Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of April 10, 2016
Ah joy! Another Rosa. My clue of the week is 19d (HERALDRY) which is one of the more difficult clues and one with a fine cryptic definition. Other favourites, all very clever clues, are 4a (HANGOVER), 21a (AXLE), 29a (KIDDED), 21a (KINSEY) and 5d (ACNE). As happens once in a while, I found a clue with two plausible answers, 27d (BILL/TELL) — and unfortunately started out by entering the wrong one.
ACROSS
1 Stylish girl wearing cardy inside out (6)
CLASSY – LASS (girl) in C[ard]Y
4 Relic of Callaghan government (8)
HANGOVER – hidden word
9 Gloomy heart of silent Yemeni city (6)
LEADEN – [si]LE[nt] + ADEN (Yemini city)
10 Granny entering old shed occasionally (2,3,3)
ON AND OFF – O (old) + NAN (granny) + DOFF (shed)
12 Salesmen about to ring hotel for beverage (8)
SPRITZER – RITZ (hotel) in REPS (salesmen) backwards
13 Too close to Java Sea’s heaving surface (2,4)
AS WELL – [jav]A + SWELL (sea’s heaving surface)
15 Excellent female intentions (4)
AIMS – AI (excellent, i.e. A1) + MS (female)
16 Ancient city square, very hot after fourth of June (7)
NINEVEH – NINE (square) + V (very) + [jun]E + H (hot)
20 Ham and egg have effect on retired vicar (7)
OVERACT – O (egg) + REV (vicar) backwards (retired) + ACT (have effect)
21 Part of chassis finally broke on A40 (4)
AXLE – A (A) + XL (40) + [brok]E
25 John and Mary ignoring male singer (6)
CANARY – CAN (john) + [m]ARY
26 Cut me a lilac bloom (8)
CAMELLIA – anagram of ME A LILAC
28 What gummy Cockney might say he’d like? A drink! (8)
APERITIF – Cockney homophone (“a pair of teeth”). We had another APERITIF clue in last weekend’s puzzle.
29 Gave birth as nanny pulled leg (6)
KIDDED – double/cryptic definition (with ‘nanny’ referring to a she-goat)
30 Ravel composing elegant introduction to nocturne (8)
ENTANGLE – anagram of ELEGANT N[octurne]
31 Deviant sin described by leading sexologist (6)
KINSEY – anagram of SIN in KEY (leading)
DOWN
1 Giant speaks lovingly about large girl (8)
COLOSSAL – L (large) in COOS (speaks lovingly) + SAL (girl)
2 Discounter introduces reductions, perhaps (8)
ANAGRAMS – cryptic definition
3 Some Aussies take afternoon nap (6)
SIESTA – hidden word
5 Eruptions of Etna oddly about to flow backwards (4)
ACNE – E[t]N[a] + CA (about, i.e. circa) all backwards
6 Grand existential suffering starts to enervate ruthless thug (8)
GANGSTER – G (grand) + ANGST (existential suffering) + E[nervate] R[uthless]
7 No end of passion in extremely strong woman (6)
VIOLET – VIOLE[n]T (no end of passioN in extremely strong)
8 Leaf of fantastic dwarf tree seen from below (6)
RIFFLE – ELF (fantastic dwarf) + FIR (tree) all backwards (seen from below)
11 Men taking part in functions set up for OAPs (7)
SENIORS – OR (men, i.e. Other Ranks) in SINES (functions) backwards (set up)
14 Amazing art deco feature at Butlins (7)
REDCOAT – anagram of ART DECO
17 State is escalating extremely Orwellian hate (8)
AVERSION – AVER (state) + IS (is) backwards + O[rwellia]N
18 Former policemen consuming MDMA and mushrooms (8)
EXPLODES – EX (former) + E (MDMA) in PLODS (policemen)
19 Almost entirely unemotional female going to the top in arms business (8)
HERALDRY – HER (female) + AL[l] DRY (almost entirely unemotional) with a lovely cryptic definition
22 Eighth of month, a famous day in 1945 (6)
OCTAVE – OCT (month) + A (a) + VE (famous day in 1945, i.e. Victory in Europe Day)
23 Vet doing away with quiet little creature (6)
INSECT – INS[p]ECT (vet doing away with P (quiet))
24 Twins perhaps overturned car (6)
GEMINI – EG (perhaps) backwards + MINI (car)
27 Announce William to his friends (4)
BILL – double definition. I created some difficulty for myself in the bottom-left corner by initially entering a wrong answer for this clue. That answer was TELL (referring to the fellow with the overture) which I think is equally plausible.
Thanks Pete and Rosa.
Yet another thoroughly enjoyable puzzle from this setter.
I particularly liked HANGOVER too – great surface, as well as the triple ANAGRAM at 2dn and the amusing homophone APERITIF.
Having got the latter before looking at 27dn, I didn’t suffer your problem Pete so just about a perfect puzzle for me.
Never heard of 16a, didn’t get 29a, never heard of Kinsey either. Don’t understand 2d, so fairly normal for me trying to complete Rosa’s puzzles, gave up and had a glass of wine. Thanks Pete for explaining the clues.
Hi Karen, DISCOUNTER, INTRODUCES and REDUCTIONS are anagrams of each other.
I hope the wine was a good one – helps the brain.
Hamish: Yes, HANGOVER is very fine too — should have included it in my list.
Karen: I had heard of Nineveh but could not bring it to mind and used a look-up tool to find it when solving the clue. Alfred Kinsey was one of the first people to do scholarly research on human sexuality; there is a decent film about him called “Kinsey” with Liam Neeson. Classing 2d as a cryptic definition may not be quite accurate. Cheers!
Defeated by 2d where the clue made no sense, 8d and the never heard of 16a .
I knew Nineveh because at my primary school (nearly seventy years ago) we had to recite this poem http://allpoetry.com/Cargoes by John Masefield from memory.
First time I have used it since. Funny what sticks.
I don’t recall ever coming across that poem but can bring to mind lines, maybe even a few full verses, of poems that I did learn and recite in those far-off days. “Welcome, wild North-easter!/Shame it is to see/Odes to every zephyr;/Ne’er a verse to thee.” That taught me what a zephyr is and I may well not have heard the word since.
Pete: as for zephyr there is a lovely bit of irony in Pope where he satirises poets who use artificial language to sound more impressive, but live in squalor ‘lulled by soft zephyrs through the broken window pane’.
Thanks Rosa and Pete
What a cracking crossword … just what we have come to expect from this setter. The misdirection with some of her definition words was excellent – 13a, 20a, 8d, 18d, 19d, 23d. Thought that the triple anagram at 2d was clever and the homophone at 28a was a scream.
Had to reacquaint myself with the Butlins Redcoats (from another crossword).
Finished with the tricky SPRITZER and the last crossing pair SENIORS and NINEVEH which were made more difficult by having mostly vowels in the limited crossers. It was with great satisfaction that I saw the last two completed !
Great clues – clever but fair too. Still mostly unfinished until I saw the answers here. Thanks for the explanations.
2 down is genius, Just saw the explanation from Hamish. The explanation from Pete MacLean flummoxed me. Brillian!
My apologies to all for not giving a fuller explanation of 2d (ANAGRAMS). Sorry.
Thanks Hamish, now I understand.