft and pimpled (6)
S (small) + POTTY (daft) |
| 15 | SUNDIAL |
Watch predecessor help students from east with Latin (7)
AID (help) + NUS (students) together backwards + L (Latin). With a clever cryptic definition. |
| 18 | UNCLEAN |
Aunt regularly pursuing her husband, in need of wash (7)
UNCLE (her husband) + A[u]N[t] |
| 20 | BETRAY |
Rat on fish on punt (6)
BET (punt) + RAY (fish) |
| 22 | BRAVO |
Cheer bee on the radio (5)
Double definition |
| 24 | MARGARITA |
Fat girl consuming a cocktail (9)
MARG (fat) + A (a) + RITA (girl) |
| 25 | UNSHEATHE |
Get out of sun’s heat here (9)
Hidden word |
| 26 | IMAGO |
Perhaps fly adult French pal over and make a move? (5)
AMI (French pal) backwards + GO (make a move). I know the word ‘imago’ well but am not sure how well it is known generally. It refers to the adult stage of an insect, distinguishing that stage from ova/larval/pupal stages. |
| 27 | DEARTH |
Want expensive filling to be removed from tooth (6)
DEAR (expensive) + T[oot]H |
| 28 | CLUELESS |
Not all there, unlike this puzzle (8)
Double definition |
| Down | ||
| 1 | INHUME |
Bury is barbarous, and mostly to be shunned (6)
INHUM[an]E (barbarous with AN[d] removed) |
| 2 | PHILIPPIC |
Bitter denunciation of royal photo (9)
PHILIP PIC (royal photo) |
| 3 | SPUR-OF-THE-MOMENT |
Impetuous Tottenham player, currently popular? (4-2-3-6)
SPUR (Tottenham player) + OF THE MOMENT (currently popular) |
| 4 | LAUNDRY |
Washing, initially limp and wet? (7)
L[imp] A[nd] UNDRY (wet?) |
| 6 | UNDEMONSTRATIVE |
Punctured by tick, veteran nudist acting cool (15)
MO (tick) in anagram of VETERAN NUDIST |
| 7 | SPOOR |
Scent of animal dropping inhaled by senior (5)
POO (dropping) in SR (senior) |
| 8 | DUNGHILL |
Refuse pile of Spooner’s aged weed (8)
Spoonerism of HUNG (aged) DILL (weed) |
| 9 | WALRUS |
Carpenter’s mate was endlessly surly, endlessly rebellious (6)
WA[s] + SURL[y]reversed |
| 16 | INANIMATE |
Dull pair of individuals comprising grandma and husband? (9)
NAN (grandma) in II (pair of individuals) + MATE (husband) |
| 17 | OUTBOUND |
No doubt you finally get upset, departing (8)
Anagrem of NO DOUBT [yo]U |
| 19 | NUMPTY |
Idiot rocking my punt (6)
Anagram of MY PUNT |
| 20 | BARBELL |
Ken’s girlfriend, 1 down, starts to lift large weight in gym (7)
BARB[i]E (Ken’s girlfriend, 1 down) + L[ift] L[arge] |
| 21 | TABOOS |
Bans cheers and jeers (6)
TA (cheers) + BOOS (jeers). This was the hardest clue for me. |
| 23 | AT SEA |
Befuddled, in the main (2,3)
Double/cryptic definition |
Pete,
I agree with your alternative anno for 9d. I think it is: WA[s] + SURL[y]<-
IMAGO is familiar to me only from crosswords. I was an Eng Lit student, so no chance of meeting the term while in college.
I actually managed to finish this. One of my Yorkshire friends uses ‘numpty’regularly otherwise I’m not sure I would have known it. 9d took me ages to solve, but it’s that sudden thought of the walrus and the carpenter that leaps to mind and solves the conundrum. Thanks Pete and Rosa
Almost done. Got image instead of imago and failed on taboos but quite pleased with myself as the best for a while. Don’t get why “Bravo” is “bee on the radio”
Thanks Rosa Klebb and Pete
Malcolm@3: bee is the name of the letter B, so “on the radio” does not need to be a homophone indicator – rather it relates to the NATO phonetic alphabet, where Bravo is the code word for the letter B.
Thanks Rosa Klebb and Pete
Always a pleasure doing the puzzles of this setter – this one a little easier than what she can present. Lots of variety and misdirection as is her wont with the WALRUS being my favourite.
Finished in the right hand side with IMAGO, MYRRH, INANIMATE and BETRAY the last few in.
Thanks Pete and Rosa.
Another fine puzzle with PHILIPPIC and INHUME new words for me.
I question whether DILL is a weed – but the spoonerism was clear so so reason to complain.
Rishi, I think you have to be right about WALRUS. Thank you. I don’t like “rebellious” as a reversal indicator though.
Hamish, Dill is not considered a weed in the general sense but is sometimes referred to as “dill weed”. My best understanding is that this term serves to distinguish the leaves of the plant (as a culinary herb) from the seeds.
I didn’t know inhume, phillipic (guessed princepic until that didn’t work with 12a) or haiku which didn’t help in the NW. I’m amazed that everyone knew haiku which I would have thought to be a shoo in for most obscure word of the year.
For 5a I didn’t know that hateful meant cursed -I thought it meant hating.
If you sat me in a room and told me I could go once I had the word you were thinking of for aged, I’d still be there after numerous attempts . I think I once solved a spoonerism but it was probably luck or I’d had a lot to drink.
To compound my failings I had no idea myrrh was a gum.
With WALRUS, i had gone with the anagram thinking, but in a Down clue – rebellious or up-rising is a brilliant reversal now I see it. Well spotted Rishi !