26 misprints in the definition spelling out 3 evvents and 25ac to deduce followed by a rearrangement of one answer to get a fourth event. Sounds like fun.
It took a whle to get going with this one – the down clues crossing 25ac were amongst my first inroads. whilst it didn’t implicitly state in the preamble, these needed to ahevv a letter inserted to make a real word this spelling out 25ac.
Which was:
ST CRISPIN’S DAY
This happens to be 25th October (the date of the puzzle) and is a famou date for battles – the logic being “let’s have a quick fight before winter sets in”, I would guess.
The misprints spelled out SHANGANI (African colonial conflict), BALACLAVA (Charge of the Light brigade) and LEYTE GULF (2nd world war). The obvious one missing being AGINCOURT which could be obtained from rearranging 43ac. Maintaining real words throughout the grid, which is always a nice touch.
The final step was of the source in which Agincourt was depicted – Henry V being teh obvious answer with HENRY spelled out in a V-shape from the end of 10ac.
Many thanks Shark – I found this quite tough in teh clueing department, and a very neat puzzle overall.
Key:
- Anagram; Rev. reverse; DD double definition; Underline definition
ACROSS
| 1 Sheila’s baby beginning to actually yawn (4) | |
| S | 1 Sheila’s baby beginning to actually yaws (4) |
| Bub (Sheila’s baby) + a = BUBA | |
| 4 Pick up splitting lifted board (9) | |
| H | 4 Pick up splitting lifted hoard (9) |
| (pick)* in stole (lifted) = STOCKPILE | |
| 10 A backward clumsy nanny from China (4) | |
| A + Rev(ham (clumsy)) = AMAH | |
| 12 Flog third-rate diamonds back (5) | |
| A | 12 Flag third-rate diamonds back (5) |
| Rev. (poor (third rate + d (diamonds)) = DROOP | |
| 14 Wait passing around last piece of éclair (6) | |
| N | 14 Want passing around last piece of éclair (6) |
| Death (passing) around r (last piece of éclair) = DEARTH | |
| 15 Emersed ground in bottom of Timor sea (6) | |
| G | 15 Emerged ground in bottom of Timor sea (6) |
| (In + r (bottom of Timor) + sea) = ARISEN | |
| 17 Loud annoying person conceals temper – on the contrary (7) | |
| A | 17 Load annoying person conceals temper – on the contrary (7) |
| Nag (annoying person) in tone (temper) = TONNAGE | |
| 19 Give in losing and rest again (5) | |
| N | 19 Give in losing and rent again (5) |
| Relent (give in) – n (and) = RELET | |
| 21 Ordinary welcome on river (4) | |
| O (Ordinary) + hi (welcome) + o (on) = OHIO | |
| 22 Fault-finding wench – a sourpuss (4) | |
| I | 22 Fault-finding winch – a sourpuss (4) |
| DD CRAB | |
| 25 See preamble | |
| 32 Tone a muscle in spasm sporadically (4) | |
| B | 32 Bone a muscle in spasm sporadically (4) |
| Hidden mUscLe iN spAsm = ULNA | |
| 33 Retreat’s almost aggressive (4) | |
| Lairy (aggressive) – y = LAIR | |
| 34 Test capacitor disregarding small measurement (5) | |
| Trimmer (capacitor) – mm (small measurement) = TRIER | |
| 35 Rings telephone number inside estates? (7) | |
| Cars (estates) around tel (telephone number) = CARTELS | |
| 37 In writing, Ireland to extend root (6) | |
| Erin (Ireland – in writing) + go (extend) = ERINGO | |
| 39 Film director’s American male capturing lieutenant (6) | |
| A (American) + man (male) around lt (lieutenant) = ALTMAN | |
| 41 Previously complained of a large number dividing reward (5) | |
| N (large number) in meed (reward) = MENED | |
| 42 Ace time after university … (4) | |
| Uni (university) + t (time) = UNIT | |
| 43 … one with instrumental record ahead of all others? (9) | |
| Ou (one) + tracing (instrumental record) = OUTRACING – entered as AGINCOURT | |
| 44 Eros – a God sacrificing rule in favour of good (4) | |
| A | 44 Eras – a God sacrificing rule in favour of good (4) |
| Ares (god) swapping g(good) for r (rule) | |
| DOWN | |
| 1 Horse reverses cart with muscle (6) | |
| Rev (Dray (cart) + ab (muscle)) = BAYARD entered as BAYARDS | |
| 2 Melbourne criminal forgets one lousy thing that would have kept his face hidden (6) | |
| (Melbourne – one)* = UMBREL | |
| 3 Monk’s right leaving capital city heading to Nepal (8) | |
| Brasilia (capital city) – r + N (heading to Nepal) = BASILIAN entered as BASILICAN | |
| 4 Wiry Scottish smug finally leaving (4) | |
| L | 4 Wily Scottish smug finally leaving (4) |
| Sleek(smug) – k = SLEE | |
| 5 Almost drop mite? (3) | |
| A | 5 Almost drop mate? (3) |
| Tear (drop) – r = TEA | |
| 6 Lacking sun, primordial creature’s in the shape of a bell (6) | |
| C | 6 Lacking sun, primordial creature’s in the shape of a cell (6) |
| Cystoid (primordial creature’s) – s (sun) = CYTOID | |
| 7 Royal makes amount of money around Navy section (7) | |
| L | 7 Royal makes amount of money around Navy section (7) |
| Price (amount of money) around n(navy) + s (section) = PRINCES entered as PRINCESS | |
| 8 Ted and I… (4) | |
| A | 8 Tad and I… (4) |
| DD IOTA | |
| 9 …in Greece, young men once, record male activity (forgetting end of night) (6) | |
| Ep (record) + he (male) + bit (activity) – t = EPHEBI | |
| 11 They make splints almost too short – it’s not right! (10) | |
| (too short its)* = ORTHOTISTS entered as ORTHOPTISTS | |
| 13 Finally clear wing for church aboard ocean liner? (5) | |
| V | 13 Finally clear wing for church aboard ocean liver? (5) |
| Ocean – ce (church) replaced with rg(Finally clear wing) = ORGAN eneterd as ORGANA | |
| 16 Monogamously somewhat snug (3) | |
| A | 16 Monogamously somewhat snag (3) |
| Hidden moNOGamously = NOG entered as NOGS | |
| 18 New Testament includes first group of prayers (5) | |
| L | 18 New Testament includes first group of players (5) |
| Nt (new testament) around one (first) = NONET | |
| 20 Bulrush surrounding lake makes material for hats (5) | |
| Tule(bulrush) around l(lake) = TULLE entered as TUILLE | |
| 23 Marking with new course, runner, perhaps covers ebbing river (8) | |
| Rev (nile) in Ring (runner) = RELINING enterd as REDLINING | |
| 24 Show around informally my witness? (7) | |
| E | 24 Show around informally my wetness? (7) |
| The (my informally) in Wear (Show) = WEATHER entered as WREATHER | |
| Y | 26 Poet Laureate bit apple (5) |
| PL (Poet Laureate) + ate (bit) = PLATE entered as TPLATE | |
| 27 Operation dared cutting duct in half (3) | |
| T | 27 Operation dated cutting duct in half (3) |
| Uretha (duct) – tha = URE entered as IURE | |
| 28 Types about 80 facts (6) | |
| E | 28 Types about 80 faces (6) |
| Fonts (types) about r (80) = FRONTS entered as YFRONTS | |
| 29 Bright, but not fast, second prince (6) | |
| Luculent (bright) – lent (fast) + mo (second) = LUCUMO | |
| 30 Black, perhaps, lifted following Government of France (6) | |
| Rev. Cilla (Black) after g (government) = GALLIC | |
| 31 Struggle with egg filling – he won’t eat pie either (6) | |
| G | 31 Struggle with egg filling – he won’t eat pig either (6) |
| Vie (struggle) around egg = VEGGIE | |
| 36 Month off came undone by start of Thanksgiving … (4) | |
| U | 36 Mouth off came undone by start of Thanksgiving … (4) |
| Ran (came undone) + t (start of Thanksgiving) = RANT | |
| 38 … and before its end, toiled (4) | |
| 38 … and before its end, tolled (4) | |
| L | Ran + g (end of Thanksgiving) = RANG |
| 40 Yellow jersey ultimately stripped from more than a few (3) | |
| F | 40 Fellow jersey ultimately stripped from more than a few (3) |
| Many (more than a few) – y (jersey ultimately) = MAN |
Really good stuff from Shark. Some hard clues, and educational. St Crispin has a lot to answer for!