A straightforward Sunday puzzle. Thank you Poins.
| Across | ||
| 1 | DIVERT |
Amuse with gossip about a couple from Vermont (6)
DIRT (gossip) about VErmont (a couple of letters from) |
| 4 | BEMUSED |
Confused birds trapped in pit (7)
EMUS (birds) in BED (pit) |
| 9 | SLINGSHOT |
Tosses stolen weapon (9)
SLINGS (tosses away) HOT (stolen) |
| 10 | TWAIN |
Two ton wagon (5)
T (ton) WAIN (wagon) |
| 11 | AVERT |
Turn away right after Cameron loses his head (5) RT (right) following dVAE (David Cameron, losing head) |
| 12 | OVERSIGHT |
Mistake relating to quote on the radio (9)
OVER (relating to) then SIGHT sounds like (on the radio) cite (to quote) |
| 13 | DESPITE |
Undeterred by discharge in river (7)
SPIT (discharge) in DEE (river) |
| 15 | NICETY |
A delicacy from somewhere in France – extremely tasty (6)
NICE (somewhere in France) and TastY (extremes of) |
| 17 | ENIGMA |
Riddle‘s strange meaning Niobe initially ignored (6)
MEANInG* anagram=strange missing (initially ignored) Niobe (first letter of) |
| 19 | SPARROW |
Spurs’ back facing severe criticism over altercation with winger (7)
spurS (back of) with RAP (severe criticism) reversed (over) then ROW (altercation) |
| 22 | SPOKEN FOR |
Engaged in fixing Ken’s roof with a piece of PVC (6,3)
anagram (fixing) of KEN’S ROOF and Pvc (one letter from, a piece of) |
| 24 | KORAN |
A passage from Habakkuk or another sacred book (5) found inside (a passage from) habakkuK OR ANother |
| 26 | SINAI |
Mount pictures at last in oddly neglected cabin (5)
pictureS (last letter of) IN cAbIn (odd letters missing, neglected) |
| 27 | BALMORALS |
Run into old fellow packing soothers for Boots (9)
R (run) in O (old) AL (fellow, man’s name) containing (packing) BALMS (soothers) |
| 28 | PERVADE |
Spread through most of country reaching Delaware after Virginia (7)
PERu (country, most of) then (reaching) DE (Delaware) following VA (Virginia) |
| 29 | ANCHOR |
Provider of security for worried monarch lacking bit of muscle (6) anagram (worried) of mONARCH missing Muscle (first letter of, a but of) |
| Down | ||
| 1 | DISBAND |
Break up group after girl has son (7) BAND (group) following DI (girl) and S (son) |
| 2 | VOICE |
Bad habit involving duck, say (5) VICE (bad habit) containing O (zero, cricket score) |
| 3 | RIGHT-WING |
Morally justifiable to gain influence over German conservative (5-4)
RIGHT (morally justifiable) with WIN (to gain influence over) G (German) |
| 4 | BITTERN |
Bird bath oddly filled by one bird (7)
BaTh (odd letters of) containing (filled by) I (one) then TERN (bird) |
| 5 | MATHS |
Turing practised it at home in the middle of Bloomsbury (5)
AT H (home) in blooMSbury (middle of) |
| 6 | SLAUGHTER |
Butcher left hare’s gut in a mess (9)
anagram (in mess) of L (left) and HARES GUT |
| 7 | DONATE |
Give in exhausted in the centre of Saratoga? Just the opposite (6)
sarAToga (centre of) in DONE (exhausted) |
| 8 | THRONE |
Toilet‘s in shed, I hear (6) sounds like (I hear) thrown (shed) |
| 14 | SUNDOWNER |
Drink leads to ruin amongst wayward Wrens (9)
UNDO (ruin) in WRENS* anagram=wayward |
| 16 | CRACKDOWN |
At a disadvantage after split caused by repressive measures (9)
DOWN (at a disadvantage) following CRACK (split) |
| 18 | AFFABLE |
Kindly Welshman needing no introduction at island retreat (7)
tAFF (welshman, missing introduction) and ELBA (island) reversed (retreat) |
| 19 | SURELY |
Bad-tempered around Earl without a doubt (6)
SURLY (bad tempered) containing (around) E (earl) |
| 20 | WINDSOR |
Section in party meeting resistance after triumph in House (7)
S (section) in DO (party) with R (resistance) following WIN (triumph) |
| 21 | USES UP |
Consumes drink after exercise (4,2)
SUP (drink) following USE (exercise) |
| 23 | ERICA |
Port upset over Immanuel’s head girl (5)
ACRE (post, in Israel) reversed (upset) containing (over) Immanuel (head, first letter of) |
| 25 | REACH |
Get as far as edge of box leaving gap in defence (5)
bREACH (gap in defence) missing Box (first letter, one edge of) |
definitions are underlined
ENIGMA – WINDSORs, BALMORAL, THRONE, monarch, “We are BEMUSED”.
Enjoyed doing this on the train from York to Peterborough on the way back from the sloggers and betters of the 23-24th. Managed it all apart from 27a – but a groggy head and a crowded carriage were the sole sole reason for that.
Cheers to Poins for making my journey home pass in an agreeable way, and to PeeDee for the blog.