A large circle – a large circle, small circle 27 misprints and a change of 4 characters in the final grid – Sounds interesting. Also sounds like it is published specifically on this Sunday !
I really enjoyed the clues in this puzzle – whilst not too difficult some of the misprints took some time to find, they were all relativley short clues too – always a nice touch. and the final steps took a little time to fathom out een once I’d realised that the subject matter was the lunar eclipse.
So what of the misprints – note they were both in the definition and the wordplay. Adding a layer of complexity in their discovery.
RESTORE LETTERS IN SMALL CIRCLE
Now that was a very cryptic message – by that I mean my first reaction was Eh!
So what of the large circle with two further cryptic indications – centred at the centre and going out to all 4 sides
REGULARLY REACH OUT SOME INFRA HUMAN
In reality 2 clues to one word – ReAcH oUt and infRA HUman = RAHU who originates in Hindu mythology and Chambers states – the demon that swallows the sun and moon at eclipses. 23ac was THE TERMINATOR
Makes more sense on the night of September 27th the date of the lunar eclipse. RAHU being initially visible in a square starting at 32ac.
Returning to
RESTORE LETTERS IN SMALL CIRCLE then…
So if RAHU is replaced by the moon we get ANTHEM (14dn) FROND (25dn) OARED (36dn) and MOIT (32ac), CONTE (35ac). And two circles representing the eclipse are isible in teh final grid.
very topical and very nicely done too – Thanks Charybdis
Key:
Underline (definition), * Anagram, Rev. reverse, DD Double definition
| ACROSS | |
| 1 Ahab’s more honourable boy remains a force (6) | |
| R | 1 Arab’s more honourable boy remains a force (6) |
| Ash (remains) + RAF (Force) = ASHRAF | |
| 6 Wad of banknotes wraps silver and diamonds in toy (7) | |
| Roll (Wad of banknotes) around ag (silver + d (diamonds)) = RAGDOLL | |
| 11 Gong North American wit (5) | |
| E | 11 Gone North American wit (5) |
| (NA + wit)* = TWAIN | |
| 12 Thorn stuck in injured hip (3) | |
| Hidden injurED Hip = EDH | |
| 13 Some waste produced by government department without aides? (4) | |
| S | 13 Some waste produced by government department without sides? (4) |
| Bureau (Government department) – sides = UREA | |
| 15 A soul in a mix-up made obeisance (8) | |
| Salad (mix-up) around a am (soul) = SALAAMED | |
| 16 Cruel old bloke in time popping off (6) | |
| T | 16 Cruel old bloke in time topping off (6) |
| Man (bloke) in time – t = IMMANE | |
| 18 Irish boy champion’s temper (after unintentional loss) (4) | |
| Aphetic form of anneal (temper) = NEAL | |
| 19 Scots pine product is shared with leader of team (5) | |
| O | 19 Scots pine product is soared with leader of team (5) |
| Rose (soared) + t (leader of team) = ROSET | |
| 21 Weird couples outside going off the most hearty (5) | |
| Cheeriest (most hearty) – outside couples = EERIE | |
| 23 & 31 Hunt is shut out in Hebridean island (9, two words) | |
| R | 23 & 31 Hurt is shut out in Hebridean island (9, two words) |
| (is shut out)* = SOUTH UIST | |
| 25 A little bloodsucker or blood-letter making a cut (4) | |
| Fleam (Blood letter) – m + FLEA | |
| 27 Ring knocked off imitation oil paintings for firm sign people (4) | |
| E | 27 Ring knocked off imitation oil paintings for fire sign people (4) |
| Oleos (imitation oil paintings) – o (ring) = LEOS | |
| 32 Indian dish not requiring a soak (4) | |
| Raita (Indian dish) – a = RAIT | |
| 33 It’s calm out and fine in later part of day (5) | |
| L | 33 It’s call out and fine in later part of day (5) |
| Ok (fine) in eve (later part of day) = EVOKE | |
| 35 Rapid installing of booth inside church (5) | |
| Hut (booth) in CE (church) = CHUTE | |
| 39 Heavyweight Government to act in an island kingdom (5) | |
| E | 39 Heavyweight Government to ace in an island kingdom (5) |
| Ton (heavyweight) + g (government) + a (ace) = TONGA | |
| 41 Indian fruit? About a pound he brought in (4) | |
| He in Re. lb (pound) = BHEL | |
| 42 Auks in bush and palm trees (6) | |
| T | 42 Auks in bust and palm trees (6) |
| (auks in)* = NIKAUS | |
| 45 Composition of last of flour in grain vehicle (8) | |
| Rice (grain) + r (last of flour) + car (vehicle) = RICERCAR | |
| 46 Column appearing in fan mag (4) | |
| T | 46 Column appearing in fan tag (4) |
| Hidden fAN TAg = ANTA | |
| 47 Ability to distinguish sounds till old (3) | |
| Homonym of ere (till old) = EAR | |
| 48 Oriental dish provided by arty malls? (5) | |
| E | 48 Oriental dish provided by arty males? (5) |
| Ra (arty) + men (males) = RAMEN | |
| 49 A tyke’s trap for rector consumed by mildly alcoholic drink (7) | |
| Shandy (mildly alcoholic drink) around r (rector) = SHANDRY | |
| 50 Girl tours casualty dept – they have intense ways (6) | |
| R | 50 Girl tours casualty dept – they have intense rays (6) |
| Er (casualty department) in Lass (girl) = LASERS | |
| DOWN | |
| 1 Eager and working straight out of Government (7) | |
| (straight – g)* = ATHIRST | |
| 2 Went out to tea perhaps when I left guru (4) | |
| S | 2 Went out to sea perhaps when I left guru (4) |
| Swami (guru) – I = SWAM | |
| 3 Red pigment is a sign of food additive in meat joint (4) | |
| E (sign of food additive) in ham (meat joint) = HAEM | |
| 4 Chunks caught up in steam irons (5) | |
| I | 4 Chinks caught up in steam irons (5) |
| Rev. Hidden stEAM IRons = RIMAE | |
| 5 A taper to set off explosive in a flintlock musket (5) | |
| DD FUSEE | |
| 6 Skip away from greater water-crowfoot (5) | |
| N | 6 Skin away from greater water-crowfoot (5) |
| Greater – gr (skin) = REATE | |
| 7 Portmanteau of ghastly Nazi murderous fanatic? (5) | |
| Blend of ghastly Nazi with same meaning = GHAZI | |
| 8 A lot of land around about The Black Boy in Dublin (5) | |
| S | 8 A lot of sand around about The Black Boy in Dublin (5) |
| Dune (a lot of sand) around a = DUANE | |
| 9 Shell’s loud going off from the first (5) | |
| Former (the first) – f (loud) = ORMER | |
| 10 Young Ian and little Leslie, they’re useful in the kitchen (6) | |
| M | 10 Young man and little Leslie, they’re useful in the kitchen (6) |
| Lad (young man) + le (little Leslie) = LADLES | |
| 14 Part of plant dependent on nitrogen in prepared earth (6) | |
| (n+ earth)* = ANTHER | |
| 17 Opt to include religious education as a token for The Kirk (5) | |
| A | 17 Opt to include religious education as a token for The Kirk (5) |
| Fit (apt) around re(Religious education) = FREIT | |
| 20 Regularly discourteous summons (4) | |
| diScoUrtEouS = SUES | |
| 22 Ingres might have such a niche – certainly not sure (4) | |
| L | 22 Ingles might have such a niche – certainly not sure (4) |
| No (certainly not) + ok (sure) = NOOK | |
| 24 ‘Short of oxygen’ might indicate this state? (4) | |
| Chambers has O2 (Oxygen) or oh as an entry leading to Oh short for OHIO | |
| 25 Guide for a wife in Austria perhaps and Germany (5) | |
| L | 25 Guile for a wife in Austria perhaps and Germany (5) |
| Frau (wife in Austria) + D (Germany) = FRAUD | |
| 26 Soothing anaesthetic after athletic Estonian is knocked out (6) | |
| Anaesthetic – a Est(Estonian) = ANETIC | |
| 28 Detest being brought up in a public school (4) | |
| C | 28 Detect being brought up in a public school (4) |
| Rev. Note (detect) = ETON | |
| 30 A little research about a child’s motives (7) | |
| Res (research) about a son (a child)= REASONS | |
| 31 With hesitation undoes what might be seen tomorrow? (6) | |
| I | 31 With hesitation undies what might be seen tomorrow? (6) |
| Um (hesitation) + bras (undies) = UMBRAS | |
| 34 Back passages of speech abandoning edgy direct action? (5) | |
| Diction removed from direct action = RECTA | |
| 35 Calorie and fat-free, and diet-free (5) | |
| R | 35 Calorie and fat-free, and dirt-free (5) |
| C (Calorie) + lean (fat-free) = CLEAN | |
| 36 Difficult to conserve energy having sprinted (5) | |
| hard (difficult) about e (energy) = HARED | |
| 37 Aha – right on start of year Dougal’s likely to make a greeting (5) | |
| C | 37 Cha – right on start of year Dougal’s likely to make a greeting (5) |
| Tea (Cha) + r + y (start of year) = TEARY | |
| 38 Put name down or, if a man from Argyll, put name up? (5) | |
| Rev (Lorne – man from Argyll) = ENROL | |
| 40 Dove and knot’s air speed in areas of the sky (5) | |
| L | 40 Love and knot’s air speed in areas of the sky (5) |
| O (Love) + kt (knot) + as (air speed) = OKTAS | |
| 43 Dancing girl, male after operation (4) | |
| (male)* = ALME | |
| 44 Druggie recycling rust (4) | |
| E | 44 Druggie recycling ruse (4) |
| (ruse)* = USER |
Thanks, twencelas, for this very warm and detailed blog of my puzzle. Glad you liked it.
A couple of minor points: The circular message was intended to be read as SOME INFRAHUMANS REGULARLY REACH OUT (with a suggestion that a demon such as RAHU, who reaches out for the sun or moon from time to time, might be infrahuman 🙂 ).
“The Terminator” is also the technical name for the line between light and shadow on the moon. This was a bizarre piece of luck in the construction of the grid. I was concerned by the number of overly short words in the grid I was making and saw the opportunity to put a full-length one across the middle. At that point in the grid construction the one and only possibility turned out to be ‘the terminator’ which struck me as apposite for RAHU. But I thought that, apart from being a film title of course, I ought to check that terminator existed in the dictionary as a ‘real’ word. Which is when I found its other technical meaning. Extraordinary!
Notes on clues: 11A, after change, is &lit. 47A is ‘2 meanings’ rather than a homonym. 24D ‘O’ by itself is short for both Oxygen and Ohio 26D The Estonian here is ‘ESTH’ 31D is a reference to the eclipse theme [also a lucky grid entry that presented itself!] 37D [just to clarify] refers to Scottish meaning of ‘greet’ as ‘weep’
This sounds a bit like I’m being pernickety which is not what I mean at all. Really lovely blog, so thanks.
Excellent puzzle again this week, and very appropriate timing. The “before breakfast tomorrow” phrase in the preamble was baffling at first, but became very clear once it was obvious that the theme was the eclipse happening that Sunday night (which couldnt be seen from our part of the world as it was too cloudy). Hope to see more Charybdis soon.
Thanks, Brian 🙂