Independent 9180 / Nestor

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It’s been a while since I blogged a puzzle by Nestor and I expected something quite difficult.

 

 

 

I thought this fitted my expectations.

The grid screamed Nina with all the unchecked letters round the outside.  The thought of a Nina was further strengthened by the number of Proper nouns in the entries together with some fairly unusual words and phrases.

The theme is displayed in the four corners where the words and phrases spelled out in the unchecked letters round each corner, going clockwise from top left are;

AMEN;

SPEAKERS;

POOH; and

HYDE PARK

I suspect most solvers will associate AMEN CORNER with the pop group fronted by Andy Fairweather Low in the late 1960s.  My initial thought was area used forthe golf shots from the second at the 11th to the second at the 13th inclusive at Augusta National Golf Course, home of The Masters Championship (due to be played from 7th to 10th April this year).

The other three CORNERS are less ambiguous with SPEAKERS’ CORNER, HYDE PARK CORNER and the House at POOH CORNER.

It took me a while to solve this but everything seemed fairly clear by the time I wrote the blog.

Across
No. Clue Wordplay Entry

7

 

Send out one barge westward on the waves (8)

 

(EMIT [send out] + I [one] + RAM [barge]) all reversed (westward)

(MAR I TIME)<

MARITIME (referring to [on] the sea [ the waves])

 

9

 

Disengage from faceless Adonis to hug dwarf (6)

 

HUNK (strong or sexually attractive man; Adonis) excluding the first letter (faceless) H containing (to hug) DOC (one of the seven dwarfs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)

UN (DOC) K

UNDOCK (disengage from)

 

10

 

Nutty example of silly old man (6)

 

Anagram of (silly) OLD MAN

ALMOND*

ALMOND (example of a nut)

 

11

 

I’ll get my share completely exaggerated by middle of week (8)

 

ALL (completely) + OTT (over the top; exaggerated) + EE (central letters of [middle of] WEEK)

 

ALLOTTEE (one who gets his or her share)

 

12

 

Weird fact I made up about the guy always presenting joint complaint (9,5)

 

([RUM {weird} + an anagram of {made up} FACT I] containing [about] HE [the guy]) + EVER (always)

R (HE) UM ATIC F* EVER

RHEUMATIC FEVER (a disease affecting joints; joint complaint)

 

14

 

Somewhat frisky lecher who always has troubled guests (4)

 

KYLE (hidden word in [somewhat] FRISKY LECHER)

 

KYLE (reference Jeremy KYLE who hosts a television programme focusing on family feuds thereby ensuring that the programme has troublesome guests)

 

16

 

Lead from radiator plugs turned as much as brass (5)

 

[R (first letter of [lead from] RADIATOR) contained in (plugs) (EVEN [as much as] reversed [turned])

NE (R) VE<

NERVE (audacity; brass)

 

17

 

Text covering universal arithmetic (4)

 

SMS (short message service; text message) containing (covering) U (film designation describing a film suitable for universal viewing by people of all ages)

S (U) MS

SUMS (arithmetic)

 

19

 

Opposer of current opposition’s core position in backlash (10,4)

 

(SI [central letters of {core} OPPOSITION] + STANCE [position]) contained in (in) RECOIL (backlash)

RE (SI STANCE) COIL

RESISTANCE COIL (a COIL of wire used to offer RESISTANCE to the passage of electricity;  opposer of current)

 

22

 

A development of Llanelli excluding English generally (3,2,3)

 

A + an anagram of (development of) LLANELLI excluding (excluding) E (English)

A LL IN ALL*

ALL IN ALL (generally)

 

24

 

Ayrshire village‘s pressure for payment cut (6)

 

DUN (harass for payment) + LOP (cut)

 

DUNLOP (village in East Ayrshire)

 

25

 

Cone-shaped ring enclosing home (6)

 

PEAL (ring [of bells]) containing (enclosing) IN (home)

P (IN) EAL

PINEAL (shaped like a pine cone)

 

26

 

Sultanic palace‘s doubtful statement to stop return of solid-fuel alternatives (8)

 

(ER [expressing hesitation; doubtful statement) contained in (stopping) ([OIL + GAS] ,two alternatives to solid fuel, all reversed [return of])

S (ER) AG< LIO<

SERAGLIO (a Turkish palace, especially that of the Sultans at Constantinople)

 
Down
No. Clue Wordplay Entry

1

 

Rosie Lee having uplifting bit of work break in the morning? (4,4)

 

(ERG [CGS unit of work] reversed [uplifting; down clue]) contained in (in) EARLY  (the morning)

EARL (GRE)< Y

EARL GREY (blend of various fragrant oriental teas flavoured with bergamot; Rosie Lee is rhyming slang for tea)

 

2

 

French woman possibly round and large in Riviera venue (6)

 

(O [round shape] + L [large]) contained in (in) NICE (city on the French Riviera)

NIC (O L) E

NICOLE (French ladies’ name, awareness of which increased during the Clio advertising campaign of many years ago [1991 – 1998]  featuring Papa and NICOLE)

 

3

 

Sonic equipment maker set up forever? (4)

 

AGES (forever) reversed (set up; down clue)

SEGA<

SEGA (SEGA is a Japanese arcade games company that developed a series of games based on Sonic the Hedgehog.  The first game was released in 1993)

 

4

 

Who’ll help poor American free of charge? (6,8)

 

PUBLIC DEFENDER  – cryptic definition only slightly different from the factual definition.  I felt that the clue could have made some reference to the legal nature of the entry as there must be many charities that help poor Americans in some way.

 

PUBLIC DEFENDER (In America, defence lawyer engaged at public expense to represent those unable to pay legal fees)

 

5

 

Woman in publishing raised some dessert ideas (8)

 

EDITRESS (hidden word in [some] DESSERT IDEAS)

 

EDITRESS (female EDITor; woman in publishing)

 

6

 

Agree with rise of European music label (6)

 

(E [European] + DECCA [record label]) reversed (with rise of; down clue)

(ACCED E)<

ACCEDE (agree to)

 

8

 

Popular rogue lost, catching hollow ball in a way that can’t be justified (14)

 

IN (popular) + DEMON (rogue) + (STRAY [lost] containing [catching] BL [the letters remaining in BALL when the central letters AL are hollowed out])

IN DEMON STRA (BL) Y

INDEMONSTRABLY (in a way that can’t be justified)

 

13

 

Retire, leaving a northern Italian city (5)

 

TURN IN (retire to bed) excluding (leaving) N (one of the two Ns – the indefinite article is used to signify just one N is removed)

 

TURIN (city in northern Italy)

 

15

 

In inverted tenth of population, special quality is drawn out (8)

 

IT (indefinable crowning quality; special quality) contained in (in) (DECILE [any of the ten equal groups into which the items in a frequency distribution can be divided; one tenth of the population] reversed [inverted; down clue])

ELIC (IT) ED<

ELICITED (drawn out)

 

18

 

Puritan who gets teased in loo / lav?  I’m shocked (8)

 

Anagram of (shocked) LOO LAV I’M

MALVOLIO*

MALVOLIO (character in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night of whom it is said that sometimes he is a kind of Puritan)

 

20

 

Quiet shelter erected that is for island on the Thames (3,3)

 

(P [piano; quiet] + LEE [shelter]) reversed (erected; down clue) + I.E. (id est; that is)

(EEL P)< IE

EEL PIE (island on the Thames at Twickenham)

 

21

 

Perhaps Irish girl that’s impressive astride horse (6)

 

OOH (expressing pleasure; that’s impressive) containing (astride) NAG (horse, especially a small or inferior one)

OO (NAG) H

OONAGH (Irish girl’s name)

 

23

 

Drinker‘s shameful display taking top off (4)

 

BLUSH (red glow on the skin caused by shame; shameful display) excluding (taking .. off) the first letter (top) B

 

LUSH (drinker)

 

14 comments on “Independent 9180 / Nestor”

  1. ?Quite hard and took longer than it should have but worth the effort, particularly to get the Nina in the end, even if I couldn’t then take the massive intellectual leap required to realise that the words all referred to ‘corners’. Lots of good clues including those for RHEUMATIC FEVER, RESISTANCE COIL, SEGA and OONAGH, with my favourite being EARL GREY – didn’t know ‘Rosie Lee’ as rhyming slang for ‘tea’, so educational as well. EEL PIE Island was also new to me. It’s one of the joys (maybe) of the digital age that you can become an instant Internet expert on whatever subject you like, and Eel Pie Island should now be a fascinating conversation starter (perhaps).

    Thanks to Nestor and Duncan

  2. Great puzzle-tough but worth the effort. Thanks for Blog, Duncan as I missed Doc being a dwarf.I spotted the corners after seeing Hyde park and Amen and this actually helped finish the puzzle.

  3. A nice Nina, and nicely spotted. I’d have assumed AMEN CORNER referred to the location in the City near St. Paul’s Cathedral. There are several holy-sounding addresses around there that refer to chants traditionally sung by monks processing around the area on the feast of Corpus Christi.

    I feel you’re a little harsh on 4D, weak though it perhaps was. The word “charge” is supposed to point you in the desired legal direction, I think.

  4. Relatively straightforward I thought, tho I didn’t get the Nina, sure as I was it was there somewhere. Congratulate me: this is my first on-line puzzle & while I was irritated at first with some of the on-screen navigation – I’m on the Kindle, which is bit cramped – in the end I found I was entering faster than on paper & enjoying it.The help buttons spoiled things at one point, but I’ve learned to leave ’em alone.
    Thanks to Nestle & Duncan. A milestone passed.

  5. Don’t know your Amen Corner, Duncan, but I do possess Mildred Bailey singing “Shoutin’ in That Amen Corner”.

    I spent some time contemplating the invention and ingenuity which gave rise to this puzzle. Jaw dropping stuff.

  7. But while I’m on…
    The on-line puzzle – on the Kindle at any rate – doesn’t show the name of the compiler, which is discourteous, contrary to the spirit of the Indie Xword and – most importantly – fatal on occasion to one’s ability to solve clues.
    Re-instate it at once.

  8. GB @7. Your Kindle must use a different website to my laptop, which clearly shows the setter’s name at the top of the puzzle and again in the list of puzzles from which to choose.
    Thanks to s & b.

  9. I’m guessing that GB@7 is using the Daily Edition app which does not show the name of the compiler and that RT@8 is using the website crossword solver which does. I use the DE app as the web version is impossibly slow and clunky, presumably because of my poor broadband speed. I endorse the plea for the name of the compiler to be shown in the app.

    Thanks Duncan for explaining SEGA and the reference to “sonic”. Not being a gamer this was a bit too specialised for me. Thanks to Nestor too.

  10. This took some figuring out but I eventually spotted the nina which helped me to finish. Favourites were UNDOCK (for the lateral thinking, [A]donis = [h]unk) and NERVE (for its surface).

    Thanks, Nestor, for a well-crafted puzzle, and Duncan, for the excellent (as usual) blog.

  11. Jason@3/Duncan: like you I at first thought 4D weak, but then re-read it as a public defender rendering an accused free of [a] charge.

    Thanks to setter and blogger – and to Eimi, who is seeing us out in style with a string of first-rate puzzles.

  12. Great fun – as always with Nestor. I too spotted the lovely Ninas just in time to assist with my last two entries in Pooh corner, (DUNLOP and OONAGH) thus enabling my LOI – RESISTANCE COIL. I love it when the Nina has added value. This is a clever setter with an eye for the solver’s art – not just on his own aggrandisement.
    I also add my thanks to Eimi; I never solve online, partly because I don’t trust my own impatience against the temptation of the ‘cheat’ facility of which I hear so much when the best puzzles are discussed. So my Indy solving may soon wane – sadly.
    Yes, Nestor, you’re bloody wonderful – and Duncan (I’ve said this before) your blogs are superb.
    Thanks all.

  14. allan – I hope to, certainly. I have not found it easy in the past (to do with not having Java something-or-other installed) and have no certainty about the future of the crosswords when the presses are switched off – and the staff is downsized. On reflection, my observation seems more pessimistic than it should; I did say “may” rather than “will” so was perhaps trusting to do as you suggest.
    In any case, your concern is heart-warming.
    All the best…..

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